20.07.2026 Weeds: Self pluck!

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  Monday 20th 59F/15C [8.10] Two sunny days in a row are on offer. Though with a fairly strong, northerly breeze. 20F/68C indoors. 15C/59F in the open greenhouse. 

 Up at 7.30 after an earlier failure to lift off at 5.30. 

I raked over the new molehills with the beech asphalt rake. The large head is far more effective than trying to use a garden rake. 

 One of my four, Philips, sensor, down-lighters has died. Bought in January 2024. It kept getting dimmer.  I haven't a clue where the receipt might be. Nearly £40 equivalent now! Bløødy hell! It says E27. That's a standard large thread European fitting. I'll check to see if the LED bulb is replaceable. You know, those "premium" Philips LED bulbs which are supposed to last a lifetime! 

 

 It took me half an hour to replace one very dead, Philips LED bulb. I can still remember that I had a tirade about the pathetic design of the light unit a couple of years ago. At the time I blamed it on nepotism gone stark raving mad. Somebody had a black sheep in the family who they though might needed a job and a labelled parking space. Instead of wasting their lives away on drugs and booze and tattoos.

 

 Now I think it was probably the Woke culture presently crippling Europe. Philips was forced to find a new designer. One who was officially, severely mentally retarded. Just so that their quota for mental handicap in their management design team was filled. If nepotism was involved then so much the better. 

 

 I won't go into any more detail. Suffice to say that anybody who had two brain cells to rub together would not in a million years come up with such a pathetic design. I hope they crash into their official parking space name plate! 

 

12.20 Twenty minutes of pulling up Rosebay willowherb by the roots. Leaves me hot, breathless and dizzy.   

 

 I don't know how this text is appearing but the blog editing is all over the place.  

 

15.45 69F/21C. Bright sunshine. Breezy. Back from the village shops with groceries.

 

 17.00 68F(20C. Back from the next village with another pressure treated post. To support the canopy for the outdoor heat pump unit.

 Dinner was a cheese, mushroom and tomato omelette.  

 

 

 

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19.07.2026 All that glisters.

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  Sunday 19th 57F/14C [7.10] A cloudy day with possible thunderstorms is promised. While the sun is currently shining and has been since early on. Wind gusting to 12m/s from the northwest. 23C/72F indoors. 14C in the fully open greenhouse. The pond water temperature has dropped to 67F/19.5C With the pond plants noticeably spreading across the gravel base of the pond.

 Up at 5.30 after a quiet night. Attending rather too often to the fire bucket. 

 I have watered the plants indoors and out. Run one tour of the robot mower along the drive. The first load of laundry has gone into the machine.

 7.45 I have cleaned and polished all the windows in the Morris. Collected all the waste paper, removed and shaken the floor mats. The accumulated detritus has been moved to the boot, arranged more neatly. Or discarded as appropriate. 

 Completed my five physio exercises. Three repetitions of ten. Except for the alternative foot, step-up exercise. Three repetitions of 20. The only exercise I find difficult. No, really painful. Is sitting up from lying on the floor. My feet are too light to balance my upper body. The strain on my back muscles is agony. I don't even notice my abdominal muscles. So I must be doing it wrong.

 Had an online chat. Checking for signs of life. Mine.

 I have vacuumed the car. Cleaned the grey filth from the steering wheel. I need to go out again. To clean the door linings and reveals. Done. Zip-tied the conduit hose to the post of the new security camera. 

 I am still looking for big staples. To fix the hose into the weed infested bank/verge. I could use big tent pegs but they haven't the security of a proper garden staple. Fix and forget. 

 Staples are readily available. That they only sell them in expensive packs of 100. Makes them too readily available. I shall only ever use half a dozen. I'll find some galvanized electric fence wire and make some. 

 I dragged the two recycling bins along the drive. 

 Dinner was an organic, pork chop, organic peas, organic mashed potatoes and Bisto 'Original' gravy. One bag of organic carrots short of a Sunday dinner. 

 

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18.07.2026 Hands free robot mowing?

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  Saturday 18th 60F/16C [7.45] Heavy overcast but dry. A change to cooler weather. Rather windy from the west. 

 75F/24C in the room. 60F/16C in the greenhouse. Pond water at 70F/21C.

 Up at 6.10 after a quiet night. 

 8.00 Started the robot mowing along the drive. 

 9.30 I have repeatedly strimmed the long grass and weeds on the neighbours' verges. Then mowed the drive again and again with the big mower. Using the collector bag to clean up the ground. Then clipped the overhanging hedge. Raked it all up and sent the robot mower out to expand its territory. 

 I am hoping it will discover the verges on its own. Now there are not so many obstacles in its AI FSD field of vision. It has just extended its map of the verge as I watched. Even returning with a parallel mowing path to ensure it was covered. It has just found a narrow gateway though the hedge and mowed, explored and mapped the indent. 

 As mentioned before: It shows where it has mowed by leaving a paler green path behind it on its map. Which is constantly updated and shown on the screen via Wi-Fi. It is supposed to remember where it has not mowed and should return. To tidy up missed areas. Not always with perfect recall. There is some discussion of this subject online. With various suggestions on how to overcome the problem.

 It is fun to see it exploring. If the Wi-Fi signal is weak it leaves no green update of its track on the map. As it has just done on the newly cleared verge. It was leaving no trace of its progress as it reached the far end of the drive. About 100m from the house. The map is usually updated when it returns for recharging. 

 The map image [above] shows the extra length it has added to the right side verge. Well beyond its previous limit before turning back. The drive's entire area has now been mowed flat with the Makita. So there should be no hindrance to the auto-mapping as it mows.

 A complication is that the robot avoids the gravel. Where the vehicle tires usually run. So it will not usually cross from the wider, central strip of grass out to the narrower verges. It will usually "borrow" a more overgrown section. As a bridge to find the verges. 

 Some users have suggested throwing grass clippings where it is desired to mow or cross a narrow strip  of bare ground. Thus overcoming the software inhibition to mowing gravel. Which might damage the blades. 

 Setting a Must Mow Zone on the map will also mow missed areas. Though there is some complication in that it won't go outside its original mowing map. It can be very frustrating to watch the mower running in a nice straight line. Hoping it will push the boundaries. Only for it to abruptly pause and change direction. Without apparent reason.

 Most of my own problems are letting the robot mow a long, thin map. With almost continuous gravel between the 100m long, grass stripes. It's fun but demanding of the condition of the grass. Before the mower can be sent off to map and mow.

 Eufy seem to be updating the software as they enjoy feedback from users. As do the manufacturers of my security cameras. The robot is now recognized by the cameras' software. Where, before, there was no registration at all.  

 12.20 There is no problem recognizing the Morris. Which has just had a wash and rinse. I gave it several washes with a fluffy hand mop and car shampoo. Then gallons of clean water from the large watering can without a rose. Requiring that I perch on a stepladder. I'll polish the car after lunch. If it is not too hot.

 14.15 I have just clipped the outside of the front beach hedge. Then clipped the hedge along the drive. By the house and bordering the eastern boundary. Now I am hot, breathless and knackered.

 18.10 66F/19C. I waited until it was cool and cloudy before polishing the Morris. With Turtle Wax Blue Magic. It's been a busy day! 

 Now I have to make some dinner. 

 Dinner was an organic pork chop and half of an organic cauliflower. With generous helpings of butter on the cauliflower.

 

 

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