Heat Wave = Sore Paws

It's 'ot and it's been 'ot for weeks now (it's currently 30.3 in our back garden). It's not easy exercising a lunatic in a heat wave. For a start she doesn't understand that if it's hot, running around at 100mph non-stop isn't a good idea and even if we go where it's shady and there is constant access to water, in no time at all, she has skinned her pads on the hard dry ground. So having learnt the hard way (that's us, she hasn't learnt at all), it's virtually zero exercise while skinned pads heal. Pads that have worn right through all the tough keratinised skin take a while to heal and are obviously prone to infection. So with echos of Hattie - bless her soul; it's bandaged feet for the forseeable and then once healed, we need to try and find some boots that will stay on, so that we can prevent a reoccurrence in the future.

 There is one small consolation for a bandaged pup though. The cardboard tubes that come in the bandages make fab chew toys!

Trying To Keep Cool at Thirlmere

Summer really is here, and it is way too hot to be climbing onto the fells, particularly with a dog who believes that 100mph is normal. We decided to head to Thirlmere where we could do a short walk predominantly in woodland, with plenty of water for her ladyship.

As is now becoming normal, we were joined by Jay and then for a break with tradition, we were meeting James at our local for lunch :-)

There was plenty of opportunity for swimming

And charging through the shallows

as well as another first for Breeze, charging across duck boards with ears flapping and tongue hanging out.

 Then back to base ofr a snooze (Breeze) and a pint to accompany our lunch. Oh and for those who care, it topped 30 degrees in our back garden today!

Sunset #5

There has been a bit of a lull in sunset photos. Not because we haven't had any good ones, but because photographing them proved difficult through the summer. At the shortest day, the sun sets directly behind the house. By the longest day, it sets directly to the side of the house. 90' difference. And I thought the sun set in the west: I don't recall being taught that it set somewhere between South West and North West. Come to think of it, I don't recall being taught much really. Perhaps I wasn't listening!




-10.9'c last night, and heading that way again tonight.

Slowly but maybe surely

The wintry conditions have meant that everyone's heating is breaking down and plumbers are a bit like Rocking Horse Pooh. Consequently, progress on the wetroom has been painfully slow. However. We do have a little bit of progress - much of it hidden pipework, but something to see all the same.
For those with an interest in the obscure; this is a wetroom floor former. The slit is not, apparently for posting letters.


The slit is for the drainage channel (cover leaning against the wall) which is under the box of tiles, which are, crucially, holding the whole thing in place whilst the concrete goes off over the weekend.

In the mean time, Husband has been busy removing the remainder of the tiles, adhesive and PVAing the walls in preparation for tiling.

The 'promise' is of much activity this week. However, looking at the temperature tonight (currently -8.8'c), we suspect the activity may be elsewhere!

'Baby It's Cold Outside'

-12.6'c at about 8am this morning. Cold, but beautiful.


Some of us were taking no chances....


No more snow overnight for a change, but more is forecast for this afternoon

Snow again

More of the same today. About 3" more snow overnight, and it didn't get above freezing all day again.
The birds are very happy we live here at the moment. Current amusement is often cause by fighting Robins. We get none in the back garden all summer, but now the immigrants are here looking for their winter territory, we had 5 all at once the other day! We also had 4 hen pheasants all at once one day this week, as well as 4 partridges. It seems like multiples are the order of the day (until I get the camera out of course).

I Should've Looked Out The Window

Chatting to Sally on the phone tonight, Our Old Patch has about an inch of snow currently - although temperatures over there went down really low last night. A different source tells us -17'c at Navenby Lowfields. Trina in the Borders tells me they have about a foot of snow, which they have had since Thursday and it keeps on snowing on and off.
Merrily I tell them that it's not bad here. 3 or 4 inches, although we seem to get topped up over night each night and it has been bitterly cold - not having gone above freezing for days. However, it's really dry powdery snow, so it's not really causing too much problems.

Then, I let the dog out..............



We seem to have had at least an inch since I last looked out, and it's a white out at the moment.
We'll have to see what the morning brings!

Global Warming

Like much of the country these last couple of days, we woke to an eerie silence this morning. It's normally very quiet here, but you know that feeling: That this is a different sort of quiet? Without opening my eyes, I had knew that today's plans were about to change.


The temperature got down to a low of -5.8'c overnight, with a high today of -1.8'c. Mind you I've no idea when that was, as it was below -3'c every time I looked at the thermometre.

Some of us couldn't contain our excitement at the prospect of going out to play in the snow.

Wall to Wall Sunshine

A phrase that was surely invented by someone with a view like ours, on a day like today.




First air frost of the autumn last night -0.4c, we have had three or four ground frost previously.

Autumn is Here

It really does feel like Autumn. Friday night the temperature dropped to 3c and we had a ground frost in the village. Saturday night was 3.5c. The Swallows and House Martins that have been busy practicing for weeks, have finally left on their long flight to Africa. They have entertained us since the first one arrived on 12th April, with their acrobatics over the garden and the field.