Settling in

The snowy weather and icy conditions continue here and we have been told that more snow may be on the way today. I have been out for a walk each day, taking it very carefully, and have enjoyed it. However, I have been spending the majority of my time indoors. I do have plenty to do as I am still unpacking boxes from our move. Still? you might ask and it has been a long drawn out process but I have had a month's holiday and Christmas festivities in the meantime. I think though that I may have unpacked the last box and just have a few bits and pieces left to sort through. Also, it has been "decision time" - do we need it, love it, have we used it in the past year? Unpacking has been like pouring a quart into a pint pot!

I am not sure if I mentioned that when we moved we "downsized" from a 3 bedroomed house with a garden to a 2 bedroomed, first floor apartment overlooking the beach with views to the Quantock Hills on one side and the Welsh coast on the other. When we said what we were doing friends and relations asked "won't you miss your garden". The short answer is "no". I rarely sat in the garden and definitely won't miss working in it as it was becoming more and more of a chore, a challenge, to keep it tidy. If I do suffer "withdrawal symptoms" my daughter has a large garden and can always use help. We do have a small balcony and have put a few pots out there and will have a table and a couple of chairs there in the summer.

I will miss the wildlife, the birds and the squirrels and of course, the pond. But it wasn't a decision lightly made, we feel very relaxed here and I have seen squirrels and hedgehogs at the rear of our apartments and birds, obviously. We have had plenty to look at from our front windows. On Christmas Day the weather was beautiful and apart from folk out walking, once the tide was high there were yachts and wind surfers taking advantage of the sunny breezy day. We can see the local lifeboat launch from here and have seen it out on excercise a few times. I must add that we don't just sit staring out of our windows, life goes on as before. It's just that instead of a garden aspect we have one that entertains, doesn't need any input from us and the flower beds and containers are dealt with by the local authority. Perfect!

Here are a couple of recent shots - the first from our front windows, of the Quantock Hills



and this is a shot of a local landmark, taken from our back windows. (click on each picture for more detail)