Tree News

I have good news on the trees! We contacted the head of arboreal services, and he has surveyed the area himself, and the trees are going to stay! Thank you to all who commented - we did feel a little alone at some points. I've also got a summary in writing which we can wave at anyone else who feels that they can just chop things down. He is going to do some pruning, which I can live with, and he will remove one stump, which again - I loved the tree, but the stump just reminds me of what was once flourishing there. It just goes to show that persistence, and pushing the right buttons (I went through the Tree Policy with a fine toothed comb, and raised a few points where reality differed from the published policy), things can get sorted out right in the end.
So we'll still have the birds around next summer, and when the insects come to the trees, the bats will come back, too. And I won't have to look at The Conservatory.
Clapotis is coming along nicely - there will be photos soon. I can recommend 100%Wool on Ebay - it is from Uruguay, but it arrived really quickly, (almost with more stamps than there was room on the envelope), and is beautifully soft, and knits up with good stitch definition. It is very clingy, which normally, if I were to drop a stitch, I'd love, but as Clapotis requires stitch dropping and unravelling to make ladders, it can be a little bit of a pain (the Long Nails help at this point, to wiggle the bars free). But I am very happy with it.
The Royal Snail is still letting me down - I've been waiting ages (more than 2 weeks) for some parcels now, so whatever they say, beware. It seems to be items I'm ordering from the North East for delivery in Newcastle, so it could be a double whammy if they're really backed up, but it's starting to really annoy me now (turns green and starts growing).
Been quiet this week, as we went to see the opening night of David Gray's tour on Tuesday, and I can't do late nights any more... He was brilliant, and I would recommend him to anyone who sort of likes him - he has a wonderful voice, and it's even better live than on record.
And finally - I'm thinking of anyone at sea level on our East Coast tonight - I do hope you don't get the sea in your homes - it happened to us 30 years ago (almost exactly - 11th November 1977) when we lived on the sea front at Fleetwood, and had a good slug of the Irish Sea come over and into the house. I was still at Infants School, so don't remember too much, except for being woken up in the middle of the night, and evacuated to Poulton le Fylde. It's not much fun - and I'm thinking especially of those of you who've already suffered the floods this year. I'm crossing my fingers for you, and hoping the surges pass you by.