The festive season has come and gone! We started with a drinks invitation followed by a Christmas concert at the Liverpool Philharmonic. Singing carols accompanied by the Phil’s choir was really special. Our growls or high pitched squeaks were drowned out by their beautiful angelic tones which lifted the rafters!
We met up with family and friends at pubs or homes and presents soon began to pile up under the Christmas tree in my mother-in-law’s sitting room. Christmas Day was very relaxed. We didn’t have the customary turkey this year but a most enjoyable beef Wellington.
We saw the New Year in with good friends over a meal I had prepared earlier!
New Year’s Day was spent watching a hunt ride past the lane at the bottom of our garden. They were followed closely by protestors, hooded and masked, causing havoc and badly upsetting the hounds. No matter what people think about hunting, and we are all entitled to our own opinions, I strongly object to the manner in which these people behave.
They use Citronella spray to disguise the smell of the fox but this spray can cause extreme discomfort to the hounds. Some saboteurs were driving around on quad bikes and actively causing havoc to both horses and hounds, not to mention the poor unsuspecting walkers and their families out on a New Year’s day stroll. Standing at the bottom of our garden, in relative safety, I felt threatened and very sorry for a few children inadvertently caught up in the mayhem and obviously terrified!
My husband and I did manage to have our walk, albeit much later, in an effort to shift some of the festive season’s excess ‘flab’. The weather has been unseasonably mild and the clear blue sky much appreciated and lifted our moods significantly. I was fine but my husband had to psych himself up for his 4:00 am wake up call in the morning. He heads back down to Oxford and work after an almost two week break! And it’s going to be freezing cold so the car will need to be defrosted and care taken on non gritted roads which can be hazardous.
Tomorrow I’ll give the exercise class to the residents at my mother’s care home. The expert is on holiday! I’m walking with friends in the afternoon and will ‘fit in’ some dusting.
Life gets back to normal so quickly. We have the coldest months of the year to look forward to! Snow looks beautiful on postcards but not great if you have to drive in it! So roll on Spring. Were almost there …..👠
Jenny Burrell 