Thinning, probably

Mark slept in this morning, so I very kindly got up and crept away with the dogs whilst he snored peaceably, without making any noise to disturb him.

This was very thoughtful and wifely of me, and I was truly proud of myself.

It was pouring with rain, but we went off over the fells anyway, because I will never get any thinner if I just slope around the house drinking cups of tea and eating biscuits, not that I am getting any thinner, but it has got to start soon. I am practically a stranger to chocolate buttons now, and if it carries on then certainly in a couple of weeks my waistline will start to notice, probably it is just taking its time. I have even eaten some cottage cheese. That has got to make a difference.

We got very wet, and I got even wetter, because I had to carry Rosie past the cows, who were all standing ruminatively by the gate, looking at us with great interest, since we were the most exciting thing that was likely to happen all day, there are not many walkers when it rains. I just managed to catch her tail as she turned to shoot off back up the fell the way we had just come, and stuck her under my arm as a preventative measure.

Of course she was soaked, and muddy, and fought terribly, because she did not want to go right past the cows, even if she was at their eye level under my arm instead of under their enormous hooves. Perhaps it might have been even worse since they could all glare hungrily at her and she would know that they would eat her if only she did not run fast enough. Anyway, by the time we had gone past them, most of the water and mud had transferred itself to my jacket, and I had to put it in the washing machine when we got home.

It was Mark’s jacket and needed washing anyway.

Apart from that it was a lovely walk, warm and wet and filled with birdsong and the scent of hawthorn. I think Maytime is my favourite time of year.

Mark was still not awake when I got home, he has not really worked out the difference between day and night shifts yet. The dogs, who were soaked, dived straight on the conservatory sofa and dug up the throw that stops it smelling of dog, so that they could bury themselves underneath it and shiver. I shaved all of their fur off a couple of days ago, because they were beginning to get muddy dreadlocks, and they have become complete weeds about the fire not being lit.

I lit it this morning, partly for the poor shivering dogs, and partly because I needed to get the washing dry.

I will have to wash the sofa throw tomorrow.

Mark emerged then, and ate lots of sausages before staggering outside to lie in a puddle underneath his taxi. It is still in no fit state for an MOT because of the dashboard having lights on, and he has not been able to work out why. The Council want taxis to have an MOT every four months, so it has still got an MOT, two, in fact, but it should have had another one weeks ago now, and we haven’t been able to organise it, because of the oil rigs. Fortunately the Council does not seem to have noticed yet, but it is only a matter of time.

Today he came in with a broken bit that he said was the problem, and we ordered a new one on eBay which the chap promised, probably with his fingers crossed, would arrive tomorrow. We are going to take it to the garage tomorrow night and leave it there until the chap rings us and says it has got an MOT, and then we will just send it to the Council and pretend we had accidentally forgotten all about it. It has been a terrible worry, not that he has been driving a taxi because of being on an oil rig, but it would be dreadful if they started getting cross about it.

So far, so good, and if the bit turns up tomorrow then the problem will be solved by tomorrow night.

Keep your fingers crossed for us.