Has anyone else noticed how easy it is to get sucked into things on the Internet? You are chugging along quite happily reading all your e-mails (a lot of them if you are me and a member of several Yahoo Groups) and RSS feeds (thank you, Google Reader) and then suddenly something new catches your eye and you get carried away. This happens to me every so often.

Chatting to my cousin by e-mail the other day he said that I could see lots of photos of his family on Facebook and also another cousin and pictures of other members of the family were to be found on Facebook too. Well, I have never ever thought of joining Facebook. For a start from what I have heard it is really meant for a younger generation than my own. Then there is all the fuss about some people putting too much information being put on Facebook and so being made available to the entire world. And then there was the fact that I’ve managed quite well without Facebook up to now and so why bother to add it to my list of things to do. But I wanted to keep more in touch with the family and to see those photos. So I joined….

At the moment I am just starting to use it. I have to admit that my initial reaction is to be very, very careful with the information I am putting on it. I am not the only person on Facebook with my name and so I thought it necessary to post a photo to make it clear who was me (so to speak). Does that mean that I’ve put my own photo on there? No, the world can see a photo I already had of Nimrod the Mighty Hunter. That will do. I am being almost paranoid about what information I am posting there.

Somehow I doubt I shall spend as much time on Facebook as some – I’ve heard stories of some young people being on there for hours every day. Not me. But it does seem a way to keep in touch with some and so I shall visit there. If you want to contact me there just let me know…….

Here are a few more pictures of Saturday that Blogger didn't allow me to post yesterday. There is a lot more to see at Wisley with acre after acre of lovely gardens.

The RHS (Red Hat Society) at the RHS (Royal Horticultural Society)

Saturday was a very special day for the British Red Hat Society. The reason for the occasion: the launch of the new official Red Hat sweet pea, Ruby Red Hat, at the Royal Horticultural Society's main headquarters in Wisley, Surry.

A member of our local Red Hat chapter, the Lady Boz of the Crimson Crumblies, works for a local nursery and when they developed a new sweet pea in a wonderful shade of red her boss offered her the opportunity to name it. And so she called it Ruby Red Hat.

Lots of things happen before a new plant can finally be recognised as one that can be sold under a new name. Ruby Red Hat has been through them all and is currently on the Royal Horticultural Society’s trail fields. And on Saturday about 90 of us from all over the UK converged on the Royal Horticultural Society’s headquarters at Wisley.

We all met together at the entrance of Wisley gardens at noon and had time to look around the gardens before we all met at the trial fields at 1.30 actually to see Ruby Red Hat growing under trial.

Then the gentleman who had developed the sweet pea gave us a brief talk. Then came the official photos.

In the afternoon we had more opportunities to look around the Royal Horticultural Society’s wonderful gardens before we all met for a formal Tea in one of the main restaurants on the site.

We were also incredibly lucky with the weather. As we drove into South East England the clouds cleared up and by the time we reached Wisley it became a delightfully warm and sunny day. It really was a very special day and it was lovely to have the opportunity to talk to lots and lots of other Red Hatters and in such a very special and beautiful place.