Sunday and I woke up at 8.30am quite a lie-in, no hang on its 7.30am really! Oh well the sun was shining and the sky was blue........what was my first thought ......lets get the washing on the go! Well can't waste a "hang it outside" day can I. First load on and I make the drinks and take Tony a coffee up to bed. Its just him and the dogs, although he was awake as I'd already let them out in the garden and I am sure their cold wet feet jumping all over him might have had something to do with that 
. Strangely enough Tony joined me downstairs not long after and at 9am he started cooking breakfast, becoming a tradition.....Lara had an egg (cooked all the way through) sarnie, Sean had bacon, Jack had egg & bacon as it comes, me....I have to have crispy bacon and a runny egg (but no snotty white bits tyvm). I made us another drink to have with it and we all sat quietly munching apart from the occasional "ohhh this is nice" and "mmmmmmm" noises. Today's photographic intermissions come Pishiobury Park where we walked the dogs today.
Just before 11am Tony went off to Costa (packet) to meet his karate club partner as they want to make some changes to their syllabus now they have changed associations. He was back by 12.30pm and we headed straight off to the park. Me in my lovely wellies, means that when I using the camera, I don't have to be too careful where I tread....the cowpats were pretty dry this week!
We walked around for almost two hours in the park, the "boys" are becoming quite well behaved around other dogs, Dexter used to wag his tail but bark and bark whilst on the lead, I think its all he knew how to do......but it made people wary. Now he runs around, has a sniff and occasionally barks. Ollie just follows the dogs around like a puppy - well he is, so thats ok. Ollie is most unsure of people and more likely to bark at them if someone approaches us.
Tony and I just stroll and chat and enjoy the afternoon sunshine, we sit on a bench for a while as I am puffing a bit trying to keep up with his much longer strides, 24 years we've been together, married 17 of them and he still doesn't get that my little legs struggle to keep up with his pace. I think its time Dexter was booked into the groomers to be stripped, he's looking a tad like a shaggy dog rather than a pedigree Border Terrier (or terrorist as I call them!). Both dogs were beginning to tire on the marathon walk and we head back towards the car. I take a couple of scenic shots and we feel a spot or two of rain! Oh no, thankfully it was just a passing localised shower - from one cloud it would seem.
Back home and Tony becomes Mr Grumpy when his old and trusted laptop begins its slow and painful death. Blue screen after blue screen and failing to boot properly, taking forever........I wouldn't mind but all he does is check emails, his club website and other various karate sites on the net and facebook. I have most of the clubstuff on my computer, because I designed it all, all the syllabus, grading certificates, website, images and files......its only emails and I can just as easily set my outlook express to check for those. The timing is lousy with Christmas looming and three teenagers to buy for, there won't be a spare penny to buy hubby a new laptop....although I am thinking netbook next time! Anyway while Mr. Grumpy was faffing around with the laptop, I cooked a splendid roast chicken, roast potato's, roast parsnips, sweetheart cabbage and leeks, vichy carrots, broccoli and I used another halfpacket of the Stovetop stuffing my friend in California sends me. I did fail however to remember to make Yorkshire Puds.........not happy faces when it was dished up I tell you LOL
Dinner done, washing in off the line, it was X Factor time, not sure I can write anything without using naughty words with regards to the show tonight. I haven't warmed to Danyl as a "personality" but thats not what the show is about, I think he did one of the better performances on Saturday and to be in the bottom two with the Twit Twins (my polite version of what I call them on facebook) going through again....is just plain wrong. He sang well last night and glad he stayed in, shame better singers are being forced out with the public voting so strangely. Perhaps we are all beginning to tire of these reality "make me a star" shows and are using their votes to voice their opinions.....who knows!!
Should say the arrow on the above photo points to a water tower, a prominent feature at the very top of the development we live on, I was surprised to see it from the park.
With the X Factor farce over, it was time to turn over for House, even Tony has become quite engrossed with this series. Gone 10pm and as Tony is starting work at silly o'clock and I will be up before 8am to start my chemo tablet regime, we let the dogs out into the back garden and Dexter is making an awful racket and Ollie is running around not really knowing what to do. Tony see's Dexter throw something up into the air and rushes out to grab the dogs. I rush out the back door and realise I don't have my hat and we have the spotlights on......so make a quick dash back inside. Sean goes out to help bring the dogs in, yanked by their collars so that Tony can check to see if the little hedgehog was ok. I guess something moves and a terriers on it......its in their blood. I am upset because I love wildlife and encourage it as much as I can into my small garden but I don't want to encourage it in for an early exit! I can't tell Dexter off, his breed are working farm dogs and he was doing something instinctively. Tony took the little prickly fella round to the top of our drive where there is a pile of cut down conifers stacked in the corner waiting to go to the tip (guess thats not gonna happen this year) and put him underneath. We doubt he will stay there but at least it was a safe, warm and dry place for him to recover from his high flying ordeal. Thankfully Dexter was also unscathed from grabbing a pile of prickles in his mouth!!!!! Eventful end to the day.
Thought for the day:
Bittersweet October. The mellow, messy, leaf-kicking, perfect pause between the opposing miseries of summer and winter.
Carol Bishop Hipps
