This Week

What a week .

Sunday : Alice enjoys blocking the doorway in Lui s whilst we have Father's Day breakfast . Most of the punters take this in their stride , accustomed at they are to the dog friendly policy and many stop to greet her and offer her a friendly word and pat but eventually she is asked to shift along by one of the waiters who is disgruntled with her complete inertia and unwillingness to so much as draw in a paw as he passes . I can sympathise , feeling much the same at home as I pass carrying a plate or a load of washing and having to step over her whilst she lies in state .

We feel chastened ( slightly ) and attempt to co operate , pushing her into place but we are largely unsuccesful . I for one slightly relish the feeling of being an Awkward Customer . Having always had a perfectly behaved and well socialised child here I have a dog who thumbs its nose at the world and its rules and here I am wondering if the irritable waiter has simply had a bad pint as generally everyone in Lui s emulates Alice and so far as I can see all dogs and children ( not , I should add necessarily in that order . )

The rest of the day is spent logged onto the soothing Hencam.co.uk ,Hencam.co.uk - More chickens than you can shake a webcam at! Web cam hen-terta much needed for my sanity .

The low level cluckings restore my equilibrium as I read an extensive court bundle which takes up seven and a half hours of a scorching Sunday . At one point I leave the floor and take a break sorting some laundry upstairs . From the stairwell I hear an outbreak of squawking and flapping and D calls out in a rare fit of irritation .( It would be unfitting of me to suggest that he sounds not unlike a broody hen himself at this juncture. And besides he reads this occasionally . I shall therefore keep my counsel . ) He is not a fan of Hencam . Neither I should add is Nat , and her irritation increases as the day goes on and I find myself inexplicably imitating the hens . When I describe and demonstrate this later in the week to my friend Debbie she concurs that this would not sit well with her either .

Neither it would seem is Toby ( a fan of Hencam ) , our Boy Birman, who is not the bravest and wakes up to hear the commotion Too Close for comfort and coming from the silver box near his left ear . He is Aghast .

Though tries hard to maintain his composure .

Monday involves much dashing about attempting to fix the car .

A nippy courtesy car is provided by D's garage for me , as my mobile mechanic is not available .

I continue to read court bundles , which arrive at the office at a rate of knots .

I feed cats , trying to help them decide whether they want to be in or out as the heavens open and as I wrote notes informing their family that they are in , they decide to go out . Then as I change the note , one wants to be in and one out . then they want to change their minds again . Nightmare . How I love my CatCalling . I try to predict whether the rainstorm will let up and when in fact the family will return ?

I return home and read on .

I am engrossed in finishing Human Traces by Sebastian Faulkes when I am not reading for the Day Job and suddenly , it is done . Over ! I hate the end of such a huge impressive book . Now what .

5am Tuesday I am staring into space . No cats to feed this morning except my own and now no book to read .

I stare at my pile ..... I try Beach Music by Pat Conroy and within minutes am engrossed in this amazing tome .

A morning at the Day Job and assessments and I am collecting my car and paying a hefty bill and preparing myself for a court appearance the following day .

Wednesday passes in a haze of barristers , judges and so forth .

I arrive home to find Pearl our senior Birman Missing and the house in Uproar . D and the Dog are patrolling the streets . As are several of the neighbours . I fear for D and the possibility of nervous collapse as it transpires he has temporarily taken his eye off the ball and left the back door open without noting where P is situated . We all do it . Three of our cats safely go into the back yard and potter safely . They scratch about out there like hens whilst the pigsters are in their outdoor run . D himself is in and out hobbying with his plants and flowers and tomatoes and cucumbers ( he has two ) and so forth . Pearl is generally asleep but occasionally she likes to nip out and then she beetles off , straight over the wall and into the lane where she is in danger ( in our opinion ) due to her complete deafness .

I am fired with adrenalin after my day and itching to talk but we must find Pearl . Alice has picked up D s tension and is dancing about like a mad thing . Clare from next door reports a sighting of Pearl on a roof top . I go into the back and three neighbours are lined up shielding their eyes and looking skywards . I think fleetingly of my camera . Pearl is a distant figure , squeaking plaintively . I instruct D that he may need to go over the walls to get her , rather than trying to find out which house the roof belongs to .

She is soon recovered and produces a small wee on the upstairs landing carpet by way of gratitude for the rescue .

D and Alice begin to settle .

Tursday is delightful peaceful by contrast .

And now Friday , the breaking news that Michael Jackson is dead . What are we to make of that ?