Good News & Bad News

Well its been a bit of a ‘good news, bad news’ time since my last entry. The good news was that Val’s fractured ankle had healed and so they were able to take the plaster off. Keeping the weight off, hopping around on a frame for six weeks has not been fun for her and a strain on me as well, especially as I was over the deadline on a new book.

The bad news is that her ligament is damaged so she’s wearing an aircast boot. It’s very fetching and the height of fashion amongst Star Wars storm troopers! It means she can get around now, in fact they’ve said she should move around now. However, she still can’t drive or even walk without a stick so it’s cramping her style.

We’re back to the hospital in 3 weeks when they’ll check it out again. We’re hoping to avoid an operation but it’s a possibility.

The good news is I’ve finished my new book, Vegetable, Fruit & Herb Growing in Small Spaces so I’ve more free time but the bad news is that the weather has turned. Winter is here and the plot really needs me. Still, it can’t rain every day, can it?

I’m rather pleased with myself on the new book, I’ve drawn on our experience from a few houses back where the back garden was covered in concrete. It was attractive, walls painted in pastels and old stone walls to the sides, terraced up a slope. But concrete is not the best growing medium.

Anyway, we had more than you would believe in pots and the few tiny borders. I’ve researched a fair bit with friends in the National Vegetable Society. They tend to grow in containers, so a lot of good tips have gone into this work. I say it’s finished, but that’s not quite true, still got editorial changes and illustrations to sort out. You’d be surprised how much goes into a book.