Sober in the Summer

We have decided to do the Sober in the Summer challenge. This will definitely be a challenge for us - sobriety is not our natural state of being. We like wine too much for that.  But needs must.  We are supposed to be saving up for the GWT2, new guttering for the house, a strimmer for the garden and possibly even a new kitchen.  Are we saving up?  Of course we're not. We're spending money like nobody's business.

So I have a launched a new program of frugal austerity at our place. Part of which includes no alcohol until we have got the money at least for the GWT2.  (This might, of course, mean that not only are we being Sober in the Summer, but possibly also Abstinent in the Autumn.  I haven't thought of a W word for the Winter yet, but I will if necessary!!)

We managed the six weeks of Lent.  We can do 13 if we try hard enough :-S

In the meantime, we had rather a pleasant weekend. The sun shone. The temperature was pleasantly warm. Anyone would think it was summer!  We were at Bishops' House on Saturday morning and had somewhere around 40 visitors.  This is quite unusual. Saturday mornings are usually really quiet.  Thanks to the wonders of modern technology I took Stella and Tony, and then Matthew and William for a tour around the house.  (I didn't count them in the total of visitors though!!)

We spent most of Sunday outside in the garden, actively gardening and then sitting on the patio for a bit.  I must get around to weeding the patio - there are flowers growing up through the back of my chair!!  (Actually, I probably won't take the flowers out - but the weeds on the other hand ... )

Our new neighbours appear to be positively normal!!  They've got patio furniture out in the garden. They sit on it. They've got three dogs and a baby and all of them come out into the garden too.  They've also just acquired two chickens. None of our previous neighbours in that house have ever used the garden at all!  And Debby on the other side has finally come out of hospital. She expected to be in for around 5 days and instead was in for 16!