Summer is nearly over

Living in the country means I am getting my fair share of 'knowledge'. Yesterday I knew it was going to rain today, just by smell and today I realised that the summer is coming to a close. First you want to know how I could smell today's rain. Which is easy. 

In order for the farmers to have a good crop of grass/hay for their animals, they need to fertilize their fields. They fertilize with cow dung here and they do it the day before it will rain. Doing it while it is going to be blazing sunny and hot, will only cause chemical burning of the field, making the field useless. Yesterday several fields were fertilized which I could smell. (The fact that somebody had told me that rain was expected for today, is neither here nor there)

This morning as I looked out the window I saw a lot of swallows. I know there are quite a few swallows summering here, but this was a larger amount than usual. It was of course the youngsters trying their wings and making sure they will be strong enough for the trek south. They may not be leaving for another couple of weeks, but the sign that summer is coming to an end is there!

During the height of summer I can do without light in the middle of the night to get around my home, since it never gets completely dark. However, now I need a flashlight or I will be stumbling around like a blind person. Having a cat slinking her way around your legs while fumbling for a light switch is not good either! And before you ask: no, I can't turn the light on downstairs and turn the same light off upstairs. Which is quite a pain, but I have gotten used to it by now. When visitors are here during the winter, I will leave a light on in the stairwell, so I won't find a mangled body downstairs!

The first geese have moved south already as well. I saw a gaggle making their way south a few weeks ago, which I thought was very early and then another gaggle just last week. Yep, soon it will be autumn!!