DREICH, DREICH, DREICH

I'm not feeling like taking pictures tonight and this image reflects that. It was taken hurriedly through the loft window when I went up to collect the large slow cooker (cooking for a big family gathering tomorrow). The garden appears flat and colourless although it is actually a riot of colour at the moment. It doesn't help that the picture is taken from far away and it is almost dark at 10 pm, not usual at this latitude in June! Anyway, what you can see here is the middle section of the garden - there is some decking, herb garden and flower beds nearer the house and a fruit and veg garden beyond the trellis. Normally the arch would be a mass of roses in June, but they are very late this year.
I have been dealing with some difficulty this week which will come to a bit of a crisis over the weekend when we may need to make some tough decisions. Most of the time I have been dealing well with the issue, but today and yesterday it got me down a bit, not helped by the unremitting rain.
On the brighter side, lots of our family are coming over tomorrow and I have been cooking up a storm. Menu: Oshitashi (Japanese spinach and sesame salad), Salmon and ginger and lime fish cakes served with sweet potato chips and dill sauce, Moroccan lamb casserole with new minted potatoes, various salads, Sticky rhubarb and ginger cake with crème fraiche, Lemon drizzle cake with lemon curd ice cream, Angus strawberries. Odd combinations perhaps, driven by what is available in the garden at the moment.

THREE GOOD THINGS
My students - they ask such challenging questions and keep me on my toes
My family, they are so wonderfully warm and supportive
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