A Distinctively Bland Month In Review

Time is money.

Can you believe that the blog is already two months old? They grow so fast! Kind of alarming really... Alas, it is time for another monthly update. Whether you like them or not, I have got to say, I am really excited to look back on these in a few years time. Even if it's just to look back at all my baby houseplants.

It's been a rather quiet month it must be said. I thought the easing of lockdown restrictions would have been a little more exciting. I have fortunately been able to meet up with quite a few of my friends and family but the weather taking a turn for the worse has definitely hindered many plans considering we can't meet indoors.

Don't you worry your little cotton socks, however, I have still spent a lot of money in order to fill my time with things to do.

The Propagation Station

First up, we are back at the Propagation Station because I can't wait to show you how great of a gardener I am.

Remember that String of Hearts I propagated last month? It's thriving. 

Bonsai? Thriving.

As for the chilli plants, you can see for yourselves. They are pretty successful. So successful in fact, it's starting to get out of hand. Remember there is an identical trough on the left side of my window sill? I can't tell if it's day or night when I am laying in bed!

Now you are all updated on the old, let's meet the new.

This, my friends, is a String of Pearls. I bought it on a recent trip to Exeter (more on that to follow). As for the macrame hanger, that's my own doing. No prizes for noticing how I have conveniently avoided a single knot being included in the photo. But. Still. It's pretty cool.

Besides this, I also decided to do a bulk order of baby houseplants from a Dutch company named, somewhat simplistically, Online Babyplants. 

Something to look forward to...

Unfortunately, the Coffee Plant I ordered really did not do too well in transit and a pitiful three leaves remain. On the bright side, two of the three leaves present on the Monstera I ordered do not look like they have the plague. All in all, like a fool who chooses 'Expert' instead of 'Normal' difficulty on a video game, I am excited for the challenge.

Keeping Green Whilst Staying Clean

With all this planting going on, coupled with my lack of going anywhere, I decided that my current household cleanliness was impractical, inefficient, and expensive. Firstly, I had grown sick of having to bend over each time I wanted the next product in the shower. First world problems right? Yeah. Anyway, I decided to invest in a stainless steel shower caddy that uses suction cups to stay on the wall. Whilst I was ordering I also bought individual wire soap bar holders that stop the soap sitting in its own gunk for hours. 

Even the detail I have already gone into is enough to show how excited I was for such ordinary household items.  

Moreover, since I needed some bars of soap for my new soap holders, I decided to delve into the art of soap making. Many factors contributed to this decision. Have you seen how many chemicals go into a single bar of soap? Homemade soap is literally just oil and lye water with some fancy essential oils. Anyway, the main factor is certainly economic. I figured I would get good at soap making and then set up a stall at a carboot sale. Call it "B-Lush". That other, similarly named, beauty company won't mind will they?

As you can see, the bars on the left, though they smell absolutely incredible, are extremely uneven. Hence I bought soap molds for the second attempt but it's probably for the best that you can't smell it. 

Exeter

Finally, thanks to the sweet deal my landlady made with my flatmates and I, I also had to go up to Exeter in order to move out of my student house a little earlier than otherwise planned. Whilst we were there, and had to go into town to drop off the keys anyway, Mother decided she wanted to go to Levi's and get herself a denim jacket. Rather hipster for a fifty-year-old, I know, but we rolled with it and it actually really suited her. Anyway, after many, many, different jackets were tried on, I got bored and decided to buy myself one. (With a little assistance from the Bank of Mum of course - I figured she needed the moral support for her own purchase). 

Buying matching jackets with your Mother as a twenty-year-old male never seemed so cool.

Side note: it was pretty crazy driving back. Forget cats and dogs, it was more like cows and donkeys falling down out there! I didn't keep track of the number of times that I aquaplaned but it was enough to rattle the nerves a tad. Don't worry though, I kept my cool.

Up To Date

There we have it, you are fully updated once again. Time really is money. Or, in my case, money really does fill time and I don't have much of it left!

I really hope someone hires me soon.

Stay Safe.