Sadness and support

I was going to try and blog weekly, but yesterday we were just too busy.

The weather has been glorious recently and we have spent a lot of time in the garden, creating new flower borders in the hope that we can add some colour to an otherwise green area and veggie patch. We were up bright and early and managed to erect a trellis and plant a jasmine before we got ready to attend a funeral.

Yesterday was the day we said goodbye to Sharon who died on March 10th aged 41 as a result of the dreaded MM. We had gotten to know her over the last couple of years after we met at an infoday and then kept bumping into her in Sainsburys and then when she was in the QE at the same time as Mike. Sharon was brave enough to go straight for an allo SCT which her mom said yesterday was 100% successful. I'm not a myeloma expert, not even a doctor, but it would seem that somehow despite the treatment, there was a tumour on her spine that refused to go away, that the myeloma found another way to get her and by January Sharon was paralysed from the diaphragm down, her worst fear.

The true irony for Mike and I was to discover that Sharon had for ten years before her diagnosis been a nurse at Compton Hospice. Some pay back for all her good work!

I can only hope that should I find myself in similar circumstances as her husband, children and family, that I can conduct myself with as much dignity. Who am I kidding, I'll bawl like a baby!

Typically of funerals, we did finally get to met another member of the club who lives locally and is part of the internet community. She too has a jack russell!

Later on in the afternoon Mike and I were back at New Cross to attend the first blood support group meeting with Karen our CNS and hopefully a few other patients. As it was there was Karen, Mike, me, Tony (nuclear rod man) and a couple who were "big" in the last support group which had died some years ago and who were convinced we'll never getting it going again! At least we've now got a dinner date arranged with Tony!!!

So a day of tears and laughter, just like many others. Now I'm off out into the garden before going to my local church to give my 3 monthly blood donation.

21st Garden - March

Here we go again.

This year we are growing tomatoes, swedes, butternut squash, courgettes / zucchini (yes Paula, again!), beetroots, asparagus (takes 2 YEARS), carrots and peas. The chillies have started to grow:

The onions are starting to sprout:

The potatoes are in the garage 'chitting':

The blackcurrant and strawberries have moved to new homes, away from the strangulating raspberries:

Oh and Mike requested I post a much clearer view of the beautiful gate he made for me:

Not long now.

Only two days until the first day of Spring and the start of my monthly 21st Century Garden photos. I am really excited as I have extended the vegetable patch in my garden this year, so hopefully there will be more to show you all. I haven't got any photos from January, but I did take a couple last month.

Last year the veggie patch fence was between the corner by the house and the post and the post and the hedge. If you look carefully, I reckon you can all work it out.

I did take a photo on 1st March so you could all see the wonderful gate that Mike made for me. The original one that I had when I created the patch two years ago, while Mike was lazing about in hospital, was constructed from an old cot side and was never made to last given the British weather.

Well, you can see a bit of it.

Sandy bear.

 For those of you who read about Buddy's birthday here, this is what Sandy looked like before his long journey northward to the land of giants and killer dogs.