Fragrant Grass

I sit here with the sweet fragrance of newly cut grass filling the air.  Across the road the council gardeners are driving large tractors over the acreage of greenery.  They do a fine job of keeping it under control, the sweet aroma of cut grass always lifts the spirits in us all.

My own version of grass today will be 'Lambs Lettuce,' whatever that is, as I am attempting to stuff more greenery down my throat.  I have some in a plastic bowl at the moment, and I have lots of plastic bowls and containers in the house.  One of my nieces is adamant I should throw them out, but does not inform me as to an alternative, as she claims these things are poisoning us.  Well, she is of course correct, my nieces always are, and the re-use of so many plastic bottles, containers and the like does imply we will suffer an intake of plastic, or whatever it is made off, into our systems.  However, what is the alternative?  Tins?  Any alternative for storage will have problems also.  That said it is clear we are taking in vast quantities of plastic and no-one appears to care.

Plastic is so useful, it gives us drainpipes, cables, containers, bags, and is what almost all tech items are made from these days.  What would we do without it?  However, what do we do with the reject plastic?  Most of it cannot be recycled, what can, is often dumped on third world nations for the natives to rummage amongst to find a life!  Some local 'Tesco' bags were found in one dump in the Philippines not that long ago.  Vast amounts cover the oceans, killing aquatic life, filling the fish we eat, as does mercury and other items, and enters ourselves thus killing us.  I doubt this present government either understands this or indeed cares.   

A more natural diet is required, we know so much of our food is full of muck to make it more desirable, but while it tastes good it fills us with sugar, or worse.  A balanced diet can avoid trouble but who has this 'balanced diet?'  We just get fat.

Natural foods sound good, but how much fertiliser, and what is the fertiliser that is used, has gone into it.  What is sprayed across the 'natural' foodstuffs?  What has been done to it over the years, I understand wheat is now shorter for industrial purposes, for instance, why?  The grass I have comes in wee bags full of some thing, hydrogen I think, to keep it fresh and turn it into black lumps within two days.  I wonder how healthy this really is?  Tinned veg is healthier, but what have they put on it?

I would go and make lunch but now I am too scared to eat.  At least I will lose weight...

And now, some culture...

     

    

1950's planning

One good thing about 1950's planning was the idea of open spaces. I came past one such estate today. These houses were planned in the late thirties, or during the war and eventually someone got around to the design and building of them in the early fifties. Houses for people, council houses originally and foolishly sold of by Thatcher. One of the stupidest policies she came out with. Owning your own home was an ideal, and one so many could not keep up with yet she encouraged the sale of the very houses that were meant to provide for those that could not afford to buy! Naturally the socialist voters who bought their home cheap flogged it for a fortune leaving thousand in the lat 1980's in debt up to their eyes. A short step to the recession we now endure worldwide! Today we are building 'social housing' the very thing she killed off! Today the houses are cramped, with small areas of green for gardens and probably built on land that ought to be left for the 'green belt,' or even worse, land that has had hundreds of years of industrial use
and contains all sorts of bad stuff. Superb! Those house built in the fifties at least had open spaces, in truth larger than required, but gave the occupants a better life than the overcrowded tenements and houses they had suffered for many years. Such long sighted policies ought to be commended. There is no doubt the people sometimes responded badly and many areas of good housing were reduced to slums by the people who inhabited them, so much for the socialist idea that people would change if the housing improved! However for those who did make the most of it the houses are a blessing indeed, so much so many did not move even if they bought their house and like my mother lived in them for over fifty years. Quite right too!

This estate has large green areas, possibly caused by the slopes making it unsuitable for housing, and what was once farmers fields are now areas of green with the occasional small wood, like the one pictured above. A small benefit to those who live here, because we need trees and bushes around us. We need the sight of green grass and a wide variety of wildlife nearby. This opens our minds and takes us away from the daily struggle, unless of course it rains, then it's just mud and only the dog is happy!

Grass, Flowers, Fragrance

It was when I was sitting in the park watching the gir reading my book that I noticed it. A worker bee was bouncing along the bench just like the lassies and watching him I began to cogitate, as you do. You see I had put the book down and allowed the fragrance of the newly cut grass to fill my senses. This was more profitable in the sunshine than the book was. There is little in God's earth that is better than the smell of newly cut grass. Quite why it is so sweet I have no idea but I love it. I considered the area the gardener had omitted while mowing, a patch about thirty feet by fifteen had been allowed to remain to attract the beasties. I watched the bee stop to rest on the bench and wondered if he was attracted by smell or sight to such things. The flowers, that is to say buttercups and dandelions and such like weeds, are bright yellow and this, they say, is to attract beasties at this time of year. Surely I suggest the aroma does similar as it appeared to me our bee was getting up close to things to inspect them rather than watching from a distance and heading towards his target. Chasing the bee on his way and wiping hundreds of little black beasts from my arms as I sat reddening I considered the 'Lillies of the field.'

Flowers are such wonderful things. Delicate, colourful and fragrant, just like the women in my life. Hold on, I'm not so sure about the 'delicate' part there. Our Thai Mike often shows pics of his gardening exploits and it is amazing how varied flowers and plants can be. In the UK we possess many that are thought to be indigenous but in fact are escapees. In the 18th and 19th century many rich folks collected specimens from all corners of the globe, in a similar manner to the way England collected an Empire! Some of the seeds escaped from their gardens, often aided by passing birds, and on occasion they reached the railway lines. As the railways spread through the land, with amazing speed as it happened, they took with them the seeds from the plants that had taken root alongside the track. The wheels carried them to all corners and they remain abundant throughout the land today.