20th April
Spencer’s clearing out of the garage has caused an unexpected and unwelcome side effect. I had just returned from collecting Violet-Elizabeth from band practice, and had struggled into the hall with the euphonium that she has now insisted on playing. Violet-Elizabeth, meanwhile, had made her way to the lounge to admire herself in the floor length mirror, when I heard her say in a rather exasperated voice “there is a rather large mouse on the rug”. I immediately went to fetch Spencer from the garden where he was pruning the herbaceous border and shouted from the doorway, “come quickly there is an emergency!” I waited several minutes for him to appear round the kitchen door- it was a good job it wasn’t anything really serious- and we both followed Violet-Elizabeth back into the lounge. Sure enough there was an enormous mouse washing its face in the middle of the floor. Our cat Mozart was asleep on a nearby chair, and never even stirred when Spencer managed to catch the offending animal in a Tupperware container which I had been despatched to find. I feel sure that this was the very mouse that had been leaving evidence of its presence in the garage, and which must now been made homeless by Spencer’s tidying up. Spencer and Violet-Elizabeth released the rodent back to the wild, but not before it had given Spencer a nasty nip on the hand. Personally I thought it should have been more grateful as it could so easily been part of a cat’s lunch.
22nd April
Well readers- exciting news! I have been approached by the Village Show Committee (Chris Beadle and Jeff Owen no less) to see if I would be willing to provide some plants from the Manor to be sold on the stall that the Village Show committee run at the Old Basing Carnival on 20th June. Of course I was greatly honoured to be asked, and immediately got Spencer to go to B&Q to get some more potting compost (peat free) so that I can plant up some of the “extras” that I invariably get from the Manor greenhouses. I have also instructed Spencer to look at the herbaceous borders to see if anything can be split, that could also be donated to the stall. So readers, if you come along to the stall at the carnival you will have a chance to purchase a quality plant from the Manor Gardens at a very reasonable price.
I have also been asked (in view of my recent successes at the Village Show),
whether I would be willing to donate a prize for the tombola, which they
will be running at the same event. I agreed of course, and now need to
put my thinking cap on as to what this special prize could be.