11^th February 2018

Dear All,

Not too much to report this week. This has been our last week looking after the hens at no. 63 trying to keep them above the mud and interested in eating a new delivery of wheat. I know chickens are not blessed with much brain but these I think would fail their exams at every level!

We managed a little gardening this week – Kate has been pruning and I have sown peas in gutters for transplanting and pricked out a few seed samples.

The “Silk Road” concentrated on the goods that travelled the road: from China, silk, laquer ware, ceramics, paper, gunpowder; to China, horses, amber, gold and silver, glass, dyes, fur, grapes, frankincense and chariots.

Decorating is still ongoing and this necessitated another trip to B & Q to replenish resources on Wednesday. Upstairs is almost complete – just the stairs and downstairs to go!

We had to miss the walk on Thursday as we had been invited to give a talk on Street Pastors to a lunch club at March. They were quite appreciative but not too many volunteer recruits I fear! On the way back we stopped at Delfland Nurseries at Doddington and purchased a bowl of primulas as illustrated.

The “Biography” subject this week was “Karen Blixen” author and subject of “Out of Africa”. She spent 20 years as a cattle and coffee farmer in Kenya and was a very accomplished author and artist.

Karen Blixen

Ben has been in America all week including Arizona and the Grand Canyon. Esther has been troubled by asthma and Albert has completed a week at nursery and seems to be growing into the experience. He has the next stage of his operation on the 19^th and Mary-Ann and the children are travelling over today for his pre op tomorrow. Kate and I are due to go down to help tomorrow and Andy travels over on Thursday.

Love

Mike & Kate