Bluebells, Rejection and Watering Wilf

And so, the sunflowers are definitely dead. But, in true Norman Bates style, they are still in their pots, still in the kitchen by the window, and I am still watering them. Despite their limp, brown floppy appearance, I cannot accept that they are really gone. I can sense that gardening is going to be quite an emotional hobby for me. The Gardeners World magazine makes it look so jolly. The truth is that it is filled with rejection and loss.

The garden now seems to be full of bluebells which are giving it a wild appearance that I am claiming all credit for. There is so much to do but I need to figure out what those things are before I start blindly waving a spade around.

On the plus side, I am not frightened of the compost bin anymore. Admittedly, my first visit to it was in the dark, and as someone who has never been that close to rotting things before, I was nervous that I would be attacked by worms, or bitten by angry sleeping badgers. As neither of those things happened, I am now feeling much more relaxed about it. I am also now making meals where I KNOW there will be raw leftovers so I can go and add to the compost. I like the feeling of popping my wellies on and spending a few tiny moments walking to the back of the garden, especially after the sun goes down and I can enjoy a little moment of rural peace.

Another element of our new garden that has provoked much discussion is our new gnome.

Now, I have always wondered if I would, upon acquiring a garden, get a gnome. There seems to be a lot of them about, not all of whom are displayed ironically. Once I had decided that yes, we should have one, and no, I wasn't going to involve Tom in the decision, the purchase was done extremely quickly. It was almost as though thinking about it too much would, inevitably, end up in no gnome at all.

And so, we are now the proud parents of Watering Wilf. He came from Amazon. (no, not THE Amazon, that would be ridiculous) In turns out, you can buy gnomes on the internet. Welcome to 2010.

On the negative side, when he turned up, he was significantly less classy than he had looked in his photo. I felt cheated, like someone who has signed up to Guardian Soulmates then been disappointed to meet their date. Except in this case, the date was standing in my garden wearing a pointy green hat and carrying a watering can.

On the plus side, he was MUCH smaller than I was expecting.

You win some, you lose some.

In this case, I have gained a gnome, but lost a little bit of class.

It's a decision I can live with.