Before you ask – No my house has not been painted yet. Every week this August we have looked forward to D-day the following week, only to have our hopes dashed by heavy rain on Monday morning, or the disappearance of our painter who was busy finishing up some inside […]

When I first set eyes on the house it was a wet and miserable February, twenty-six years ago. It had not been lived in through the previous winter, and had been put on the market half-way through some major renovations. It was uninhabitable when we bought it, and only barely […]

It seems that someone has got the word out to whoever cuts the grass verges along main roads about leaving dandelions and daisies for the insects. Driving up to Cork last week I was happy to see both flowers bobbing in the sunshine. I think that dandelions and daisies are […]

“May you live in interesting times” is commonly quoted as an ancient Chinese curse. Well, if there’s one thing you can say about the times we live in – they are certainly interesting. Frankly, I haven’t ever seen the likes of it. Having always been a news junkie I have […]

I know it’s not spring yet, but it sure feels like it. The camelia is in full bloom. The daffs are ready to burst. There are sprays of tiny little white flowers on one of the trees we planted to replace the ones that Ophelia destroyed. The land is full of […]