Thursday, December 27, 2018

Never so bright.


A short sharp bark and a scratching at the door tells me Sophie needs an urgent 'comfort break'. We're out in the orchard at six. Venus quite remarkable this morning. Can't remember it ever looking so bright or large. Lower in the sky, just above the horizon, Jupiter and Mercury. The Space Station sails diagonally, SW to NE, through the darkness above. Dog owners might have to be up early ( in the cold ) but there are compensations aplenty.

We stay out until the sun starts to rise. The PONs aren't idle. They race round the garden in the quarter light chasing invisible things.


Despite a daily grooming Miss Sophie soon manages to end up looking like the abandoned dog on the RSPCA advert. Charging through bramble thickets and rolling on your back in the mud will do this.  Her winter coat is both long and thick. In fact its quite impenetrable. Good for defending against wolves. Less good for getting a comb or a brush through.

This morning 'The Font' takes out the Volvo. We've not used it much since the yellow jacket protests started a month ago. It attracts attention. On the back seat 'The Font' is surprised to discover a box with all the Christmas cards ready for posting. Angus was sure he'd been to the post office ages ago and puts this postal malfunction down to a 'senior moment'. If any readers can think of a better excuse please feel free to use the comment section below. The thought that we can use them next year and won't have to spend hours addressing envelopes is illogically dismissed. 


Had never heard of dog leasing : http://www.tampabay.com/business/they-thought-they-were-buying-a-family-dog-turns-out-they-were-leasing-it-20181224/


8 comments:

Taste of France said...

Blame the yellow vests for diverting attention from the postal mission.
I will look for Mercury and Jupiter tomorrow, though we face a big hill to the east that might block them. Venus has been spectacular indeed and I was completely clueless until you wrote about it.

Poppy Q said...

I say just send them - better late than never. Kind of funny though.

~Kim at Golden Pines~ said...

Oh Angus, I've done the same thing with holiday cards. My cards from last year were all ready to be mailed as well, and I put them into my van and just didn't get them mailed. I had thought about just sending them this year. But I just couldn't because I didn't know if I wrote a message saying something like, I'm sorry about the passing of...or something similar. So, I sent/made new cards and with the exception of my packages, I got them all mailed on time. Yay for me.

And I've noticed the morning sky here as well. When we lived in Alaska, the stars seemed so much brighter and closer. In some ways, I guess they were.

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
I'd fall into the bracket of 'send them now' - but with the addition of a small note on the reverse saying "delayed due to demonstrations!"

As for the sky, I'd give anything to be able to see it - even the bright moon of the other night has been obliterated by the fog which has lain over us since Monday morning. Not a breath of a breeze to blow it away. YAM xx

Emm said...

Sitting on my hall table, right now, are cards that are going into the mail later today. As long as they get there by Epiphany, I figure it's all within the proper timeframe. And that's without even the yellow-vest excuse.
The idea of dog leasing makes me want to inflict grave bodily harm. Never buy a dog from a pet shop, because those poor creatures are almost always from puppy mills and in dubious health.

Anonymous said...

How French, as they don’t send Christmas cards until after the 25 and before the New Year.

BaileyBobSouthernDog said...

You MUST mail the cards. This is history you are dealing with. Does it really matter why the cards are late? Would you not be happy to receive a lovely card in the mail, even if it were a month late? And please remember, this is the Postal Service you are relying on! And Finally, life is short, send the cards so all the people you care about know that you care. See what I am like before coffee?

Stephanie said...

Another vote to send the cards now; a very sensible thing to do. I am always pleased to receive a few late cards. Besides, who can tell how long the post office takes to deliver, no matter what the country? Venus takes a bit to rise above the hills surrounding our home; the glimpses I've had are quite dazzling. Stephanie Jo in Northern California