Right-Minded

French farce-level misunderstandings about honey jar lids wasted far too much of our day. It ain't over til it's over. Some people would be irritated; I find myself entertained. It meant we got to swap gossip with a few people, not do too much gardening in the heat, and come out looking as if we know what we're doing while other people get things wrong. I'll take that

In the evening, a Q&A with the author of this book - the sort of thing that will appeal to many blippers, I think. The publisher blurb makes it sound like a cross between forest bathing and crystal healing. He's much more scientific, analytical and clear-minded than that about his objectives and methodology. At the same time he spoke about the need for effective communication to be in the form of stories (not data or polemic) - citing the oral traditions of African societies. Nevertheless, he had facts, statistics, examples and quotable sound-bites at his finger-tips. Inspirational and impressive

His central motivation is the restoration of the Atlantic temperate rainforests, of which there is a small remnant on his family farm. This is driven by an appreciation of their intrinsic scientific and climatic value, but also by his personal experience of healing there: him from PTSD breakdown, his wife from multiple miscarriages and his father from near-death at the hands of Covid

I think his success owes a lot to his personal charm. Not many people could tell a mixed audience that it would be a good thing if primary school children could earn prizes for bringing into class the highest number of dead grey squirrels, and have them nodding along with him

The front door looks a bit like a portal to a rainforest. We don't use it much