The distractions of moss and Middlemarch
- Karina
- Mar 31
- 2 min read
55. Tuesday 31 March 2026
I’m on page 199 of 207. I did think about finishing today but I know it’s best to stop when I start getting tired and feel that I’m rushing through without properly thinking about what I’m doing. The biggest achievement today was that I somehow just got on with my problem chapter and it’s kind of okay, most definitely a better voice and language than it was before. It still needs work, but tweaking rather than anything more drastic.
Tomorrow, I need to go out at about midday but I see no reason why I won’t finish this edit tomorrow! I’m pleased. I know there is still quite a bit of work to get through but I think editing at this advanced stage, when I’d ironed out most inconsistencies at least, is when I get most in the zone. I suppose it’s because an end is in sight and that is exciting. I still reckon I’ll end up with another two versions but each one gets better and easier.
In other news, I’ve started a sourdough starter rescue and even threw out quite a lot of discard. I struggle to throw away the discard at the time.
Finishing the challenging chapter coincided with a local friend enquiring whether I was free for a walk. Perfect timing. I needed to get outdoors and have a walk and a chat. We walked through mossy forest where there are no paths. Forest quiet is a restorative place, if that makes sense.
I also finished watching the six episodes of Middlemarch. It was filmed in 1994 and Middlemarch town was set in Stamford. We have all the same kinds of social and political problems then as now.
I watched footage from a wildlife camera I turned on last night to see if the hares ate the pears. It would appear that one of "our" hares now has a leveret and they did indeed feast on the pears. There was also another animal, two of them. They jump and run and dart. We think they're stoats. Very unexpected movements, apparently how stoats and weasels trick their prey ... which includes leverets. No murders on the wildlife camera, thankfully.
