UpDate

Got a LOT of the digging done -- moved many barrows of hardcore and soil (lucky the garden's big enough to hide it away). Still some work tod do before we start paving -- maybe next weekend...

Dinner was GOOD - the asparagus is truly excellent at the moment (with a little melted butter and salt from the Camargue) - the duck (with garlic mash, peas and rhubarb & wine sauce) was pretty damn good, a little Cheshire cheese and then an orange & lemon soufflé--- YUM!

Bank Holiday Weekend

Off to a traditional start - rained all day yesterday!

Plans for today include continuing to demolish the steps from the patio to the lawn (they cover a huge area of, potentially, useful patio). This is a biggish task that will involve moving a few tons of earth and concrete.

Oh, my aching back (and that's just thinking about it!).

Dinner plans: well, there's lots of home-grown asparagus (for US readers, English asparagus has more flavour than any from the New World, because of its slow growth) so I'll probably serve that with a poached egg yolk. Then there's some duck in the fridge, so I'll roast that with peas and a red wine sauce + (maybe) some rhubarb, then Ali's going to do a soufflé!

PIXEL

We got Pixel from a cat rescue centre 19 years ago (we got her sister Killie [Killashandra Re, really] at the same time, but she died a few years ago).

Apparently, Pix spent the first 7 months of her life locked in a shed. When she came to us she had clearly been abused and didn't like people too much.BUT she had a wonderful purr - that was the reason we took her really.

She was a very loving cat, except she wouldn't let you pick her up (well you could, but you had to have a good reason). She was always gentle (apart from beating-up a dalmatian many years ago).

Anyway, Pix had to be put to sleep last friday: she'd stopped eating and really wasn't happy. I don't think I subscribe to the idea of animal souls (nor human either), but she was a wonderful pet and we're going to miss her.

The Great Leveller

If I should die before the rest of you
Break not a flower nor inscribe a stone
Nor, when I'm gone, speak in a Sunday voice,
But be the usual selves that I have known.
Weep if you must
Parting is hell.
But life goes on.
So sing as well.