The sun’s been shining for two solid weeks here in England, temperatures are soaring into the 80s during the day, and there are bodies everywhere. Before we moved here, I heard from more than one source that whenever the sun came out, Brits were so grateful that they would pull over on the side of the road, strip down, and throw themselves on any available horizontal surface to soak up some rays. While it’s not quite that extreme, from our vantage point in the blessedly air-conditioned pod of the London Eye, we could see that Jubilee Gardens was covered in ghostly pale limbs seeking an alternative to the perennial spray tan.

“Honey, I’m home! Just in case you didn’t hear me pull up in the John Deere…” This is not the first time I’ve seen this tractor with some kind of wicked-looking implement attached to the back parked in the drive. I can’t imagine commuting daily in a tractor, and the yard doesn’t appear large enough to require this kind of equipment, so I admit this is a puzzle to me. But these puzzles are part of what make my daily walks so enjoyable!

I have been known to collect “projects” at our fortnightly local auction house. You know, those items that require a bit of creative vision and a lot of effort to be usable and/or aesthetically pleasing. I’ve got rusty cast iron (a bell, a fence finial, a lantern) that needs to be sanded and repainted. I have an unfinished, water-stained wooden chair that needs sanding and some linseed oil. There are four balloon back chairs that need to be reupholstered. I bought a hideously bright blue and green set of drawers that need a toned-down paint job. Everything else needs a thorough cleaning to remove the cobwebs and bird poop that accumulated while the pieces were waiting in the barn for their day in the saleroom. I DID NOT buy this eviscerated Victorian nursing chair to add to the list. 🙂

I applaud London for its efforts to keep the city clean. Tourists and residents alike are pleased. People have jobs. It’s a win-win situation. But I have two questions. One, why are you sweeping already clean sidewalks when one block over candy wrappers and cigarette butts are stacking up like cordwood? And two, why are you pushing that big-ass sweeper through Saturday afternoon crowds; why not clean in the early morning or late night?

And finally, this T-shirt, spied in the market on London’s Portobello Road, has a message we might all want to consider…

Trying something new this week…instead of Six-word Saturday, I thought I’d showcase some snippets from my week that were worth a mention but not necessarily a full post of their own.