There has been a cattle-astrophe. A cattle-astrophe, I tell you

What kind of a cattle-astrophe, do I hear you ask?

The kind of cattle-astrophe where someone has wantonly and wilfully dumped, abandoned and LEFT a brand new cook shop on Chapel Walk which is just across the road and along a bit from here L

I found it this lunchtime when I was heading up Chapel Walk in a perfectly innocent manner on my way to buy The Builder's granddaughter, Sophie, a gift token from Claire’s. Some external power took control of my feet and hauled me protesting and struggling into the shop. I had no control over my feet at all.

It's been there a week or so (unbeknownst to me, though both Bea and Roger had run across it) and isn't fully stocked yet. It remains to be seen whether it will be on of those "magic" shops which comes and goes in a random manner (that particular building has had many manifestations over the past few years) or whether it will stay the distance. Apparently they have another branch in one of the shopping complexes which does quite well. But I fear for the effect on my plastic while it is there!

I am now the proud possessor of a hand meat mincer with sausage filling attachment. I have been considering the acquisition of a sausage machine for some time but had been thinking of an electric one. Bea has a hand one and tells me that making sausages is lots of fun but that it takes two people to manipulate the sausage skins when you are filling them. The new cook shop only had hand ones. Mind you, only set me back £17, which isn’t bad at all given that it is alleged to be cast iron and the electric ones are closer to £60. So I have been thrifty and kind to the environment and friendly to my arm muscles which will surely benefit from cranking it by hand. I am hoping to get the appropriate meats to give it a go over the weekend.

I am beginning to need a separate cupboard to keep all my new gadgets and their (small) bits in. Perhaps a drawer would be better for small bits. I must see if I can sort one out

I had to come into work on the train today :-( It was raining :-( Hard :-( Fortunately, we have a couple of HUGE golfing umbrellas which kept me nice and dry. And it's August so the trains are fairly empty. And why couldn't I come in The Builder’s van? Because he didn’t come in this morning. He has gone to visit the GP in Clay Cross. He has been complaining for a few days that somebody has inserted a red hot stiletto knife in his ear and was twisting it about. This did not sound entirely desirable to me. Might be an ear infection. Might be an ear drum which was about to perforate. Or – might be an alien life form growing in his ear which was about to explode out, disintegrating his head and plastering bits of it all over the kitchen or dining room ceiling and walls. Most unhygienic, bits of The Builder scattered about all over the place. So he went to the doctor to have the alien life form removed before the exploding happens. I assume that all is well. I haven’t heard anything from him.

I have a cold too :-( My eyes are scratchy and my shoulders and back ache and my throat hurts. I even woke up this morning with virtually no voice. Alas, the application of two cups of tea and several glasses of water brought it back and I had no excuse for staying at home. Mind you – it’s been one of those mornings when having stayed at home is looking like it would have been the best plan!