Tuesday, May 20, 2008

forty winks, exchange, nettles



















This is one of two lions, which have sat outside our house for a good many years, a little pretentiously, I admit. Sometimes a hat of some sort brings relief.

Two builders are resting beside a skip. One is using a mobile phone, which he holds away from his mouth, and says to me "excuse me." I look towards him. "Is England a country? he says. "Like Scotland and Wales?" I give my opinion. He conveys it to the person on the other end of his phone. I am holding a broken garden fork, which I am seeking to dispose of. "May I use your skip?" I say, feeling that some reward is due. They agree and I toss the old fork in amid the rubble. I guess that I have earned the skip space.

With a sickle, I cut down some tall nettles and breathe in the intoxicating smell of summer.
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3 comments:

Rashmi said...

:-) I'd say the lion looks more uppity in this hat!

Lucy said...

Perhaps he was helping someone in a quiz or something...

I love that chopped nettle smell, nothing like it. Do you ever make nettle soup? You shouldn't make it after June as it becomes somewhat purgative; in fact I don't do it before June any more either because it is anyway. but it tastes good...

Unknown said...

I did once make nettle soup, and it is only idleness which prevents me from repeating the process. It can be very good.

You could write a dissertation on whether England is a country. Some might argue nowadays that, whatever it is or is not, it is an idea, and rather a good one.