back, going

The great news is my sick chook is now better. These things happen apparently. Yesterday I changed the straw in their coop and half of the run (the wettest half). I let them out to roam for nearly an hour. Then I carried on gardening. Fabulous for my soul. The mess inside is inconequential. Inside for lunch, I got a telephone call from my second cousin. My Dad's cousin who lives in the same town as me had been in A & E all morning. Brighid and I got clean and went up to the hospital, unsure what to expect. Mary is 81. She is good now, but I spent much of the day with her and stayed last night at her place.

Isn't life without children, away from home, amazing? I read an entire book in the morning while Mary slept and got about 20 rows of knitting done after that. I can now report that I loved Mr Pip. I'll be thinking about that book for a while yet. I must search out Lloyd Jones' other books.

Tomorrow we're off to the top of the South Island to see my grandparents. It is school holidays and we're all excited. After that, various other plans seem to be brewing around me. Hope I get more gardening done amongst them.