John and Fernie are filming and editing in Prague this week, or so they say. I abandoned the office late morning and went for a long walk across hill and down dale. I took my camera with me and had fun filming and photographing the lambs down Finches Lane. Most of them are quite clean and white, but have grubby knees where they kneel down before lying down for a snooze. And a warning for those who are likewise considering venturing into nature: sleeping lambs look like dead lambs. Then there are those lambs who look less deceased, but who lie in the middle of the path with their eyes shut, having a bit of a chew and a think. Well, a chew at any rate.

I also walked along by the stream and spied a trout in the shallows. I managed to take a picture of it for identification before it disappeared. I also saw squirrels, mallards, blackbirds and a robin while I was out. I’m looking forward to the beautiful red cattle being back in their field at some point. Although, I suppose it’s quite possible someone’s eaten them.

Back in the garden, I’m still playing the (dull) waiting game. I need things to warm up a bit for things to start sprouting. A few onions have started to shoot, but there’s no sign yet of the spuds, the flowers I’ve planted or of the basil seeds I’ve sown. The basil seeds were apparently past their “sow by” date, but we’ll see. If some guy in America can grow pumpkins from 50 year old seeds, the least my basil seeds can do is show themselves above the soil. Still, looking on the bright side of life, the lack of warmth in the soil also means that the weeds aren’t growing either.

I’m off out tomorrow too - to London for the day with Sooze and then to an ABBAMAIL gathering in the evening. Here’s hoping it doesn’t rain too much on us.

Remember how I was going to have to do without my iMac for 24 hours? Hmm, that turned into a week. Ouch. After a lot of to-ing and fro-ing, she needed a new logic board. Still, she’s back in working order now and I’m no longer on the brink of letting KipperTie fall into confusion because I can’t access all my information.

Today marks the first anniversary of Metal Monkey and the second anniversary of working for KipperTie. Suzy and I are going out tonight to get plastered, I mean, celebrate. Things are going quite dandily for Metal Monkey - especially as I now have an actual metal monkey. Debbie and Lee gave me the little charm, and he’s now hanging from the zip on my business purse, ready to bite anyone who tries to steal my dough.

I had a very busy and physically exhausting Easter weekend - over the 4 days, I dug over and weeded the whole veg patch, went for a 3 mile walk with Suzy and planted 10 potatoes and 50 onion sets. No wonder bits of me still hurt. So far, the birds have only pulled out two of the onions, and they at least had the good grace to choose two I could easily reach from the clear path I’d left myself to stand on. Maybe they’ll behave and leave the others alone now they’ve had their fun.

Accompanying this most delightful new design for the site is a new section for those who were at Weald with me. Under friends, you can find out where the various members of 13C are now, as well as some others who either left us before 2000, or were in a different form (and were therefore inferior). Instructions on how to add your update are in the friends section.

Well, it’s 4.40pm now. About time I stopped work.