Word seems to have passed around the local sheep sorority that a large garden with lush grass, interesting trees and compliant humans is available with vacant possession. So today two sheep became three…  If you don’t see the third, there is a lamb right behind the back ewe next to the edge of the lawn.

This morning the coffee time excitement was through the side window of the kitchen which overlooks the feeding area. We normally put seeds on the windows sills as well as the feeding table. So this morning here was this gentleman. A great big pine marten. He was so close I could have touched him (much […]

I’ve really missed seeing the deer in our garden. We used to get them all the time – but I haven’t seen them here in the last two years (although R saw one a few weeks ago). This morning I was filling the kettle and looked out of the window to see a face looking […]

She tried really, really hard to make it to the bedspread, but she just couldn’t get there and had to be sick on the wooden floor instead. Last night in the absence of R, all three cats slept with me. Amber in my bed, Saphy in the new office bed, and Lucky on a rug […]

I did try out the bed in my office last night. It is super comfortable compared to my usual bed and I am definitely going to be buying a new one for my main bedroom in the future. Anyway, as I have said before, Saphy really, really loves this bed. As I was getting ready […]

My Mum’s 85th Birthday is on 27th April – exactly two weeks after my operation. At this point I will be in a temporary cast and the advice (at least as far as I can see from the Internet) is to do as little activity as possible until the wound has been checked and the […]

A sheep with her lamb. They have been with us a few days – as ever with sheep invaders, we really hope they stay. They could live here in peace and harmony, avoiding becoming lamb chops, and in return we could get our lawn kept short for us. Also I in general like sheep. Less […]

I’ve been doing some more painting. My latest project was going to be based on a picture of Helensburgh R saw on a heritage website about passenger transport on the Clyde.  The plan was to do a kind of blend between two pictures – the old and the new. This is the old photo – […]

J pointed out that my post about soda bread yesterday had been crashed by this photo. The cats must have crept in and done it with their paws while I was out of the room. The depiction is of the new bed I’ve set up in my office for when I am off my feet. […]

A lovely soda bread loaf. 250g white plain flour 250g wholemeal plain flour 1tsp bicarb 1tsp salt rosemary leaves finely chopped 400ml buttermilk (I used fresh milk with a bit of lemon juice in it to curdle it). Mix the dry ingredients together. Mix in the buttermilk to make a softish dough (don’t kneed it […]