Summer is defintely with us now

How do we know this - because it has been hot for at least 3 days consecutively that's how! It might not seem much to you but after the (to say the least) disappointing summers of the last 2 years anything that approaches a summer is most definitely welcome.

So whats happening apart from that?

Well the warm weather has encouraged me to bring out the mountain bike so I can get to work without using the car and the motorbike both of which wind up being too hot inside (car) or too uncomfortable to have so many clothes on (motorbike) which means the mountain bike is the next best option, principally because the road bile is in for maintenance. The canal towpath makes an excellent way to avoid the traffic and is noticeably cooler than riding on the roads.

My work is keeping me very busy which is both good in some respects and stressful in others. When I moved into the IT field it was because I like technology and programming. The past few years have seen this being more sidelined for me in the organisation for which I work and I seem to be developing into some sort of management drone with no particular skills and shed loads of people who all seem to have some sort of axe to grind to cover the failures of their own departments. It really is the limit and it gets me down that people can be such back stabbing ................. well you get the picture no doubt.

I am one of these people that finds this sort of thing very stressful and it in turn rebounds on me in the form of depression to the point where I find it difficult to function normally on a number of levels, which again exacerbates the situation and plunges me further into a downward spiral.

Still the highlights of my life tend to bring me back - the bike rides, some calm weekends with my family and some good successful climbing ventures all seem to push the stupidity of other people back away from me and show me one thing, friends are a good thing. Look after them

Spoke too soon!

No sooner than we welcome spring than we are back to about November I think. The temperature has dropped right off and there is yet again a bitter wind.

That being said the local wildlife seems to be coming around. I was out walking the dog early one morning last week when I was surprised to see a badger waddling towards me. Not sure who was most surprised him or me. My chocolate friend though thought it might be a game to try and chase him to find out what he was, not having seen one before and it took me quite a bit to restrain him from dashing over to investigate. Mr Badger was not too keen on being investigated by a 35 kilo chocolate Lab and beat a very hasty retreat.
Ah well it can only get warmer - I hope.

Motorbike is out - spring is definitely here!

As a follow on from the last post I decided this morning to get my motorbike going and have a ride into work instead of taking the car. It felt really great to be on the bike and to let everything else just wash away from me as I concentrated on riding.
It is still not what you would call warm and the wind left a lot to be deisred but it was well worth it just for the pleasant feeling of a clear head.
I did not do much riding last year and forgotten how much I enjoyed it so maybe I can get some more in this year.

It's finally arrived!

Spring that is! After a few weeks of an unrelenting easterly wind the direction has finally changed to south by south west and brought with it some warmer, but slightly blustery conditions. It seems to be also doing a better job of getting rid of the last remaining snow banks around here. The daffodils that were just beginning to peek out in March when the arctic weather arrived have now re-appeared and it feels like it just might linger for a bit.
As for me, well a few days rest and bit of exercise have improved my mood a bit however I still feel that there is something missing from me at the moment as I find it hard to see the joy in anything at the moment.

What a difference a few days, some exercise and a wonderfully bright morning can make. This  mornings dog walk although darker than it was before the clocks went forward was more rewarding than normal with the sound of owls hooting in the woods on one leg of it and hearing the foxes on the way back in. Not to mention the sounds of the birds all getting excited in the pre-dawn light. Even though some of the fields are still covered in snow here and it was bitterly cold this morning at least there is the hint of Spring.

Well into another year!

I know my posts are irregular but then that's me all over. A lot of things I do (or don't do) depend very much on my state of mind which of late seems to stumbling between a state of inertia and a state of severe depression. So much so I have started to look over my shoulder checking for black dogs (see Winston Churchill for the "quote").
I seem to be unable to find an interest in anything for very long and feel very uncommunicative with everyone else, I am also finding it hard to juggle life and work and downtime successfully and even writing this is an effort.
It is nothing to do with the weather since I actually really rather enjoy the snow shrouded landscapes around me and the enforced silence of most things mechanical giving nature time to open itself up a bit more with the sound of the birds and the rushing of the wind coming through more clearly now that the man made objects are struggling to move.
I will have to continue my search for some sort of inner peace though where to find it I am not sure

Season of fruitful enjoyment

Well after a slow start the hedgerows around here are finally coming alive with wild fruit. Blackberries in particular are my favourites, pies, crumbles take your pick!

However the last couple of years blackberry vodka has become something we have started making in time for Christmas. Some we make and give as presents, but most of it we drink as a warming nip on a cold or wet evening!

Simple as anything 1Lb Blackberries, 1Lb sugar, 1 Bottle of Vodka (75cl). Wash the blackberries, put in a container. Add the sugar and the vodka. Seal and give it a shake daily for about 6 weeks or until all the sugar has dissolved. Bottle it and serve. This makes about 1.5 bottles of blackberry vodka.

We do the same with Sloes and in fact this is an adaptation of a recipe for Sloe gin as given to me by my dear friend Anne mentioned in previous posts. Slainte Anne!

Doing the picking and all the preparation makes me feel somehow closer to nature and to the way things should be and makes me feel closer to the roots of my beliefs about God and nature being in harmony and that every season has a purpose.