January 23rd 2013

It seems like a lifetime ago that I managed to get on my allotment to do any work. Though the snow seems to have stopped falling at last (crosses fingers), it’s still too cold to have a proper thaw. The path down to the allotment could rival any of our countries ice rinks I’m sure! I’ve had my fun with the kids, sledges and ‘snow chickens’  (more on that later), now I’m starting to get irritated and anxious. The thought of waking up in the morning to another day of bloody housework is so unbelievably depressing. I need to get out of here!

Back to that ‘snow chicken’ I mentioned. My 6yr old daughter built herself a snow chicken in the front garden. I may be biassed but I thought it was brilliant. It was so cute to see it sitting there when I opened the curtains in the morning, and she lit up knowing she’d created something everyone was talking about. Well somebody stole it, no joke! Lifted it clean up, leaving nothing but a bare patch of sodden grass. All we could think to do was to make an egg shaped snowball, and tell her that it had went away and left her an egg to look after. With a thaw on the way, I may have to dust off the purse for a toy chick in the near future.

I have set the potatoes off to chit, and I’ve sown my first ever leek seeds (I hope not too early). I’ve sat with the seed catalogues and played with the bed designs, but it’s just not enough. I need to be at the plot, I need to come back soaking with sweat and covered in shi….mud. This is when I’m at my happiest! I’m slowly loosing my mind, trapped like a caged animal desperately yearning to be free.

 Deep in boredom and my thoroughly depressed state I watched a BBC 2 show the other night called Allotment Wars, I don’t know whether you saw it? It had the oddest people on it, the programme makers seemed to be implying they were representative of the type of plot holders we have in this country. Well all I can say is, every one of the plot holders I have come into contact with have been absolutely marvellous and have gone out of their way to make me feel most welcome. I do hope there is another show planned for the future that balances the scales some what. If I’d not had a plot of my own and not seen first hand what an allotment community was all about, this programme would have scared me off!

Thanks for taking your time to read this post

Michelle