Walking in the wind. Sorting out the family stress. Eggs. Books. And mistaken identity.

Yesterday, after the small boy had been reunited with his parents, and after we had had coffee and a snack, we set off to walk up Lark Hill, aka The Quarry Road, in the sunshine. Had we realised how windy it was up there we might have chosen a different route for a walk in the sunshine. Between the ridiculously eroded surface of the path - you can’t really call it a lane any longer - and the the wind getting stronger the higher we went, the going was quite hard. I reflected that we used to walk up their with our daughter and her little girl in the buggy. You couldn’t realistically push a buggy up there now. The little girl is now five and half so in the past four to five years the surface has seriously deteriorated: a mix of tractors, quad bikes and trail bikes churning up the surface and really heavy rain washing loose material down the hill! 

By the time we had reached the summit and beyond, onto the road leading into the centre of Dobcross, all was calm - well, calmer! - and we were able to appreciate the stretch of tree-lined road with daffodils coming out in force. 

 

Hurrah for spring!

And today is bright and sunny again. And it’s forecast to remain so for a good part of the coming week. Once again I say, hurrah for spring! We might get out for a walk in the sunshine again! 

Meanwhile, I am trying ascertain which members of the family are coming for tea later this afternoon. My daughter is in a state of stress because everyone is making demands on her (exceedingly short supply of) time. But the small girl has decided she really wants tea at grandma’s, so there it is. 

The news tells us that shops can no longer label their free-range eggs as free-range. Because of avian flu, birds have had to be kept indoors. So now the eggs will have to be labelled “barn eggs”. Egg producers, free-range egg producers have been at pains to assure newsmen that their barns are spacious and that the hens have plenty of stuff to peck at and keep themselves entertained. It probably won’t satisfy the vegans though! 

I read an interview with the writer Kate Mosse, a person who claims to have 25,000 books - not her own writing but the works of others. She is probably a role model for my number two granddaughter who also hoards books. Kate Mosse told of taking a taxi somewhere and having the taxi driver tell her he had always imagined her taller than she is. She realised he was confusing her with Kate Moss, the model. I know the problem; when I worked in a sixth form college parents would arrive for parents evening and ask to speak to Anthea Turner! 

So it goes. 

Life goes on. Stay safe and well, everyone!