taking stock

It was a wild one last night...I find high winds very unsettling, especially since our house is surrounded by tall trees. Somehow we didn't lose power, although the lights flickered off and on several times. Sarah and I opened the back door just before bedtime to hear the noise and we were met by a mass of whirling leaves - today they are in a pile 4 feet high by the side of the house! Sarah read me the poem "Wind" by Ted Hughes, which echoed a lot of our feelings - only I think that Ted Hughes was not in a place with trees...

This morning we looked outside, dreading what we might see. The driveway was littered with small branches and a largish bough had fallen from the sycamore outside our bedroom window. Two trees are down at the end of the garden. I read on social media about roads in the area being blocked by fallen trees and sadly, two men were killed overnight (in Northern Ireland and Cumbria).

It wasn't a day for venturing far from home, especially since the Arctic wind continued until about 2pm. I took the opportunity to make an inventory of our dry foodstuffs and their use by dates and to clean out all the food containers. Also, as it will be Advent Sunday tomorrow, D picked me some holly with berries and I shall make the wreath for our front door.

It appears that we have an awful lot of yellow split peas..so I am about to cook a nice warming dhal for tonight's tea :-)

This is a drawing D did yesterday. It still has bits of leaves stuck to it!