George Clooney The Vet

Poorly 21

No 21 went lame over the weekend.
I suspected that she had an infection in her knee joint, but left her to rest to see if it would improve.
It didn't, so this morning I took her to a new rural vet practice up in the hills.
I have no confidence in my local vets. I have not since Maddie died last year,so after a bit of trolling around I registered my "farm" animals with the new practice which is around 20 minutes away and without a problem obtained an appointment with them after morning surgery.

I left a sorry looking 21 in the car while I waited for the vet to be free.....and after only a couple of minutes reading an old copy of Hello, the vet appeared in the doorway.
He looked the spit of a young George Clooney and as he flashed me the biggest pair of baby blue eyes he asked in a booming deep voice
"Are you the guy with the lame pig?"
I gulped
"Yes!"I squeaked....and said weakly "She's in the Berlingo"
"Well let's go and sort her out" he said cheerfully, flexing his smile again to deadly effect
...............I tottered out after him like a 14 year old schoolgirl.

Dr Doug Ross in ER couldn't have been more attentive
He took 21's temperature, manipulated her leg gently and checked her over as if she was a baby
"That's a nice pig" he said after the examination
"Thank you!" I simpered, smiling like an idiot
"She has an infection in the joint" he explained, ".I am going to give her an anti inflammatory injection and some antibiotics...have you ever injected a pig before?" The God asked
"No " I babbled " but I have given injections to plenty of fat humans before"
I was trying to be clever
He didn't laugh...but said " that's good".

You're never too old to make a tit out of yourself over a pretty face
Even if the vet had looked like the back of a bus, I was happy with the service I received and the total cost of the morning was refreshingly cheap.

Now answer me a question!

Can anyone clear up a question I have been thinking about for quite some time
Why do people read blogs less on a Saturday?
Strangely enough around 180-200 people ( god forbid) click on Going Gently per day to read about life here in the crawling lane of back country Trelawnyd.( I have to admit some 20 of these can be directed to the site if they  Google the subject of "Welsh celebrities")......however on a Saturday I am always lucky to get perhaps 130 "viewers"
Now this computer behaviour intrigues me just a little........so... can anyone explain why it occurs?
Are Saturdays set aside for other pursuits rather than the reading of the acerbic tales of Tom Stephenson, the joyful musings of Victoria and Jacqueline or Cro Magnon's French country stories?........
Could it be Chores? family? shopping? sex? gardening?  or real life that gets in the way? ...who knows?
But I would be interested to hear if anyone has an answer to this strange little phenomenon.

Anyhow back to the real world.
Nuala caught the afternoon train back to London leaving the cottage just a little quieter and less sparkling by her absence.
It feels as though we have talked constantly for 24 hours.
It was lovely to see her.

Ipad playing



Nu and a broody cochin



Nuala

After surviving the wild west coast train ,some very non London Chicken chasing and IPAD fooling around this afternoon

we are off to Osborns for dinner.

The photo sums up the very nature of old friends..........

Operation Dog Snot Removal....II

No Thomas, it's not some Welsh modern art........
It's the scum left in the bath after only ONE of the dogs has had their pre visitor bath.
I have too much to do today. Nuala arrives tomorrow for a whistle stop visit and I am working night shift tonight, so as well as the animals to care for I have to work like a Trojan in order to remove the doggy smells and snot stains from 95% of the cottage.
Not the nicest of jobs...but certainly a necessary one!

I have been asked a few times about the condition of the chick that Plank adopted
The chick that survived the fox attack seems to have the lives of a cat.

Plank, the thick buff orpington, looked after the orphan for nearly four days before turning on her charge with a ferocity rare for such a placid hen.
I only realised that something was wrong was when Constance and William parked themselves outside the shed by the back door and refused to move. On closer inspection I found Plank stalking angrily around the shed while the frightened chick hid inside a wellington boot lying on its side.

I had no explanation of just why she had turned so forcefully on the chick, but turn she did, and I am sure that she would have killed it if the chick hadn't found an unexpected place of safety.
And so the chick is back on its own again
She looks alright and now has a small hand mirror for company.....well I figured that if a small mirror is good enough for a budgie it will be good enough for a lonely hen
She's eating well

Right off again to shampoo the dog smell from the carpets.......

Pants!

The good thing about being on a long and sustained heath kick is that you no longer have to squeeze your fat arse into your pants!
Cutting down on food (apart from a birthday  KFC last night----I know I know..but to me it's a big fuck off treat!),all fat and especially alcohol (hardly any in a few weeks ...would you believe it?) has started to show dividends and although by blood pressure remains a little elevated ( thanks Dad) I managed to get into a pair of combat trousers yesterday without resorting to a warm spoon and a ton of goose grease!

Ok I still have a long way to go, but at least the 12 year old practice nurse down at the doctor's surgery cannot give me that awfully patronising "lifestyle change" pep talk that they are so good at giving, after I pre-empt her spiel with news of my weight loss, liver preservation and shiny new combats.....
I hope SHE doesn't think that I now still look 49!
( If she calls me Grandad I will slap her)


Anyhow I am up at my Brother's for the day . My sister-in-law needed to be out early, and while my brother has had a lie in, I have busied myself with completing another two chapters over at http://trelawnydhistory.blogspot.com/ and sorting some health and safety signs out for my Open Allotment day which has been booked for the 17th of July.
Yes even the dreaded "risk assessment" has to be filled out for the smallest of village open days!


Oh I need to ring Boots -The Chemist too! they have lost the original slides I took in to be printed up and still they have not turned up yet..........I know it will increase my blood pressure somewhat, but I feel like a little sport........a few waspish comments to some middle managers......will give me a smile on this dull looking Thursday morning!


(ps will update everyone on the Plank and chick saga later!)

Me....Me....ME......MEEEEEE!

If Constance was excited about my birthday
she didn't show it

Having a twin sister, I have never had a birthday all of my own.
I like it that way
If all else fails
You are always guaranteed at least one birthday card!

I am at an age where I dont really want a fuss on my birthday.....today I will be finishing off  the strimming of the field, the shed needs cleaning out and I need to dredge the pond.....so in one way I will be indulging myself in the things I enjoy the most.........but having said all this I will admit that I DO enjoy receiving birthday cards ( and the modern day equivalent of them....and that is the Birthday TEXT!)!

So before I troll outside with the hoe (no jokes Tom)
Thank you for your birthday good wishes
Happy Birthday to my sister Janet
and happy birthday to my good friend Nigel

No 21

She is bright as the proverbial button.
The photo tells it like it is!

Little Boys

I am grabbing a coffee before getting stuck in with strimming the field borders. The spring grass has run riot with the recent and much welcomed rain and I need to get on top of the tidying jobs before the allotment open in only 6 weeks time!
Last night we were watching some tv when there was a loud knock on the kitchen window.
Our window faces on to the lane and  customers often knock to collect a dozen eggs or so, but it was well after 9pm so we were a little surprised at the late call.
Chris went to the back door to hear running feet and the somewhat strange call of "gay boys!" echoing down the lane....
He was very mildly irritated when he returned and as he sat down he said " I haven't heard such rubbish since the 1980s who do you think was it?!"
I knew who it was
I had "told off" the boyfriend of a local teenage girl last week for trying to climb over our wall and in doing so used some rather cutting and colourful language and I suspected that he and  his cronies had been drinking down in one of the fields before they passed our cottage and it was them who decided to remind us of our sexual preferences....
Mindless idiocy of course
But I was made up that  I was called a "boy"!! dont they know that I'm 49 tomorrow?!!!!


I'll post more pig photos later!
I just realised that it is exactly a year since Maddie died