the sun has at last arrived

Well, l ask you & isn't it about time too, the sun has finally, & late in the afternoon, condescended to show itself to the waiting world on the east coast. The last time l felt the sun's rays would have been last Saturday morning in Far Sawrey, since then nothing, just a world of continual grey mankyness.

Isn't it amazing how a little bit of sunshine cheers everyone up. The birds seem to sing that extra bit louder, the grass takes on a bright green appearance,people walk with a lighter step. l know the sun didn't come out till gone 4 today, but it has been trying hard to make up for the past week of cloud. The sky is a misty blue & the temperature feels to have risen, not by a lot, but a definite improvement on past days.

The heifers have now been moved to the hill top field & are mooching about looking for trouble. So far they haven't broken through the electric fence. As we walked down to the beach before tea, they ghosted us down the fence side waiting for an excuse to bounce about doing handstands. Gordon & Lucy-Piglet stayed this side of the fence knowing full well that they might just get chased if they strayed too far into heifer territory.

The ice cream parlour took off with a slowish start but by mid afternoon l had to be dragged away from the Beeb's Badmin[g]ton coverage to lend a hand. Never got a chance to sneak back in to watch anymore.

Before moving north, Badders was an annual spectator event. Living not far from the competition we used to charge down back lanes in an event to miss the crowds, armed with picnics, wine & sausages in thermos flasks. Those days Badders was held in April & normally would be fairly chilly & wet, but with the event being set latter in May, the prospect of too hard a ground raises its ugly head. l remember back in 1976, the year of the hot dry summer, the Dauntsey Park horse trials held in August, had the X-country course rotivated to improve the going, but, then it rained. The result was a quagmire & a real nightmare to ride. It's amazing how big both Badminton & Burgley now are. When l was a wee youngster the spectators were all horsey folk who were interested in the horses & competition now it would appear that the big SHOPPING experience is the major draw, 'Dahling, l can't possibly walk all that way when l can watch it on the screen in comfort'. l don't bother to go anymore. l really can't be bothered with all this pseudo horseyness / social poncing about by people who don't know the difference between a fetlock & a spavin.