Eye of bat, colon of stoat

Cruella visited yesterday, Ari confined to quarters previously was freed, but with a lead. She tried to laugh off the threats but he knew, oh yes, he knew and he remembers. She stayed in her horse's stable while he walked past giving her the look. She has spread the word that he is dangerous, people have come up from the village to take a look, he duly snarls at them from his lair. She is convinced that he will not bite her again, and he won't but there may be worse in store for her.

DJ , now that international athletics have proved out of her ability and fired up by her homeopathic remedy ,has decided to become a wise woman. These elderly ladies learn old lore and make cures for illnesses, they also can put curses on people and can make certain tinctures and potions that may not be to their benefit.

It is all the more worrying when I saw her out on the green today eyeing up some mushrooms.

                                   "Heh heh heh, would you like a mushroom my pretty ?"

She has even fashioned a witches' cloak and is probably on Amazon looking for a hat as we speak. If you hear any mushroom related incidents on the news, you know nothing .. OK.

Hide the Hound

As I suspected yesterday there were repercussions from Ari's rampage. H and I had taken Rooster and Kavi out for a hack This was slightly delayed whilst Rooster ensured we were all wearing high-viz coats as it was a bit misty.

"Now, are you wearing hard hats and foot protection ? Who has got the first aid kit ? Watch out for slips.trips and falls....blah blah blah"

We were coming back down the drive when we were accosted by  Cruella the landlady. It appears that not only did Ari feed upon her he also cornered her in the feed room. I ask you ? Ari is only about 18 inches tall

                                           "I'm a lover not a fighter... (paws crossed)"

She opined that he should be either castrated or worse. A bit harsh I thought, anyway I suppose he had better keep out of her way in the next few days.

After our hack H and I went for Sunday lunch, a rare treat, to the Colliers Arms in Clows Top http://www.colliersarms.com/
It was quite good and interestingly they had turned what used to be the dining room into a shop which stocks locally grown veg, Free Range Eggs and local beers and ciders. As the pub is a bit remote it seems a good idea to diversify. They also open at 09 30 for breakfasts and serve tea, coffee and cakes all day. Good luck to them I say.

Two viscounts and an Honourable.

I thought that something was up. Ari was sat in his lair throwing a baseball against the wall and catching it. He was at his vocal best today as the hunt was in the vicinity. All the quality were on the yard getting their horses prepared to give Reynard a run for his money and this was to be his chance. With a final gnaw at the cage he was free.

                                            Group 4 said it was secure.

The next thing the woofing had turned to growling and he was amongst them nipping away ready to do his worst . The first I knew of this was when I went outside to see what the commotion was about and he came bounding up with his tail wagging furiously. I was confused as to why the yard was deserted and the Hound of the Proletariat roaming free. Guess I will have a bit of apologising to do tomorrow. DJ ventured out for a stroll later and although not back to 100% seemed a bit more lively.

Great news to see the incomparable Kauto Star win his fifteenth grade 1 win today at Haydock Park. I was sat at home on my own cheering him home with a tear in my eye and not a penny invested in him. What a horse

            "Kauto Star ? Pah, did I tell you about when I ran at Worcester ..." etc etc

We've got lots of Tomatoes now

Sorry that I have not been keeping you abreast of the goings on here but I have been weak. I have succumbed, succumbed to beer, to horses and to sloth. Each time I have attempted to put finger to keyboard I have allowed myself to become distracted. However tonight's telly seems to be a choice between soap stars and newsreaders dancing and people of whom I've not heard eating parts of kangaroos' anatomy I am here staring at a blank screen. Well it's not blank now as I have written the last few sentences but you know what I mean.

Ari wanted me to write a damning polemic about the government selling off Northern Rock for 75pence having bought it with about a zillion pounds of our money (or to put it another way, 2 hospitals and about a thousand local government jobs) but I said "No"

I could tell you of my worries about DJ, she has not been her normal romping self over the last few days, she has spent a lot of time looking sad and sighing a lot. We have moved her and Ari to their winter quarters in a hope that she may rally round. Housemate has ordered a homeopathic remedy in a hope that she will return to her old self. Lets hope so.

Tomorrow sees the long awaited return of my fave racehorse Kauto Star at Haydock where he will meet his nemesis Long Run in the Betfair Chase. sadly I fear that his best days are behind him and it's just a case of hoping he will get round in one piece. he can still win races but whether we want to see him slugging round places such as Bangor is a moot point.

Yesterday H and I went to Birmingham for a look round. It has changed since I was last there but as that was in 1962 it is not really surprising. After H had done a few shops we repaired to a pub for lunch where after paying £3 .55p for a pint of beer, sorry to keep going on about it but really... Anyway we were sat at the next table to some businessmen who were having a working lunch. After having a heads up on the retail situation in East Birmingham, we heard Chris from the Wolverhampton office telling of his total commitment to an integrated communications stream incorporating.. about now they were interrupted by a cry as I had bitten my own arm off in boredom. Thank goodness I am retired.

Swedish Au-Pair

The very words are enough to send shivers down the spine of men of a certain age. I am of that age. Back in the day those words conjured up visions of nubile blonde lasses with a liberal attitude to, well we didn't like to say the word then. When h was out hacking at the weekend she met the people from the Court and their aforementioned help. She was invited up to ride Carly as she had evinced interest in horses.

So this morning, purely by coincidence, when she arrived on the yard Ari and I just happened to be around. Spotting my "mo" stache she said to me "Flurngy urflung a boe". It was only later that I realised her confusion

                                                Swedish Chef


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbs64GvGgPU

                                                        Shropshire Chef

 To those who have already slung a few bob to the "mo"vement a big Thank You. I have not set up an account for myself so if you just donate anyway then the effect will be the same.
                                               .

He loves me really

Although he is my mate, it has to be said that Ari is going through an annoying phase at the moment. Not content with savaging visitors to the yard and barking if a bird coughs half a mile away he has now taken  wealth redistribution a little too far. Furrgall and Sharkey are fed in the barn with their bowls put on top of a straw bale as they are outdoor fresh air cats

                                             "Where's me snap gone ?"

We had casually thought that the cats were eating well without becoming too fat, so had wormed them and had even thought that some of their food was being pinched by a visiting moggie. Ari and DJ were out on the yard today for their mooch around and I had been distracted by DJ having a poorly eye , it needed bathing and ointment applied so I was doing my manly vet thing (pus on the jeans is such a good look don't you think ?). After giving her a cuddle , a brave act as she is still not too nice to be near, I went off to the barn to check that the horses were alright for hay, Eees and Whiz. Before my disbelieving eyes there he was.

                                             Caught red pawed.

"Right" I said "You're in the dog house now", probably not the most threatening to say to a dog but he was  firmly escorted back to his lair and put away after being told what a bad dog he was. He stood there with his tail sagging and his head on one side looking sad. I walked away. Within three minutes I was feeling guilty. Was I too harsh? It was only cat food? He only bites most people.

Is this how abusive relationships start

Lest we forget

I make no apology today for talking about remeberance day. I want to dedicate this blog to Cpl James Fox my gt gt uncle. He was born in the tiny Shropshire village of Leebotwood in 1896 the fifth of six children of Thomas Fox who was an agricultural labourer. His mother Emma died two years later giving birth to his brother Henry. By 1911 he was working as a ploughman in the nearby village of Smethcott. The fact that he was a ploughman at the age of 15 shows that he must have been above averagely capable. I don't know when, or more importantly, why he joined the KSLI (Kings Shropshire Light Infantry) but when he married in October 1915 he was called a soldier on his wedding certificate. I have seen his army record and he appears to have done nothing out of the ordinary . On the morning of 16th Feb he was killed while serving in the Somme, again his record only has the bare fact .He had been married for 14 weeks.

                                            Smethcott Church

I have not been able to find out what happened to his widow, but hope she eventually found happiness. Everything that I have found out about him, which is all from official documents, was presented as matter of fact, which makes it sadder in a way. You get no sense of him as a person, only as a name rank and number, he was never awarded a medal or was mentioned in despatches. My mother, whose Uncle he was, never mentioned him, nor did her father, his cousin. Whether they had forgotten or whether it was something that was not talked about I don't know but had I not come across the memorial in the church his sacrifice would have gone unnoticed. Cpl Fox , for me, stands as an everyman who died in that terrible slaughter.

                                           The War Memorial in the Churchyard

On days like this it is worth spending a few moments thinking about the ordinary blokes, who in many cases did extraordinary things to make this country what it is today. We cannot know if wanting to make this country a better place was his reason for joining up, conscription was not a law at the time; he joined,
as a volunteer, or whether it was an adventure to escape his, doubtless, humdrum existance on the farm.

The memorial stands in the churchyard, which is set on a hill a mile out of the village . It has heartbreaking views of the Shropshire countryside over to the Stretton hills. Even a hardened old peacemonger like me swallowed hard when I stood there for a few minutes, back in August ,thinking about those brave men, those scared men, those family men, those brothers, sons, boyfriends and mates.