Pulling Teeth and "The Way of the Artist"

Once I had finished breakfast and the washing up, the next thing I did this morning was continue with pulling up the hedge stumps. For some reason I started comparing pulling the stumps up with pulling teeth. I find that a little strange, because; I'm not a dentist and I've only ever had three teeth extracted, and two of those were wisdom teeth which were removed in my late teens before they had time to cause problems.

After pulling my quota of stumps (I was aiming for 3, but actually achieved 4), I crossed the road to the garden centre and bought a roll of weed control fabric to use in London. Taking it with me will save me the trouble of locating a source when I'm over there.

I treated myself to a trip to Mallow. In some ways it was a disappointment because I didn't find the bookbinding materials I was looking for, but I found something which has proved to be a pleasant surprise. I was browsing in a bookshop when I spotted a book which a friend recommended to me a couple of years ago: The Artist's Way. I bought it, and have found the contents interesting. I think I may follow through what it recommends (12 week action plan), because it provides a structured way of doing some things I was considering anyway. For example, one of the things it suggests is writing "Morning Pages". By coincidence, the previous evening I had written a note to myself to "Write a certain number of words every day". Sounds like two ways of saying something very similar. And of course, writing this blog, and other similar activities all serve a similar purpose.

Going back to my roots?

The hedge between the front of my property and the road suffered very badly during the severe winter last year. Most of the hedge died, so we decided to replace it. I removed and shredded most the dead stems during the autumn, leaving the stumps in the ground. The advice we have from the garden centre is that we should remove the dead stumps and prepare the soil before planting the replacement hedge plants. So, the task falls to me.

This week I started removing the old stumps. There is no particular hurry, so long as the job gets done before spring. I don't know if you have ever tried removing a small stump, but it is hard work. Even with digging it out and then levering at it with a pick-axe it still takes a while. I have other things to do (and I don't want this to be my only occupation), so I have set myself an informal target of 3 or 4 stumps a day. So far, I seem to be running slightly ahead of my self-imposed schedule. With any luck I will have finished removing the stumps before it is time for me to depart for England.

Property Maintenance

I have tenants in the house I used to occupy in London. They have decided to move on at the end of the month. I've decided that I will "spruce the place up" after they move out. I don't think there is anything particularly wrong with the decoration in the house, but periodic planned maintenance is a good thing. If I live in the house then I will be able to work from early to late and should be able to get quite a bit done. I may also try to clear up the front garden for my old next-door neighbour.

Although this trip will cost me money, the pay-off for me is that I will be able to visit friends in the area.