"martin" wrote in message
...
On Thu, 18 Dec 2003 15:06:28 -0000, "Andy Hunt"
wrote:


WRT tobacco, my great-grandad used to grow his own in his greenhouse in
the
midlands quite successfully. He lived in the most lovely old
white-with-black-beams type cottage. It was so nice that about 80% of the
jigsaw puzzles in the UK which feature a rose cottage are actually from a
photo of his cottage - it was idyllic.

It's not near Andover is it?

Pershore. Worcestershire.

http://www.pershore-tourism.co.uk


He smoked cigarettes for most of his
life, but smoked a pipe when he was older. He gave up smoking when he was
95, due to a chest infection, but muddled through by having a large tot
of
whisky in his tea every morning until he died at the age of 99. I reckon
he
would have made it to 100 if he hadn't smoked or drank . . . ;-)

Some might blame the nurse's decolletage and his habit of dropping his
pipe cleaners. :-)

He died from a pneumonia in the end, during a very cold winter. Pretty
unsurprising really, as although idyllic to the eye, his cottage didn't have
central heating, he just had a gas fire. He had plenty of money and could
have lived anywhere he wanted really, but he liked his cottage, I think he
wanted to die there - and I can't say I blame him, really. I can think of
much worse places to die. Mind you, I suppose one place is every bit as good
as another when it comes to that particular cosmic revolving door. Like the
place where you were born.

He was always a fan of the nurses though, now you come to mention it! (and
who can blame him?) He had a zest for life . . . and was easily one of the
most, if not the most, fanatical gardeners in the family. He had a
three-zone greenhouse, as far as I remember (I was quite young when last
there). He met his wife looking after a small market garden for his family
who had moved away. Jones was his name, but he was from Birmingham. I'm
Welsh by birth (as is my mum), but my dad's from Bristol. I live in
Lancashire but I feel Welsh. Strange. My aforementioned great-grandad was on
my mum's side of the family, but my dad's father was also a fanatical
gardener and used to give me and my sister full-grown marrows which had had
our respective names carved into them when they were small, and so the names
had grown with the marrow.

I'm still very "green" when it comes to gardening (sorry!) I must admit,
having spent much of my time playing, listening to and promoting rock music
and dance music. But now I have seen the light and decided to concentrate on
something a little less apocalyptic.

So thanks for all the tips! I really appreciate them. They will all be put
into practice as soon as I've got my tubs. I have a great turnip to climb,
as Baldrick might say.

Andrew