Au revoir chemo port and December flowers

Not only is this one of the mildest autumns (and Decembers so far) that I remember since moving here eleven years ago, it's also one of the the driest ones. Looking back to when I started this blog in Dec 2011, that year the stream didn't start flowing until the 6th December and it wasn't until the 16th that the lake was full again. This year we've had 'enough' rain for the ground to be damp through and sodden at times; the stream has flowed now and again and refilled the pond up to about 2 foot below the overflow. Then it stopped. So it will be interesting to see if we beat 2011! Here's a link to the post way back showing how low the lake got that year - it was only a pool left in a nearly empty lake bed.

This year there is nothing to worry about as there is plenty of water in the lake itself, but it's a general guideline to how much rain is falling overall and obviously points to a lot more being needed to replenish the water table. Interestingly I found a website that allowed you to put in any French commune and it gives you the climate conditions for that area - the average driest month in my village is April! I would have said September, but then I've only being noticing the weather here for 11 years. November is the wettest month apparently - sounds about right - normally! Here's the link and it does the whole world and you can change the language. I have no idea how accurate it is but it sounds about right for my area.

Autumn 2011 was also very mild and I had geraniums still flowering on Christmas Day - but there is probably more in flower this year than back then, so I went around the garden with my camera of course. There are a few more flowers in the overgrown jungle that is the veg patch, notably corn marigolds still looking pristine, and a few worse for wear cosmos, but I won't share any more nasturtiums and borage right now as I've done them to death!

Heartsease Viola which flowers all year round.

My lovely Prunus subhirtella.

And again, plus another view of the lake (any excuse).

Feverfew self seeded up against the house wall.

Only a few Phacelia have started to flower out of a mass of new plants.
Shame there are so few bees around!

All my roses are flowering and top right are Hellebore buds already.

Surprisingly this unknown plant is flowering
again in my alpine trough.

There are a number of plants flowering out the front of the house where it is quite sheltered from north winds and not included here is the Black Eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata) which is still flowering away happily against the house wall.

The odd Lavender and Thyme flowers still keep appearing, whereas the Erigeron flowers
all year round where it is sheltered at the front of the house.

This however is several months early - it's Japonica aka Flowering Quince (Chaenomeles).

The Hollyhocks just keep on flowering.....

...and there's no stopping the Calendula (until we get below zero!).

Back to leaves again, but I can't help it!

Berberis looking amazing right now.

Leaves on the ground given the ICM treatment.

Sorry, it's that pond again....
it's at its most photogenic in spring and autumn.

Sleepy ducks - when the lake is full the water will come up
to just above the green growth top right.

Leaves floating on the water.

Oak leaves - I can't stop taking leaf photos!

Oak trees and leaves.

My handsome seasonally coloured Harry.

My chemo port has come out this afternoon and I'm hoping that will give me the closure that was missing by never having had that final chemo session. At times the port, which is a lumpy chamber implanted under the surface of the skin and is linked to a major artery, was uncomfortable and felt like it was pulling on my skin, but recently having put on a bit of weight I haven't noticed it. I think being thin doesn't help when you don't have any excess flesh.

The doc showed it to me after it came out (gen anaesthetic to put it in, local to take it out). I knew there was something like a tube coming out of the port as I could feel it under the skin just beside the port, but I was amazed to see that the tube was about 5 or 6" long! The doc said it went into a heart vein (or near to one, my French doesn't always 'get' every word said) but not knowing vein or artery anatomy I don't understand why then the tube was pointing out towards my shoulder. Maybe a vein/artery does a loop around back towards the heart?

As far as my doldrums have been going, when I have managed to drag myself out of bed this last week I have not only had a great session attacking brambles by the side of the pond (was good that I could get into the dry lake bed itself to pull up the ends which had rooted in to the soil), and because I had some shortcrust pastry that K brought back from England, I made a pumpkin pie. Bit late for Thanksgiving but as I'm not American I can make it any time I want to. :-)

To my British friends - can you no longer get those blocks of shortcrust pastry which you roll out yourself? This ready rolled Tesco stuff was square!!! and way too small for any of my (round of course) flan or pie dishes, so I had to cut bits off the square edges and fill in the gaps with these odd bits of pastry. And then the pastry went rather brown before my pie filling was cooked. Tastes nice though. More weight gain I reckon after that as I'm eating twice as much of it as K, who is trying to lose some weight! :-)