notaboutseeds

Nicole Foss

2011-04-10T06:58:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to hear Nicole Foss speak in Skibbereen. Her clear thinking on finance and energy, and the way they are affecting Ireland at the moment was fascinating. Amongst many other things she pointed out that Ireland will have to default on its debt sooner or later. We have been told endlessly that this country cannot function without its banks although no one has every said why this is so. If we don't agree to the terms of the bailout, we are told the banks will fail and no money will come out of the ATM machines.

So what if that happens? One day without warning someone goes to an ATM and it doesn't work. Very quickly the word goes around. What would you do? What would we all do? PANIC SHOP. That is what we would do. We would say to ourselves OMG I have no cash/coffee/petrol/bread/toilet paper/wine/batteries...........and we would rush into town and buy stuff for as long as we could, until the cash and plastic money had run out and we had what we thought would be the most useful stuff to have on the short term.

What would happen next? Would we opt out of the euro and bring back the punt, or join sterling? Would we have riots in the streets or would we just carry on as normal as in the 1970's bank strike. I don't remember any panic back then, although I was rather young at the time.

Because it seems likely to happen, and to happen without warning, it seems sensible to plan for it. I don't want to be the queuing for coffee or bread or toilet paper so I think I am going to have my little panic now and stock up on a few essentials. Presumably after some initial chaos something like normality would resume, so I am not going to build a bunker or buy a shotgun, just have a small savings account in coffee and sardines and toilet paper. What do you think?

Winter Roscoff Cauliflowers

2011-03-15T16:20:00.000-07:00

The first few Winter Roscoff cauliflowers are ready to eat. They come at a great time of year, when the rest of the winter vegetables are coming to an end. A few have leaves coming through the curds and I suppose I should rogue them out but it doesn't make them any less nutritious. We haven't got any seed left now so we will grow these out for seed. Any cauliflower cheese we have will be made with the small imperfect ones.

I would like to know when others get there first Roscoff, to see if they are much earlier down here in tropical West Cork than in other parts of the country.

Winter Roscoff Cauliflowers

2011-03-15T15:47:00.000-07:00

I would like to know when others get there first Roscoff, to see if they are much earlier down here in tropical West Cork than in other parts of the country.

Ned's walk in the woods

2011-03-07T10:12:00.000-08:00

London

2011-01-19T16:39:00.000-08:00

A little bit of our trip to London

xmas 2010

2010-12-25T11:51:00.000-08:00

The first white Christmas in my lifetime, and it has been so nice to have Ruth, Leon and Delia to share it with. Here are a few moments

On the "Star"

2010-06-17T12:23:00.000-07:00

We are delighted that our open day was covered by The Southern Star our local newspaper

Trip to Sherkin

2010-06-13T15:07:00.000-07:00

lumberjack and jill

2010-03-03T17:28:00.000-08:00

Delia's 80th Birthday

2010-02-15T15:17:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday Mum

2010-02-12T13:38:00.001-08:00

This young woman took a train from Dublin to Belfast in 1943 to join the Women's Auxiliary Airforce. She was 21. She would be 88 today. Happy birthday Mum.

Two real men use two-man saw

2010-01-22T12:01:00.000-08:00

Here is Neily giving Mike a tutorial with the two-man saw.

New year visitors

2010-01-05T19:04:00.001-08:00

It has been a nice week for visitors. We are very honoured to be on THE calendar.

Xmas 2009 in slane

2009-12-25T10:10:00.000-08:00

warm and sunny in west cork

2009-12-20T02:36:00.000-08:00

Apple pressing

2009-09-19T23:15:00.000-07:00

Outdoor chicks

2009-09-19T16:35:00.000-07:00

We put the chicks outside today. The big hen was not impressed.

Chick weed Chick Flick

2009-08-31T10:20:00.000-07:00

The chicks have an extension on their house and are starting to fly around and eat, appropriately, chick weed.

Cheep cheep: we've got chicks

2009-08-17T17:26:00.000-07:00

Holly and Seamas

2009-08-03T10:54:00.000-07:00

Holly and Seamus are back from Fuerteventura

The Hanora

2009-06-17T23:01:00.000-07:00

Boating has gone up a level. Nigel took us out for a spin in his fabulous Hare Island lobster boat that he rebuilt. Sorry about the background cackle.

Messing about in boats,

2009-06-08T12:34:00.000-07:00

Peggy kindly offered us the use of her boat while she's away. We made it to Sherkin yesterday but Nigel reckoned we needed a tutorial on how to manage it.

Summer

2009-06-03T23:02:00.000-07:00

We have had the first week of summer weather this year and you never know here it could be the last. so, we made the best of it.

2009 Fiddle Fair

2009-05-11T14:59:00.000-07:00

The Fiddle Fair is like a summer holiday for me, with the advantage that I don't have to go away. When you live in the best place in the world, why would you want to? The Fiddle Fair brings the world to us.
Here is a little bit of the American musicians that brought us a taste of Old time, Cajun, Country and Jazz. They seemed to be in different bands but all played together just the same. That was the best night for me with all the dancing which kept us warm.

Well done Declan and all the team. Can't wait for next year.

Well done Clonakilty marketeers

2009-04-03T09:29:00.000-07:00

The Clonakilty Market re-opened today and inspite of the weather looked greatJohn Devoy was up at 1am to get ready.

There was plenty of local produce, like Alan Hassett's giant plaice.
and plenty of vegetables considering it is April.The market should knock off a few food miles, support local producers, connecting them to their consumers, be an attraction for tourists, keep money within the community, create competition with the supermarkets, in a good way, act as an incubator for small food processors, be a social focal point in the town, and lots more. Why then is the town council taking all the traders names and threatening prosecution under the Casual Trading Act? Has the act been implemented in Clonakilty? Has anyone seen the by-laws? Have the Market Rights been extinguished?

We popped into Scally's on the way home where YOU KNOW WHOSE organic beef is for sale. Scally's are supplied with organic beef by Good Herdsmen They enquire whose beef is available and if it is ours they take it. It is a pity it has to travel so far, first to Watergrass hill to be killed and then to Cahir to be cut up and then back to Clonakilty.

2009-03-19T11:10:00.000-07:00

My good friend Eric has just published two books. He is such a sensitive and intelligent soul that I am looking forward to reading them. He always has an interesting and different slant on all subjects, from climate change to relationships. The first is a novel called "The King, Father and Mother - Trinity Revelation" and the second a book of poems called "Oasis of Love" They are available through Lulu.com. http://stores.lulu.com/booksbyericrhodes

Anyone can upload their writing or pictures to Lulu and have them printed as a book. There is no minimum print run. I have been thinking of writing a pocket gardening book and diary so I was intrigued that Eric's novel fits easily into a back pocket. I shall take it with me to the polytunnel and have a little read between projects.

Autumn and Aiden

2009-03-13T13:42:00.000-07:00

Autumn and Aiden came for a spring visit. It doesn't seem so long ago that autumn and Holly were making dens and having tea parties in the 'forest'.

Mad Aquarians on 14th of February

2009-02-20T13:59:00.000-08:00

At dawn on the 14th of February the planets were alighned in some way that I (a mere Leo) don't understand, but it seemed important to the Aquarians so I went with them to Cunnamore point to eh celebrate...

Notabouthorses

2009-02-13T13:49:00.000-08:00

Especially for the antipodean followers.

2009-02-13T13:27:00.000-08:00

Claudia, Michael, Finbarr and Ewan, (sorry if I spelt your names wrongly), came over on Sunday with their ponies. So we did a bit of horsing around.

Kinmoth ponies

2009-02-13T10:35:00.000-08:00

2009-02-07T22:15:00.000-08:00

We went up to Millstreet for a outing to celebrate Mike's Birthday on the 1st of February. Here's a little bit of video of the Irish Draught showing its versatility, and a big bird. I thought this might amuse at least one of the followers of the BES blog.