Bless this Mouse.

Last night was the first time for ages that Grandson has slept through with me. When he stays here he usually manages to keep me awake most of the night and then gets up at about 5 am. But last night he didn't really wake me, just coughed a couple of times, and didn't come in until 7.15 this morning. It probably helped that my Swiss/German departed yesterday evening, so Grandson had his room back. Anyway, the result was that I was full of beans this morning and perfectly happy to rustle around, do breakfast and drive him to Nursery. He always goes in very cheerfully, and this morning popped his little head back around the screen to ask for another kiss before I left. What a sweetie.

When I got back home, I had a call from Son to say that they didn't get the flat they had offered on. He didn't sound too upset, if anything he was philosophical about it. He was more concerned that his card had been cloned and some low-life had been spending hundreds of pounds (or Euros) on it in Rome. Luckily the Bank had sorted it out quickly - apparently this is happening a lot these days. He told our lovely Bank Manager about the elusive flat, and she had said the same as me: "Don't worry, the right place will come along at the right time."

I then took a day off and drove into the country to see my Bosham BF (who is another old Advertising friend). It was lashing rain again, so I didn't feel that I was missing much here. I love going to her country house (this is their house in the woods in the middle of National Trust land, not in Bosham)- it's a very old, beamed job, which is at the end of a very long woodland track and looks as if it has been planted in the ground. It's the perfect country retreat and is also very comfortable and beautifully put together. She is an artist, so there are lots of her paintings around the house, but she also has the light touch of an artist which shows in the lovely soft colours and furniture piled with comfy throws and cushions: and in the chalky bluey, greeny, grey of the paintwork. She cooks like an artist too, wonderfully simple food which she seems to throw together and which always looks as good as it tastes. Today we had fresh coffee when I arrived, and then a chicken and bacon salad with pine nuts and a deceptively simple dressing. Plus a glass of cold white wine. Oh, and she had made some bread too! See what I mean? While we were eating lunch, looking out at her garden and the birds eating their lunch, there was an insistent knocking coming from somewhere behind us. After a while I said "What's that sound?" "Oh, it's the mouse", she said. Oh, OK - apparently they have this little field mouse who regularly comes into their kitchen looking for food (and who can blame it).It always gets stuck behind the same panel below the dishwasher - hence the knocking sound - so they put down humane mouse traps to catch it. Then they empty the trap in the garden so that the mouse can escape. And then he comes back again next day looking for food! Bless that mouse.