Yesterday morning I did an hours crochet and finished off two midges – a rainbow one and a tartan one. Ady came in for Popmaster and we spotted a group of folk down at the croft gate and realised they were The Wormells. Peter Wormell was the first ranger on Rum – arriving here in 1957 when Monica Bullough sold the island to the Nature Conservancy Council (who later became Scottish Natural Heritage SNH). Peter was a huge figure in Rum’s recent history – leading the replanting of woodland – a million trees, the millionth tree standing with a plaque just above the crofts, instrumental in the release of the sea eagles here and someone who shaped the start of the national nature reserve that Rum is today from the rich boys playground it was previously.
When Peter arrived here he met and fell in love with Jessie who lived in the shop and post office. They married and had three daughters who grew up here. Two are still here in Scotland – one I had met previously Jessie Jnr who does scientific research on moths, keeps poultry and has a daughter who applied for the ranger post here two years ago. One  – Cathy, moved to Canada, the other, Fiona, works at an animal rescue sanctuary where we got Kira from and breed peafowl and sold us two peahens. Peter died a few years ago but Cathy was over visiting her Mum Jessie and sister Jessie so they all came out to Rum – for Jessie snr and Cathy it’s the first visit in many years. I’d briefly chatted to Jessie jnr at the pier on Wednesday, and I knew Cathy had been to the croft while we’d been on the Sheerwater on Thursday as she’d bought a scarf from the shop but here was both sisters, mum and Cathy’s husband all coming up the croft.
We made them all tea and sat and chatted while looking out across the hills, them reminiscing and saying how they could not believe we were here and making this happen, us prompting them for stories of Rum gone by. It was lovely 🙂
They left, I put midges in the shop and we had some lunch. Then I helped Ady finish some nursery pens he was building for the next round of hatched chicks. He had already constructed several panels so while he carried on making more I stapled chicken wire to the ones he’d made. I watered the polytunnel and planted up a few more tomatoes then we walked down to the village to get cheese from the freezer for pizza and collect the post. The pipe had arrived so Ady got that rolled out and hooked up to check that water would travel up the slight hill to where the bell tent is pitched. It did 🙂
Pizza and Doctor Who.
Today – my usual Saturday routine of crochet, tea, cat cuddling and Graham Norton on the radio. I made a green midge (now labelled and in the shop) and started on a yellow one before Ady got home from working. He’d done a castle tour for about 30 people.
I hung out loads of washing – the kids had sorted out their wardrobes yesterday getting rid of all their outgrown clothes and tidying their rooms so Davies had put about 100 socks in the wash. I binned all the very obviously too small ones which Davies had sorted and Ady had washed (rolls eyes!) and paired all the rest as I hung them out. Meanwhile Ady made lunch.
This afternoon we created a cradle for the sink to sit in and after much bodging realised one of the pair of taps on the bath down in the walled garden would fit perfectly, so we installed that. It all works well and we know how we are going to site the whole thing so that is tomorrow’s job, midges permitting.
Polytunnel watering done and tonight was mostly googling crafts to do with feathers. I made a couple of quills and have some ideas for other things.
It’s mad midgey tonight so I’m getting chased off to bed.