Volcanoes and Other Stuff

The fragility of modern life has once again been exposed.  The Icelandic volcano has disrupted all air traffic in our country.  It is also a bit of a coincidence that the prevailing wind has been from the north/north east.  Even in the depths of winter we mostly get a westerly wind (in my opinion).  So, the ash from the volcano has been swept our way.  We keep being told by politicians that globalisation is here and that we all depend on each other.  That is until something like this happens.  Apart from people not being able to travel we will soon be experiencing 'shortages'.  A lot of our food comes in by air and we have come to accept this and expect it.  Many of us worry about this and we have been proved right.  The agriculture in this country has been dwindling since the end of WWII, farmers have even been paid to not grow anything, to diversify and, I imagine, to lose the skills of previous generations.  It's been wonderful to have all the cheap and, sometimes exotic, fruit and vegetables that we never used to be able to buy.  It only takes a disaster like we are experiencing, to bring it home to us how unrealistic this is.

The Internet is another example.  I often imagine what could happen if we lost it for some reason, for some natural disaster that we can't even imagine yet.  A lot of friendships have been forged globally.  Yes, we could still keep in touch by 'snail mail' but that would also depend, largely,on air travel.  How much mail is stacking up while our aircraft are grounded?

Not only would these two scenarios affect our country, they would affect the 'global' economy.  No more imports/exports to and from far flung places, no more easy travel to tourist areas, no more quick travel on business and, in the case of the Internet, no more global shopping.

I do worry about all this and what better way to take my mind off these worries than a bit of gardening, baking and crafting :)

At the moment I'm enjoying my dolls house miniature hobby.

A good friend I have made (because of the Internet!) sent me a little tea set that I have glued into this corner cupboard/hutch.  Rather than have these tiny things put away and waiting for the ideal opportunity to do something with them (which never seems to come) I'm using them and enjoying the results.

I went to this website and admired all the fab things this person has made.  She also gives instructions on how to make stuff and I couldn't resist having a go at her cakes

It really was fun making this chocolate and cherry cake!

Garden Report  The foxes are still having fun leaping around all over my raised beds.  Today I'm spending time up there coming up with ideas for stopping them getting under the netting I've got covering the beds.  So far I've planted cauliflower, cabbage, beetroot, onions, broad beans, peas and potatoes.  We could do with some rain, the soil seems very dry and I might have to water today.  The weather is a bit warmer today and it's nice and sunny.  The wind is from the west.