Hidden complexity [527]

Greetings from The Borders...

I’m Christian Payne, a photographer and writer who's tending a small steading. In this weekly dispatch, I share what I’m learning, explore the connections between people, place and nature, while reflecting on what we share, consume and where we might be heading. Thanks for reading.

---

#TheAction

I had no idea it was a Friday the 13th till a junk email told me this was my lucky day. It’s certainly glorious outside and i’m now wishing i’d got the bulk of this done earlier so I can go out to play some more. I might sit outside write for a bit.

I’m averaging 13,000 steps a day pottering about, but Friday is famously sedentary and desk bound. Perhaps if I turned this into a podcast I could keep on moving. ;-)

The step-filled days can be exhausting but always rewarding as I traipse around the steading with a ladder, branch or barrow. I have found myself flashing back decades to when my family had a smallholding.

As a kid my parents had very little money but loads of debt thanks to an uninsured fire. So we lived in a mobile home on a plot of land with any ‘spare’ cash going to our fight for permission to live there.

As I hit my teenage years and needed some extra space, my dad took out a window and attached what was effectively a shed to the side of our tiny bedroom. This rickety nailed on addition meant I could now leave the bunkbed to my younger brother and have my own cabinbed.

I have many fond memories from that time, as when not climbing trees or building dens, I’d help out with the chickens, goats, sheep and in the greenhouse. Back then with no shower, one of my favourite ways to end the day was in the bath. It was the answer to everything from soothing a muddy graze acquired in a BMX spill, to warming the bones after a winter paper round. It was also the only private place in the a very small home.

The mobile home pictured just before it was scrapped.

Today there’s no chickens, or sheep, or a greenhouse. Yet. But some things remain the same.

I trim the grass, tend to apple and plum trees, remove deadwood and cut back weeds so young oaks have room to grow.

Stretching and bending and reaching and climbing and walking more than enough steps to keep me happy. My body aches. But in a satisfying way that reminds me I’ve done something real.

It’s hard for me to explain the bliss I feel while walking around a piece of land that we’re the custodian of. It’s so many things I can’t explain. But I’ll continue to try.

You notice, you tend, you shape. And just as your effort is rewarded, you make the time to reflect and find yet more gratitude.

At the end of the day, with a body that feels like it’s worked from dawn till dusk, there is much joy still to be had, feet up, head back, in a steamy hot bath with a cool drink balanced on the side.

---

#ThePictures

A phone snap from a dog walk yesterday.

---

When sharing the work of image makers that inspire me, I’m trying my best to not link to Facebook or instagram. But many photographers don’t seem to have easy to find websites. While searching for the work of Dawn Eagleton I found her as well as other amazing creatives on WomenStreetphotographers.com

---

#TheWords

If you like to buy your books without DRM this place seems popular.

---

A journey into the Amazon to find out if ayahuasca can fix some existential despair.

---

Important words. “As Bertolt Brecht wrote, there are times when 'a conversation about trees is almost a crime/ because it involves being silent about so many misdeeds'.”

---

#TheSound

It’s only when I go through this week’s #AudioMo posts I realise how wonderfully long this week has been:

Day Seven / Day Eight / Day Nine / Day Ten / Day Eleven / Day Twelve / Day Thirteen

---

#TheConsumed

Yesterday I saw a neighbour had been collecting elderflowers.

I was reminded that when living in the mobile home mentioned above, I used a fork to help my mum remove the flowers from elderflower stems so they could make wine. My neighbour on the other hand was collecting them to make a cordial. She kindly gave me her recipe.

It’s important not to wash them so you keep the pollen intact. This is where the flavour is. So pick just after the morning dew and shake the elderflowers gently to remove any insects. Then dissolve 1 kg of light brown sugar in boiling water to make a syrup. Let it cool a little and in a large container and mix the elderflowers with lemon zest and about 55g of citric acid (lemon juice). This helps preserve the final cordial.

Leave it all to steep for 24 to 72 hours, stirring occasionally. Finally, strain through a fine sieve or cloth, and pour into sterilised bottles and seal.

The final cordial should keep in a fridge for up to a month. Or if you freeze it much longer.

---

This wine, Baron De Las Vinas cost £3.99 from Aldi.

I bought it out of curiosity. There is no seal over the cork. Probably to save money.

I remember Aldi once did a wine in a paper-thin bottle called Baron St Jean (I think). It cost £1.99 and was a decent picnic wine. This wine above is not a bottle to gift anyone, but it is in a normal thickness bottle and is certainly ‘passable plonk’. If you wait long enough into the night and stick it in a carafe, I doubt people will tell the difference between it and an £8-12 quid bottle.

---

#TheBody

Ketamine is in the news again and there will be people reading this who use, or have used it for recreational purposes. The first time I saw it was in the 90’s in a mate’s fridge. His dad was as vet and stored it for its intended use. Tranquillising horses. Of course my curious friend tried it, but ended up catatonic for a short while and so left it well alone after that.

I would then see people using it in clubs and what with the heavy legged drooling confusion, I was in no hurry to experiment.

Fast forward 30 years and ketamine use still appears to be growing in the UK. This radio 4 documentary looks at how Ketamine travels into the UK and the trouble with policing this illegal trade.

---

#TheThings

There’s a pot of money put aside after the house move for things like tools and storage, I’ve just chiselled away a large chunk on what I believe to be necessities.

Having spent many years travelling south east Asia trying (and failing) to rid myself of ego, I appear to have acquired two more.

Thanks to the Lawnmower Centre in Duns, I’m now the proud owner of an EGO Power electric chainsaw and line trimmer. The key thing now is to continue to manage the steading while keeping all of my limbs intact.

The tools, although expensive, feel great. I’m not a big fan of the name or styling but the Lawnmower centre seemed like they know what they’re talking about.

I even have a new bright orange hat to wear.

---

“It wasn't the wearing of the hat that counted so much as having one to wear. Every trade, every craft had its hat.” ― Terry Pratchett

I like hats. I have a lot of them. (But not as many as one of my neighbours who has an extensive collection I’m hoping to get to see.)

Hats do many things, they can keep you safe, give you confidence, privacy, a sense of identity or status. But mainly, at least for me, they protect you from the elements.

As a result, a decent one is made from hardy stuff. Unlike other clothing, they aren't washed often, stretched or scuffed, so don’t face much wear and tear. So some hats can last decades. I still have my Grandad’s hat which must be older than me.

Caps, beanies, brimmed and with ear flaps. One of the hats I wear the most (below) was bought in a US airport. I mostly use it when walking the dog or working in the garden. It gets rained on a lot. Only washed it once.

---

#TheThanks

Massive thanks to the paying subscribers who continue to support this dispatch and the adventures/experiments that make it. You know who you are. ♥️

This email is my only income at the moment. If you value these words, thoughts, ideas and curation, please consider an upgrade to paid…

Or if you prefer a random hat tip you can do that via PayPal

---

#TheWeb

• The Guardian’s new whistleblower tool buries leaks within everyday web traffic.

• Thank you those of you who have taken the time to add yourself to the Documentally community map.

• I quite like Adam Curtis. He doesn’t pull any punches and is back with a new series where he suggests that sustained distrust in politicians and institutions has hollowed out democratic systems. With flashy populism and social media driven outrage filling the void, we’re being pushed toward fracture and unrest.

• I started caving as a very young boy and was often seen being lowered by rope upside down into grassy holes to check if a cave system might branch off the bottom. So articles like this give me goose bumps and a yearning to explore.

• Meta AI searches are made public.

• If you have bought an Anker Powercore battery in the states take note.

• I wonder if Fuji’s new X-E5 is out instead of the X-Pro4 I’m still dreaming of.

• Some of my other places include these… And supporting subscribers also get access to a Discord server. Message me for a link. 👍🏽

---

#TheEnd

Thanks for reading watching and perhaps even listening.

Don’t forget to put the 25th of June in the diary and i’ll meet you at Eric Arthur’s Grave aka George Orwell for picnic and conversation. 11am onwards. There’s one more dispatch between now and then.

I’ve got this out just in time as i’m expecting family to be visiting any time now. Hope you have a great week/weekend!

---

“I am sure there are things that can't be cured by a good bath but I can't think of one.”

― Sylvia Plath

---

Bask,

See you out there.

Over…

A ❤️ is a high-five, a comment is a hug. A supporting subscription earns my undying love.