Fools are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts.

Sophie starts her day with a shriek. She's seen the two collar doves. The doves have the effrontery to be drinking from the swimming pool. As all divas know some things in life cannot go unchallenged.

Bob and 'The Font' opt for a power walk round the lake. Sophie and her master stay behind and set off for a tour of the village boundaries. After the excitement with the collar doves Sophie has eased into one of her sniff every flower, study every cloud moods. We stand and look at the bullfrogs sleeping on the water lillys. Sophie toys with the idea of leaping into the pond. Thankfully, she desists. We briefly discuss the constitutional implicatons of the dismissal of the FBI director but Sophie's more interested in a large tabby cat that's sitting on the old widows window ledge. Sophie belongs to the school of thought that believes : ' The whole problem with the world is that fools and fanatics are always so certain of themselves, and wiser people so full of doubts '. No arguing with that.

We meet the mayor who is removing the two election posters. He has a bucket of soapy water and a brush and is busily scrubbing away at the billboards. One of his duties to ensure that political passions are kept firmly in check after the Presidential vote. The parliamentary elections are in a months time so he's not bothering to take down the billboards.

Loic, the heavily bifocaled gardener, arrives on his 50cc Honda. The Old Farmer has asked him to trim the edges of the grass the lawn tractor can't reach. Loic is delighted ( make that overjoyed)  that someone is willing to let him loose with a petrol powered strimmer. He heads off down the garden felling everything ahead of him.

There was a twenty minute storm last night which stripped the last leaves off the wisteria and the acacias. The rose garden looking rather the worse for wear.