| Earthly Comforts Projects Diary Entry 2 |
| Guildcount Lane Sandwich April 2023 One Good Turn |
| Edward’s garden path now surrounded by flowers and shrubs. |
| Whilst not a paid job in hard currency, the tasks l carried out for Edward’s garden on Tuesday will be paid back in kind and resources. Edward is 87 and recently optioned to have his grassed garden removed [so he didn’t have to keep mowing it] and replaced with a gravel footpath and more shrubs and blossomed flowering plant life. He has gotten a little bit clumsier and more forgetful in the last twelve months alone, and when Suze and l were creating the footpath, we had to consider his clumsiness, which is why we crafted the path the way we have done. His gardener purchased flowering shrubs that would eventually blossom significantly to spill over the edges of the footpath itself and further eliminate any tripping points that the walkway may present. Edward has a greenhouse and a garage, and both had become more haphazardous to him, so l decided to tidy them up to make his life easier. Some of you may recall that l tidied up the greenhouse for him in May 2021, so strangely enough, the cleaning up was the first again in two years. Besides overwintering his rhododendrons to protect them from severe frosts, Edward doesn’t use his greenhouse that much. However, they are due to move out shortly. This does mean that Suze and l can use the greenhouse shelving and floorspace [which is very warm] for our seedlings and grow on whilst we wait for the right time to erect the polytunnel. But it’s a tremendous undercovered area to have at our disposal. So spending three hours tidying up for nothing if you wish is not time wasted for either me or, more importantly, my friend’s health and wellbeing and the ability to further extend the growing areas for Suze and myself. In addition to that, Edward has gifted us the grass strimmer he has, which he no longer needs, which we can use at the allotment to cut the grass. It is also lightweight and cordless instead of simply being a manual, which is much heavier and cumbersome. Furthermore, Edward’s garage held an assortment of gardening goodies he no longer needs, and he has gifted us those, too, as a way of saying thank you for both areas being tidier now and less obstacle-laden. He gave us in payment three bags of topsoil, a handful of bamboo canes, many large garden pots, the strimmer and a decent pair of knee pads which Suze can use alongside some other assorted bits and bots his garden will now never need. We are also being gifted the bath lower left flat surface with wooden top], which we will use for herbs down on the allotment. Once the bath is gone that will make for a huge space for him to back his estate into as well bringing him physically closer to the side door of the garage too. So l consider that a fair deal. Edward is happier with the tidied areas; we are thrilled with the goodies. Additionally, Edward will now have fresher vegetables once everything starts growing, which is an added bonus for him and a thank you from us. |
| Before and after garage photos. It may not look like a lot at first glance, but there was a lot of clutter and rubbish and empty shelf space begging to be used more efficiently to which l obliged. |
| Clean, tidy and spruced up. Easier to walk in and around and everything easier to see at a quick glance. These plants will soon be out and then the shelves and ground space will be filled with seedlings soon. |
| Thanks for reading. |
Earthly Comforts 
Wonderful arrangement for you two and Edward! I know how much clutter and unkempt gardening bothers the elderly. My Mom will be 89 in July and helping her straighten her garage and yard means the world to her. She also gifts out unneeded tools too. Bravo!
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Hey Susan, many thanks.
Yes, l think that where help can be awarded we need to help those that we are able to.
Edward wants a tidy garden, but he must be mindful and some things are now beyond his ability. It made sense for me to offer to tidy. Initially l offered anyway out of concern for him. He then offered payment and l said no need. So then he said “Ah well Rory, please use my greenhouse for your seedlings.” I agreed and said l would give him some fresh veg and it snowballed from there.
All parties are pleased and will benefit, but more importantly it’s what friends do 🙂
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You did a great job tidying up, and I love how everything worked out for everyone! It’s very nice of you & Suze to help Edward, and likewise, it is nice of him to gift you items you need for your garden. I enjoyed this!
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Hey Kristian, everyone is a winner here. I have been concerned about Edward’s clumsiness in recent months. He is fiercely independent and l admire that, but sometimes his cantankerness can make him more accidental.
It’s great to want to do things for yourself, but not if it causes injury and the garage and greenhouse were fast becoming minded areas in so far as him walking in and out without incident.
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Always a great psychological boost when you de-clutter!
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Hey Geoff, yes very much so 🙂
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Good man and Good Neighbor. you!
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Thanks Grace 🙂
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Very impressive job done Rory. And the best thing about it is that you did it out of concern for your friend’s wellbeing.
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Hey Sadje, Edward is a lovely guy and a good neighbour and he is worth doing stuff for.
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But not everyone does this kindness.
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No, l agree with you. Many people cannot be bothered to help others.
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That’s an indicator of our degeneration as a caring society
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What a pity you live so far away. Boy, could we use your services!!
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Hey Marilyn, you are not the first to say or suggest this. So much so, l am now going to add this as a feature to the gardening business Suze and l have. Suze is a deep cleaner and so that is covered by her home care side. I am an organiser, so l think there maybe some scope on this.
But yes, it’s a shame America is not just around the corner.
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Everything looks SO WONDERFUL. Gorgeous garden. I love your photos xx
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Hey Janet many thanks 🙂
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