I am at the point of meltdown

It is so very hot here - it us unrelenting and I do not know what to do to keep cool apart from lots of cool showers - not rain unfortunately.

So here I sit before you with pretty painted nails - pearly pink actually as I am a girly person although you would never guess would you?

Here are a few photos that I promised from yesterday - and I mean a few for a change.



Here is my little shadow Ginger, forever by my side and helping. Well she always thinks she is.



She watches my every move intently, then joins in and has a go herself.


The only trouble is, because she faces me when she watches what I am doing, she digs and scratches up the soil mirror fashion - so in fact she earths up a big pile on the potato that I am about to dig up. No wonder it takes me so long!


This is the 'unseeded' Loganberry and Raspberry Jam. But this year the raspberries are so much smaller because of lack of rain, so the seeds are smaller too and some of them have slipped through. Shame as it took four pounds of them and almost four pounds of sugar too, and ages sieving it. It sure is tasty though The hats are only temporary and will be pretty material and nice labels. The jar on the left is a coffe jar and the one on the right is or was a sauce bottle. They both took well over a pound of jam as they are rather big bottles. (They did get washed, sterilised and then scalded with boiling water, then the water tipped out and they were put in a medium oven to dry, then used hot.) By going to all that trouble ensures that you can use any jars whether they have had curry paste, beetroot or pickle, and there will not be any trace of a smell left. That's the beauty of glass.

I have to go up the allotment tonight as I haven't visited it yet today. I like my girls to have a lovely run around and scratch - they will love all tha manure I put on yesterday.

Must remember my camera. I am so tired I could go to sleep - I have had an incredibly busy day - but as it is not about the allotment or gardening you'll mot be interested.

Off for a sit down for an hour before I go off into the wilds of deepest East Anglia. I expect the 'tractor men' will be up there tonight - or not - but the football and Wimbledon are now a memory!