Tunstall, UK - More Country Living

Another few days in the country and nothing much to report although yesterday, just as I was typing an email to Arleen in NYC I looked up through the huge kitchen window and saw an incredible rainbow just in the distance. I got so excited and jumped up with of course prompted Teddy to start barking and then the Sooty Cat went to the window, I'm sure in hopes there was something of interest for her. I got a few pictures from outside and in this one if you look from the bottom right corner you should be able to follow the rainbow arch to the left. I love rainbows and hope no matter how many I see I will still get excited.

The air turned cold overnight and we had our first frost as you can see in the picture of Teddy out in the garden area near the tree with the frosty grass beneath him. And a little weed of some sort thinly coated with ice.  The days have been quiet which is nice and the furry ones have mostly been good although Teddy was not great on our walk today. We only stayed out for just under an hour and we walked around a nearby field where Teddy frolicked and I just meandered about and then to the center of the village to pick up some eggs at the local farm but they didn't have any today so I'll get some tomorrow at the supermarket when I go into Woodbridge for a hours.

The kitties as you can see from the picture are all fine. Olie and Gweni were snuggled together in a little box they've grown fond of near the AGA and the Sooty Cat was off to the side warming herself. She's been very strange today rubbing herself up against Teddy and basically annoying him. He's very tolerant of her but I can't imagine why all of a sudden she feels compelled to bother him. She was rolling around and just have a grand old time. I got some cute pictures of her although some do make her look a little evil.  She has a odd temperament, nothing like Sooty, all aloof and scheming She's always trying to get into something and if a fly or moth get into the house she'll spend hours chasing it down until she kills it and if a small bird happens to land in the pond outside the kitchen window well she gets so excited and then sits for a long time just watching it, waiting, through some miracle, until she can break through the glass and pounce on it. She's basically got a good killer instinct and you can just see the wheels turning in her head thinking all kinds of devious things. She is though very cute and since she ways less than 2 pounds she's like a little furry rag doll.

I do enjoy being snuggled in the kitchen with the sun shining outside and the furry ones all quiet and content sleeping on the floor next to me (Teddy) or on my lap (Qweni and Olie - sometimes both at the same time) and the Sooty Cat just doing her thing either near the AGA or on a kitchen chair. It is interesting though, that after over 4 weeks I still am obsessed with time. I can't stop planning things even if it's what time I vacuum or at what point I'll write my blog or send a certain email. I just can't give up the time scheduling thing. I'm a New Yorker and I have to have some semblance of managing my time an feeling productive. Today I scheduled in some time to work on some ESL lesson plans I came up with when I woke up this morning. I figured no time like the present to get them all down and organized on paper. I wonder how long you'd have to be in the country and have nothing much to do before you stop caring about keeping a schedule or being productive. I don't imagine 7 weeks will be it.

The Sooty Cat just yelled at me from across the room. It could mean she wants a snack or that she's agitated there are no flies to kill or just her way of saying "I'm here, pay attention to me!"  And Teddy just passed gas which smells so bad but if I get up to move away he'll get all excited and think it's time to play and the kitties will think it's snack time and spring on me so I'll just sit here and finish the blog and hope the air will clear soon. Oh, these furry ones could drive a person to drink!!!