I am lucky enough to live in the countryside and manage to cope with most things that share my environment, the slugs, sloworms, frogs, adders, mice, rats etc. However, there are a couple of things that scare me to death, one is spiders, although I have learnt how to deal with them, (usually a glass over the top, a piece of paper underneath and then out of the window). The second gives me the absolute heeby geebies! July Bugs as we call them (even though they appear at this time of the year) or to call them by their proper name Cockchafers. They are enormous flying beetles, and I mean enourmous! Adults are about an inch and a half long...and they fly erratically. They are nocturnal and are drawn to the light. So any hope of a barbeque after dusk is asking for a visit, and this is exactly what happened a few days ago. I was nearly demented with fright when one actually landed on my front. I had total paralysis for a few seconds and then tore off my apron screaming at the top of my voice. It was most undignified. However, for those of you in the know maybe, just maybe you know how I feel. UUUgh!!!! This is only a small picture but it gives you an idea and is almost to scale. So close your eyes and imagine that on your front if you dare.
This is the lane that I live on and our cottage is to the right of the picture.
These two pictures show my garden gate and the one opposite is the one man person uses to go to work. It is literally three paces away, depending on how big your feet are of course! He manages the garden there. It is idiylic really, out of one and in the other.
I leave you with a close up shot of one of my favourite plants, the foxglove. What could be more perfect at this time of year.
Dev XX or should I say Oak Elffilter...look to the right of my blog and check out what your fairy name might be. Go on, you know you want to!
8 comments:
Thank you, Dev. Being the mother of a sweet little girl myself, I know exactly what you mean. We carry on, and really, do we have a choice?
I SO get that bug thing! I'm an arachnophobic and would never be able to do that thing with a glass. So I scream and run and let others (=dh) do my dirty work on that area. Spiders are a true hazard to my enjoying the summer. As are beetles of all sorts. *shiver*
Your garden gate is heavenly and I was thinking The Secret Garden even before you brought it up. Hopefully one day I'll have a bigger garden, too, with doors and trees and secret hideaway spots. THAT might make those the bugs more tolareble as well :-)
Oh my word what an idyllic setting! Just the most wonderful gate to set you imagination running, love to know what it's really like behind it.
D'you know I don't think I've ever seen one of those July bugs before. Its gnats a-go-go here and little B hates them. Luckily I don't mind insects really but snakes - yeeegguugh! Read too much Jungle Book and the story of the mongoose and the cobras when I was young - horrible!
Thanks for sharing such lovely pics (well ok I'm not quite so in love with the bug one!) but I do love your banner, wonderful.
Have a smashing week.
Stephx
I found your blog and I am so happy about it!! I love Great Britain very much. We had very good friends there for more than 15 years. They lived in Newton Abbot. Unfortunately they sold their lovely house and moved to Spain. I was shocked when they told me about it. We went to visit them at their English home very often and visited all of Devon and Cornwall. Marvellous, really beautiful. We visited each other every year, either they came to our house or we went to them or we met somewhere in France or Italy, where they often spent their holidays. Now they are too far away to meet every year.
We celebrated two weddings in Torquay, because they have got 3 children.
Your country is great and I love the British people and of course your gardening. The British gardens are wonderful, nobody in Germany knows it really.
I have been in London of course but we never visited other parts of England except for the south.
Your pictures of your road and your cottage gate remind me very much on the lovely countryside. I love the English cottages.
Perhaps you are interested in my blog and I will find you there somewhere.
best wishes
Iris
I love your blog.Thanks for visiting mine.I'll add you to my list of faves...Sal;-)
My goodness. Those are sad news. Got to despise those foxes, no way around it.
I studied in Essex for a while in the early 90's and the family I was stying with kept hens. One night we woke up to terrible noise and in the morning discovered just a pile of feathers left. Although hens are not the brightest peas in the pod, they are extremely sympathetic and likable animals. It's a loss, really, dear Dev. Take care.
Oh the lane you live on looks absulutely beautiful I love the overhanging trees with the sunlight shining through looks like you live in a very pretty place. Luckily I,ve never come across one of those beetles and I never want to to they sound awful I don't blame you for screaming your head off so would I. I love foxgloves I have lots in my garden this year.
Sarahx
Hiya,
Just to let you know that I have tagged you, I hope you don't mind!
The rules are on my blog.
Thanks,
Sian
Oh so thats what they are! We had one of those MASSIVE bashing into everything flying bugs in the lounge when we had that warm spell a few days back..scared the life out of me..big as a bat! ok, big as a moth..but a very big moth.It still made me scream very loudly and entertained the cats until a man helped it out the window!
lovely photographs on your blog, looks like you live in a beautiful area, but looking at your post after this one, its a pity others can treat it so appallingly by leaving their junk in the hedgerows, such a shame.
x
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