A busy weekend with Daniel. On Sunday, we all got up early to go down the Bay, as Andrew was running in the Bupa Great Wales Run 10K. He did a PB of 50:55 which was awesome, and said it was a good, flat, fast course. Run very well organised. Not helped by walking back from it towards the car, and in front of thousands of people, several of our workforce were arsing round by having a mock sword fight with their litter pickers. DOH. I despair.

Came back to the house, Liz had arrived, and had a nice lunch. Then Liz and Dan went and we had a quiet day. I watched the end of the Tour, which was enthralling to the very end with only a few seconds separating the top three.

today back to work. the usual assortment of bizarre Cllr emails, wacky corporate policies and cumbersome form requirements included. Ho hum. I attach some photos of A at his glorious sweaty best.

Tour first. Since my last post, Vino and Rasmussen have both gone and the team roster is much lighter. What a race. How much more scandal can it take? Bradley Wiggins gave the most impassioned press conference yesterday - his team (Cofidis)was out after one of their riders tested positive too. He was not a happy bunny at all. From the way he spoke, it was as though his aspirations and dreams had been shattered. I felt for him. The race will be decided today in the time trial and appears to be between Contador and Cadel Evans with Leipheimer in with a chance. It will be riveting.

Dan arrived on Wednesday night and it's been busy since then. Unfortunately, although he immediately got on with Booty (well, who wouldn't?) Andy has taken a dislike to him and we have to keep them apart as much as possible, which id difficult as Dan keeps wanting to play with him - aargh! I don't particularly want to return Dan to his mum minus an ear or an arm.

Thursday, we went into town for a spot of shopping. Managed to successfully stock up on new uniform for next term, trousers, shirts and socks. Boring but necessary. He also got some Chanel fragrance, (start classy, I say), Thorntons chocs, Lush products, and a new hoody in H & M, as well as some more bling. A successful trip, marred only by monsoon conditions. Returned home, walked dogs. Then went and saw new Harry Potter film. V enjoyable, well made but it is the weakest of the book series and therefore the plot wasn't doing a lot. Had an Indian which we picked up on the way home.

Yesterday, took the dogs out first thing up to the Forestry in Rhudry. A good walk with stunning views over the Severn estuary and across to Somerset. Picked some wild strawberries and saw some amazing dragonflies. Returned home for lunch, and then went gun shopping in Gabalfa and Grangetown for a telescopic sight and some particular pellets. Mission successfully accomplished, much to Dan's satisfaction. On the way home, stopped off at Pets at Home for some dog food (we seem to virtually live in that shop now!) and another squeaky toy. Also went through a car wash, much to my and Dan's satisfaction. For some strange reason, I love the triple coloured foam. Bizarre.

Had a cup of tea, then Andrew and Dan went out cycling while I got on with some housework. This turned out to be much more eventful than I was expecting, as Booty fell in the pond. Managed to get her out, but all of us were traumatised. Towelled her down as much as possible and cuddled her for ages. She eventually decided to recover on the sofa and had a little rest there. She appears to be unhurt, just very shaken. The reason was that the people who live at the back of our garden have a yappy dog visiting them, and our two decided to rush out to investigate and respond when they heard it barking. Often in their rush they jump over the corner of the pond rather than going round it, on this occasion, this was not such a short cut.

Anyway Dan and Andrew had a good bike ride. Andrew then made some risotto, and we watched Hellboy. All retired to bed tired but happy.

By some miracle it is dry today and Andrew and Dan have headed off down the Bay for a pre booked boat trip. I'm catching up with the blog, then doing some ironing. Dog walk later and possibly a Chinese tonight. Dan may also go swimming. Tomorrow morning is the Great Wales Run. I will add some photos.

A hectic week in work. Yesterday morning, started the week with a big disciplinary hearing involving two staff. These are always gruelling for all concerned. Quite rightly, a lot of concentration goes into making sure the process is followed correctly and having to absorb and analyse a lot of new information which is the evidence in the case. In this case, I was satisfied that the correct outcome was achieved.

Lots of emails to deal with, including one from a Cllr who was asking me to deal with lights in a subway, tree crowns and a myriad of other issues that are nothing to do with me. Sigh.

Today was busy again. Our monthly Investors in People meeting first thing. Back to the office shortly followed by a fire drill, as we've recently all been allocated new muster points. This was quite entertaining for the wrong reasons as everyone promptly went straight to the old muster point, and ignored the valiant efforts of the fire marshal to encourage the strays to their correct spot. It was also very nice to have a brief moment inthe sunshine, as today is actually dry. Andrew was working from home today and managed to dry two loads of washing on the line, something we haven't done in ages.

Spent most of the rest of the day preparing a presentation for tomorrow's Scrutiny meeting. Unfortunately all the servers were playing up so it took an incredibly long time, as various colleagues had kindly forwarded me an assortment of figures, photos, stats, etc that were all due to be incorporated. Eventually completed it just before going home, via a nice walk with dogs over at Park Tredelerch, which is just across the road from work. Ambled happily around the lake admiring all the ducks and plants. Dogs happy to chase rabbits. Returned home and enjoyed a sit out in the garden, again seemingly miraculous. Enjoyed a sausage casserole and a glass of red wine.

Daniel has just phoned. He is coming to stay tomorrow night and will be here until Sunday. He is looking forward to it, as are we. Have a few things planned, including a boat trip and some shopping for gun pellets. Now I am returning downstairs to watch the Tour. The final stages are exciting. Although Vino can't now win, I'm sorry as the guy has such courage. Otherwise, I'd like to see Contador take it from Rasmussen. Regrettably, there is more rain forecast for the weekend.

Yes, astonishingly it's raining again. More bloody rain. And dark early. And thunder. And humidity. With, surprise, more rain forecast for the weekend. Humph. When are we going to have a few nice days? Grrr. One of my colleagues has cancelled a planned camping trip this weekend to Three Cliffs with his family because of the weather forecast. We've been having flash Met office warnings all day in work today. Did I mention it is raining?

We also have a new Chief Officer. They will be starting at the end of October. The rumours say it is a woman from Gloucester/shire - that's the bush telegraph for you. As soon as I know anything definate I will post and of course get busy Googling. I've never had a female boss - that would be interesting.

Should be an interesting weekend. Harry Potter is published, so I'll be reading that along with watching some interesting bits of the tour. There's a time trial on Saturday. It's turning into a real suffer-fest - I keep watching Vinokourov with a kind of awe that a person can voluntarily go through so much. Wow. Team Barloworld are also having a fantastic race - they have more than justified their wild card.

Friday tomorrow. A meeting with our Portfolio holder first thing. Then putting the paperwork together for a new graffiti officer and preparing a presentation for Scrutiny next week, who are doing a task and finish session on flytipping.

Another busy weekend. Had my hair done on Friday. Saturday went down to see Hil in Swansea. Came home and watched some of the Tour, I am glued to it, especially now the mountain stages are beginning. Sunday was another foul wet day, and went over to Tredegar House in the afternoon for a talk on herbs. Many of the people attending had cancelled even though the talk was held in the orangery. More Tour.

Today back to work. Several nice comments on my hair. Spent the day working on spreadsheet for new office furniture, matching up with the plan of the premises. Also a lot of email, sorted some paperwork, and had yet another gloomy message from Finance about the dire state of the Department and the Council's finances. More thunder and rain. When will we ever get a summer?

The long awaited photos of the collars......

Hurrah, the Tour has started, in London. I was glued to it yesterday. London looked magnificent, and it was the first dry day for months. Therace is wide open this year, and I think it's going to be really exciting.

Also yesterday we picked up the new dog collars from the Post Office sorting office. They had arrived from Canada. We took them home and the dogs are now wearing them. I will post some photos later. I must say they are as sumptuous as they look on line, and we are very pleased with the accompanying leads - we chose two lengths and tested the longer one at the Park yesterday. It's great,as it gives the dogs considerably more "wander" room, while retaining control. As they lounge around the house now, they really do look like dog royalty... ahhh. I am now very tempted to re-order some seasonal ones for Christmas - I can see how this could become quite addictive. The other thing to note is that both hounds now are showing a real improvement in their coats, thanks to the daily cod liver oil capsule, and twice weekly sardine ration. The collars look stunning against their glossy blackness. The hound mitt has also been working its magic.

It has been another busy week in work. I posted not so long ago, that there had been a run of disciplinaries that I had chaired. Now we are going through a run of Appeals. So far, two have upheld my decision to dismiss, and in one case there is a reinstatement. The two dismissals have confirmed to the managers that persistent absenteeism will not be tolerated. In the past, it seems that there was little appetite to confront this behaviour as managers felt that it would be overturned at a higher level. Now things are changing.

Last week, the Chief Executive published his proposals for senior management. Parks move over to Tom Morgan's Directorate so it would seem that an integrated streetscene is still as far away as ever. Had my regular fortnightly meeting with the Portfolio holder on Friday morning. He is happy with the way things are going, and we are already beginning to discuss items for next year's budget bids. Also had a meeting with the OM for the city centre, to discuss the impact of the new shopping centre on our service.

This week will be busy - the members are undertaking a Scrutiny Committee Task and finish group on Flytipping, and on Tuesday we are taking them for a mini bus ride round some of the hotspots. On Monday we are reviewing the service area business plan and progress against targets.

I will try and post some photos later of the new collars, and possibly also of the sunflowers in the garden. We also have a water lily which is just about to open.

Yet another photo of adored dogs on the bed... (with adored husband).

Sunday morning and lots to write about. It's been a while since my last post. Andrew was away for most of the week, on an epic journey that took him from deepest Cornwall up to Scotland. I missed him. Wednesday night, Sarah arrived, fresh from finishing her GCSEs. She came up by train, her first unaccompanied train journey, and she managed it brilliantly. It only cost £4 for a single - I call that good value. We had a fairly quiet evening, I cooked some pasta with garlic bread, which Andy nicked a bit of. Bad dog.

Thursday, we took the dogs over to Tredegar House first thing. Later, Sarah had a hair cut at the local salon where she has gone before. She was very pleased with it, and also had some beautiful coloured extensions put in. They look great. A quiet afternoon spent crafting, and in the evening, we ordered a Chinese takeaway, and watched Casino Royale, using Sky Box office. That is such a handy feature, when you want to watch a film but you can't be arsed to go to the video shop.

Friday, we went into town, and indulged ourselves in some serious retail therapy. Sarah was disappointed as she was looking for a CD but not able to find it in Virgin. However, this was offset by a variety of new purchases. As the sales were on, able to make the money go further. In the past, Sarah has bought stuff at MKone, and again she was successful, with a selection of nice tops, but a strange dearth of trousers. As some of the tops were reduced to a princely £4, she was able to buy 5 so is now well stocked for the summer.

We completed our trip with a pilgrimage to the Mac shop. As is usually the case, the helpful assistant ended up doing a complete eye make up for Sarah to demonstrate the colours - in this case, beautiful swirly purples. She looked stunning, and picked up some very useful tips too. I watched closely as well, as it is always interesting to see an expert at work and learn from them. I ended up buying myself a beautiful eye crayon, and Sarah was very happy with her new goodies.

Friday night, the young master returned, hoorah!!! We watched the BB eviction, and had a nice curry. Sarah was glued to her MSN.

Yesterday, took Sarah back to the hairdressers to have her nails done. We took the dogs for a walk in the pouring rain, but were smugly able to do so as their new coats arrived on Friday afternoon, all the way from Maine. They fit beautifully, look very striking and having road tested them, we can now confirm they are brilliantly effective too. The dogs seemed delighted to wear them. Andy has black, so looks like a special forces hound now, all sleek and prowly and Booty has purple, so looks like a foxy minx. Given the astonishing weather we are having at the moment, I'm really glad we didn't wait until the autumn for them - this rain is never-ending. Yesterday afternoon, I met a friend for a coffee, and then we all went off down the Bay to catch Shrek 3. Not surprisingly, the cinema was full to the rafters of excited little crack monkeys, all sugared to the max, shrieking and howling. Wasn't particularly impressed by the film, but I'm a curmudgeonly old grump, so not the target audience. Sarah liked it though, which was the main thing. Came home and had some pasta, and watched the series finale of Doctor Who. Ooh, The face of Bo....!!!!! Wow. Good old Russell. Collapsed into bed as I do these days, and woken this morning by a cold needle nose at 6 demanding a cuddle, let out and breakfast. Andrew did the manful thing and I got up around 8, had a shower and am now writing this. Got the monthly greyhound walk this afternoon. Although it will be more like a swim in this weather.

My other news is that I sent off a picture of my sampler to the World of Cross stitch magazine as that's where the pattern came from. Bought the latest edition on Thursday, and to my surprise, there is my letter and photo - hoorah! Apparently I am now eligible for a prize so will see what turns up. How exciting!

And finally, news from Plymouth. New Asst Director is Jayne Donovan, who takes the new job which is a combo of Les and Steve. I am delighted as she is both a lovely person, and a very able manager. Three cheers for her.

Much to write. Went to Manchester last week to speak at an Apse meeting on smoking related litter. Was supposed to meet old boss Phil, but he was poorly so had to cancel. City centre was interesting. They have trams. At one point saw a tram going to Eccles and a man walked past me with two whippets, and I thought, Blimey, how northern is this? Meeting was held in Town Hall, which is a truly splendid piece of Victorian Gothic architecture. I was blown away by the stained glass, statues, and decoration inside. I would have liked more time to explore but as is often the case with meetings, it was all a bit rushed. Beautiful train journey home through gorgeous green countryside of Shropshire. Lovely.

Busy weekend. Friday night, went over Robyn's house for a very nice evening. Met her husband for the first time, Christopher was there, sadly without his partner, and Robyn's very elderly cat. Showed proud photos of Andy and Booty. Saturday took dogs to Heath Park. Andrew went for a run and in the evening went to see Oceans 13. Good fun, and if you enjoyed the first two, you'll enjoy this. Sunday morning took dogs over to Cosmeston lakes for a lovely walk, then stopped off at garden centre briefly to pick up canes to stake sunflowers and a couple of water plants for the pond. Visited Liz in the afternoon. Dogs had a ball, we actually saw Andy and Booty at full pelt - it was awesome. Sadly there was no way of capturing it on camera - too damn fast. Had a wonderful, damp time. When we eventually returned, dogs were completely knackered for the rest of the evening and we hardly had a peep out of them. Even today, they are a bit quieter.

Apologies for the delay since my last post. Booty has settled in wonderfully without any hiccups and now I simply can't imagine life without her. On Monday night though I came down with a throat lurgy and was off the rest of the week, having lost my voice, and being flattened by whatever it was. Some sort of virus? Had the perculiar feeling of quite painful aches in all my remaining lymph nodes - they were obviously struggling under the pressure. So there isn't really much to say about being ill - it's boring for everyone else. Andrew as usual was saintly. Dogs didn't really pay much attention.

Missed a few things in work but I have long since ceased to worry if that happens. Very few meetings can be said to be life or death. We are trying to piece together the schedule for the demolition of the terminus building at the bus station, which contains one of our public conveniences. The toilets are falling apart at the seams but I am very reluctant to spend much money on them as it seems the works will begin in October. We did bid last year for refurbishment cash but were turned down. I find this so depressing as the loos were last refurbished in 1980 - can you believe that? I was 15, with a dodgy haircut, masses of spots and some interesting taste in music. Ah, the 80s.... Cue happy memories of Joy Division, Kraftwerk etc...

Over the weekend we went to the garden centre again. Honestly, it's like a drug. I wanted to buy some nice plants for later in the summer so we did, including some echinacea, black eyed Susans, and chrysanthemums. The garden at the moment looks wonderful. There is so much in flower or growing or sprouting - every day something new happens. We are still picking bunches of sweet peas, they are everywhere in the house, in those gorgeous rich colours and with their wonderful scent. How amazing that such a simple plant can create so much pleasure.

My foray into the world of Bebo continues. I must admit it makes me feel incredibly old compared to many of the posters - I have a head start of around 30 years on many of them, but it does mean that I can talk to Sarah, Katie and Dan which is great. Have to say I also admire greatly the creativity and wit that goes into the creation of the pages - it's great. I'll draw a line over the spelling, punctuation and grammar though - best regarded as wayward.

Will close with a photo of Booty.

So much has happened! We went up to the kennels above Merthyr on Saturday. It was great to see Sue, and she was very happy to see Andy looking so happy and healthy. She also thanked us for the photos we had sent - they like to see the happy endings. Anyway, out bounced the prettiest, daintiest little cute greyhound bitch. She danced out of the yard and sniffed Andy. He sniffed vigorously back and they did all the doggy getting to know you routine. We had a nice chat with Sue about her history while patting her, then Sue reappeared with her paperwork and said "Well, it's nice to see she's found a good forever home - she'll have a good life with you." So, without any further ado, here we are, now with two hounds.

She is much smaller than Andy, with a very dainty, pretty little head. Very chilled, very friendly. Hopped straight in the car without any problem and has made herself completely at home in the house. Good on the lead. She is seven years old, and has previously been used for breeding and is a bounce from a previous home as apparently she chased a sheep. On returning back home, we took them for a walk over at Tredegar House, and gave her a bath as she had that kennel smell. Her coat is lovely, very soft and silky and now she is a lovely clean girl. So far I've referred to her as she - her name is either Beauty or Bootsie - we've compromised on Booty (as in Shake your>...!!). I had hoped to change it to Buddug perhaps but having met her that is so unsuitable as she is clearly such a girly girl.

Last night we left them together in the house while we went out for a meal down the Bay. Tried Garcon, the new brasserie run by the same people who run Le Gallois which is one of our fave restaurants. This was well up to standard. We were lucky enough to have an outside table looking out at the thronged area below and the water, and it was a truly beautiful evening. Had a vol au vent au fruits de mer - yes the 70s icon is back and judging by that performance it's welcome. A delicate basket of puff pastry enclosing a mountain of delicious seafood, scallops, mussels, salmon etcc.... yum.... Wonderful French waiting staff and a really good wine list which we got stuck into. Afterwards, went for a romantic stroll and returned home to sit in the garden in the twilight, dogs nearby, bats swooping, stars emerging, water gurgling, fantastic......... just what you want on a summer evening.

This morning took them over Tredegar House again before it got too hot. Called in at Pets at home for a collar tag and another bowl for her. Went to Tesco for our weekly shop and did some purchasing this afternoon via the net. Ordered some beautiful custom made hound collars from "Around the Hound" - check out their website if you like lovely dog collars. Also had fun measuring them while Andy attempted to run off with the string, then ordered them some hound coats, a lightweight rain coat and a fleece lined winter coat for each of them. While at P at H, also bought some squeaky toys. Booty not interested at all, Andy has already desqueaked one and is busy with another, having a whale of a time.

I attach some photos of Booty and Andy, and the young master out the garden earlier, eating some crevettes with garlic mayo. Needless to say, watched with great interest by four beautiful brown eyes.

It's interesting how your motivation and energy levels vary at work, and indeed in other areas of life. I've found it a struggle in the last couple of weeks at work - I think because I'm getting quite cheesed off with the waiting for the structural issues to be resolved. This uncertainty is exacerbated by an inherent instability in our immediate depot management team with one about to go on maternity leave (and already on reduced hours) and the other being a short term consultant, with several questions to be fully resolved about his role. With the issues our department faces in terms of regulation, safety and public impact (and Member interaction) this doesn't feel right.

The good news is that the Chief Officer position has now been advertised and was in the MJ on Thursday. The bad news is that they have only taken out Transport Planning so there is a huge question over the remaining scope of the role and I am not at all confident they will be able to fill it, especially given the relatively low salary for what is such a responsible role. I also wonder if any internal candidates will have another go at it. I guess they may do.

More immediately, it's been quite tiring with a run of disciplinary hearings I've been chairing, many of them serious, and leading to dismissals for the people concerned. This is where we earn our money, it's a big responsibility to take the decision to dismiss someone from their job and is not one to be taken lightly. My father was a trade union official for many years and I used to be a union rep so often find myself looking at the situation from both sides of the table so to speak. My father would often talk about his cases - this was very interesting and a fantastic way of understanding and unpicking the key points of a case. I learned a great deal from him about how to approach a case and review the salient points.

Most of this week, Andrew has been at home which has been fantastic. The garden is looking wonderful. Sweet peas are flowering wonderfully and we have bunches all over the house. The foxgloves are lovely - we have a white one which is very delicate and ghostly. Andrew continues his war against the slugs - we were out there late last night with a torch (and a very confused dog) picking them off. Andrew has decided that this is war and has ordered some nematodes by post. They arrived yesterday and have to be stored in the fridge - should be watering them in over the weekend. I will report on their success. Sunflowers (those that remain, weep) are growing well, and the gourd plants are beginning to flower.

What can i say about Andy? Last night we had an incident with a muffin which was so funny I nearly cried laughing. Andrew decided to have some soup and a muffin after returning from his evening run. We were watching "The Devil Wears Prada" which was actually quite good. The young master went out the kitchen to fetch his soup, brought it in and returned to the kitchen for muffin. Not fast enough. The naughty little mutt had swiped it and was now standing in the doorway with that "Yes, I've been naughty" look on his face, muffin still in his chops. Andrew then had a tug of war with Andy to try and retrieve it, untimately unsuccessful. That dog was not letting go. It probably didn't help that I was on the sofa, laughing hysterically, which made Andrew laugh and therefore severely hampered any attempts at Voice of God authority. Wish I had a camera on me for it.

This morning should be exciting - we are visiting the GRW kennels again (where we collected Andy) to see a possible second hound. She is a black bitch, about 3 we think. The key thing will be how Andy gets on with her. I will try and take pictures. Watch this space.

My middle aged forays into new technology continue apace. I have now joined Bebo. I still do not fully understand all the features but will have a go. For those readers who are au fait, my user name is houndmistress - you can look me up. This is so I can communicate with Liz's offspring (of whom I have written before)as being teenagers they spend their entire lives online. Sarah has posted the most fantastic dragon artwork - amazing, so talented. Katie, predictably, has loads of pictures of Cobbie, her elderly horse, her dogs and some hilarious experiments with makeup. Fun.

Another great weekend. Popped into town yesterday - finally bought Andrew his Christmas present, a watch. We had been looking since before Christmas but he had never seen one he liked sufficiently for me to buy for him. Anyway he did yesterday - hoorah! Very handsome Tissot - it appears to have lots of different functions, and you could probably use it for remote detonations of nuclear submarines, driving your Aston Martin and various other James Bond style functions.

Picked our first sweet peas of the summer yesterday - gorgeous! I love the smell and the colours. We have a pot filled with twigs they clamber up, and also some planted in the ground which are just a little bit slower. The garden is looking fabulous at the moment - I will try and take some pictures.

Gave Andy a bath last night - although traumatic, he was very well behaved. I attach a couple of photos Andrew took after he emerged - you can see that look of wounded dignity, that air of resigned martyrdom. He is now a lovely clean, fragrant and fluffy hound. His coat, thanks to the hound mitt, now looks superb. This was particularly important as today we took him over to Cosmeston Lakes for a greyhound "walk and talk" held every month. I thought he behaved superbly, being relaxed, friendly to both the other owners and dogs and very chilled about the non-greys we met around the lakes. A really friendly bunch of people which was lovely. Definately going to be a regular event, I hope. Just been looking on the internet at some of the lovely American hound collars. If we are joined by grey no 2, then we will definately invest in some - such gorgeous hounds deserve the very finest.

The great British Bank holiday weather did not disappoint! On Sunday it was atrocious! Heavy rain, high winds and suprisingly cold. We postponed visiting Liz until yesterday. Used the time in joining Greytalk, a very interesting and informative greyhound web community and seeking out some sources for Andy's clothing requirements. As greys have such fine fur and so little body fat, they hate going out in the rain, and need a winter coat. I can't bear the thought of him wearing some dreary affair in tartan, and not surprisingly our American friends can supply practically anything you can think of, custom made. Many of the websites ship to the UK, which makes me think there is a market out there for people who want to go beyond tartan. Andrew and I also spent a long time discussing the issue of a second dog. We both want one very much. The next stage is to think carefully about timing over the summer, co-ordinate leave etc.....

Went down to Liz yesterday. She's got loads of dogs, so we were a little apprehensive to see how he would get on. Much to our delight, he coped really, really well and even started playing with Maddy, Liz's setter. We took him out to the paddock for some free running but he wasn't really into that as I think he was simply overloaded by all the new smells, dogs and experiences. He had a really good time though and so did we. Liz's parents, Len and Marion (and their dogs!) were also visiting so it was great to see them. Cobby, Katie's elderly horse was in the garden wearing a new pink headcollar (very fetching) and Dan was running around with some carburettor bits for his bike. Had a chat to Sarah about her exams - she is in the middle of GCSEs. Nowadays, they seem far more spread out than in my school days, which is less intensive, but prolongs the stress a bit. Anyway, she has about another fortnight to go, so fingers, toes and everything else crossed. Dan also booked his summer holiday with us - he insisted that he come up first, before his sisters.

Liz gave us the most brilliant present ever - a hound mitt. As Andy is moulting at the moment, the prolonged grooming I've been doing has been completely ineffectual, and he is leaving trails of fur everywhere he goes. This thing is the business - it is a rubber mitt, with pimples on the palm, which you use to groom. It pulls all the dead hair and scurf off the dog literally in chunks. He is now practically bald, but this way he will grow back a lovely new, shiny coat. It reminds me of scarifying a lawn (exactly the same principle). I was grooming him this morning, out in the garden and he decided that it was far too strenuous to stand up, so lay down, offered me his side, and drifted off into a semi-conscious state of bliss, while I was rhythmically stroking him with the mitt. When I stopped occasionally to de-fur the mitt, I received the most reproachful looks until I started grooming again. As I write, he is laying behind me, looking abit motheaten, but we both know that in a few days, he'll be even more gorgeous. I think on Saturday we'll give him another bath, as on Sunday it's the monthly greyhound walk over at Cosmeston Lakes, and we want him to look good to meet all his new greyhound friends!

Rang Greyhound Rescue Wales this morning, to put the wheels in motion for Grey No. 2. Someone from the area will be back in touch with us in the next few days. I attach a couple of photos, taken yesterday down on the farm.

Friday was an interesting day. We did LEAMS training with Leanne from Keep Wales Tidy. I enjoyed it. Went out to do some practical sessions which is always interesting. We ended up near the vets where we take Andy. This led to some musing on street scene generally, as although the level of street cleanliness was quite good where we looked, except for a utility box that was acting as a litter trap, there were some other issues. Things like a functional site (library) covered in graffiti and not swept, long grass (unkempt) on a private church area, graffiti (again!) on the side of the chemist, overhanging hedges on streets, and what drove me nuts, ancient dog fouling prohibition signs that were so old they dated back to the early 1980s. Faded and battered, there was no way that they would discourage anyone from letting their dog foul, in fact I doubt most people would even notice them, and even if they did, they would probably just assume they were out of date. This is not to condone dog fouling, I hasten to add, but is there really any dog owner in the country who doesn't understand at some very basic level that you should clean up if your dog craps on the street? I think the answer is to systematically remove them, ward by ward.

Friday afternoons are often interesting as for some weird reason, they generate odd phone calls, and this one was no exception. Sitting in the Enforcement unit, one of my colleagues took a long and very irate call from a lady who wanted us to act to remove pigeons she believed were a nuisance. My colleague (perfectly correctly, and very politely) was trying to explain that the removal of livestock was outside our remit - we do litter and waste. This is a bit like going to your optician to sort your toothache, I guess. Unfortunately, the lady was not having any of it, and was determined to speak to me. I then got a message to call her, but she was not answering her mobile so left a message. Then another colleague came in with another Friday afternoon special, which made us all laugh. Someone wanted us to sort out their overhanging vegetation and a wobbly chimney pot. By this time, we felt like putting up a sign saying "enforcement unit- all problems solved....." Eventually decided to leave early to enjoy the weekend. Took Andy with me in the car to pick up Andrew from the airport. He landed and was surrounded by hundreds of kilt wearing Scots stag parties - very entertaining. My first time doing a journey in the car with Andy - he loads into it beautifully and is rewarded by a couple of chew treats. The boot is so capacious even his long legs have masses of room.

As predicted, the weather has got steadily worse this weekend. Well, it is a Bank Holiday I suppose. Took Andy over to to Tredegar House yesterday, lovely. Saw a nice lady with a lurcher that we see regularly over there - Andy is always fine with greys and lurchers. He is also slowly improving with other dogs. There was a giant Scout jamboree (the Glamboree!) going on - the park was full of small boys on bicycles, in canoes, on a climbing wall, and doing various other activities. It looked great fun. After dinner last night we went on a slug hunt, as the little bastards are munching our plants. I held the pot while Andrew shone a torch and picked them out. Andy of course initially wanted to come out and supervise, but after a while decided that it was a bit cold and damp and really his sheepskin was more attractive. Duly let him back in the house, but then of course he decided that maybe, just maybe we might have fun without him, and that would never do. So there was a pathetic little face at the door, saying "Let me out". Let him out, big wags, lots of sniffs, five minutes later, he's standing by the door to go back in..... Lather, rinse, repeat...............Anyway, he was very pleased when the torch finally gave up around 11.15 and we came in to bed. When we do this, he bounces up the stairs, and lies on the bed while we are moving around, cleaning our teeth, putting things away etc... Eventually the time comes for us to get into bed and for him to either move over (if it's just me) or off completely when it's both of us. We get the full 100 Watt "I'm so cute, and my legs have turned to jelly, I can't move, and you can't really be trying to turf me off this lovely warm bed and out into the cold snow" look. Andrew is made of sterner stuff than me and just chucks him off. Usually then he settles down by my side of the bed and goes to sleep. Last night however he decided to wake us up for a play at around 4 (I think?) - not impressed. As i write, both he and the young master are fast asleep - even me having a shower didn't wake either of them. Later today, going down to see Liz, should be fun.

Well, the main news is the new car. Andrew collected it yesterday, and I drove it for the first time today. After the Fiesta, it feels huge, like driving a tank, and the clutch is different too, so I stalled a couple of times today, which is not like me. Drove to work, and really enjoyed it. You feel as though you are piloting a giant tanker, which makes the driving style much more flowing and relaxed. Using musical terminology, it's legato rather than andante.

Received an invitation today to go up to Manchester - APSE have asked me to speak on our Smoking Related Litter project. Should be interesting and enjoyable. Spent the afternoon with our portfolio holder going over some spending proposals that he had asked us to prepare - a very positive meeting.

Travelled home to be greeted ecstatically by woof. Supervised the watering, and then did some vigourous cleaning. The only downside to owning a dog is the incessant cleaning required. After hoovering downstairs, mopped the kitchen floor and restored an appearance of order to the house, which is much more attractive. Somehow, an encrusted floor drags down the whole room even if it is tidy. As I write, woof is by my feet relaxing, probably dreaming of rabbits. Looking forward to the Bank Holiday weekend - nothing planned yet, but if fine we'll probably have a barbie, and am hoping to visit friend Liz on Sunday. As she has lots of dogs, it should be an interesting experience for Andy. What's wonderful though is that she has an enclosed, fenced paddock - so we will be able to let him run, which I am itching to see.

A busy weekend. Yesterday, we popped into town first thing, as when Andrew returned home on Thursday, he had taken his shoes off. You might think this a natural thing to do, and you'd be right. Unfortunately woof decided that they would make a delicious chew and decided to make lots of lovely punctures in them and eat out a hole in the back of one, rendering them completely unwearable. Of course, he had to choose Andrew's best, formal shoes rather than a scabby old pair of trainers. Husband thus rendered shoeless, an emergency buying plan was put into action.

Followed this by a trip to Toys R Us, which I generally hate, for all sorts of reasons. Managed to successfully purchase presents for assorted nephews. Then to Fordthorne, our friendly local Ford dealer to look at estate cars. I have mentioned before that a Ford Fiesta (which I love deeply) is simply not suitable now we have a long-legged greyhound, and even less so if Andy is joined by another canine family member. I have always liked Fords and we experienced excellent service with this garage, so went there to have a look. Anyway we are now the proud owners of a Mondeo diesel estate with a boot so capacious you could spend an entire holiday in there with a whole pack of greyhounds. It is silver grey, with air con, climate control (which I don't really understand yet) and a CD player. It also has a clock. I will be very very sorry to say goodbye to the Fiesta, which is a fabulous car and I love it to bits, but it is impossible to justify having two cars except on the basis of self-indulgence. We are both very proud of spending the last ten years (if not more on reflection) as a one car couple, especially now that tax and insurance seem to increase so much. Andrew is picking it up on Tuesday, when he will drop off the Fiesta - I don't want to go with him, as it will be a real wrench saying goodbye to our gorgeous little Tizzy.

Today we travelled over to Bath, to see Andrew's sister Claire, her husband Basil, and their three sons, Thomas, James and Alex. It is James' birthday shortly, so we had presents for that, birthday presents for Claire (whose day had just been) and non-birthday presents for the other two boys. Andy was extraordinarily good - three small, excited boys didn't faze him at all, he was very chilled and I was hugely impressed. Went out in the afternoon to play with some funny long balloons that squeak and swoop. The boys and Andy loved them and we had a ball. Left there about 4.30 and came home. Young master now doing some planting in the garden and I will be preparing him a Bloody Mary quite soon. I attach a couple of photos taken this afternoon.

Interesting times.... Started the day today with a visit to colleagues in our Bereavement Services department to discuss basing some of our teams at their premises. As usual, most welcoming, and I am always impressed by the quiet professionalism with which they carry out their work. A very constructive chat, and then returned to the depot.

Very pleased to receive our annual LEAMS report from Keep Wales Tidy. This is an independent sample of our streets (6%) and gives a detailed picture of the amount and type of litter found. This year it shows a significant improvement in our standards which is very gratifying. Of note though is that cigarette litter was found in over 90% of the locations sampled. This illustrates the importance of the work we are doing on educating smokers on sensible disposal of their butts.

A colleague finished the afternoon for me by walking in and sharing a completely bonkers letter from a member of the public that she was struggling to allocate for a reply. It complained about litter, dumped furniture, cannabis smoking, illness and finally the evils of a broken washing line, over about eight pages, in the most incomprehensible handwriting. Ho hum.... Obviously must be a full moon or something, as I then took two calls in quick succession from colleagues in our call centre who are normally stars at dealing with strange calls, with two separate but odd queries.

Just as I was thinking about going home, the press office rang as a Cllr had been winding up the local paper with problems to do with flytipping even though I had given them a full explanation by letter just over a week ago. Grrrr.

Got home, and was very worried when I opened the front door as normally woof is there to greet me, wagging his tail and bouncing as though I had been gone for a week. Instead, all was ominously quiet. It seemed the living room door was shut so he was locked in there. Opened the door to an onslaught of wags, bounces, squeaking, etc... to find he had been using the time by building what looked like a den using all the sofa cushions, and a thatched roof using his sheepskin rugs. Hmmmmm. Tidied up much to his annoyance, let him out and fed him. Then got changed myself and began to cook some rice for myself. Now he is closely supervising, parked by my feet as I type, looking happy and relaxed. He came to bed with me last night and slept very contentedly at my feet, and was very peaceful and quiet, no breakdancing at all.