Saturday 11 October 2008

Cave woman

Someone who I wouldn't like to meet in real life, once told me on a canal forum to go and live in a cave and eat mung beans. Well I'm fairly partial to the odd mung bean and now I find I'd like to live in a cave! This discovery came after I visited the Holy Austin rock houses at Kinver. They're amazing and not at all how I'd imagined them. I love the organic feel of the rounded edges of stone and the way people hollowed out shelters for sitting, stabling their ponies, storing food. There were some windows with glass and a huge hearth that reminded me of country houses in southern France where I used to live. When I told my mum about them she said I should apply to be a resident hermit.
Most surprising was a statement from someone in 1969 who had lived in a rock house, I think until the mid 1930's. She said the houses were warm in winter and cool in summer. Sounds like the perfect dwelling for the climate changes to come.
The gardens are being used to grow veg and there's a lovely orchard where I saw a man working. I asked if the fruit trees hadn't fruited this year as the trees were bare but he said they had all fruited and been harvested. I was so happy to hear this after seeing so many fruit trees in gardens I pass, groaning with fruit rotting on the branches. I have to resist the temptation to jump over their fences! I always wish people would gather the fruit and put it in boxes outside their gardens for passers-by to have, if they don't want to use them.
Ahhh... think I'll have happy cave dreams tonight.

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