An interesting little museum, some more garden pictures, and incredulity at some Health and Safety measures.

When I was doing my feature writing, we would often just go out for a mooch around in the car, taking the odd turn here and there, just to see where it led, and on one afternoon in early summer, about ten years ago, it led to the little building you can see below. This is the Shell Museum at Glandford in North Norfolk (http://www.shellmuseum.org.uk/) - Glandford itself is a tiny hamlet of half a dozen houses or so, most of them with this Dutch gabled fanciness. It's another of those really small, really quiet places... a haven away from the busy road we had been travelling on, which leads to the coastal villages of Cley, Blakeney and Wells, some of my favourite places to visit, out of season, when it's quieter. The Museum is run purely thanks to donations being a small, private trust which receives no public funding at all, or didn't the last time I checked.
The village itself was built around 1900 by Sir Alfred Jodrell of nearby Bayfield Hall, and the beautiful little church alongside the Museum, St. Martin's, was built by him in memory of his Mother. It's main claim to fame though is the carillon which plays religious tunes every few hours. The Museum itself was built in 1915, is the oldest purpose-built museum in Norfolk and claims to house the finest collection of seashells in the country. Apart from the shells it also has cabinets of curiosities really... Victorian shell-covered boxes, a cannonball from Cromwellian times, elephant's teeth, just a glorious mish-mash of all sorts of interesting items, though the stars are the shells themselves. If ever you are in this part of Norfolk, it is well worth a visit.

I have been busy taking photos in the garden, since I discovered the button that allows me to take close-ups without the blurring. Marvellous things, handbooks that come with cameras and gizmos... trouble is, I have no patience for reading them, so my patient husband does the reading, and then does a precis of the important bits! After hearing me moan about not being able to get clarity with the photos, he read the book and lo and behold! There is a button you select when doing really close up shots. Hurrah! So, these are the delphiniums, obviously.

This is the lovely white rose which scrambles up an iron archway... covered with rust spots on the leaves it may be, home to aphids it definitely is, but the scent is gloriously sweet and delicate.

This beauty sadly has a rotten name... Stinking Iris... at least that is what you gardening types told me it was when I put up a picture of the plant, minus flowers, but with seedpods of bright orange seeds. The markings are beautiful, but what a shame about the name.

This is my raised veggie bed.. yesterday I picked the first of the salad leaves, and today I planted a second row of carrot, salad onions and the lettuce. It is VERY warm today, even at half past eight in the morning, the skies were clear bright blue, the sun was quite hot, and I know now that I shall have to spend the rest of the day indoors, until later this evening at any rate.

There are two types of honeysuckle growing in the garden, though only one of this particular variety, which grows up and around and through a holly tree, and the deep pink flowers look quite spectacular against the glossy green foliage of said holly.

And this is part of what is, undoubtedly, the best fabric conditioner in the world. The other two elements are sunshine and a good breeze... this honeysuckle, rampant in many areas of the garden, is happily taking over one side of the small laburnum, growing all over it, clinging to branches, providing a lovely scented home for the goldfinch's nest, and in the warmth of the sun, the smell is quite intoxicating... and as it is growing along branches near the washing line, and up the washing post itself, which is mainly hidden in the laburnum anyway, the smell transfers itself to the washing. I don't use conditioners and softeners, finding the scents too manufactured and heavy, but with this alongside the washing line, and lavender plants beneath it, what more do I need anyway?

Health and Safety.... now we are all used to hearing about new regulations put out by this body of people, and whilst I agree that many of their outpourings are sensible, necessary too, there are some which beggar belief. Like... children no longer allowed to run in school playgrounds apparently. Why? Because they might fall and injure themselves. Aah, diddums. Isn't that part of growing up, taking the knocks in life, in every way? In craft lessons they are no longer allowed to use empty egg cartons because of the risk of salmonella, which I have been told could cling to the box, being transferred there from any infected eggs, so maybe I'll give them that one. But not using the inner tubes from spent toilet rolls because of the risk of infection? Not sure I'll give them that one though! And teachers, apparently, are supposed to wear goggles when using blue tack, glue sticks.... why?

And here endeth my blog for this week. A week which promises to be warmer and sunnier than last week, good news for most people, but being a bit of a killjoy, I prefer it cooler myself, and loved the rain we had last week.

Enjoy yours, whatever your preference, and thanks for dropping by again.