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re-wilding for the jilted generation     Hi    Woke up and didn't feel quite so tired and sore, grabbed my bag and a coffee and did the drive and the pallet find and the cheeky hashbrown from mc donalds in excellent time because 6am on a sunday is beautifully quiet till I was stomping the pedals like a rally driver blasting the prodigy   I did the rounds and the rounds were good, had to trim some bramble runners from trees and such, did the bird balls and bath, time to check the laven.... https://i.imgur.com/vYjnrwl.gifv Oh you callous cold hearted lavender munching motherfucker one day I shall discern your habits and wreak such revenge as would shatter your conception of misery and sorrow  Grabbed stone from the failed heather project (much like my ex) and some from the construction pile and secured the lavender some more but I think I need to go drastic https://i.imgur.com/NZfuenh.gifv https://i.imgur.com/4NVY8iV.gifv https://i.imgur.com/Kd4eRXl.gifv https://i.imgur.com/36HeKRJ.gifv https://i.imgur.com/jg8sBlO.gifv I was then wandering awhile and bug watching  Noticed my pallet piles were unruly so I started pottering around that area and then https://i.imgur.com/DcDqXDK.gifv Well I just happened to start mocking up my stove, but then lizards-   Only one stuck around by thinking they were hid under a leaf. Such practical nature can only mean one thing-     It's very rough stack because of the leftover mortar and I didn't bring a brick hammer so no half bricks yet, but it stands well enough regardless to go to next stage.  It's designed to act like a rocket stove- feed in fuel at 1, primary fresh air comes from 2, fire happens at 3, secondary fresh air is fed in at 4 in a slightly bulged chamber, hopefully at 5 we get some secondary combustion and 6 isn't just a funnel of thick smoke.   I used a pallet to get an idea of size on the base, I'm going to lay it so the weight is towards the centre of the slab I laid then cover the rest of the concrete in paving slabs or tile   Well thats how they make more bugs I guess https://i.imgur.com/Li9IOPB.gifv I asked these guys about it but they said my parents should have explained https://i.imgur.com/cqBzYsm.gifv These tastycrunchy bits of rice grow into ants. You want ants? That's how you get ants.   A good day, few bits done and lots of enjoying the sun and the wildlife, then home for a few beers and a curry- I'm going to pay for today in sore tomorrow but it was worth it  More soon!
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Jul 21, 2019 20:42
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Beeeees! Lovely update, as is your wont. It's a shame you can't get a surveillance camera for that poor, poor lavender.
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Jul 22, 2019 00:56
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Clearly the solution to your lavender problem is just to plant a fuckload more of it, and hope at least one survives. Just like nature intended! Or wrap the drat plants with barbed wire. Maybe use a tomato cage covered in it? Those things have got to be useful for something..
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Jul 22, 2019 09:17
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xcheopis posted:Beeeees! Lovely update, as is your wont. Bees on Wheat posted:Clearly the solution to your lavender problem is just to plant a fuckload more of it, and hope at least one survives. Just like nature intended! Ta I'm planning on buying more, and one of the cuttings from the one that got entirely destroyed has rooted- will just have to get some more slabs sorted and potentially fence it like I do fruit bushes till it gets established. I think it's the roots or soil more than the actual lavender. I heard back from my doctor about the tests https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3DyIIS-jCpE And they say not so great things cause the bartonellosis is hitting my liver and kidney function, they are worried due to me having serious liver and kidney issues a few years back from an antibiotic reaction and so the answer is more blood tests and wait and see how I do. gently caress. More soon.
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Jul 23, 2019 09:37
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All the best, Dan! Hope you will get better soon.
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Jul 24, 2019 11:22
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Loki Kunti posted:All the best, Dan! Thanks- I'm working on it pump up the  I might be ill, but I can still hang with the dirtiest dudes in town     https://i.imgur.com/nYYPvJG.gifv https://i.imgur.com/Fk6BslO.gifv It is how it is   This success of this trip was all predicated on the tyre on this decade old wheelbarrow actually inflating and working  Fortune smiles on the brave- fortunately she also sometimes grins at the stupid, and it worked   Which was good cause I didn't really have the energy to carry this in normally. 3 bags sand, 1 cement and 1 stone sets me up nicely for brick laying and such next time. Wheelbarrow won't take many more loads like that though- it felt distinctly shonky on the steering by the third run and I think it's the rusty frame dying. https://i.imgur.com/px7TYVY.gifv   We fed and watered the birds and went round the rounds and chucked some water on a tree too.  This served as a good reminder I need to research growing some edible mushrooms from spores  My pond level expert says this is "really pretty low" and while I'm not an expert myself (he poked it with a stick and everything), I would tend to agree   https://i.imgur.com/kXUfeQm.gifv Happy I got the bits delivered and even happier for just hanging around down there a bit.  At home we recently pulled another bucket of spuds  Technically onions can be grown year round so these old seeds get a shot at glory in a container  I cooked a bunch of my recent crop into an onion and garlic soup and can probably be found by anyone in the south east of england with a nose   I tried getting pictures that express how the mass of triffidmato is developing but it's just a formless mass of green and flowers. I can't find the frame I tied them to apart from a glimpse at the base- lessons learned for the future, 2-3 plants would have been good here, not 8. Oh well!  I really can't wait till these are ready- more soon!
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Jul 25, 2019 08:24
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DesperateDan posted:I heard back from my doctor about the tests Ah poo poo, hope you get on the mend soon. DesperateDan posted:https://i.imgur.com/nYYPvJG.gifv These are amazingly soothing to watch, the videos are a great addition
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Jul 25, 2019 21:17
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DesperateDan posted:I tried getting pictures that express how the mass of triffidmato is developing but it's just a formless mass of green and flowers. Pretty sure that means it's doing great!
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Jul 28, 2019 19:45
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Niric posted:Ah poo poo, hope you get on the mend soon. Thanks- I'm doing my best to rest up when I can, and I really like how the videos express how things are down there- soothing. bbcisdabomb posted:Pretty sure that means it's doing great! I'm just hoping to not get murdered by it before devouring some of its children tbqh pink floyd ain't got poo poo on me   https://i.imgur.com/QQLfSHQ.gifv Ey oop.  Brought down some more stuff   Then we moved some other stuff 'wot I already brought down, and we can get stuck in  Lay it out  Pencil it in   Lay a bunch of bricks badly https://i.imgur.com/XtLRMMy.gifv Nice to have him smashing something that he's actually allowed to for a change- our half bricks stand ready. https://i.imgur.com/weEIL3K.gifv https://i.imgur.com/5IXKz9k.gifv We obviously did the rounds too, no slackers here.   Grape going ape Imagine there's a picture of 8 woodstained bits of wood that were painted today and are gonna be table legs- just above this. No, not like that. Different. Yeah, that's more like it- badly painted and wonkily cut. Ready for anything though! https://i.imgur.com/6kAbKzz.gifv Finish up with a few slabs with special attention to a bit of pointing work  4 courses done, 10 remain. It looked a lot worse before I did the pointing on the brickwork- I think my main fuckups happened around uneven amounts of mortar but if it functions for a few years without falling over it's a definite win.  Even remembered to leave a loose brick for an air intake. Hope my pencil is load bearing standard.  Then it was home time https://i.imgur.com/t58xKxN.gifv  At home we dug up more spuds  This spud plant strangely enough reflowered- no idea why and a quick search was fruitless but it was definitely flowering again on the same rootstock.  And planted peas and carrots where the spuds were https://i.imgur.com/wjcvFkI.gifv We observed the triffidmato  https://i.imgur.com/yDEAvDl.gifv And a cat https://i.imgur.com/jkmyoVV.gifv And some bees worshipping tomatoes. More soon!
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Jul 29, 2019 21:58
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another brick in the   Greetings goons https://i.imgur.com/DEK9JGx.gifv https://i.imgur.com/DO6JAvv.gifv Lots of bugs around today  Even dragonflies, but they are very hard to shoot  Brought some poo poo in  Levelled up a bird feeder https://i.imgur.com/HJSW9Og.gifv The watering of the birds seemed to take ages today, very important because  Pond dry now. Well. Muddy.    Fruit doing well https://i.imgur.com/YqLbK8K.gifv Got cracking on removing a brick https://i.imgur.com/sT4mFhd.gifv Then made some mortar up  And then had a really frustrating bricklaying session where I hosed up lots and then lots more- ended up undoing a whole course twice to redo.   The main issue was me regulating the mortar depth and width this time- made the courses I laid today larger than the base layers. Learning process. If worst comes to worst, I have a plan to make a form around the lower sections and coat it in cement A decent days bricking and the chimney structure will be done. I had to take it super easy today so that was all I really managed despite spending a big chunk of the day- was nice to be there a long time but annoying because I want to be doing more and feel held back.  Back at home I'm eating an apple every day and saving the seeds for next years efforts     https://i.imgur.com/RIZzrBg.gifv And everyday check the triffidmatoes and their acolytes- soon will be the reckoning, despite my efforts to restrain them https://i.imgur.com/rt0l9pU.gifv And every now and then I get a few moments peace in other places- more soon! DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 23:46 on Aug 3, 2019 |
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Aug 3, 2019 23:42
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Good progress as always. Do apple seeds need any special treatment to persuade them to grow?
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Aug 4, 2019 18:19
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Hoping to do another trip/update tomorrow- still getting pretty severe fatigue/soreness but I don't think I'm getting any worse. More blood tests in a few days and hopefully I can stop worrying about a return to staying in a hospital ward because that sucked.cakesmith handyman posted:Good progress as always. Do apple seeds need any special treatment to persuade them to grow? Ta Apple seeds need cold scarification, which is essentially putting them somewhere cold enough for long enough- this triggers reactions within the seed that then let it grow when it gets sufficient water/warmth. Some folk plant them in autumn and just wait, but I'm going to stick them at the back of the fridge for a few months again, and hope that with a whole bunch of seed I can get a dozen or so saplings- they have very little chance of growing "true" and most, if not all will make crab apples but they are useful for jam and pollination and food for animals/insects/birds
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Aug 7, 2019 08:43
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All in all it was all just bricks in the stove It started out like one of those days for sure   Howdy https://i.imgur.com/AnolreZ.gifv https://i.imgur.com/P9m0KBu.gifv It's still doing the summer thing here  After the supplies were laid in, the rounds were rounded and birds birbed. https://i.imgur.com/nzUyqxv.gifv And the plants got some water too  I readied the troops once more https://i.imgur.com/64VnJw7.gifv Watched over by easily scared baby deer   Started off with the lower air intake- some bricks and a slab to carry in the cold air from the lower vent   Then I got bricking, but the first course called for some secondary combustion air intakes- so I cut some from copper piping and did the things  I kept doing the things a bit and realised I was very hungry https://i.imgur.com/9CUI7SL.gifv Well that just won't do, to be quite honest    Following that I just plowed on and got it done- was slow going by the final course and I wanted to slack off but I am glad it's done with  And looking forward to cooking some food on it  Which is good timing, as there will be varied guests soon, and I have other chores waiting for other days ahead-   At home I have started on my tomatoes  And about 20 various plants are waiting for the ground to soften again https://i.imgur.com/KDJvbvj.gifv And it's quite enjoyable to just hang round out here in the other jungle https://i.imgur.com/0JZNOQW.gifv  More soon!
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Aug 8, 2019 22:15
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I'm facinated by people working poo poo out with nothing but hot/cold air and I like your wee chimney. I once saw a fridge built out of clay or something with absolutely no electronics and it blew my mind.
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Aug 8, 2019 23:34
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This is still life affirming stuff, well done. Hope you can kick that bastard bartonellosis soon enough.
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Aug 10, 2019 20:27
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Miftan posted:I'm facinated by people working poo poo out with nothing but hot/cold air and I like your wee chimney. I once saw a fridge built out of clay or something with absolutely no electronics and it blew my mind. I have detailed files on making an evaporative fridge and it would be a real bonus for camping down there- it's all just physical science when it comes to it spookygonk posted:This is still life affirming stuff, well done. Hope you can kick that bastard bartonellosis soon enough. Thankyou- I'm still feeling it but I'm managing to get a bit more done relative time dilation  Yo. This is gonna be much shorter than normal due to being very tired but I present an interesting new twist https://i.imgur.com/n1fYAf8.gifv https://i.imgur.com/tqrTS2K.gifv Started my day by raiding the henhouse  Looking at what I brought with me, can you guess what is coming? https://i.imgur.com/D3trNty.gifv It was still a bit windy   But I cut the living area https://i.imgur.com/AdlQyJw.gifv And I cut the meadow a bit for camping https://i.imgur.com/AI4LUlx.gifv And I cut all around every drat fruit bush and tree and all the pathways and even made some new paths https://i.imgur.com/rRwZVt9.gifv And after 3 full tanks I had done what I came to do, and dragged myself home.  More soon! Quite possibly very soon indeed!
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Aug 11, 2019 18:16
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gang aft aglay Well I had good intent and preparation https://i.imgur.com/e2w42QI.gifv   And a good initial execution of the grand plan https://i.imgur.com/4bx56qc.gifv The birds seemed very approving  I hosed up stupidly though  And while I fixed it  What had been a 30% chance of light rain for an hour or so in the afternoon quickly changed into this https://i.imgur.com/5NAgIld.gifv Which was like this in person, which is a bit too heavy for power drills and wood staining  So I'm back at home eating chips under a towel instead, and will bid you a farewell and a more soon
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Aug 12, 2019 14:35
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Shaping up to be a regular little park!
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Aug 13, 2019 00:29
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Are... are you trying to bring some chicks to the acres? Will the catguards approve? 
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Aug 13, 2019 03:32
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xcheopis posted:Shaping up to be a regular little park! After today it sure feels like it Spaced God posted:Are... are you trying to bring some chicks to the acres? drat the catguards it's the wife I'm worried about Oh wait, not that kind of chicks  I would love chickens and quail and geese down there, but that can't happen till I'm living there and can protect them from badger and fox etc one man and someone elses dog (and other folk too) https://i.imgur.com/42mI5fU.gifv Yo  It's not even really an update because today wasn't a proper work day, as you can see what with the drinks and cakes etc we had some guests https://i.imgur.com/yeQU1he.gifv https://i.imgur.com/mVkjjD1.gifv And an inaugural fire. It works really, really well- I'm quite proud of the lack of smoke once it's warmed up, the secondary combustion is happening and it cooks food fast for less fuel than before. And it didn't burn down, fall over or sink into a swamp. yet.  This is Cleo, by the way https://i.imgur.com/PCtrSsp.gifv She isn't regular staff but was very enthusiastic at helping   My guests helped thin down the blackberries- the sloes are already getting fat.    It was a fun day, https://i.imgur.com/nisLiGc.gifv Felt really good to have a bunch of people enjoying the land as I do- more soon!
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Aug 13, 2019 18:48
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Hooray for not burning down! 
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Aug 14, 2019 21:15
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Bees on Wheat posted:Hooray for not burning down! And hooray for burgers patatas bravas- the prequel  Okay so, despite me eating my apple a day I feel exhausted and sore all the time and the blood tests show my liver is still getting beat on quite significantly- current hypothesis is that I might have lyme disease- potentially in combo with bartonellosis (this would be extra bad). Gonna have to go have a whole bunch more vials of blood taken, but both are sneaky little fuckers and finding out which reliably and definitively will be difficult, as will killing them off. Fun!  https://i.imgur.com/xMKatFX.gifv But the spud picking is still relaxing, even though I'm now entirely exhausted from it. ~it's emotionally complex too~.  It's a ducky!  Not a bad overall haul for two buckets  But there were more rejects than normal and all the rejects were from one- the rust/scab/whatever hit some spuds deep and hard  rather than just the skin Snail or slug eggs- nice to find them by sight and not by hand https://i.imgur.com/K9Hu1f1.gifv Navigating the triffidmatoes and their guardians takes time and struggle and wheezing like an old(er) man by the time I was done.  But the results taste absolutely loving amazing. Nap time now. Patatas bravas soon.
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Aug 18, 2019 11:57
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You look after yourself Dan, that doesn't sound like a good combo. Who would pet the cats If you couldn't?
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Aug 19, 2019 08:55
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DesperateDan posted:Okay so, despite me eating my apple a day I feel exhausted and sore all the time and the blood tests show my liver is still getting beat on quite significantly- current hypothesis is that I might have lyme disease- potentially in combo with bartonellosis (this would be extra bad). Gonna have to go have a whole bunch more vials of blood taken, but both are sneaky little fuckers and finding out which reliably and definitively will be difficult, as will killing them off. Fun! Yeah, take it easy mate, slow and steady.
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Aug 19, 2019 12:31
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Those toms look perfect, I'm proper jealous.
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Aug 19, 2019 12:49
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cakesmith handyman posted:You look after yourself Dan, that doesn't sound like a good combo. Who would pet the cats If you couldn't? spookygonk posted:Yeah, take it easy mate, slow and steady. Thanks- I'm resting up as much as circumstances allow, it's just frustrating to see good weather passing by with me next to useless right now. Mousepractice posted:Those toms look perfect, I'm proper jealous. For the lack of effort that's gone into them it feels like I'm doing something illegal in getting something so nice for so little work and that makes them taste even better If you even vaguely like tomatoes, grow your own circumstances  We were passing so we came down for just a few minutes. I promptly broke the car going on an off-road adventure and had to tie the underside engine skid plate back on with paracord and zip ties.  Fed the birds   And checked on the fruit before leaving. On the drive home the skid plate fell off entirely at some point (I even used the good zipties and paracord), and is now lost (we went back and looked). Aren't adventures fun! more soon
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Aug 20, 2019 07:27
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Apprehension So some of my blood is off at Porton Down Rare and Imported Pathogens lab where  https://i.imgur.com/7FWVI5u.gifv    So I'm pretty beat up and tired out but that's not very outlaw country tbqh so I dragged myself out this morning  Stuff. Not much, but it's all about 4x heavier right now. https://i.imgur.com/r239fQW.gifv https://i.imgur.com/0jvoYZm.gifv The birds were pretty happy today https://i.imgur.com/bpilU4f.gifv As were the bees    This is the point where I say I need to do something about this grape vine   Blackberry harvest is good this year   Haven't seen clams this far inland before     I didn't get much done, but morale was boosted heavily and I did mentally plan out some woodwork for the next time I have some strength. https://i.imgur.com/UpQD9sV.gifv  Back at home I got out the bird table only to find the lower level was all kinds of hosed up by drying out while under tension-  https://i.imgur.com/fOYSIvz.gifv The rest was fine and got salvaged and I guess it's just a single tier one now  Will need to gather crabapples soon https://i.imgur.com/J0FhbkK.gifv  The tomato supply is now exceeding high demand. Got more bloods and scans next week while I wait for the results of the other bloods and scans, but from this human pincushion, more soon
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Aug 26, 2019 16:38
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DesperateDan posted:Got more bloods and scans next week while I wait for the results of the other bloods and scans, but from this human pincushion, more soon Fingers crossed for you mate, this all sounds stressful as hell
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Aug 27, 2019 12:08
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Niric posted:Fingers crossed for you mate, this all sounds stressful as hell Seconded. Hope it all goes well!
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Aug 27, 2019 15:45
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I hope this turns out well for you, DD; chronic health issues suck. And thanks for the bees!
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Aug 28, 2019 00:06
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Thanks all Between the missus and the nhs I'm being well looked after and mainly just sleeping and complaining lots. Right now no news is good news- hopefully some time next week the diagnosis/es gets confirmed and I can start fighting back properly.  https://i.imgur.com/OISIuxX.gifv Till then, I still have my tomatoes- about 700g picked today survived the quality assurance protocols I ate lots of them standing in the garden hell one of them I didn't even pick I just shoved a bit of vine in my mouth like the goddamn animal I am
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Aug 28, 2019 12:19
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still bragging about tomatoes Continuing to crop lots of tomatoes daily- these bagged ones really needed more soil and have been neglected of late but are still producing well  Here's the last few days worth- I try and pick a day or two before they are properly ripe or the birds and bugs seem far more likely to get them, but they ripen up just fine by themselves  And as well as keeping me fed, they are home to a whole ecosystem of spiders eating bugs  And goddamn do they make a nice salad
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Aug 30, 2019 14:46
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My mum has the same policy of harvesting as soon as the cherry tomatoes start oranging up, rather than letting them finish vine-ripening, although her reasoning is less to do with the wildlife getting at them and more to do with trying to keep the rain from making them burst.
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Aug 30, 2019 16:40
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They look delicious!
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Aug 31, 2019 03:18
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tinytort posted:My mum has the same policy of harvesting as soon as the cherry tomatoes start oranging up, rather than letting them finish vine-ripening, although her reasoning is less to do with the wildlife getting at them and more to do with trying to keep the rain from making them burst. I have had a few various hungry beasts at mine from slug to woodlouse to blackbird (drat birds also took some raspberries) but I haven't had any splitters yet- probably later in the year xcheopis posted:They look delicious! They really are- I wish I had done more than one variety though, as they make for a lot of work/skin for use in sauces/conserving etc- always next year. doctor, doctor give me the news     I gotta shitpost, with lots of fruit    And spiders obviously  I'm still sitting around waiting for diagnosis and getting my arse kicked. Receptionist at my doctors surgery hosed up and forgot to tell me the results of some tests (all clear on some nasty stuff, would have been nice to know) and also hosed me around on appointments so I will be waiting till at least monday to hear more.  Least my appetite is back a bit  Hoping for enough energy for a weekend trip and a bit of work.
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Sep 5, 2019 16:01
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DesperateDan posted:I have had a few various hungry beasts at mine from slug to woodlouse to blackbird (drat birds also took some raspberries) but I haven't had any splitters yet- probably later in the year Splitters are easy, just head on down to your local trot association.
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Sep 6, 2019 10:50
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Miftan posted:Splitters are easy, just head on down to your local trot association. Oh, so the advice is to pick them off without any stal'in
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Sep 7, 2019 08:01
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DesperateDan posted:Oh, so the advice is to pick them off without any stal'in 
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Sep 7, 2019 10:39
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serology Well the Lyme test came up with 2 out of 5 markers positive which is enough for more tests and a probable trip to a specialist but not clear enough to throw me on medication yet. The good news is my liver is fully recovered and I'm otherwise healthy- so even if I'm still feeling utterly crap I can make myself a goddamn mojito again because it's still summer in my soul
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Sep 9, 2019 14:59
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DesperateDan posted:
That's good food. Congrats on the positive results.
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Sep 9, 2019 20:32
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