It is really time for an update.
This morning, Feb 8, it was -7° after a night of snowfall. The weather since New Year’s Eve has so far been a jojo between extreme cold and full storm to severe thaw and now cold and snow again. I’ve been busy moving food kept outside in and out of freezers. Stupidly enough I decided that -15° was perfect for sorting my basement freezer, whereupon the temperature immediately rose 24° within hours …
So far I’ve spread salt and fed the birds #sarasspringcount24
I’m stripping last of the old wall paper today. We’ll see how far I get. So far it’s a huge mess.
There is a reason to start on this side of the room - electricity!
I need some moving and additional sources for things like micro, tiny freezer and whatever electric cooking and baking machines and I’m not allowed to do installations myself - for security and insurance reasons.
Walls have to be finished before I contact the electrician. #sarasspringcount24 #renovations & #redecorating
There is no finish under here. First owners had cupboards on the wall.
It will take some putty before reasonably decent. With one space cleared that spray bottle with water and a bit of washing softener is waiting for next. Top of the wall is already done right after the ceiling was painted a few months ago
Someone more handy and strong might take down the shelves, but I’m neither & the heavy bench hangs on the consoles as well. I’d have to strip the lot #sarasspringcount24 #Kitchenmakeover
Today is Fettisdagen, 13 of February. And this is how far I got stripping wallpaper Saturday before the spray bottle was empty & I had to make dinner.
Weather is not optional. Up and down, winter and spring every second day… -2° now after 24 hrs of snowing, then rain for 3 days☹️
The icy road is back and I’ll have to at least clear my way to the car and the bins + the bird feeder #sarasspringcount24
I did bake buns for ‘semlor’ yesterday, but managed to burn the bottoms as the recipie online & all internet disappeared midday and was gone until the evening. Nothing in the news as media was occupied with parts of the amusement park in Gothenburg exploding in a fire …
But first things first …
Snow shoveling, feeding the birds, then painting and finish at least over the 2nd shelf so that I can empty the countertop
Poor birds. Not looking forward to this. Pretty, but no… #sarasspringcount24
And done … that took a few days, but this is also the trickiest corner.
I’m almost ready for the electrician. Remains an area beside the stove.
Last of all will be sanding and hard waxing the countertop.
Outside most of the snow is now gone. And today it is +8° and rain. Up and down.
I’ve fetched more peanuts for the birds and squirrels from the garage. And got more apples delivered together with fresh vegetables and more thaw salt. Better take care of that …
Is it #spring now? Dare one hope?
The ice on the lake is disappearing & I've moved the bird feeder down from the patio. Snowdrops and crocus are on the way up and the blue anemonens I got last fall seem to have survived. The birds are chirping and inspecting their birdhouses. The wren is back on the patio.
Really lovely morning. Plus 5° already at 9.30. Out on the lake a gang of geese take a break in their spring travels & explore the open water. I’ll just finish my coffee and get out there. And it’s still only February so nothing is urgent when it comes to gardening. Plenty of time ahead.
Retirement has its advantages. I sure don’t envy the poor souls who passed before dawn in a hurry to catch the bus…
It is really time for a garden update
Today, April 1, at 8.30 am (but summertime from yesterday, so felt really early) it was +7° outside.
March just fled by while I was busy inside painting kitchen and decluttering/sorting paper. Winter with snow & the ice on the lake came back and went twice. #sarasspringcount24@gardening
This coming week, from Tuesday evening, there will be typical April weather - sun, rain, snow & a couple of frosty nights. So today is the day for outdoor stuff - putting benches where they should go, getting rid of the last branches by mulching them, etc. Perhaps even prune berry bushes. They already have green leaves and so do almost all flowering bushes and trees.
It’s really early. #sarasspringcount24@Gardening_V@gardening
It’s not like I did nothing outside. Unpacked the garden and patio furniture & for example. Pruned the obviously dead rose branches in the nearest flower beds, went shopping for new rosemary and came home with both narcissi and primulas for the patio. So far one pot & the rosemary were planted and the agapanthus got a larger pot and new soil. I’ll prepare for moving some things inside if the nights get really cold
. #sarasspringcount24 @gardening
It’s been a lovely day. I wait as long as I can before I go inside. I think everything grew at least a decimeter in the sunshine. Scilla are now outnumbering croci in the flowerbed.
Really hard to believe that it will snow all day tomorrow with a really cold morning.
Last thing I do is move my agapanthus, parsley and leak inside. Narcissi and primulas will be ok on the patio table.
The very first person to take a cold dip in the lake yesterday really did it the right day …
Filled the bird feeder and under the rhododendron there is still a feast on the rests after making an enourmous tropical fruit sallad for Easter Eve - shells and seeds from papaya and melon plus some ananas. Luckily my guests took most of the leftover food with them to the one family member that stayed home sick. Just enough left to heat up some dinner 👍🏻
Tuesday April 2…
This week will be a good test of what primulas and narcissi really can take. But I will have to wait until Friday before I see the result. Coming weekend spring will be back. So glad I mulched all branches yesterday. They would be all wet and soggy again.
I refuse to go further than the bins today. #sarasspringcount24
April 3 … Watch that ice on the window this morning
In the end last night, as temperature was down to -3°, I felt sorry for the plants on the patio table & moved them inside. Today we get a few hrs of thaw, no wind & sunshine before a a mix of snow and rain Thursday (although not that cold). I suppose they can go outside again & Friday spring is back.
These Primulas seem to be alright. Not so sensitive. Already planning where to plant them for next year.
Starting the day by straining my yellow beet sherry… time to fill up, not many bottles left.
Quite strong this time. It's always a lottery every time. Now it just needs to settle and clear for at least 6 weeks and then be stored for as long as possible, at least a year. As any port or sherry it only gets better with age.
And it’s really easy and cheap to make
200g of raisins + 2kg white sugar dissolved in the 2 l of hot water from cooking 1 kg of unpeeled and sliced beets for 2 hrs
Add another 3 l of water and put slices of hard rye bread, spread with 150 g of baking yeast, upside down on top
Put on a TIGHT lid and wait 1 month before straining, carefully not to include the bottom sediment
Bottling after 6 weeks when drinkable, but it sure improves with age as any strong wine #sarasspringcount24 @homebrew
Another 2 nights of frost and cold winds ahead before spring returns…
April weather has been really diverse.
This night it was -4° when I woke up at 6 am.
Parsley, leak and spring onions move out and in each day and the poor agapanthus is covered with a paper bag each night.
I’ll see if I can make a more thorough #garden update later today and perhaps even do some seed planting plus harvest the Jerusalem chokes. #sarasspringcount24
Anyway, what you can see from inside there are a multitude of bushes already with green leaves. It looks very lush compared to 3 weeks ago. The grass is growing fast too...
Almost time for mowing
Checking on the flowerbed beside the patio it has now gone through all the early colors with purple Crocus, blue Scilla and now reached the yellow anemones. Plus larger perennials like peonies and late tulips stick up.
The giant mountain ash that fell in the severe storm and rain 2 weeks ago is now almost completely taken care of. My neighbors have been better gardeners than me this last seven days of cold weather …
That storm and all the rain plus a week of really warm weather cheated many plants and bushes. The first flowers of the star magnolia froze last night. Only specimens depending on longer days are now bare. #sarasspringcount24 @gardening
8 am and temperature risen to +2°.
Time to move out the veggies and uncover the Agapanthus.
I’ll stay inside for at least a couple of hours more.
And if I do get outside I’d better take on gloves and a thick jacket. Another really windy day says the forecast. More coffe…
Considering the carpentry I’ve planned to be done inside. Also the planting of seeds even if it results in a huge mess.