Sunday 4 October 2009

A packet of stripey socks



Two weeks of tiresome snuffles and sneezes, and general ill humour on my part ( I HATE being ill, and not being able to get on with stuff!) came to a welcome end when this long awaited parcel of socks arrived! I have searched high and low for earthy coloured striped socks in this country, but seen nothing. At the same time, I discovered these at sock dreams, and have been coveting them for the best part of a year. They are very reasonably priced, but I was concerned about shipping and customs charges adding a huge chunk to the cost. In the end, I bit the bullet and ordered four pairs. Thankfully, there was no customs charge, and they are absolutely delightful - I am so pleased with them!

The harvest from the garden, which fell behind while I was ill, is now on frantic catchup. The weather is finally turning, becoming wet and with frost threatened soon. Sunday evening was spent in front of the fire shelling these beautiful beans. They are Cherokee Trail of Tears, a variety I mentioned that I was disappointed with earlier in the year. Their eating qualities as whole beans were poor, but left to ripen, and eaten at this stage, they were delicious!


And finally, the miracle from our garden this year - black grapes! The grape vine has never had a worth while crop before. Lots of small green clusters, but they never swell and ripen properly. This year, probably due to the hot, dry September, we had a bumper crop!The grapes are not as large as shop - bought grapes, but they are sweet and delicious.
Some day soon I hope to get my sketchbook out again, but for now I must finish picking and preserving.

7 comments:

Jennifer MacNeill said...

So sorry to hear you were ill but glad you are better now:) The beans and grapes look so pretty and delicious!

Carol Anne Strange said...

I love those stripey socks, Danielle! And it's so good to see the harvest continuing to come in with such abundance. Hope you're feeling much better and ready to return to the realms of creativity. Much love to you and yours. x

Julie Harward said...

Those are the cutest socks! I want to get some for my grands. I have never seen beans like that, they are beautiful! Do you use them just like other beans (soups etc,) It truly is the time of the harvest, I love this time if year too. I'm hoping Fall last for a long time now. take care, keep well! Come say hi :D

Terra said...

Those beans are beautiful; almost too pretty to eat. How did you cook them?
I love cute socks too, and I have funny socks, with frogs, cats, or flowers on them.
People comment and it gives them a laugh which is so precious to share.

Yarrow said...

Sorry you've been poorly, it's been the same in our household too! Snuggly socks really do make a difference though :)

Those beans look good, my Monastic Coco are pretty wonderful too, so if you want to do another trade we could combine them. I'll put a little mix together if you like :)

I hope you get back to the painting soon.

kx

Carolee said...

What wonderful stripey socks! Sorry to hear you've been under the weather....

Your harvest looks amazing!

~ Carolee

Danielle Barlow said...

Thanks everyone!
Terra - I just simmered them for 5 - 10 minutes, the first time with corn kernels cut straight off the cob, and served with butter and black pepper, and then yesterday I threw them into the chilli co carne I was cooking.
Kim - always up for a trade! I need to put some back to dry out. You had better remind me of your postal address.

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