A scamper up the fire escape while supper was grilling gave me a dove's eye view of the terrace. I don't go to the roof often - maybe we should. For a drink or a picnic. Lockdown is very much roof time. We see lone figures on faraway rooftops, sipping drinks where people never sat or sipped drinks, before.
I like our view of neighbor's gardens, each one very much a reflection of a personality. And I love the Boston ivy covering most of the wall of the laundry building that all the gardens back onto. Life would be very different, aesthetically, without it. Its rich, textured green. There is a real fear of ivy on buildings in this country. It's beautiful, it's cooling in summer, it catches air pollution, softens noise pollution, and only damages a building if you really decide to rip an old vine off its support.
Supper was grilled lamb kebabs, molded onto fierce swords and flavored with terrace-grown rosemary and marjoram. Also a Waldorf salad (what can I say, I had a craving), and a potato salad with lots of dill, shallot, and sliced radishes, dressed with a vintage common milkweed vinegar.
A fighter jet tore past over the harbor behind me while I was up here - the sound always chills me. Earlier there was an unusual sighting of an AWACS. And, just as I was wondering aloud whether we might see it, the space station sailed north in the blue-black night.
A wonderful view of the garden spaces. I do love to see how different people personalise their outside spaces. Mine at my Van is usually a riot of flowers mixed with salad crops, but this year in lockdown I am home in Wales readying our house for sale, so I'm trying to fill polytunnel and veggie beds with low maintenance but productive looking crops to entice house viewers to want to buy a smallholding.
ReplyDeleteWe too have air force jets fly overhead most days, just training flights but they make you look up and wonder ... and set the dogs off with a cacophony of barking.
Polytunnels - sounds like some serious growing!
DeleteMore than a blog, this is an enticement from a novel.
ReplyDeleteThank you.
The Roof :-)
DeleteHow are you and Peter?
Oh, coping. I went down with shingles 3 months ago, so we actually got in some pretty smart "isolating practice." It's still a ***ing battle and once over it I will have the vaccination (Peter had his shot when I became non-contagious) against a recurrence. If you have not, please ask your doc. about it.
DeleteOther news is on hold until lockdown is lifted. I'll email tomorrow...
Oh, shame, Diane - that's awful. My mom had shingles very long ago and it was very painful. I will look into the vaccine!
DeleteLove this view! and, the tiny "L" of your balcony!
ReplyDeleteThat little angle gives me lots of wiggle room!
DeleteGive me a bird's eye view every time! This all looks wonderful!
ReplyDelete