The Shed Café

When we first moved to our house in Castle Douglas, there was quite a big shed in the garden – about 8 x 12 feet. It was rotted in places, but it was fine for a bit of storage.

Over a decade the rot got worse, the roof leaked more, and the floor became unsafe. So finally, a couple of years ago we decided to get a new one.

We couldn't afford a shed of a similar size, but we did manage to get a 6 x 8 foot one within our budget, which our friend, Allan, helped me build (actually, it was more that I helped him build it – he was the guy with the power tools, while mostly I just looked at the instructions and hunted out the right size screws).



It's since done it's job of keeping the lawnmower dry, and storing a multitude of things we'll never get round to using again (cheap buckets and spades from when the kids were little?).

However, this morning it took on a new function – an improvised café.

For a few years now, Maggie and I have set aside a morning a week where we go out for a coffee and talk until lunchtime about anything and everything.

We'd discovered we engaged with the world, and each other, differently when we were out of the house. And that this was important.

Since Lockdown we've really been missing that space in the week for each other.

Then yesterday it occurred to me perhaps we could use the shed to leave the house and have a coffee.

There is not a lot of room, but somehow I managed to squeeze 2 camping chairs and a wee stool into the space and we spent a wonderful hour drinking coffee and chatting without the weight of the world on the shoulders.

I'm already looking forward to our shed date next week.