Post Comment Love 25-27 September

Welcome to this week’s #PoCoLo - a friendly linky which I co-host with Suzanne, where you can link any post published in the last week. We know you’ll find some great posts to read, and maybe some new-to-you blogs too, so do pop over and visit some of the posts linked and share some of that love.

Another week, and new rules from the government. And a new app, which we’ve already downloaded here, and which I hope will help in the fight against Covid. Though, if I’m honest I think we’ve some way to go yet, though I’m hoping we’ll start to see changes from these latest changes soon, and before other more tighter rules are needed.

Earlier in the year I booked some leave, random blocks of days, and so this week I’ve had three much needed days off. The first very much a home day, catching up on all sorts of things and yesterday we headed down to Whitstable for a change of scene. And much needed. We haven’t been to Whitstable for a while, and it’s such a pretty town, it was good to visit again.

We were lucky with the weather too, for most of the day. The sun had warmth, even though there were clouds in the sky, some of them much darker than we’d have liked. But we were able to have some al-fresco fish and chips on the edge of the beach, so a lot of typical English seaside town behaviour. We spotted beach huts, browsed shops, bought local goods and then got soaked after a sudden downpour which caught us out.

But even so, a really good day out, and one that (face coverings apart) felt the most ‘normal’ for a while.

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Succulents on the terrace

You’ll know I’m rather partial to a succulent or two, and so having been relatively ‘starved’ of ogling other people’s succulents when I saw these perched on the wall overlooking the main lawn at Standen, it didn’t take me long to be standing in front of them.

And I wasn’t disappointed.

I mean, who could be disappointed with the dusky grey pink variety above or the pink, orange and yellow flowers of the one below.

And that large rosette. Pure heaven. Though my succulents tend to do this, and migrate to the edge of the pot. I’m glad that that is usual behaviour, however frustrating that may be.

But I think the one that stole the show was this pretty, pale pink flower. How delicate, and how exquisite. And even better it let my iPhone capture its detail - always a winner for me.

That was quite an unexpected succulent fix, but one that I didn’t realise I would enjoy quite as much as I did.

A secluded spot

Over the weekend I made more of a concerted effort to tackle editing my photos, which seem to be building up, even though we’re not going out anywhere as much as in a normal year. But as some are edited there’s no reason not to share, so for a couple of posts this week we’re heading off to Standen. I visited on the August Bank Holiday with MOH and MIL, what was a nice surprise was being able to go inside the house, even though it was just the ground floor, it felt quite a treat in these strange times.

So of course we headed there first, there was a short (socially distanced) queue but being a National Trust crowd it was all very amiable and all very nice (not that we’ve queued anywhere tbh which isn’t nice!) Afterwards we headed out into the central garden, starting off on the terraces just outside the conservatory, pretending, as you do, that perhaps it was our house.

Actually Standen is one of those National Trust properties that you feel you could actually live in. But clearly we don’t. It’s the sort of place, that even now, it’s easy to find a spot to sit in, and it has the best secluded spot.

To the right of the photo above is the conservatory in the house, which is equally a fab space, but this covered space, with its tiled background has to be the best secluded spot, surely.

Even the plants on the terrace conspire to keep its secret. Though the plant itself is pretty spectacular.

Looking more closely it was the tiles, not the bench that drew my attention. It’s easy to see why isn’t it?

But where do the stairs and the little door go?

I don’t know, but I’m pretty sure this is a spot you could sit for a while or two, and maybe then you’d find out. Either way it would be time well spent.