LOST ... AND FOUND!

To date Charlie, the cat, has lost three collars and two engraved discs but he gained a couple of points for catching mice. If I had my way he would get no more points on the grounds that I don’t much care for mice in the house – dead or alive!

It’s a new venture, apparently. At least I think it is. Certainly in the three months Charlie has lived here I never saw a mouse in the house. Not too many outside either, although I did raise a couple of mouse babies a couple of years ago but not seen any since. I have blogged before about the tiny mice who came to collect ‘deliberate’ droppings of birdseed whenever I went out to feed the birds. Maybe the upheaval caused by new neighbours has deprived the mice of protection in the garden and made it easier for Charlie to catch them.

I have to praise Charlie for his actions, though. He doesn’t just kill mice; he carries them carefully through the cat flap into the side passage. From there he carries them up two steps and round the kitchen door which is currently left ajar (I am waiting for another cat flap to be fitted). Then he saunters along the hall to the lounge where he places them amongst his toys. I hasten to add that he does this one at a time. I’m not sure he could carry more than that in one go. Ah, I imagine him saying, another trophy – and I wonder if he knows it’s me that removes them. I’m quite furtive when I use the litter scoop to toss the dead creature into bag before chucking it into the refuse bin ... I would hate to upset him.

I wonder if it’s okay to put it there? It’s not something I can ask the neighbours on the grounds they might not like mice in any shape or form being binned and transported to the refuse depot. I suppose even if I could dig a hole Charlie would just un-bury the poor thing. How does one dispose of a dead mouse? And how does one stop a cat from triumphantly bringing home his prey?

His latest capture was a baby bird which did upset me. I can see I need to harden my heart as far as nature is concerned, after all Charlie is only doing what all cats do. If only he would stop offering them to me! I read somewhere that cats like to show off their so-called prizes. Well, I have praised him, repeatedly telling him he’s a clever boy, so does that mean I’m due for a few more dead gifts? Still, dead is better than alive when we’re talking about rodent house guests. Ugh!

A MISTAKE TO BEAT ALL MISTAKES!

Are you sitting comfortably? Then, I’ll begin. This is the tale of a stupid woman who dropped a terrible clanger at Christmas time.

I believe I told you I had found my grandsons ... I was so over-the-moon about it, I must have done. Never mind, this is another post tied in with one of my lovely lads only it’s me that got things dreadfully wrong.

It was Christmas, a time for remembering loved ones and giving gifts, and I wanted to send a Christmas present to both Keith and Sara, that’s the lad and his partner. As usual I didn’t know what to buy, a task that’s getting more and more difficult as the years go by. My brain just can’t seem to think what people would like. It’s even more difficult, though, when you don’t know the likes and dislikes and have no idea what their home is like. After a great deal of mindless thought I opted to give money.

I had been in the mood to do a bit of craftwork and for a couple of weeks had been designing and  making envelopes to put Christmas gifts in. It struck me that some would be suitable to hold money. Here’s a shot of some I didn’t finish or use. They're nowhere near as good as the Christmassy ones.

Ah, I thought, perfect for the lad and his girl. I created two more, decorated with cut outs, holly leaves and a Santa for the girl and a Christmas tree with a choir for the boy, with loving words and their names on each. Into these I put a few crisp notes. Both envelopes were very flat and fitted inside the Christmas card. No bulk at all.

The card was posted well before Christmas and you’ll never guess what I did, sorry, didn’t do.

I DIDN’T REGISTER IT AT THE POST OFFICE!

I ask you, how stupid can a person get? The worst thing happened  ... the card and contents never arrived at the lad’s home.

Okay, don’t rub it in. I’m a first class idiot. I paid for it, though, I felt sick, I worried, and I pestered the lad to see if it had arrived. ‘No, Gran, it hasn’t come.’

I’ve calmed down now and written it off as the act of a lunatic, one that will never be done again. A hard lesson to learn!

Well, it’s big son’s partner’s birthday soon so on my last visit to the mall I looked round for a suitable card. I didn’t find one for her, but I did find THIS:

Hell, this must be standard practice if they’re making cards about it!

It’s certainly got me wondering if my gift of money went the same way.

Christmas Day pics

I made a slideshow of Christmas Day scenes. Please excuse the spelling mistakes in it, unfortunately it is too late to correct them.

Then on Boxing Day I found another gift. It was a parcel received from Oz before Christmas and hidden away from my prying fingers. I had put it on a footstool that lives under my work table, unseen and away from temptation. Ooops! It remained unseen until Boxing Day but as my stepdaughter said 'it made an extra surprise'. How true. These are the four books that she knew I wanted.

Tomorrow I will show the novelty that was inside my Christmas cracker. It's the most unusual novelty I've ever seen. Can you wait a day?