Happily Ever After

Life in The Rural Retreat with a beautiful wife, three cats, garden wildlife, a camera, a computer – and increasing amounts about running

Earlier posts can be found on Adventures of a Lone Bass Player, where this blog began life. Recent entries can be found here.

Dicing With Dr Death

by admin - 16:12 on 28 January 2013

The Fearless Ones had been lucky until today – the day they came faces to face with Dr Death for the first time. Their stitches were removed this morning; the luck of the draw meant that the job was done by Dr D himself.

In turn, both were grabbed by the scruff of the neck, expertly swung on to their backs and a scalpel blade taken to their stitches, the complete indignity lasting barely a minute each. That's obviously the best way to do it – the kittens didn't even have time to complain before the job was done – but the gruff bedside manner is a great contrast to that of Dr Vet, Dr Very-Young-Vet and the rest of the clinic staff.

Matchgirl can't understand how anyone can fail to coo at and adore her girls. Maybe he's a big softie underneath but hides it well.

Be that as it may, the pair have healed and, we were gruffly told, there's no reason why the kittens shouldn't be let loose in the great outdoors and allowed to leap and fight to their little hearts' content.

The experience must have left a few short-term scars, for when they returned to The Rural Retreat neither showed much interest in their food. Maia's, of course, was another matter; they gobbled her scraps with gusto. My own were also investigated – something which usually provokes a stern telling-off. This time, as today's Snapathon shot proves, I was more soft-hearted. Don't tell Matchgirl.

This afternoon I assembled my six-snap portfolio for the latest Dingwall Camera Club competition. My theme is Garden Birds – one of which (not in the portfolio) seems to have been causing a stir in Italy.

A small but noticeable spike of Flickr activity has centred on snaps of the black great tit who visited the garden two years ago. How he was rediscovered, and why the Italians are interested, is unknown to me, but the stats don't lie – for several days, hits have been linked to a variety of Italian websites and mailboxes.

No related comments have been left, so the reason remains a mystery.

Awards Update: It's just four days until The Chief Chatterer and I attend the Highlands and Islands Press Ball and discover whether Chatterbox is the Community Magazine of the Year. The event was sold out, but when The CC asked about tickets we were very suddenly found a place on the Chivas Brothers table (for free), leading her to believe that the organisers were keen for us to be there. Fingers crossed that her suspicions are well founded.

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