Thursday 8 September 2016

.Miscellany.



First of all the silaging.   The best laid plans and all that - listening to the long-range forecast on Sunday evening on Country File, it was good weather through to the end of Friday.    So the grass was cut and was drying nicely, although the weather was humid.   Then, suddenly, the forecast changed and today we had rain rushing in from the West.   We awoke to mist and a clear blue sky and humidity, but within an hour it was windy, cooler and raining.

The silage contractors got here about half an hour before it began to rain and had actually been once around the field before it began (four wrapped bales) - fortuitously the advent of rain coincided with the belt snapping on the baler.   So the contractor went home and all three of them (rower, baler and wrapper ) will return.    By twelve o'clock the rain had stopped, now it is much fresher, there is a strong breeze blowing and the sun is out, so the grass should be drying well.

Secondly, my vow to have a Mediterranean lunch at least one day a week meant that today I concocted a dish of squash, sweet potato, orange and red peppers, red onions, chorizo and sausage with sweet chilli sauce from a local butcher - chopped them all fairly small and roasted them in tossed olive oil.   We ate it with green beans and the result was delicious.
Last , but by no means least as far as I am concerned, we are about to be invaded (according to The Times) by 200 billion Crane Flies (Daddy Long Legs) as last Winter was a very good breeding season.   The same apparently goes for wasps, hornets, stag beetles and ladybirds.

Now I must say that poor old daddy long legs does no harm really.  As it says in the newspaper - if he flies into you it will hurt him more than it hurts you.   Nevertheless, I don't care for those long legs.   Also I only ever see them clinging in the corners of my windows, where they seem to stay for days on end, doing nothing.  I have had one in the corner of my landing window for the last four or five days;  I went outside half an hour ago to photograph it, only to find it had gone about its business.   Just shows they must have some purpose in life.

I am going out with four friends tonight to a local hotel where we are to have a buffet supper followed by a talk by Gervaise Phinn - a retired schools' inspector and author.  Will report back on that tomorrow.

18 comments:

Frances said...

Weaver, your Mediterranean lunch looks very good to me, and not so different from what I often prepare for supper.

It's good that some of the baling was accomplished before the interruption.

Daddy Long Legs always gave me the creeps, even though I've also been told they are harmless. Maybe your corner loiterer was just waiting for a friend? xo

Heather said...

Your lunch looks delicious and I have no doubt it tasted so as well.
Not looking forward to swarms of wasps, hornets and daddy long legs. Two years ago we had large brown patches on our lawn and were told by an expert that it was caused by leather jackets, which are the lava of daddy long legs. We'd better keep an eye on our lawns.
Enjoy your evening out - looking forward to hearing all about it.

Dawn said...

I hope the manage to get the rest of the silage baled, Daddy long legs dont bother me hornets though I dont like nasty sting, I guess as they are coming from europe they will hit the the south and east coast dont know if they will make it as far as you and me

The Cranky said...

Here, a Daddy Longlegs is a type of harmless spider.

Mac n' Janet said...

I don't like spiders, I know they have work to do and won't bother you, but I still don't like them. Have read a couple of books by that author, hope you enjoy his talk.

Yorkshire Pudding said...

After the daddy longlegs had gone about his business, I hope he wiped his bottom.

This week's Mediterranean meal looks delicious. Well done!

jinxxxygirl said...

So funny Weaver... Daddy Long Legs is a spider here in the US....They are a very poisonous spider but there mouth is so small they cannot bite you. I played with them often as a child. Now i don't care for them quite so much but i don't mind them... They are everywhere as we go into Fall... Something new to me here in Arkansas is a katydid.... which looks very much like a cross between a cricket and a grasshopper... for some reason they give me the creeps..huge back legs and very fleshy looking body...uuughh.. thankfully Jinx takes care of any that gets in the house... He has to earn his keep. lol

I made a beef stew in the slow cooker the other day and it has fed us for two days... stew meat.. onions, carrots, potatoes,celery.... Your supper looks delicious Ms. Pat! For some reason i did not think of sausage and chorizo as Mediterranean... good to know it is. Yum! Hugs! deb

Derek Faulkner said...

Today, we have had unbroken blue skies, hot sun 26 degrees and a blustery wind which has made it seem like we're living in the desert - it is baking the ground!

Midmarsh John said...

Now you mention them I have seen very few ladybirds so far this year. Haven't seen a stag beetle for many a long year.

Barbara said...

200 BILLION? Yikes! That is a unbelievable invasion!
I had to look up your Daddy Long Legs. Here in the US Daddy Long Legs is a type of spider. And, the thought of flying spiders was more than a little unsettling.
Here's hoping that the invasion doesn't last long!

angryparsnip said...

Your dinner looks so wonderful.
I must try that soon.
Good luck with the invasion of wiggly stuff.

cheers, parsnip and thehamish

Simon Douglas Thompson said...

It's the time of the silvery y moth migration from the continent, starting to see these beauties kicking around! VEry active day and night.

coffeeontheporchwithme said...

A couple of American bloggers told you that Daddy Long Legs are spiders there, and they are here in Canada as well. I think my daughter would have an absolute fit if she thought spiders could fly (the one thing she is truly afraid of). Now I will need to look this up and see what they are in your part of the world. Hope your crop dries nicely. -Jenn

Cro Magnon said...

We had a visit from a very big green Dragonfly yesterday, it flew around the pool for an hour, then disappeared. I also found the first Praying Mantis. Bug season has begun.

Librarian said...

I've been keeping my windows open day and night yesterday, as it was so beautifully warm (29 Celsius, and still 26 at 9:00 pm). That meant easy access for creatures of the six- and eight-legged kind, and sure enough, I found a bug on my kettle when I went to make coffee a few minutes ago.
Yes, Daddy Longlegs are harmless, but I still don't want them in my rooms, doing their erratic flying when a lamp is lit!
Your lunch looks fantastic, I wish you could transmit the smell of that lovely chorizo-and-vegetable mix along with the picture!
Off to O.K.'s after work today for the whole weekend, where I'm usually in for some delicious meals, too.

Rachel Phillips said...

The farmer has to put up with a lot.

Yael said...

I just finished his book "the other side of the dale", interesting.

The Weaver of Grass said...

When I typed that phrase YP I wondered whether anyone would make such a comment. Bound to be a Yorkshireman I suppose!

Thanks everyone for joining in.

Rachel - I hope your comment refers to the farmer and silaging rather than other aspects of his life!!! I think I carry him about in a lot of ways (as he does me in other ways) -so I hope I don't give the wrong impression of our life!