January 2020 – Hambledon Ziggurat

January 2020 – Year of the Hambledon Ziggurat

Layla here, to take you through the (muted) thrills and spills of January.

Whilst Mr Rod and SWhoMBO neither live in a tower-like structure anymore, nor boast an enormous earthwork or sandhill at the base of their new construction, I am nevertheless somewhat taken with the idea of the Hazels edifice being perceived by all and sundry as a Ziggurat (‘zig–oo-rat’) or ‘temple-observatory’!

Furthermore, 2020 is the Chinese Year of the Rat so this all seems most appropriate.

I really do not think I could have given a bigger hint of my expectation of comparable comfort (at the very least) in the new house.

Thankfully, I have been reassured that there WILL be underfloor heating on both the ground and upper floors.

I am clearly famous (infamous is far more likely! – Ed) as my image appears to be captured all over and in the most unlikely places eg on this table napkin.

January 2020 Build Progress

I am reliably informed that the concrete screed on the ground floor has dried out after (what has seemed like interminable) six weeks. So I am delighted to report that internal, as well as external, building work can now continue in earnest.

Exterior:

Interior:

December 19/January 20 Postbag

Maidstone Mister has also tried to get in on the publishing act by sending a message to Freddie: “I think the photo of the Rainbows is beautiful, and indeed encouraging to know that Hazels is going to be a lovely home, but I’m surprised that you and your companions did not have some fun with the screed – or at least leave your paw mark signatures in it.”

Well, we thank Maidstone Mister for his compliments and note his observation. However, I must also impress upon him that our protracted and frustrating absence from the wet screed was assuredly not for want of trying. Moses, Freddie and I attempted every trick in the book of ‘how to get the better of staff’ to gain entry to the house while the concrete was drying out in order to make our mark, but we were thwarted at every stage. On this (very rare) occasion, Mr Rod reigned supreme!

We were also amused to receive this heartfelt plea from Francophile Friends “We are hosting our daughter’s cat – Fitzroy.  Unfortunately, he has not yet fully grasped the IT skills he needs to write a blog. PLEASE can Layla, Moses and Freddie help?”

You have our sympathy and we are very fur-miliar with such problems. Happily, Fitzroy appears to be very claw-ver and have great cat-titude. Francophile Friends are most fur-tunate that there is a paw-sibility of a place becoming available on the radi-claw and (if I may say so myself) paw-some blog course for cats devised by us.  Whilst he may not achieve immediate purr-fection, Fitzroy will soon be feline furry good about himself.

If the Friends were further interested, we also run popular cat litter-ature classes, studying classic works by authors such as F. Scott Fitzferal, William Shakespaw, Purrnest Hemmingway, Charles Lickens and JK Meowling.

Finally, whilst on a feline theme, we were thrilled to receive this delightful relief shot from Mikal’s Mate of Killi looking out of the window in Helsinki.

Curiosity Corner:

Oh no – bats are back!

I was gazing idly at the roof line the other day when, to my very great horror, I noticed a large amount of bat droppings on the side of the bat box. This can only mean one thing – that Pipistrellus Pipistrellus (common pipistrelle) ……………………………………..

On a recent visit to Finland, SWhoMBO was given a very hard time by a young gentleman (under 7 years old!) just for not having ALL the important bat facts at her fingertips. So, the paragraphs included here are for Master Knowledge of Kvevlax.

The common pipistrelle – the type we have at Hazels and the UK’s smallest and most common bat – of the order Chiroptera; with their forelimbs adapted as wings, they are the only mammals naturally capable of sustained flight. They roost in tree holes, bat boxes and even the roof spaces of houses.

Statistics – Length: 3.5-4.5cm; Wingspan: 20-23cm;  Weight: 3-8g;  Average life: 4-5 years When to see: April to October, they hibernate over winter.

Conservation Status – protected in the UK under the Wildlife and Countryside Act, 1981 and is a European Protected Species under Annex IV of the European Habitats Directive.

Diet – mainly a range of small flies as well as aquatic midges and mosquitos. The common pipistrelle is so small, it can fit into a matchbox, but easily eat 3,000 insects a night.

Echolocation – bats hunt in the dark using echolocation, meaning they use echoes of self-produced sounds bouncing off objects to help them navigate. Contrary to myth, bats are not blind. In fact, research shows that bats can prefer eyesight to sound when hunting.

Reproduction & life cycle – during the summer, females form maternity colonies where they give birth to a single young in June/July. After four weeks the young are able to fly and at six weeks they can forage for themselves. Male bats usually roost singly or in small groups in summer. During the mating period from July to September, males attract females by making repeated ‘songflights’.

Bright Idea of the Month – The Wildlife Trust suggests an original gift would be to adopt a bat to help fund conservation .. well, you could always ‘bat shop’ at Hazels!

Christmas

I know that the 2019 Christmas season is just a distant memory for most but Moses, Freddie and I just wanted to share with you a few photos from the Christmas visit to England by our delightful Finn Swede friends.

Girl Power

This photo speaks for itself!

What’s planned for February?

• Kitchen finally ordered (and deposit paid)
• Extension(s) windows and doors to be installed
• Electrics ‘first fix’
• Plumbing
• Plaster boarding
• (Yet) more summit meetings between Mr Rod and SWhoMBO to discuss ‘interiors’