Our take on Beer Can Chicken… Chicken was rubbed with Jack Daniels BBQ glaze, and allowed to marinate for a couple of hours before being set up on the BBQ with cola instead of beer inside. With vegetables around the outside and the grill running at around 180°, it took about an hour and a half to cook and was delicious!
After a full day working in the garden, a ‘special’ gin and tonic was the least we deserved, even if we were almost too tired to enjoy it! Very handy having our own ‘cocktail corner’ in the kitchen…
… and lots of other colours too. My wife loves flowers, especially roses, so this jumbo bunch of multi-colored blooms looked perfect for our kitchen. 
After our hot and sunny week in Ibiza, we were not unhappy at the prospect of some cooler weather back home. What we didn’t plan on was thunderstorms and torrential rain this afternoon! Fortunately it didn’t last long, and we can expect some kinder weather next week. 
Another fabulous sunset, shot from the top of the garden. The local farmer, whose land is adjoining, has fortunately now cut down the tall grass that was blocking this view. How lucky are we?
This is part of the Italienate Gardens at Trentham, near Stone. It has been a country estate since the 11th century, and although the fine country house that once stood here has been largely demolished over the years, the gardens, originally designed by Capability Brown, have been lovingly restored as a country park. Well worth a visit…
This is Barney. Next door’s cat. He has attitude. He’s also very efficient at keeping our garden free of rabbits, mice and other miscellaneous wildlife. There’s barely a day passes when we don’t see him trotting across our garden with his catch…
I’ve been a member of the Royal Photographic Society for some years now, and finally decided I would like to sit their Licentiate assessment – success confirms a reasonable competence in photographic skills. Assessment entails submitting a panel of 10 images to the committee for review, so the first step is to choose some potential photos – they need to be technically perfect, and show a variety of subjects and techniques. So I’m drawing up a short list of photos to consider…
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Even though we cut them right down each autumn, these beautiful Verbena plants pop up just the same the following year. One of many strains, these ones are apparently named Verbena Bonariensis and grow to about 1m tall. They do seem to attract butterflies too…
As well as getting shopping (see yesterday’s post) the other priority when getting back from holiday is mowing the lawns. Fortunately the ride-on makes fairly short work of it – just a shame it can’t do weeding too…
One Day At A Time... 