Damp

TLB and I spent a third night sleeping in the garden last night and much to my horror, when I woke up I was slightly damp. As we chatted and prepared food in the tent yesterday evening, the rain started lashing down upon my new home for the very first time. It held up well and did not leak, which I was informed it may well do during the first downpour. The theory goes that the tent will shrink the first time it gets wet which will seal any slight imperfections in the canvas and the seams and afer that, it should be splendidly weatherproof. I am hoping so.

I think one mistake we made was closing all of the windows before actually hitting the sack, this meant that there was no where for any condensation to go and it lingered in the air. I am also not yet equipped with a wood burner so there was no heat source to deter the damp and it was this combination of factors which gave me my first insights into the potential for misery that lies ahead. I am not discouraged though, people have lived comfortably in tents for generations and I am sure that with a little experience and cunning I can assure my comfort and moisturelessness.

Having now had a few days of living in the garden I am enthused. The circular space is very 'soothing to the soul' as TLB put it and the thick Afghan rugs on the floor make it very comfortable to lounge about. I have now robbed cushions from the sofa, dismembered a variety of tables to make them a more suitable height for life in a tent, reappropriated the speakers from my computer and a small bin as I was starting to need somewhere to put waste.

Last nights dinner of vegetable and Haloumi skewers marinaded in our own home made peanut butter and sweet chilli satay sauce was eaten in the style of a Roman banquet with my poet friend, TLB and I sprawled decadently across the floor, picking and guzzling as we saw fit. I could definitely get used to it which is rather good as it looks like I am going to have to.