It’s been brought to my attention that I have an obsessive
personality. Of course, like most things I hear about myself I dismiss it
straight away. After a bit of thought (an obsessively large amount as it turns
out) I have to agree. I never thought it about myself but I do tend to obsess
about one thing and then go onto another. It doesn’t have to be anything large
either, I can obsess about putting the rubbish out, making a cup of tea or
totally designing a new garden, it doesn’t matter. What has made me realise
this after so many years? The log cabin I have been rebuilding, that’s what.
Obsessive
I neglected all of my other duties around work and home and
could think of nothing apart from the rebuild in the last three weeks. If I did
try to fit things in between running to the DIY shops and drawing out plans for
fixed seating, it was usually after midnight and done very quickly. But you
know what? I loved every minute, even the bits where I wanted to burst into
tears were in some way enjoyable. I’ve only just realised this because most of
the work has now finished and because I have nothing at the moment to obsess
about I am looking for more and more to do such as paving around the outside
walls. I have finished most of the
detail work, the gate has gone in to keep the dogs out, I have varnished the
outside as well as the floor so what next? If I don’t find something to
redirect my obsessive trait then the cabin (I’m not calling it a shed anymore)
is going to get decorated with thousands of fairy lights for Christmas, which
should keep my busy for a while.
Ripening Fruit
We never managed to get any raspberries again this year. One
reason is that a load of them had to go to make way for the cabin; the other is
that the dog weeds them up. I’m quite sure she does it to help as it usually
happens when I am weeding in the borders myself. All I can hear is the sound of
twigs snapping as she systematically works her way through the row, tail
wagging and full of joy. How can I stop her from doing that? I can’t she enjoys
it too much; it just means that I have to buy raspberries from the shop.
Shop bought fruit seems to last a bit longer that fruit from
the garden. We have a lot of plums this year and if you don’t eat them within a
day of picking them you are chasing fruit flies out of the house as they
rot. There is a way to deter mould from
fruit and it enlists the use of cider vinegar. Not the first choice out of the
cupboard but bear with me.
Mould spores are all around us in the billions. If they are
present in large enough quantities, they become visible and can ruin the fruit.
Berries already have a covering of invisible mould spores on them and given the
right conditions, these can kick into life fast. However, there’s a simple way
to deal with this in the form of our trusty friend Apple Cider Vinegar. Vinegar
is antifungal, antibacterial and also has great properties as a cleaning agent.
Using Vinegar to Stop
Mould
Add a cup of vinegar to a bowl of water (around 1 part
vinegar to 1 parts water) and leave them for several minutes, perhaps swirling
them around gently a little. You’ll probably find the water changes colour a
little as the diluted vinegar lifts dirt, mould and thing living in your
berries. Leave for a couple of minutes, then drain and rinse. After rinsing,
any vinegar taste should be gone but I would just do a few first to check. Then
store your berries in the fridge.
You should now find that your berries last at least a week
rather than just a couple of days.
This method should work for all kinds of fruit and veg, try
it on the blackberries if you are picking them this month. I like the idea so
much that I’m going to be washing EVERYTHING in cider vinegar before eating.
Note: I have just
been told by my family that washing everything in vinegar demonstrates an
obsessive personality and should be avoided. I’ll stick to raspberries.
