If you have been watching our vlogs you should by now know that we have secured a lovely allotment plot in the nearby village. We have been after one for a while now for a variety of reasons but the first plot fell through, the second plot we were offered was just far too overgrown and quite frankly beyond our skill level to prepare the ground for planting. We needed something a little less overgrown although we were more than prepared to do loads of weeding and digging but not removing years of neglect!
In late June we got a break and were told that a plot was coming up soon and would we like to take a look at it. Well, it was perfect to be honest. Sure, there is lots of work to be done to the shed, greenhouse and area around them but the planting beds were in fantastic condition having recently been cultivated, just a few weeds to sort. We jumped at the chance to take over the plot and on the 3rd of July 2023 (my birthday believe it or not) we got a phone call to say the plot was ours if we wanted it. We were absolutely delighted.
We were in North Wales when the phone call came in so we arranged to meet with the previous plot owner Pete when we got back to talk things over and make the handover official. The following Monday we met up and had a good old chat and Pete turned out to be a lovely fella and could not help enough. I mentioned to him that I was looking forward to growing (or attempting to grow) a variety of chilli peppers in the greenhouse. Later that afternoon Pete sent me a text to say he had left me a Chilli Pepper plant in the greenhouse as a welcome gift! We have now named the plant Pete the Pepper and as I write this post he is with me in Ampthill chilling out in Lee’s sisters garden as we are dog and house sitting for them for the week.
Now of course this is all very exciting for us because now I will go through a few of the reasons we have been seeking out an allotment of our own.
- Supermarket fruit and vegetables are tasteless rubbish that are far from being fresh and goodness only knows what shit they are spraying them with to not only to preserve them but who knows what else they are putting into our bodies!
- Exercise and healthier eating, especially for me (Paul) as I can’t stand tasteless vegetables or stuff that tastes like farts.
- To be part of the village community rather than just being insular at the marina.
- A new hobby that not only Lee and I can enjoy but also to give our grandson Conor his own little bit of land to grow stuff – maybe it will encourage him to eat more fruit and veg!
- A wider variety of produce and of course growing chilli’s as you all know we love spicy food!
The YouTube Quandary
So, why have I put a question mark against ‘coming soon?’ Well that is my quandary as I honestly don’t know whether to just include it within our Vlog Couple episodes on The Vlog Couple channel or start a new channel completely. You may well wonder what my problem is, surely it should just be part of the normal vlog.
Well that’s where it’s a little more complicated than you may think. Our Vlog Couple channel is a little controversial for some people and it will probably stay as just a tiny little channel because Paul can’t hold his tongue and has to call out bullshit when and where he see’s it. It’s always been a diary for me rather than something to please other people although it is wonderful that we have some amazing people who engage with us on the channel as they have found comfort in what I say at times – I am well aware that I also infuriate others (sometimes devilishly on purpose!).
If I want a real project that I film more artistically and put some real effort and time into to chase subscribers and monetisation then it can’t really be mixed in with my ranting and raving and more personal stuff that we put in pur day to day vlogs. Let’s be honest here, if I put lots of time and effort into it then it needs to pay at some point. However, I can’t really afford to have music subscriptions (for all the music in our epsiodes) and all the other bits I have to pay for on the Vlog Couple YouTube channel again on a new channel – it doubles my outgoings. My royalty free music subscription (around £100 per year) only covers one channel.
Part of me does say that it should really be within our usual vlogs on The Vlog Couple channel because it is part of my life (diary) and it is part of our alternative lifestyle so it does make sense and would keep costs down. However, my rants are most likely the reason that YouTube won’t push our channel as I am far too close to the truth for their liking and of course many don’t like the ranting bits and turn off anyway.
All I can think of doing is toning down the rants on our channel which would be really hard for me to do. Well let’s be really honest here, I can’t stop calling out bullshit and nonsense as I see it as I would just explode. So, maybe the solution (which we have been toying with for ages) is to stick to ranting on our Living in a Ditch YouTube Channel.
Feel free to give us your thoughts either on our YouTube Channel comments, on our MeWe Group (Link: https://mewe.com/join/thevlogcoupleuk) or via direct message on Twitter (Link: https://twitter.com/VlogCoupleUK)
