An afternoon in Winchester, 26th May 2019

I probably looked a bit odd this afternoon, dressed as I was in jeans with stretched and baggy knees, scruffy biker boots, a bright red raincoat, and a backpack... and carrying a pastel-coloured posy of sweet peas, probably the daintiest and most delicate flowers you can get. A bit of a mismatch. And a particularly unusual sight on the riverside path and St Catherine's Hill - I don't imagine many people wander the countryside carrying a bunch of flowers, haha. But oh well! I don't care, I have a wonderfully-scented posy of very pretty flowers! :D

I love Winchester but haven't been there properly in ages. I went today for something to do, to get out the flat and the city and treat myself a little bit. Bonus was that it was farmers market day - YAY!!!! :D

Pretty! The Ivy brasserie.

Farmers markets are wonderful. I absolutely love all that local, seasonal, good quality stuff, and wish I could both afford to buy produce there often and knew how to do the ingredients justice. I also wish I had an idea of a little business I could do, something I could produce and create using hands-on methods and be as eco-friendly and sustainable as possible, using quality local ingredients. Something where I could have a real in-depth knowledge of and love for what I spend my time doing and the end result. Ice cream, butter, honey, beeswax stuff, damson gin, elderflower cordial, jams and chutneys, pies, cakes, chocolates, bread, full meals, whatever! Or just, y'know, be a farmer.

Anyway, despite the fact that I've been worrying about money the last few days - actually, probably because of that - I let myself get a few treats. Life's all about those tiny moments that bring you joy, simple pleasures. You have to let yourself have those sometimes, even if it costs a little money. As well as the posy of sweet peas that will sit on top of my bookcase for the next few days or so, I bought some nice-smelling hand cream that will last a while, a cheese and local-tomato sourdough toastie that I ate sat on the lawn outside the cathedral, an almond macaroon and a slice of millionaire's shortbread, both of which I ate on my walk, and a lamb and redcurrant pie which will be my dinner later this week :)

Then, along the riverside path leading towards St Catherine's Hill, I saw the cutest little creature! A teeny tiny mouse-like thing, literally the size of my thumb, right on the edge of the path. Squeeee! I can't put emoticons in here - picture the huge-smile face with the love heart eyes, haha. I Googled it afterwards and reckon it was a bank vole. I think it was a youngster, as it was smaller than the internet said they grow to be and it was very unsteady on its feet, perhaps trying to run but not succeeding even to walk properly, eventually stopping and curling itself up a bit. It was probably scared so I left the poor thing to it, hoping it would move quickly to be out of the way of dogs and people not watching where their feet go.

So yes, very lovely afternoon, leaving me in good spirits! :) I'll have to make sure I go to Winchester occasionally, especially when the farmers market is on. There were some locally-made reusable (sustainable and biodegradable!) beeswax food wraps I'd really like to get, as well as a jar of the incredibly delicious local honey :)