Done & dusted …

The end of an era 

I eluded to this being the year I step back from a lifetime in education of sorts. 

I qualified 45 1/2 years ago & my whole adult life has involved education in varied forms. I taught in mainstream with all the admin & extracurricular activities involved in that in several countries. 

I was asked to train rural women to work in nursery schools in the highlands of Lesotho & that is what I did. I wrote a programme & taught it to the rural ladies. When they went to the capital city for a training course, they were amazed to be given a copy of the one I had devised & they were so pleased to be ahead of the curve. It was in these rurals that I was invited into communities & homes that were suddenly thrust into a new way of living & we helped them make sense of it all. 

In England, my first jobs was working in libraries, helping out with all the usual jobs & the more unusual ones of story times etc, something that comes naturally. 

An opportunity to work in a university library came up & the academic setting was wonderful, not just doing the book part but also supporting students. There were times when their emotions & pressure got the better of them & a calmness was needed to restore their equilibrium. I decided against taking a Librarianship qualification & instead took a bridging course to be confident in the UK educational curriculum before returning to mainstream teaching for a while.  

Without wider support, teaching is difficult with a young family & a chance encounter with the Mum of one of the pupils I had taught at me on an independent path. 

An Elective Home Education tutor was needed for their community who don’t  traditionally transfer to secondary sco & I took on the role ‘until you find someone else’

My student numbers grew from the initial two to 36 weekly students, some in groups, some individually.  It was challenging to initially work out a system for the 4-18 year old age group but it soon settled into a great rhythm with flexibility on both sides for life’s challenges.

My tutoring bags were a regular feature in life - filled with all the things I need for each day, for different ages & stages.  

Some students stayed for a few years, some for their secondary years, others for their entire schooling, mortified at the thought that they would have a new teacher each year in school. 

It is an enormous privilege to work in people’s homes, in their private spaces, to be privacy to their lives, to know their extended family too. I have shared their joys of marriages, births & good fortune, but also the sadness of illnesses & death. 

Today my final students were the last of the 4 siblings that I have tutored for the last 19 years - a great chunk of all our lives. 

It is the right time to step away, to have time & energy to enjoy whatever time I have in retirement & to be thankful to my parents who encouraged me to education because, in their words, “you will always have a job!”. How right they were … 

The students & families kind words of appreciation is welcome, I am glad I have made a positive contribution along the way. 

Thank you for stopping by, it is appreciated 

Dee 📘📗🗓️📅📚

Growing some gifted gem squash seeds

 Gem squashes have to be close to the most loved Southern African vegetables. 

They are just larger than a tennis ball, their outer skin varies from being quite firm to a little softer. Their beautiful green hue is instantly recognisable & sought after. 

They are usually just cut in half then boiled in lightly salted water until the sweet yellow flesh can be poked with a fork. 

The seeds in the middle are scooped out then a small, or large, knob of butter is added with just salt & pepper. I have eaten them my whole life in Africa. This is an interesting UK article about them. 

However, they are not easily available in the UK which makes them even more special. 

My friend Liz gifted us each one last year when we met up in Ludlow with her & she said ‘keep the seeds & see if you can grow them.”

I did just that - cut them in half, scooped out the seeds prior to cooking to preserve them. I dried them on kitchen roll, rubbed off any dried bits & stored them in an envelope. 

About 8 weeks ago, I pushed the seeds into one of my raised planters, covered them & was delighted when some poked their heads up quite quickly. 

I grew them on until they were a little larger & it suddenly struck me - I have never grown them before so I researched their habits. 

Ooops, being squash, they trail along the ground or can be trained up a support once they have developed their climbing stems. 

I topped up 2 troughs that were spare, planting 3 in each & 3 in the rhubarb tub. 

How to support them? I positioned them mid garden next to the red robin bush with its multi stems & then used garden twine to build up a support between the stems. With the troughs on either side, I am hoping it can be trained upwards but in this part of the garden, they can spread along the ground if they prefer. 

I was growing some for daughter but they have put on a growth spurt so were moved to another trough where they have settled in well & are growing vigorously. 

Some of the other plants were planted in the herb troughs along the side of the house 

My count is about 14 very healthy plants, some in full sun, others in semi-shade, all looking well. 

I will keep you updated & am feeling hopeful. If you have grown them, any suggestions will be welcome.

Stop by again for an update,

Dee 🪏🪴🏡👩‍🌾

Walking along the Stretton Aquaduct ....

While out walking along the Shropshire Union Canal, we walked up to the Stretton Aquaduct that passes over the A5 / Watling street road, which is the old Roman Road. 
 

The Stretton Aquaduct was designed in 1832 by the famous Scottish engineer Thomas Telford.   This info from Wiki 

The aqueduct has five sections, each 6 feet 6 inches (1.98 m) long, held together by bolts and supported by six cast iron arch ribs, each in two sections and joined at the centre of the arch.^[2] It was cast by William Hazledine of Shrewsbury.^[2] The trough is 21 feet (6.4 m) wide with an 11 feet (3.4 m) wide channel of water and a towpath on either side.^[2] The Staffordshire blue brick abutments have stone dressings.^[3]

During 1961–62, the road under the aqueduct was lowered by about 4 feet (1.2 m) to allow taller vehicles to pass underneath.

We pass under it often on the A5 where the road was lowered to allow for taller trucks to use it. When passing along the road, you sometimes see a canal boat but not too often so travellers do not always realise what the purpose of it is. 

However, it is a fabulous walk both ways - to Brewood or to Wheaton Aston. We are blessed with these lovely spaces to enjoy. I hope you have enjoyed this too, 

Dee 🚶‍♀️🛳️🌉 🌳🪾

Come for a beautiful Sunday canal walk ...

 

The Shropshire Union canal winds it way through our county going north & south of us. It was an important water way, moving good around safely, especially fragile wares from The Potteries. 

It is an important tourist route with hire boats using it & taking advantage of local pubs when they tie up for the night. 

My choice of a Sunday walk - the canals nearby & we choose a section we had not walked previously, though we had walked part of it. 

Green bathing is a term now used to apply to spending time in nature & the cuttings along our canals are often deep & this time of the year they are bathed in green light from the trees along the cuttings. 

What absolute bliss to walk the canal path from Wheaton Aston to the Stretton Aquaduct that the A5 / Watling street traffic passes under.  It is a highpoint & is a great walk. 

We turned back at the Aquaduct instead of carrying on to Brewood, a walk we do quite often but our car would have been in several miles away. 

A heron followed along, perching on what looked like an abandoned canal boat, perhaps that is his preferred roosting place. We encountered the same heron further down when he moved up the opposite bank to a high spot. 

The boat yard was an interesting view - canal boats have to have their metal hulls inspected every few years 

They have to be repainted 'blacked' to keep them water tight. 

There were some moored up that were in bad order, going nowhere. However the boat yard was busy with a boat hull being sanded. 

These spaces are beautiful & functional, we passed a few other walkers & several runners who were enjoying the tree shade along the canals. 

I hope you have enjoyed the walk with me, thank you for visiting, 

Dee  🚶‍♀️🛳️🚤🪾🌲🌳

Come for a historic tour of Tanners wine merchants ...

 

Last Autumn, I convinced hubby to join me for an evening of folklore at a local English Heritage property of Boscobel House & what an educational evening it was with fabulous company & so much information.

I saw the same fabulous speaker mentioning an evening tour at Tanners Wine Merchants in Shrewsbury town.

I just knew it would be another fabulous evening. 

I pass this impressive shop on my walk up the hill in to town when I visit which is often. I always admire their beautiful windows & the impressive building. 

However, from the street, it just looks like a long building, no hint of what lies behind the elegant façade. 

We were greeted with a complimentary glass of fizz on arrival in a room with the most beautiful leather books. 

It was obviously the clerks room in times gone by with the rows of leather order books, huge fat volumes with the year etc embossed on the spine.  

I could smell the leather when I walked in. 

I have always had a fondness for old books, particularly beautiful ones. 

I peeked in to one & as expected, beautiful handwriting filled the page. 

Alix lead us through to a vast room with enormous vats / barrels set on a floor of worn railway sleepers. 

It was much cooler in here & the original items were everywhere about. 

We then proceeded through the rambling buildings that you would not know are there when passing on the street. 

Enormous rum barrels, all the associated paraphernalia wine merchants would need, beautifully preserved in this space that has been used by the same Tanners family for generations. 

Alix is a natural speaker with an engaging manner & vast knowledge so time passes quickly in her company. 

Our tiny group of 20 was perfect because it felt intimate & not crowded or rushed. 

There are many cellars, rooms at different temperatures & spaces to store wine in this cavernous building. 

We made our way up stairs to the top room that I recognised from the 1984 version of Charles Dicken's 'A Christmas Carol' that was filmed in Shrewsbury. 

This top room had been the offices of Mr Fizziwig & it is where the Christmas party scene was filmed. 

The beams in the room are simply stunning, huge shaped cruck beams & the tiny panes of glass in the windows overlooking the high street. 

A real joy to be in a space that is familiar from the movie. 

The cellars with the traditional wine barrels was authentic; the barrels are having their regular rehydration & care where they are stored in the vaulted, cool space. 

It was over all too soon, the evening flew by in great company & we left, our love of history whetted by the interesting information of one of Shrewsbury's fabulous buildings & the  trade still carried out in the rambling space. 

I hope you have enjoyed the evening with me too, stop by again soon, 

Dee 🍷🍾🛢️

The Norman Parish church of Aston Eyre

While out in the Shropshire countryside on the way back from our fabulous walk at Dudmaston Hall, we passed the village church of Aston Eyre, one we had not stopped at before. 

There are no graves around the church which is quite unusual  but apparently a dispute between The Lord of the Manor, Fitz Aer & the Monks of Shrewsbury Abbey at Morville Priory resulted in all the burials taking place at Morville.   

Knowing nothing of the church, we ventured inside. 

The lovely church information brochures filled us in on the history which always makes the visits more worthwhile because you look out for the details you would otherwise miss.  It is a grade II listed building, much of it dating back to C12. 

There has been a church here for almost 900 years - let that time period sink in. The church was gifted to the villagers of Eston by the Lord of the Manor. Robert Fitz Aer in 1132. At that time, King Stephen was on the throne & there was great civil unrest in the area. 

The small church was taken over by the Benedictine Priory at Morville & used as a Chapel of Ease for the monks living there. 

It became a village church again in the time of Henry VIII who put an end to the power of the monasteries.

The Tympanum over the South Door of the Church is the best example of Norman (1066) carving in Shropshire. It depicts Christs entry in to Jerusalem. He is seen riding on an ass, to his left a bearded man with a young ass, to his right an older man spreading out palm branches. 

The South Door with its long iron hinges has the date 1636 on one of them. It is an impressive door, solid & you appreciate how many thousands of parishioners have passed through it. 

 The Nave has four Norman windows, and an impressive Transitional Chancel arch. 

It is a really peaceful space that has seen worship for almost 900 years, the sense of history is humbling. 

I am so pleased that we did this unexpected stop & could appreciate this space. 

I hope you have enjoyed the visit with me. 

Dee 🙏⛪️🔔

A woodland walk ...

On a free morning, I needed to pop in to the local Shropshire town of Bridgnorth which is always good for a mooch while picking up healthy nuts. 

It sits high above the river Severn & has old castle remains & the walls & gates in to town. 

The town has some beautiful black & white buildings with the interesting windows & attic rooms. 

We had a wander around but our mind was set on a countryside walk at Dudmaston Hall nearby. 

Nearby is the National Trust estate of Dudmaston Hall that I visited earlier this year with my cousin.  

We decided on the Dingle Walk through the woods to the lake that is near the house.  

Being there early meant we had the woods to ourselves, it was lovely & cool under the tree canopy, our only companions being butterflies, birds & blue dragonflies darting about.

The walk brings you in next to the boat house on the lake. 

It was used recently in the tv series filmed around this area called 'Murder before Evensong'  along with the nearby village of Worfield. 

The boathouse was unfortunately locked so we could not peek inside but it has the most stunning twisted chimney stack & the lake is really delightful. 

When I visited the house recently, we took an art tour & looked at the work of Anthony Twentyman whose large sculptures are visible from the room in the house towards the lake. 

Our walk brought us to it & it is interesting shape looking out over the lake with a second one slightly higher up on the lawn terraces. 

The view from inside the house towards the lake sculptures & of the view back to the house. 

From the lake, the view up to the house is so interesting with a flowing curve of purple lavender, then a huge bed of roses alongside the house. 

Next to that is a riotous bed of colourful summer flowers that is too beautiful to ignore. That is how summer planting should be - unashamedly bold. 

This deep border filled to the brim with colourful plants is such a delight. It is bold, colourful & also scented; a real delight & an example of great summer planting. 

It is always good to browse a NT bookshop where gifted books are sold to raise money - I bought a lovely one on Kirstenbosch gardens in the Cape for a mere £2. 

We enjoyed coffee & sandwiches in the beautiful orchard tea gardens before taking leave of the lovely estate again. 

We are so fortunate to have these fabulous places within easy reach, I will visit again to take in the house & art at a leisurely pace. 

I hope you have enjoyed my visit too, do stop by again soon. 

Dee 🪾🌳🚤🚶‍♀️🚶‍♂️🥪

Learning to draw botanicals ...

 

I am a life long learner, always willing to try something new because you never know if you will like it or be any good unless you try it. 

I did a morning workshop with the lovely Emma to try out glass painting with my friend Ellie & what a great time we had.  I really liked her way of supporting people on the day. While there, I noticed a set of 4 workshops for Botanical drawing & I chatted to Emma before I left. I have not spent enough time drawing & so mine are rather basic, but that is why you seek out a workshop & a tutor to guide you through the process.

Even more delightful is that the 4 workshops are held in the stunning Shrewsbury library. I shared the long history in this blog post of the 450 years of Shrewsbury library. It is a fascinating place, pop over & read the post. 

A delightful group of 10 of us ladies gathered in the Darwin room of the library for the workshops. Some took art lessons, some painting lessons & then at least half of us were like me - enthusiastic beginners,  & we skilfully learnt the basics of drawing, pen & pencil work each week, making noticeable progress through the stages until our drawings look very botanical  & pleasing. 

Emma's knowledge & skills certainly had a lot to do with our progress because she suggested improvements with great patience so that we were supported & enthusiastic about it. 

It certainly has made me happier to have a go at botanicals because of the skills we have learnt, I know there is heaps more to learn but practice is the key to learning any new skill. The muscle memory is important, remembering the skills & applying them. 

I have signed up for another 4 week course / workshop in November which will look at winter botanicals. That will be very handy in the run up to the festive season when darker days keep you inside more.

While out in the forests last weekend, I picked various leaf shapes & pressed them as a reference because you look at leaves but don't really see the shapes, veins & details you need when drawing. I pressed them in a magazine & it is a great reference to actually look at them closely. 

I have been spending time practising my drawings, it is not natural yet & I still have to refer to the drawings we did with Emma, but it is a lot quicker & more defined which is hugely satisfying. 

Several of the ladies commented that they will join another set of workshops & I hope they do because it was a lovely group of women. 

Do tell if you indulge your passions or curiosity & try something new. Thank you for stopping by, it is appreciated.

Dee 🖌️👩‍🎨✍️💐🌷🥀🌺

Home grown salad leaves

 

Some years back, I bought 3 my elho raised planters with their clear covers & they are in constant use on the patio along the back of the house. 

They were especially useful in covid times when there was a short supply of salads etc

I took out about half the soil & replaced it with fresh potting compost recently, then sprinkled various salad leaves in 2 of the planters, alongside my camomile that is still going from last season. 

The third planter has a variety of celery, spring onions & a gem squash that needs tidying up still.

They are covered to prevent snails & birds feasting on the leaves. 

I treat the young leaves as cut & come again salad leaves - just snip what I need with a kitchen scissors, wash, spin & enjoy. 

There is a great variety of leaves & flavours which I enjoy in salads & even better that they are fresh & readily available. 

Do you have anything growing? Tell all, 

Dee 👨‍🌾🪏🪴🫜