Early Winter bits & bobs?

[Monika]

The forecast for today showed a full sun. Well, something has gone wrong, it's raining. I got rather sodden sweeping and bagging up leaves, particularly under a large beech. I have usually used the rotting leaves after a year, but I am going to be patient this time and wait for two years to get them really crumbly.

Our winter pansies and violas look rather sad, they don't like this wet weather.

At least the bird feeder is busy with blue, great, coal and long-tailed tits, chaffinches and bramblings (just two of those so far) and the occasional nuthatch, great spotted woodpecker, starling and bullfinch. Numbers of greenfinches are down, presumably because of avian trichomoniasis which is still about.

Anybody seen any waxwings yet? Our rosa rugosa hedge is full of lovely hips - am just hoping that these may attract them!

[donedigging]

54 flood warnings reported here by the local news this evening...
While driving around today, I am not surprised at all, we had to head home after two attempts from different angles to the garden centre it wasn't that important, roads closed ...
the sun did come out though this afternoon, but no need for suncream
Damp, cold and glad to get home in one piece

[oldherbaceous]

Dear Donedigging, i'm just sitting infront of my log fire with the rain hammering against the window, so very cosy indeed.

[donedigging]

Dear OH,
Are you second on the left after the clock tower?
As I'm on my way.... Hopefully you have tea and cake.....

[peter]

Changed desks last week in open plan office 4th floor, now on west side north wing tight in the angle between north & west wings.
Todays wind blew the heavy rain against the window most of the day and at half past three it finally penetrated the unopening glass face of the building and dripped onto the waistline rail across the floor to ceiling window next to me.

[oldherbaceous]

Dear Donedigging, there's always tea and cake at the ready.

[donedigging]

:

[oldherbaceous]

Still raining heavily this morning, but since we don't have any street lights in the village, it's a job to see how much water is laying around.

[Westi]

Met Office have Red warning down here but bit of a damp squib really - wheelie bin did a bit of a dance but all in all tame. I'll regret this post in the morning when trees down everywhere won't I

Westi x

[2ofus]

Hi Westi, glad your weather is only a damp squib so far. Our property's on a slope and should be Ok, the greenhouse gets a bit wobbly in strong winds so I fix camping-type guide ropes from the four corners. The bird table is lying prostrate again though.
2ofus

[donedigging]

Got to the garden centre today, high 5's all round

[alan refail]

A bit wild here yesterday, though the wind was nowhere near as strong as forecast. A spell of heavy rain did eventually arrive. It must have been torrential somewhere as our little river rose to full within an hour. By late afternoon it was over its banks and into the field. Fortunately the rain had stopped at precisely the right moment; by half past seven the water had reached the hen-houses and almost immediately started to recede - so not a sleepless night after all.

[peter]

Had to nip out last night and cut bits off our rose by the front window, the seed heads were banging on the glass to be let in, worse than Halloween!

[Geoff]

We had that too but it was a Holly making strange scratchy squeaky noises.

[Chantal]

I spent yesterday at an exhibition on an airfield/proving ground. We were closed down when the windspeed hit 85mph as things other than planes were taking off! Glad to get home in one piece.