Anthony and Olivia have been putting in double shift to get this huge allotment garden season ready, rediscovering buried terraces and spectacular views over Dover. Every visit brings more joy and wonder at the unexpected delights of this underrated part of the Kent coast!
Back home we too are preparing for coming summer with ambitions to install solar on the shed. We got ourselves a 4 panel Eco Flow kit with 3.8WH battery and built controllers that just plug into the mains ring a supply the whole house whilst the sun shines. Getting it all up on the shed took some serious thinking and plotting before climbing up and enacting the plan.
In fact it was so absorbing barely any photos were taken which kinda goes against the expectation of intensive cover for such adventures. It was quite terrifying to be up on the 6x4m barely supported poly carbonate roof for hours at a time on the skinny timber frame that had to be added to the existing structure so It would support the weight of panels and large humans climbing over it to screw parts in place.
At this moment pictured we had to back off and watch in amusement as local fox and guest heron eyed each other amongst the disarray of construction works. Bit by bit then in the end a rush with help from Dermot and Vlad it went up, and has remained sturdy and safe, the leyandii break the southwesterly winds just enough!
Power harvested from the 4 panel array is collected at the EcoFlow Ultra control unit and made available for use throughout the ring main by some magic.
Once all that was done James Braddell called to confirm a road trip west was planned so took the train to Warwick for the first stop at Andy Payne’s new factory building Eaton Works. He only just got the keys and his excitement was real, 8k sqft of light industrial in the corner of a business park, bordered by railtrack and canal with decent outdoor spaces, fab! Over the coming months contents of the two engineering units they have on other side of town, will be decanted.
Next stop was to visit Fred and Lucy in Pewsey. They share a beautiful cottage surrounded by gardens and filled with wonderful art, sculpture and furniture made by the pair of them! James has been here before and between us found so much to enjoy in their company, we had a great time of it. In the morning had time for a walk to Freds studio with the dog and to hear about some niggles over footpath rights and petty neighbors impact their happiness. Let that all pass soon…
Dave Chelsea is legend, so I shouldn’t have been surprised when introducing James back when we first visited the Temple of BOOM in Westbury, that they already had friends and interests in common. Fine wine and good food are the drivers for so many of us, it’s great to be in the company of such enthusiasts. The place is an extraordinary hold for musical production and dreams where many local and nationally respected artists have made their feelings known and love expressed. A huge log burner, generous kitchen and even a sauna are offered gladly!
We woke up a bit worse for wear and got a good breakfast in before heading further west to Somerset Levels, for a very special visit to the Victorian subterranean reservoir that Libby purchased at auction just a month earlier. It’s a bit wet inside but that can all be sorted by Will whom has been working hard to prepare for some grand design scale re-carving of the place to let in light and make it possible to drive in AV trucks, materials needed for refurbishment and inspiration to carry forward the spirit of his current successes at New River Studios, Tottenham!
We couldn’t stay in the hollows long and anyway by mid afternoon were back on the road homeward bound and somewhat exhausted but certainly energised. Hope to be back soon…
