Wells, February 2022

Tags

Bishop's Palace Wells, George Inn Croscombe, Good Earth Wells, Josefina da Vasconcellos, Penniless Porch, St Cuthbert's Wells, St Thomas's Wells, Storm Eunice, Vicars' Close Wells, Wells, Wells Cathedral

Mary’s train from Paddington two days ago drew in to Castle Cary station four minutes early in the morning, and likewise was punctual on the way back in the evening. That is, unlike yesterday and today when the rail system in the south of the UK is in chaos, thanks to Storm Eunice.

To the George Inn, in Croscombe for a coffee, and the first session of putting the world to rights. And congratulating ourselves, yet again, for having, some time back, chosen the only day this week when passing time outdoors was not forecast to be spoilt by rain.

As we got into the car to move on to Wells, the first spots of rain started. Over the eight minutes it took to get to that city (the smallest in England), the downpour got heavier and heavier, such that, at the point we would normally have left the car to walk to our lunch cafe, it would have been a very unpleasant experience indeed. We sat in the car, not yet having paid for our parking, contemplating what to do. Mary consulted her preferred forecaster, Accuweather, which said it would be pouring for the rest of the day. Mine, BBC Weather, almost denied that it was raining, and said that precipitation would be almost non-existant for the rest of the day. We used our eyes, and decided to give up and to go to my home, 20 minutes away, where I would rustle up something for us to eat.

I backed the car out some 10 feet, and suddenly the rain got lighter, light enough to walk under umbrellas to the café. So, OK, we would lunch in Wells, then decide what to do. We paid for the parking – I accidentally did so for much longer than just having a meal would have needed (incomprehensible instructions on the meter). By the time we were sitting down for our excellent meal at The Good Earth, it had stopped raining and there was blue sky. So both weather forecasters were wrong.

The day’s plans had actually been to focus on seeing seeing the snowdrops at the Bishop’s Palace. We took some quiet old residential streets to get there,

and first went via the Penniless Porch . To quote Wikipedia, ‘It was named for the beggars who plied their trade there,^[3][7] however in 2016 a man was prosecuted for begging nearby.^[8]‘

We took a look at the Cathedral,

and at Vicars’ Close (where still all twelve men of the Vicars Choral live).

I came home with well over a hundred pictures taken during the day, so here is a small selection of those I took in the Bishop’s Palace Gardens. (We had actually visited the Palace itself on a previous occasion, perhaps three or four years ago, not written up because the weather was so appalling that photography was worthless, especially in the gardens.)

The Palace’s swans are famous for ringing the bell to get food.

What remains of the Great Hall

Enhanced by a bed of beautiful hellebores

Ramparts and a moat surround the entire palace and its gardens.

Cathedral, Palace, and Mary

The next picture may be of historic interest! It may be the last ever taken of St Thomas’s church spire before its top was blown down by Storm Eunice yesterday morning! It’s there, a little distorted by torsion, at the very left of the picture on the horizon.

The incident has been widely covered in the media, but here is a link to it for the record. Excuse the language if your sound is on… The St Thomas’s link above includes the spire wobbling beforehand as well, and here’s the vicar on the subject.

Daffodils, cyclamen and snowdrops

Crocuses and snowdrops

(courtesy of Mary)

There was a stiff breeze blowing…

I loved the shape of this tree in the children’s play area

Just because everyone takes this view, there’s no reason I shouldn’t.

The Palace’s swans are very tame…

From a distance I had wondered whether the near-adult swan by the sculpture was a sculpture itself. But no, as this video shows. The voice heard is that of the bystander seen at the end. I had advised her to back off…

Mary and I sat for a while on a swing seat in a formal garden of parterres,

with this in front of us. (I just love stipa tenuissima.)

Emerging back through the Great Hall’s wall, we enjoyed this view.

We contemplated going to visit the Cathedral, but opted instead for a cup of tea in the café, The Bishops’ Table,

with this for a view,

and me clearly pontificating on something.

Mary spotted this as we made our way back to the car. Burns the Bread is an excellent small local bakery chain.

We had already obeyed their instruction, at The Bishop’s Table.

We didn’t go straight back to the car park as I had left my umbrella at The Good Earth at lunchtime. It was fortunate that the rain had held off.

Having decided not to ‘do’ the Cathedral, we instead visited St Cuthbert’s church on the way. Live music was being practised on the organ.

Sadly, this photo does not do justice to the bright colours of the roof.

A charming chamber organ,

the important side of which I could not get far enough away from to see fully.

Looking back down the church

Just as we got back to the car – it was fortunate that we had inadvertently paid sufficient parking to cover more than just lunchtime – it started to rain.

Never mind, we were on our way to the warmth of my house, another cup of tea, to obey Burns the Bread’s instructions once more, and to spend even more time putting the world to rights. Isn’t it amazing how the human ape can talk, and talk, and talk, and not run out of things to say to each other?

A Tale of Three Sheds

Tags

bombus pratorum, Early Bumblebee, Somerset Garden Supplies

Or two sheds and a summerhouse to be precise.

I inherited the summerhouse and a shed when I moved in here, getting on for eleven years ago. They were in a reasonable condition at that stage but had been painted in a hideous (in my view) russety ‘cedar’ colour, most unnatural. I had them eco-painted in a more natural colour. But now I felt the time had come to replace them both, but with just one larger shed.

I found Somerset Garden Supplies locally, and Keith gave me an estimate for what I wanted, which he said could possibly go down, but would certainly go up if he found that the ground works were more extensive than he was assuming. This would not be known until the two buildings were demolished. New sheds are not cheap, and I was keeping my fingers very crossed.

Of course I made a photographic record of the five afternoons during which the work was done. These are the shed and the summerhouse to come down. The shed is true, the summerhouse is a good five degrees out of true! The big unknown was the state of the foundations, and their consequences for my final bill.

One reason I needed a new shed…

The five degrees…

Keith delivered the sleepers on which the new shed would rest on the Friday.

Work started on the Monday afternoon, and continued every afternoon last week. Unlike this week, the weather was kind.

The moment had arrived. Just what foundations lay underneath this shed?

Lots of snail shells! Keith told me that sometimes the whole revealed area can be covered in them. Here they were about a tenth of the area. I did some research on the internet, and found this is called a snail graveyard. One source said that mice eat the snails. But these were far to big for mice to cope with.

On the other hand, this rat carcase may offer a big clue…

Revealed by the removal of the shed was the fact that there were both live and dead branches surrounding the emplacement, and that it would be better to get rid of them before the new shed was put up. Kind neighbour Terry came round instantly to help. He did the lopping, and I removed both dead and lopped branches.

Meanwhile Keith got on with dismantling the summerhouse.

There remained a very stubborn elder stock, which had proved very prolific over the previous years. I really wanted it right out this time.

On the other hand, I didn’t want Terry and Keith working too close to each other, because of liability (not to mention their wellbeing!). Here, below, I could just feel – not that he said anything – Terry itching to go over and lend a hand to Keith.

As Terry remarked, this window would have made a nice cold frame, had it an opening panel.

And underneath the summerhouse, what did we find? A nest of some kind, very likely a rat’s. Which had been very happy to incorporate plastic into the construction, despite the abundance of dried grass available.

For the second time that afternoon, Keith went off to the tip. This time he made it by five minutes before closing time – and it would not have been open on the Tuesday.

Terry continued hacking at the elder stock, and I helped (?) by wiggling it from time to time. In due course, much later, I failed to record the moment of triumph photographically.

The next three afternoons, or parts thereof, were spend preparing the new foundations.

Friday afternoon was the exciting time.

I don’t like taking posed photographs, but this time I wanted to make an exception, and asked Keith to stand beside his finished work, with which I am well pleased.

Prior to the demolition of the two sheds, with Terry’s help I had had a huge clear-out of both (passers-by took 95% of what was set out at the front, hooray, love recycling) and another kind neighbour had kindly agreed to store what I was keeping, in her garage. (I don’t have one.) So two mornings this week, again with Terry’s help, notably replacing shelves, and between rain showers, have been spent putting everything away. With just four walls available now, albeit bigger than the previous eight, I did wonder whether it would all fit, but I am very pleased with the result. Job finished this morning.

And, as I finished and it started to spit, I caught sight, and as far as the camera was concerned, a blurry one, of a bumblebee, my first this year. I think it’s a queen bombus pratorum, the well-named Early Bumblebee. Spring is coming – let’s hope for no hard frosts to ruin things for everyone and everything.

(By the way, Keith used two fewer sleepers that originally estimated for, so my final invoice was lower.)