That might be it for summer…

On October 15, 2018October 14, 2018 By geordieroscoeIn Happenings3 Comments

It was really nice last week. Each day when Mam came back from her golf (it’s always golf, we think), she put us out in the garden for a wee while, even when it was nearly dark. It wasn’t really dark. The darkest day we only went out for a few minutes, but it was good for a leg stretch and some grass.

Selfie with Mam

Me on Mam’s lap after the bath

Neville’s selfie with Mam

Thursday Neville and me had a bath. We don’t like having baths, but it’s good afterwards. My hair goes soft and silky, and so does Neville’s. His bottom stops smelling riper than is polite, too. We get an extra long cuddle (I don’t like long cuddles) and get a warm blowy noisy thing held over us before we go for our run. It does make you feel nice and warm, though.

Saturday was great. Mummy was not in golf clothes, and we went out into the garden runs at lunchtime. That’s earlier than we’ve had all summer long, I think. The runs had moved onto fresh grass. We made good work of that, I can tell you. Mam made good work of planting seeds in the veggie patch with the chard and winter lettuce.

Us on Saturday

Bertie on Thursday

Biggles on Thursday (he went all shy in the garden)

There was a lot of air blowing about, almost as warm as that hair drying thing Mam used on Thursday. We were in a sheltered part, between the plant that’s escaped from its pen and the wall, where there’s lots of grass. Bertie was beside us. He’d moved only a little way, next to where he’d been before. And the other end was Biggles.

Mam said to eat as much as we liked because we wouldn’t be coming out much longer. How right she was! Sunday was wet as could be and Mam said it was cold out, too. Today Mam’s gone out early in her golf uniform again, but she’s got extra layers on. It’s funny how she manages to get extra layers of coat on. We just fluff up our hair a bit more.

Mam said to send a special note to Auntie Noelle, because she’s been suffering from the hurricane, which is even windier than our wind. That must be really something, Auntie Noelle. And also we’re still thinking solidly for Uncle Mo, and hope the treatment’s okay and the human vet people are looking after you well. Love and kisses from us.

And love and kisses to you too.

Roscoe xxx

Mummy was out ALL WEEK!

On September 24, 2018September 24, 2018 By bertie bootsIn Happenings3 Comments

Mummy was out all week last week. She said it was something to do with golf. Sometimes she went out in her golf uniform, but sometimes she went out in funny clothes we’d never seen before. One of them showed her legs. It was all swirly around them like her morning coat. I wasn’t sure whether she was supposed to go out dressed like that, but she had sparkly things around her neck and on her fingers, so maybe it all went together.

She did come home at night. Sometimes very very late. And we did get our morning cuddles, although some of them were very short. I’m not complaining. She seems very much happier now, so maybe it did her good. A sort of holiday, maybe? We’re all happy too, and we decided to make the most of the cuddles she had time for.

Bertie is even happier. On Saturday Mummy took one look at his tunnel and threw it away. I think Bertie had been peeing in it a lot this week. Anyway, guess what she put in for him instead? The Blue Tunnel! I think we had that when we first came, and then Kevin had it, and then… well, I don’t know, I don’t keep track of who has what normally. I have all Kevin and Colman’s matching set of snowman bedding, plus the snugglesac that matches the ramp tunnels that we don’t use any more. Anyway, Bertie has spent most of the weekend in or on his blue tunnel, and he’s very happy. [Mummy says Midge loved sleeping on it, so that’s probably why Biggles loved it, ‘cos he loved Midge.]

Bertie

Neville

Biggles

Bertie

Roscoe on the floor

Percy and Midge

And when Mummy came home when it was still light, she went out to get us some grass to eat, so Neville and Roscoe were happy too.

So, despite Mummy being out ALL WEEK, we’re all happy. Isn’t that odd?

Grass, lovely, lovely grass

On September 17, 2018September 16, 2018 By geordieroscoeIn garden3 Comments

Bertie asked me what I was going to talk about today. I told him ‘grass’.

‘Why?’ he asked.

‘Because autumn’s coming,’ I said. That confused him.

I know autumn’s coming because the days are getting shorter, Mam’s coming downstairs for cuddles and breakfast closer to sunrise, and we get cucumber in the dark in the evening. I explained that to him and he wandered off.

Now, you might notice there – Bertie and I had a conversation. He’s suddenly started being sociable. As in, ‘hello, would you like to chat?’ not ‘I’m in charge SO THERE!’

It’s taken me a wee while to accept he means it. I mean, we’ve had some serious fights. I say hello, he bites me. That sort of conversation.

But now, we’re out on the grass with just the run panel between us, and we’re chatting. He even comes out in the morning and chats to Neville while I get my cuddle. And walks away when I come down (mind you, Mam is holding his tent for him to walk into.) He’s a changed pig. Although I’ll wait a while longer before I trust him, mind.

And yes, we’re out on the grass – a little earlier in the afternoon if Mam has been out to dry it off in the morning. The sun isn’t out for long and the shade comes over quickly enough, but it’s been nice and warm. Very pleasant, in fact. And the grass…

Well, the grass is delicious. But we won’t be having it much longer…

See you next time.

Roscoe xx

We have grass! (well, just a little)

On August 6, 2018August 5, 2018 By geordieroscoeIn garden2 Comments

Hey! We’ve got some grass. Mam says it’s because it rained last weekend. There’s not much, just enough to make an odd-shaped run for one piggy group at a time.

I say ‘piggy-group’ because nobody wants to play with Bertie. Oh, well, Neville says he doesn’t mind playing with Bertie, not too much, anyway. But Biggles plays with Neville, no trouble. I think that’s a bit of cheek, because Neville is my cagemate. So if I see Biggles I tell him to leave Neville alone, okay? And then Mam makes sure we aren’t together any longer than absolutely necessary.

Roscoe in the shade

Biggles in the shade

Bertie in the shade

Bertie on the grass

Neville finds something more interesting than grass

Neville and Roscoe in the shade

Anyway, we have grass, and it’s in the shade, and Mam has been sitting out there at her table watching over us and reading her book-thing. That’s because we get the cat coming into the garden, and into our house, and generally making a nuisance of itself. It came in when Bertie was out on the kitchen floor the other day. Bertie was terrified. Mam was really angry. Not at Bertie, at the cat. We’re getting used to her rushing past us, to get out of the doorway and hiss at the cat. She tried taking a jug of water with her one time, but apparently it got away. I’m not sure what she was going to do with the water, but still.

Talking of water, we had baths on Sunday. We look gorgeous now. She told us so. She didn’t take photos though – she was too busy with golf stuff.

Till next time.

Roscoe

Things that go bump-flash in the night

On July 30, 2018July 29, 2018 By bertie bootsIn weather4 Comments

Hello, Bertie here.

It seems likes Roscoe’s request for grass didn’t quite work, but we did get rain. Mummy says it was Friday night mostly. But we did get some yesterday too. It’s been cooler, but nice. Also cloudy.

Roscoe under the arch

Bertie’s nose in the hay

Neville in the sack

Bertie looking cute

Friday evening Mummy told us to be prepared for fireworks in the sky, and they started around sunset time. They were a bit quiet to start with, then they got louder and flashier. Then the rain started. It was very windy too. I wasn’t frightened, even when the lights went out, because I was hiding in my tunnel. Biggles was hiding in his hay. Neville was hiding in his tunnel and Roscoe was looking calm and sophisticated in his blue sack. I don’t know how he always manages to look calm and sophisticated when he’s lying down. It’s just that superior look he gives, down his nose. Mummy wasn’t in any tunnels or sacks as far as I could tell. She was in the living room where we get our cuddles. I think she was watching the picture box when the light was on, and walking around lighting candles when it went out. It came back on again, though, and she went back to her picture box. She took some pictures out of the front door, too.

She went out in the rain at one point and we could hear her moving water about. She poured some into the barrel by the door and I think the rest went into the barrel at the other end of the patio. She had buckets out to catch more rain.

On Saturday it was nice, and we went out for a short time in the garden, but it was very windy and we each went back to our tents for shelter. Roscoe and Neville even sat in their tent together. Mummy soon got the message and brought us back indoors. There’s no grass out there. Mummy says it will start growing again if we get a little more gentle rain and not too much hot weather.

Yesterday there was a little more rain and lots of wind, and we didn’t go out. Mummy says it’s going to be hot hot hot again in a couple of days, so I think we’re still without grass. But the herbs have picked up, and we had nice pickings of oregano for breakfast.

I hope you are having enough grass, enough rain and enough sun, but Auntie Dawn has too much and Auntie Noelle has too little, and it sounds like Joshua is somewhere in the middle. Good luck, everybody.

PS It was Hugo’s day yesterday. Seven years since he died. Mummy says he’s in her new story. It’s his picture at the top of the page today.

PPS Mummy says to tell you all our bite marks have cleared up now. I have no idea what she’s talking about.

Still no rain, please send grass

On July 23, 2018July 29, 2018 By geordieroscoeIn weather3 Comments

Hi, Roscoe here, with dry feet, dry nose and dry grass. Mam has been giving us a bit of readigrass, when we’re out in the garden or when we come back in. She said yesterday we’ve nearly finished the bag. That’s quicker than we get through it in winter.

The pictures today are 2 weeks old. There’s no green at all now.

Mam comes out with the water showerer each evening. First those plants in pots, then the ones in the bare ground. I think there might be carrots coming up in that. She said the lettuce seedlings disappeared, and she sowed more on Saturday but I couldn’t see them yesterday. Maybe they take a while to appear.

She also does the bean plant which is next to the lavender. We like lavender a lot. We like bean leaves too, but not the bean pods. Well, Biggles likes the ends of them but not the middle. We don’t like the ends either.

She spreads water in quite a lot of other places but I can’t see where. She says she’d like it to rain every night for six weeks, nice and steady, like. Then the grass would grow, and the flowers would recover.

Have you seen the new colour scheme? We’ve finished mourning for Percy. It’s a long time, but he’s worth it. Now the colours are back to something brighter. Well, it’s the colour of the grass just to show you how bad it is. The picture on the main page shows Oscar, Kevin and Percy this time two years ago (the tall flowers are out again). Look how much grass there is! They couldn’t keep up with it.

I’d really like some grass like that. Now would be soon enough.

till next time