August again – feral crows, biting flies and a special birthday

August again and it is hot. Very hot. As we are close to a rather stagnant pond this means there are a lot of insects. Some are a delight as butterflies and bees descend on the lavender all day. I’ve counted at least six different types of butterflies and countless species of bees. We also […]

A very different life – and rather horticultural

After almost five years since our move from the UK we now have a very different life here in rural Ireland. I became aware of it last week when I was about to go back inside. It had just started to rain but I realised I was not running to the door. Instead I ambled […]

Shrinkflation and the perils of remote shopping

When we first arrived at our new home we were in the middle of the COVID pandemic and under lockdown. Being so remote there were barely any shops within our permitted travel radius so we depended heavily on remote shopping. Just about everything from food to work tools were delivered, left outside our door. Our […]

Full speed ahead on the Homestead Rollercoaster

Firstly I would like to apologise for the late posting this week. It has been a very, very busy few weeks and a real rollercoaster ride for us. We began on a high, with a small but excellent celebratory evening to mark my birthday this month. No, I can’t believe I’m so old now though […]

The joys of living on a learning curve

I have said before, Ireland is not just “England with a funny accent” (though the accent isn’t funny. In fact it is rather lyrical after a while). Ireland is a very different country and even after more than four years we are still living on a learning curve. It is not just moving from a […]

A real mixed bag of a fortnight

This last couple of weeks has been a real mixed bag. We began with the mystery appointment in Limerick hospital. Jacqui received a number of texts reminding her she had an appointment, giving day and time. Only there had been no letter and there was no indication which department, where it was in the hospital […]

Comments on the state of publishing – and other news

After the hiatus last month, welcome back to a slightly different offering. I do have some regular news on the state of life here in Tipperary but a lot of my concerns at the moment have been centred around the awful state of publishing. I expect most of you know I have been an author […]

Glorious weather, mower as beast of burden and a bit of a setback.

Apologies in advance as this will be quite a short blog. It has been busy, as usual, with an interesting mix of good and less good bits. The weather for much of the time has been glorious and we have finally been able to cut a narrow path through to the back of the wood. […]

Blossom, Butterflies, Bees and Bastard Awful Weather

Well, here in Tipperary spring is not so much just around the corner as all around us now. Well, a lot of the time anyway. Much of the past fortnight has been quite bright and sunny – very good for the solar panels. All around us the land is waking up and we have early […]

Spring arrives as we make some decent progress

Well, another busy few weeks with some decent progress here in Tipperary. March has excelled itself in its contrasting weather. Always unpredictable it has already given us nighttime frost and freezing temperatures, cool evenings and several most unseasonably warm days. All this has left the plants and trees rather confused and I think had driven […]