London was miserable. Grey, chilly and very,very wet. Despite the elements (or perhaps because of them) the shops were crammed to bursting point with European visitors benefitting from the strong Euro. After half an hour waiting in line I finally got to a check out and arranged with Fortnum's for the cake and christmas pudding to be delivered to France . They won't ship that other staple of the British Christmas, mince pies, because they are too fragile! Long term readers of the blog will remember that the hamper I ordered from Fortnum's in October last year didn't arrive at the house in Italy until six o'clock at night on Christmas Eve - talk about cutting it fine. Let's hope that things move more smoothly this time round.The Rentokil mans visit to the house has done wonders. He fixed a brass rail to the bottom of the doors in from the garden ( so the little critters can't squeeze through the gap between the floor and the door) and then put down a dozen or so little cardboard boxes in the boiler room and kitchen. All this happened on Monday and since then nothing. 'The font' is delighted, so I am doubly delighted. Thankfully, only field mice and bats - no sign at all of bigger rodents.
Huge excitement at two this morning. A branch from an old pine tree was dislodged by a sudden gust of wind and fell with a huge crash onto the swimming pool cover. In France every house with a swimming pool has to have a safety alarm in case a toddler or drunken adult falls in and drowns. Of course the falling branch managed to trigger the alarm ( which until then we didn't know we had) and much fun was had by all wandering around the garden in the rain in the small hours with a torch trying to find out a) what had happened b) where the ear shattering klaxon was located and c) figuring out how to turn it off. Wilf and Digby thought it was great fun - 'the font' less so.
The damp weather has brought on Digby's rheumatics. He wants desperately to join Wilf on a long morning walk but after two or three hundred metres he starts to limp and then becomes tired and irritable with the pain.Hip dysplasia is a problem with the breed and the only remedy is to make sure he rests when it's really damp.
what a surprise to wake up to the pool alarm...i can imagine what you were thinking...what kind of critter fell into the pool..what a rude awakening!
ReplyDeletePoor Digby, i had a golden with hip dysplasia, she always wanted to go, go, go, but paid the price...although she lived to 15! later in her life i gave her meloxicam (non steroidal anti inflammatory) worked wonders!
enjoy the rain, we got our first snowfall yesterday...
xo
I have to agree - what a rude awakening. It always gives one a jolt of adrenaline to hear an alarm sound when one is sleeping.
ReplyDeleteOur old man, Java, who is 12 1/2 is suffering from the cold this year. I am considering purchasing a coat for him - I never in my wildest imagination thought that would happen, but people put coats/blankets on horses to keep them warm, so why not big dogs.
Glad the mice problem seems to be at bay - I didn't realize that you had bats too!! I'll tale the mice anytime over a flying animal - uck!
Oh, I bet that pool alarm was a rude awakening and a half!
ReplyDeleteMy bet is that the mice are simply marshalling their forces. Surely they can't go down so easily!
kks- at two in the morning we were lucky not to fall in the pool ourselves! I'll try meloxicam for Digby - he so wants to be out with his brother but one of the back legs is so much less powerful than the other.
ReplyDeleteRCS+J - The boyz coats have grown to such a length since the summer that I can't believe they feel any cold at all. Wilf is thankfully not quite as obses under all that fur as he looks in the photos!
Houndstooth - a rude awakening indeed and some fairly rude mutterings when I stubbed my big toe getting dressed in the dark. As for the mice - I reckon they'll lay low for a while before bursting back onto the scene with renewed vigour!