Another round up

An unforgettable part of my day has been with the Technohermit trying to explain how a gas cooker works. This was not an easy task. especially as his appraisal of a gas ring as a "good un" is one that ignites in a ball of blue flame that removed several layers of paint from the wall and most of the hair from his face. After what seemed a lifetime of repeating the lighting instructions, which ring was operated by which knob (he has a fear of using knobs, door knobs in particular, see previous) how to use the grill without welding flesh to metal and how the oven can be used to cook rather than dry clothes I finally escaped. Not before demonstrating how to use the fire extinguisher and allaying his concerns over the fact that if he used a fire blanket to smother a fire it was better the blanket burning rather than him or his lovely new home. His lovely new home which he has still to move into as he has an issue with levels, it not being level. As its perched on the side of a mountain it is about as level as can be managed and when I checked it with a spirit level it was indeed uneven. Out by a whole 5mm. He is now waiting for someone with a jack to mysteriously appear and lift it the necessary.

On my walk back I had the chance to reflect on another exciting year here at HQ. And what a year! Red Kite is soaring. I won my employment tribunal, hardly a surprise as I was totally in the right (so narny nah nah to the backstabbers)We lost a few treasured pets, Passion the 19 year old very ancient beagle, Geisha our most annoying goat Rainbow the foal. We gained Chester a fabulous retired race horse, the Mangalitzas Pamela and Bridget, closely followed by Thor the Boar and Pedro the new Ryeland Ram. Various lambs and piglets are still here but soon to be in Mr Whirlpool, some quail have taken up residence in the tack room (more often the conservatory) we rescued two dogs, three cat and a pigeon called Percy. In our spare time built a concrete playground for the horses, chased a cow across the county as she searched for love (and found it) and managed the Technohermits transition from a hole in the ground to a shepherds hut (almost). The BBMC was conquered and I finally managed to give up full time work for other people.

But the most significant and life changing event of the year was the birth of our son Tristan who has been a source of joy and wonder since we heard his first cry in the operating theatre at 1.30 in the morning on the 27th of February.

Life is great. Who knows what 2012 will bring (Aside from animla chaos, the BBMC, the 1st annual Bernese Mountain Dog Treasure Hunt and the OTT) but if its half as good as this year has been then that's all we could hope for. There are some changes planned, not least of which to this site, finally most of the work has been done to transform this single page into an exciting interactive site. Stay tuned.

In closing I would wish all of our supporters and readers a very happy new year, may you get the year you wish for and deserve.