Living things in my life...
Tame Blackbird
I love all the living things I share my life with. The house cats are a bit lazy, but my dogs come with me now when I'm gardening. Bumble bees are sleeping overnight on the dahlia flowers, and my tame blackbird is back.
Stray cats
Speckles greets me outside the cottage, sometimes with a hiss, sometimes with a cat-chirp and a leg-smooch. He has been 'with me' for over three years now.
I am also feeding the new stray, ginger Foxie, nearly every evening, though we have minimal visual contact. He stares at me from a distance, huge eyes, while I talk in my silliest old-lady voice. After ten seconds he loses his confidence and runs. I am still very scary, apparently.
Winnie the Dog
How nice?
And how nice is Non-Gardening Partner? Last night I ran out of dairy milk, and Speckles doesn't like oat milk, so NGP went off to the shop to get some dairy milk especially for him. Lovely!
Dog shirt report
I am now the proud owner of two multi-coloured dog shirts, which I wear with pride. I can now go apres-gardening in pastel lilac, covered in mustard yellow, teal, plum red, sage green, and pink dogs.
Or, against a creamy background, bright blue, emerald green, scarlet, and turquoise dogs wearing sunnies. Hee hee. NGP actually notices me more - this is a good thing? You would, if you sat down to relax after the evening meal with a host of ridiculously coloured dogs.
Alas, no selfies yet, because I've lost my camera. But we won't talk about that. I suspect I might have mulched it somewhere in the garden, oops.
Pebbles the Dog
Tuesday 18th February
Ha! I am back from swimming and visiting family. I will try and finish that which I started yesterday. Namely : weeding, watering, and mulching the Pittosporums which screen me from next door's mess. I have enough of my own, thank you very much!
Later...
I've only done one and a half hours work - it's very hot and sticky. But I've made progress, removed lots of grass weeds, and cut down an ailing shrub. My tame blackbird has been poking around happily in the mulch right beside me.
Pink Grootendoorst Roses
I love my garden. I even love the plants that are misbehaving - like the bamboo which my friend said was NOT invasive (it is), and the giant Arondo which I must trim right down to force some prettier regrowth.
Shortly later...
I didn't believe 'them' when thunder was mentioned. Well, I should have. It went very grey, blobs of rain started falling, and there was rumbling quite close by. Chopped down about ten stalks of Arondo then retreated.
Bolivian train journeys...
Now, covered in dogs, I'm going across Bolivia on a rail-bus, thanks to Youtube. The high plain is amazing, with some wonderful rock formations. I would love to travel on this railway for real. But I won't.
Love my house cats?
The Fred cats have just had an altercation over who should sleep in the jigsaw box. Alas, my half-finished jigsaw (underneath) is now literally in pieces - all over the floor. Aargh! Love my house cats, do I?