Magnolia in the rain

We are now an electricity generator.  

I had a trip into Wexford today, for a flute lesson.  As I drove there, I was impressed with the roadsides, where the gorse is still in full flower, and now there is a backdrop of hawthorn - lovely.

As I pulled up in the carpark, and spent some time working out the Pay and Display machine, it started to spit with rain.  By the time I was leaving, it was raining quite hard.

Despite the rain, our large array, having filled the batteries, was still generating enough for the few bits in the house.  It's unclear to us if we will automatically use that stored power to supply us this evening.  There's an app to see/control what's happening, but the WiFi isn't working out in the garage - we need to get some new extenders.  

At the moment, if we generate excess, we'll be giving it away, as we have to decide if we will sign up to a feed in tariff - which involves having a smart meter, and probably giving up the day/night meter we currently have.  We have to do the maths.  

No other photos taken, so you get a Magnolia stellata in the rain.  We had one of these in Norfolk - it is now residing (and thriving) with ArcLight*.  We always liked it, and it was on our list of "must haves" for our new garden.  Currently still in a pot, we will plant it out once we've made some plans for the ¾ of the garden still just a grassy monoculture!

*Too big to smuggle into Ireland, I fear.