And the sun shone brightly.

There is a lesson to be learnt here while winter gardening.  If the sun shines – get outside and take full advantage because you don’t know how long it will last.  We woke up to a lovely sunny morning and so I decided to do my Tuesday actual work stuff, which I got through quite quickly and then I pottered about the place doing bits and pieces inside until I thought “Right. Now I am ready to go outside and garden.”

What I didn’t realise is, while I was working away inside the weather was also busy – changing completely and I opened the door to go outside and was greeted with torrential rain – the kind with the big fat drops that only need four of them to saturate you.  I shut the door again and had a rethink.  I couldn’t do nothing – that would drive me crazy.  So I grabbed the keys and made a dash to the car in a brief moment where the rain had seemed to ease enough for me to dodge the fat drops by going around then.

I headed off to the hardware store to look for things to make my “anti-mouse seed protector device” version 2.  I went up and down every aisle examining anything that could remotely be used to bring the image in my head to life.  I was looking for two things – functionality and affordability.  Actually three things… easy to assemble – hard work at this point is undesirable.  I am looking for a cheap quick fix to my mouse problem.  This, of course, is where the problem lies with version 1.

I must have had a puzzled look on my face as a scoured the shelves for just the right thing as the sales assistants kept asking if I needed any help, to which I would reply “I’m just thinking outside the box.  I’ll know what I need when I see it” They responded with that ‘OOOOKKKKK’ that people use when they think you are crazy!

After thoroughly examining the hardware area I decided I needed time to think and so I treated myself to a quick tour of the garden centre section.  That was a bad idea.  I came away from there with a tree.  I didn’t intend to buy a tree, but it was a fruit tree so I was just buying stuff for the kids lunch boxes in a few years’ time!  It was a blackboy peach and they are supposed to be a really amazing fruit and I could justify the purchase as it was half price.  And as it was half price I  could then justify spending the amount I had just saved on a Chilean Guava because it was there.  It did say on the label that it made a great jam… how far can I stretch that lunch box theory?

Having deliberated on the raw materials for my “anti-mouse seed protector device” version 2, I whipped up and down the aisles and picked up some insect screen, which the nice lady assured me was made of fibreglass, some L brackets, some corner brackets (which I didn’t end up using – but there will be other projects) and some hacksaw blades.  I had screws and nuts at home.

Once back at home the bodgery began again.  I took the L brackets and hacksaw blades and screwed them together to form a box shape.  The cutty part of the blade faced inward.  I didn’t quite have enough blades so I snuck into the big shed and stole a couple Hubby the Un-Gardeners ones.  I hope he won’t notice or won’t mind – whatever comes first.

Then I cut the insect screen to size and decided to attach it to the frame with my hot glue gun.  This took a bit of trial and error getting it right, and if I was bothered about making it pretty then I would go for the “anti-mouse seed protector device” version 3.  But pretty isn’t necessary – it just needs to work.  I hope it does.  I’ll put it to the test at the very next opportunity.  Until then it just has to stop raining!

Come again soon – I reckon I am very close to winning this wee battle of the mice.

Sarah the Gardener : o )