More flower miscellany

We're on the flower path again at the moment. The asiatic lilies are out. They come out reliably, within a few days, at this time of year. Blipped last year on August 7 and the previous year on July 31. In 2022, it was earlier (on the balcony), and in 2021 it was later, because they had been grown to be in flower when in the garden centre for sale. They are one of the best transplants from the balcony, with a strong splash of colour.

Having said that I never go to charity shops, I broke my duck today and headed to Tain's busiest shop, the Highland Hospice shop on King Street, in the search of small vases. I was quite successful. A glass vase, Scandinavian and from the 1960s, which features with phlox in it on the window sill in the living room. And second pottery vase from Lybster Pottery, which has an entry in the history of British pottery (see also under Orr Ceramics). That will be from the 1970s, so is also vintage. It's more or less this pattern, but not that shape. That's got a single Japanese anemone flower in it, and may well feature in a future blip. The other flower in the blip is the hydrangea which we got for the corner we brought into use last year with digging and tree stump removal. We want it to spread to fill the whole corner, which I am sure it will do. It's already doing well this year.

Meetings all morning, after an early peloton workout. Reading in the afternoon, and thinking. Later on, a walk to the shop. A visit from a workman who has agreed to paint our window frames inside and out, and do it in August, which is grand. They are not fit for another winter and while we will replace them longer term, we cannot make the existing paint job last until we are ready to move on renovations.

And finally in the early evening, a trip to Shandwick Beach, where there were waves and I got knocked over quite a few times trying to get out of the water. A lovely experience riding the waves despite being knocked over, except that there were a few jellies (harmless ones, but...none the less not nice when you touch them) and a bit of kelp in the water. But the water was warm, albeit churned up with sand from the waves so you couldn't see the bottom. Good fun with a small posse of us, one of whom had never experienced waves like that in the sea before, so was suitably exhilarated.

Home for the remains of the weekend's paneer curry and an afters of cherries. And booking tickets for our wee local festival in September, which went on sale yesterday.