KW-28 One up, one down.

Finally, the tomatoes join the potatoes

After last week’s surprisingly upbeat newsletter, at the start of writing this one, I’m feeling a little blue. So I’m going to make myself a nice cup of tea, and try to talk myself into a better mood.

The big banana plant used to be in the little pot. The little banana plant is the baby of the big one. To the left are two Paulowina tormentosas. There was a big idea with paulowinas this year that sorta fizzled out somehow. I don’t really know how. But we have two to plant now, so that’s excellent!

This shouldn’t be too arduous, because at least I know what’s wrong, and I am good at precisely two things in this life. One is working in the garden, the other is trying to see the positive in a person, a situation, or a problem. Many of you will probably have a moment’s smile to yourself over that apparently wildly inaccurate statement of self, because you know me as a miserable, grumpy old bugger. But, you’d be wrong.

Yes, I am present in this time and space as a doomer, but I am a happy one. Seeing positives is a consequence of my rock solid belief that humans are created perfect. You might be surprised how many people use me extensively as their emotional support Pirate. There aren’t many things I know as rewarding as being useful. Sometimes, I wonder what it would be like to be the person people shared happy news with, but we know what curiosity does to cats.

Last week was hot. And then at the weekend, my back gave up on me. I was riddling compost into my best seed trays when a tongue of warm meat slid out from between two lower vertebra. If anything moved, I expect it was fractions of millimetres. But it felt exactly like a flat, round slice of hot rubber being extruded from between two moulding plates in a rubber-glove factory.

I let out a bit of a noise, and took to my bed. I’m getting up every hour or so to have a walk around, and tag-teaming paracetamol and ibuprofen.

Sweetcorns bigger than a pirate! Fairly soon, they will be bing enough to give some to the pigs. Currently, historically, and for a while in the future, all paid subscriptions on this (and the other) newsletter go directly and exclusively to pig food. In the months when I can supplement them from the garden, there is a chance that there will be some left over. I’ll detail every week in the newsletter if this is the case, and what I do with the money. It will all be essential barracks stuff. Please consider taking out a paid subscription.

And so the source of the uncheerfulness is the unproductivity of the last week. The back is only pain. That’s the thing about pain. It doesn’t kill you. It just hurts. If I could work through it, I would. But seeing as I can hardly walk, and certainly can’t bend, and almost everything around here involves walking and bending with 25 kilos of something-or-others in your possession, I physically can’t do a damn thing.

However, today is perceptibly better than yesterday, and tomorrow, it might all be gone. Also, we had a tiny amount of rain at exactly the point where I really couldn’t water, and this week is looking to be cooler than last week. So, I know that I will be back on that horse soon, and I can use this opportunity to catch up on some digital stuff.

The first sweet chestnut in the world (on the barracks). It probably won’t be edible, but it’s nice that the very first tree I planted here is at least trying to contribute!

Which is mostly the collapse laboratory. You should definitely come! At least, please give me 5 minutes of your time to read about it and maybe give me your feedback. That would be lovely.

And with that, I think I am going to go back to bed.

I should be fine pretty soon, so these are the things that I really have to do this week. It’s pretty exciting

The first tomato in the world (on the barracks) (this year). It’s supposed to be that colour! I’m going to eat it today.

• Harvest onions and garlic, and make plaits out of them

• Harvest wheat and rye and thresh and winnow them, and make corn dollies to give thanks to the spirits of the harvest.

• Plant trees. A minimum of two bird cherries and two paulowinas. But preferably all the trees I have

• Make lots of jam.

Until then, be excellent to each other

Much love, your

Pirate Ben

xoxo

Currently Reading:

If you want to read what I am reading (bearing I mind, I haven’t read it yet, it might be crap, you can click on the image to be taken to amazon under an affiliate link where I earn tuppence as well for the recommendation.