Monday 1 July 2019

F Y M

The field behind my bungalow has been whole cropped again this week and today it got its obligatory dressing of manure, courtesy of the Dairy herd it is destined to feed over the Winter months.   You can imagine - there is a good, healthy smell outside (and inside too if I forget and leave the patio door open).

This morning was our Book Group meeting and as it was at M's it was within walking distance of my bungalow.   The book we have read this month is 'The Salt Path' by Raynor Winn.   I can thoroughly recommend it - a non-fiction book about a couple made homeless who decide to walk the coastal path wild camping.   It is full of interesting little episodes and well worth a read.

It is very windy here today so I decided to change the sheets and duvet cover on my bed.  The lady who cleans for me comes on a Monday so she could help me to remake the bed with fresh sheets (I look forward to bed tonight between clean, sweet smelling sheets - if I could have someone make the bed I would have clean sheets every day like the Queen (I assume).  When I came back from Book Group I got ready to iron them - and my ironing board broke.   As I have had it at least fifty years it certainly doesn't owe me anything.  My son has promised to take it to the tip tomorrow for me and then take me to buy a new one as he will easily get them into his car - I certainly can't get them in my Corsa.   I shall be sad to say good-bye to my ironing board as it is an old faithful friend - but my Grandchildren fall about laughing at it as it is so 'old fashioned.'   (as is ironing to so many people - but not me; I even iron the dusters). 

Television is totally dominated by Wimbledon at present - hard luck if you don't care for tennis - but a good opportunity to read book group's next book - 'The Good Immigrant.' 

Big day tomorrow  - it will be my 3,500th post.

29 comments:

Gwil W said...

Ha ha! You might have 3,500 posts tomorrow but that old ironing board of yours has seen more work than that I bet. This afternoon I've started reading Anthony Burgess' The End of the World News. I was looking for his novel 1985 which I seem to have lost. I didn't know I had the other one. I certainly haven't read it. He got the idea to write The End of the World News (published posthumously) after seeing a magazine photo of President Jimmy Carter and Mrs Carter in the White House eating burgers and watching three TVs simultaenuously.
As to the weather we've just had a thunderstorm and thankfully the temperature has dropped from an oppressive 37 C to a manageable 23 C. Look forward with impatience and curiosity to your next post.

Penhill said...

Dusters!I had only just got over you ironing tea towels :)

justjill said...

Gone are the days when I ironed. As we left our b&b which we had run for ten years, I said farewell to all the burns from the steam press and now send it out to a company called Lighten the Load. And then just a few bits of clothing. Bedding line dried and back on the bed. Does us.

Tom Stephenson said...

What does FYM stand for?

Jules said...

I find ironing quite relaxing. There is something satisfying about a neatly ironed pile of fresh laundry.

Sue said...

The Salt Path sounds like an interesting book.

Rachel Phillips said...

I don't know what FYM is.

Rachel Phillips said...

Farm Yard Manure?

Anonymous said...

Sue “At the End of a Suffolk Lane” recommended The Salt Path a few weeks ago
and after havering about it for a while I finally read it last week.
I found it enjoyable and thought provoking.
I looked up Raynor Winn on goggle and found a very interesting article about her and Moth, her husband,
from last December's Guardian.
Reading the article before reading the book would spoilt it though.
I've already recommended the book to 3 people
Sorry about your ironing board. Mine of a similar vintage is still surviving but I don't think it's had such hard wear!
Sue

Tom Stephenson said...

FYI or WTF?

The Weaver of Grass said...

Well done Rachel!! Solved it in one.

The Weaver of Grass said...

Beachcomber. Some paperback editions have an extra chapter telling what has happened to Raynor and Moth since the book was written. He has finished a degree - she writes articles on walking, country pursuits, nature etc. He is still reasonably well although it seems the prognosis is unchanged.

Chris said...

I still iron but not much, certainly not my sheets! Must see if I can get "The Salt Path" from the library. I like to try different writing styles.

Virginia said...

My Goodness - 3,500!! That's got to be celebrated ! I love reading about your rich and varied life, and picking up book tips too. I'll look out for that book, it sounds like me. I look forward to many more blogs from you, and thank you.

Sue said...

I was changing the sheets the other day and thought the same thing - wouldn't it be lovely to sleep on a freshly made up bed with crisp, clean sheets every night. Congratulations on your 3,500th post!

Joanne Noragon said...

I inherited my ironing board from my mother. The legs operated on springs. It broke. I hate new ironing board, but cant be bothered to look for another.

Susan Heather said...

I just checked our local Whangarei Library for "The Salt Path" and have now put a hold on it - I am sixth on the list so it must be popular down here.

Derek Faulkner said...

Would of thought that FYM followed by a paragraph about farmyard manure was quite simple to work out, perhaps it's because I buy a lot of FYM for my garden.
So much cleaning and even ironing dusters! - perhaps your next post could be one titled OCD

Cro Magnon said...

I remember my mother's old 'wooden' ironing board. It had wooden legs, and the top was just wood covered in something. So much friendlier than today's all-metal ones.

Rachel Phillips said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Librarian said...

Wow, 3,500 posts - that is an achievement! I haven't counted mine in a while, but I know I am nowhere near that.
It's been too hot to do much the last two days, but last night it has cooled off a little so that today people feel more energised again - I could hear all my neighbours getting up earlier than usual this morning.
The book sounds interesting, I love a good non-fiction read.

John "By Stargoose And Hanglands" said...

Ha! For a moment there I couldn't remember what FYM was. Must be a long time since I worked on a farm. What I mean is I couldn't remember what those three letters stood for; I remember the smell well enough!

thelma said...

I hate ironing boards, they snap shut like deckchairs and get your fingers! And actually I used to liked the smell of FYM, though it doesn't smell the same as it did in the 'olden' days.

Heather said...

3,500 posts! You should have an award - I wonder if it is a record. I love getting into bed when the bedding is fresh and next week will be even better as my new bed will be delivered. Can't wait.
I can well remember when we had recently moved into a more rural location and I flung open the bedroom window to take a deep breath of fresh air to find that the farmer up the road was muck spreading! As you say - a good healthy smell. I don't miss the house, but I do miss the location.

JayCee said...

Hope your line dried bedding doesn't end up smelling of FYM!

Ellen D. said...

Manure and ironing! and yet your post is so interesting to me! How about that!! Thanks for sharing!

The Weaver of Grass said...

My son took me to the tip with my broken ironing board. When the tipman took it out of the car I told him I had used it for sixty years and was it worth taking it back to the shop to get a refund because it had broken.

Thanks for your comments as usual/

Practical Parsimony said...

My ironing board is 55 years old It better not break!

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