And what is the point of tummy buttons?

the stackApart from an intestring doctrinal discussion point (Did Adam have one?) I have found they are a marvellous receptacle for mites.

Oh yes, I now have a new batch of mites from trees in the forest to add to the ones I picked up a few days ago in the, err, forest. Will I ever learn? They drop onto deer or wild creatures or farmers going past. And if they like the host they stay.

One of my Vernoux friends thinks mites are mysogonists. They always seem to favour women.

As a consequence I smell like a eucalpytus tree having doused myself with the oil, itch like mad, and have a tummy button that is bright red.

But enough of the exciting gory details. What it means is that I eschewed the forest today.  So instead Alice and I stripped a forest of lavender flowers for bags – outside under the vines so the office wouldn’t reek and happily caught up on news.

And then we decided to empty the wood cellar (a future bathroom) to make an outside stack.  That’s a job done quickly with two. Were I on my own it would have taken all day. I still need to empty all the kindling out of the cellar, but it ought to be almost ready for building work next week.

And I realised that the floor of the wood cellar comprises the original doors from the 1970s renovation.  That’s a fun bit of history.