An eventful day today for Booty. When we took her to the vet last week for her annual booster, we discussed a small cyst that had appeared on her right eyelid. So far, it has not been bothering her, but the vet felt it would be better to remove it via a minor operation. So, no food for her last night, which led to her belly rumbling very loudly while she was on the bed with us last night. I didn't sleep very well thinking about her, and then this morning Andrew took both woofs out for a quick constitutional before we took her into the vet at 8.30. Leaving her there was awful - she really doesn't like it there - her tail goes between her legs and she shakes - I felt utterly miserable. Andy was incredibly subdued without her - spent most of the morning glued to me, sat on top of me on the sofa when I watched some QVC Craft Day and was not his normal self at all. We eventually picked her up around 3.30 - she was delighted to leave the vets. The nurse said that she had been sweet but stubborn - yes, that's our Booty. She has a small shaved area on the front of one of her legs, and hardly any visible evidence on her eye - the vet had done a very neat job. We've given her a tiny amount of food this evening, which she's enjoyed and she's mainly been asleep. Tomorrow, we'll see how she's recuperating. I think she deserves a couple of days of taking it easy.

Another golden autumn day. After a deep sleep last night, needed by all of us, we went out for a walk up in the Forestry Commission at Rudry. We like it up there - it's usually very quiet, the woods are beautiful and we see lots of birds and other wildlife. Andy spent most of the walk looking up into the trees in case he saw a squirrel. On previous walks we've even seen foxes crossing the paths in daylight. Today we saw some mountain bikers, robins, blue tits, long tailed tits, buzzards and chaffinches. Around us the woods were full of birdsong and we couldn't hear any traffic so it was glorious. I've previously mentioned my love for the film "Pan's Labyrinth" - one of the reasons is the film captures the magic of woods, an enchantment willingly undertaken. Today also I felt as though I was in middle-Earth - that glorious, hazy out of time sensation that comes with deep peace, relaxation and contentment. The book is on my mind at the moment, as for some reason, I usually re-read it every autumn. Of course, I read it at other times as well, but there's something about this time of year that drives me back to it. My relationship with the book is long - I first read it aged 9, fell in love totally and re-read it so much that the book fell apart. As an adult I take a slightly more critical view - for instance, the lack of strong female characters is irritating (except Eowyn, of course, and even she goes in for a bit of hopeless yearning at times) and I still find Sam annoying but on the whole it still utterly captivates me, and it would seem, many others as it frequently tops the list of favourite books whenever polls are done. At the same time, unlike say Pride and Prejudice, it is deeply unfashionable and is never liked or admired by any literary critic that I have read. Maybe because it is un-ironic and heroic, qualities not liked by critics? Attach a couple of photos - some attempting to capture that Shire mood and one comedy one of Andrew looking as though he's sniffing Andy's bottom - not really sure what's going on in that one.

A long and tiring day, but I think it was productive. Our aim was to view a number of rental properties in the hope that we would be able to pick one and hence sort out where we will be living and I THINK we have succeeded. As it was going to be a long day we took the dogs with us, and I must say I was very impressed by how well they coped with the travelling and behaving in new places. To celebrate we bought them a sausage roll each and they appeared to appreciate it. On the motorway first thing, it was incredibly foggy with temperatures down to 4 C. As the day continued, the sun appeared and it turned into the most beautiful golden sunshine with a clear blue sky and turning leaves everywhere. A couple of photos attached. Some of the houses we saw were lovely but very unsuitable - fortunately we've seen two today that were fantastic, and one, a bungalow with secure garden that we are very keen on renting. Andrew, with his usual impeccable logic reminded me that the other possibility, a remote and isolated farmhouse would be fantastic to buy, but less promising as a rental when we still have questions about the daily commute, access to local services etc. As usual he is right, so the less romantic but eminently more practical sensible bungalow will probably win out. When this is confirmed, probably on Tuesday, I will be emailing family and close friends with the new details and likely dates. If any readers wish to receive contact details but are unsure if they are in the close friend category - drop us an email and I'll add you to the list. This evening, we returned home and are both shattered. Dogs are quiet too, so I think we'll all soon be heading for bed and a relaxing lie-in tomorrow.

Yet again, the Woodhouse pack is on the move. Andrew has accepted the offer of a new position, subject to usual medical and references etc... so will probably be starting in early November. To ease the process of moving, we've decided to rent somewhere in the area, allowing us to sell our place in Cardiff as a vacant property, and eventually purchase without being part of a chain. The idea is that this should minimise stress.... we'll see. Now begins a period of busy list-making, packing, tidying and so on. Hoping to visit some shortlisted rental properties this weekend - of course, renting with dogs is proving more difficult than I imagined. God forbid we were smokers as well - we'd be homeless.

Once paperwork is completed, I'll write more on the details as they unfold. Although the actual process of moving is never particularly pleasant, I am always someone who enjoys living in new places. Have just been doing a little research on the internet, and it appears that one of the places we're likely to view on the weekend has a very good pub, in easy walking distance with a wide selection of real ales, open fire, and home cooked food. The village also has a medieval church and is only about 2 miles from where the young master will be working, raising the possibility of cycling into work. So, before I get too excited, I'll stop here, and will probably write more on the weekend when we have hopefully resolved some accommodation issues.

Another astonishly beautiful day. We went down to Swansea for the Bay 10K - Andrew's third time in this race. Took the woofs as it is too long a day to leave them unattended. Arrived and parked in good time, and walked the dogs around. Andy was on full squirrel alert. Watched Andrew set off at the start, then back to the car for a read for a bit while waiting. Went over to meet him at the finish - chaos as the normally efficient funnels were completely clogged up. Eventually cleared and returned home in more glorious sunshine. Just about to enjoy a roast chicken and the victorious athlete has had a hot bath to soothe his tired limbs. Some photos attached. Will get Andrew's chip time when they are uploaded onto the race website - he thinks it's around 52 minutes.

Went to the hairdressers today. Had it coloured and cut. As I usually do for the winter, selected a deep purply brown. The cut features a fringe and choppy layers made with a razor. I'm very happy with it, although I always only feel really bonded with a new haircut, once I've washed and styled it myself.

The weather this week has been lovely. While Andrew's been away sadly, I've been walking the woofs over at Tredegar House. This morning, I saw Marianne, wonderful quilt tutor so we had a brief chat. The dogs go loopy over there as at the moment it is awash with squirrels. Andy is convinced he can climb trees and does a vertical take off - impressive height achieved. The temperature this morning coming back was as high as 22 - it felt positively tropical after this miserable summer.

Just taken the dogs out the garden for their evening ablutions - cool and starry overhead with the most beautiful gibbous moon, a glorious champagne colour with bats flitting around. I love bats and wish I was better at identifying them. Tomorrow looking forward to a relaxing day with Andrew.

A long day today, but happy and successful. The GRW show down at Pembrey Country Park in Carmarthenshire. We left home at 8 and arrived at the site just before 9.30. We marked out the rings, car parking areas and areas for stalls etc... By 10.30 the first entrants needed to be registered and from then till 1 it was a steadily building crowd. In fact by 1, we still had a long queue to register (see photo below). Two lovely judges worked their magic, and I helped to keep the supply of rosettes coming. We also had a stall from Ferret Rescue with some lovely little ferrets on it, an animal painter, and a couple of other animal rescue organisations. Amazingly, and I am still shocked to write this, the weather was wonderful. It didn't rain. Judging finished around 3.30 and we packed up. Left around 4.45, both knackered and happy. Dived into a nice hot bath and drank the most enormous gin, then watched a Johnny Cash documentary. Blimey, what a sexy voice he had, and a real presence. Now off to bed, to snore contentedly.

Had a good weekend. My dear friend Leila visited from Plymouth and we had a lovely time. On Friday we went to see Hellboy 2 which I have been looking forward to seeing for some time - it was great. Favourite line. Abe says to Hellboy - "My body is a temple." H replies "Mine is an amusement park." On Saturday Leila was brave enough to come with me to a card making workshop at Inkspot, where we made some very pretty Christmas cards. When Andrew picked us up after having gone for a run, he noticed that we were both covered in a layer of glitter - to me the sign of a successful crafting session. In the evening we went out for a meal to the Armless Dragon in Cathays. Sunday was more relaxed and then Leila drove back to Plymouth on Monday morning. Some pics attached. One shows Leila receiving a collage I made for her. She gave me all the 40th birthday cards she received and I put them together in this frame.

What can I say about this weather? It just keeps on raining. I battle every day with a sea of mud, the dogs seem to be permanently muddy and my boots are finally giving up so will have to buy a new pair. It's been so heavy this week that the few flowers we have in the garden have been trashed with their petals forming a kind of puree around the garden, including some pretty late roses and our lovely Japanese anemones.

Andrew will be returning from Scotland shortly - have made him some couscous with prawns and a peach and blueberry crisp. I did do quite a bit of cleaning earlier but the floor is now covered (again!) with muddy little pawprints. While Andrew has been away, Booty has been keeping me company on the bed - she is a real snuggler and keeps me lovely and warm.

Yesterday visited my greyhound friend Penny down in Carmarthenshire with her two lovely lurchers - we also went to the feed merchant and visited a little Section A pony she was thinking of buying (and eventually did). The pony was a pretty dapple grey mare and was overweight after a summer at grass but had very nice confirmation and a sweet nature. Said hello to Penny's other horses, and when I went into the barn, her cats came and greeted me too, including the one with only one eye and a gorgeous black one who immediately decided that my neck was where he wanted to sit, so did. So I was strolling round the barn talking to the horses with a new scarf on, that was purring loudly and vibrating into my shoulder. Of course, when I returned home, wearing this cocktail of entrancing aromas, the two hounds couldn't tear their noses away for ages.

So, how was your Bank Holiday? Was it wet? Muddy? Humid? Dark? Ours was.

Last Thursday evening, I went over to a friend's house to dog sit while she was out in the evening. One of her greyhounds (Jim, a delightful gentleman) is a bit elderly and likes the chance to go out quite frequently. While there, I settled in and did some cross stitch, while listening to Radio 2. On Thursday nights Bob Harris does Country and I always enjoy the show. Friend is also an accomplished quilter, so her living room and conservatory are festooned in very pretty handmade patchwork quilts - her greyhounds really do recline in luxury.

On Saturday I went to a card making workshop in Inkspot - enjoyable as usual. Popped in to the new Marks and Spencer Simply Food on the way home. Much as had been reported to me, nice stock, but the shop is freezing cold, and quite dark with black decor and enviro - friendly lighting - the sort that's useless.

A peaceful weekend, with some work on refining our monthly budget. On Monday, yesterday, we took the dogs to a new piece of Forestry Commission land near Rudry that links up with some of our other regular walks. Damp and misty but very enjoyable. This morning, to Cosmeston, again damp but good. Both walks characterised by an abundance of autumnal colours - bracken changing and masses of berries, including sloe, hawthorn, rose hips, blackberries and elderberries. It really does feel that summer is over. I ordered some autumn/winter stuff today from Lands End - it feels right to be looking at fleeces and coats. I suspect we'll soon have the heating on again.

We've discovered that Booty has corns - which partially explains some of her limping problems. In dogs, only greyhounds and lurchers get them apparently, which would explain why our vet hadn't picked up on them previously. We've now got some Hoof cream (yes I know she is not a horse) for her, and are ordering some custom made boots from the USA - Therapaws. Boots for our Booty.

A most interesting weekend, with an assortment of visitors, both human and otherwise. Friday morning, we woke early to find a heron in the garden, and watched it flap in a leisurely way to the roof of a neighbours house to gain a better vantage point for our pond. Took Andrew to the station, walked the woofs at Hamadryad and called in at Tesco on the way home for some shopping for the weekend. Cleaning and cooking then Andrew's parents arrived at tea time. Did spatchcocked chickens marinaded with lemon and rosemary (from the garden), followed by a peach and berry crisp, and some Welsh cheeses. After dinner we had coffee and digestifs in the sitting room and let out the dogs for their customary late night ablutions. Lots of excited sniffs and squeaks. Andrew investigated to find a hedgehog in the undergrowth -wonderful. Brought the dogs back so they could leave it in peace.

Saturday we walked to the West Usk lighthouse along the sea wall path, wet and blustery. Came home, thawed out, showered and then visited the new Waitrose up at Pontprennau. Spanking new shop, beautifully laid out, with gorgeous stock. I was particularly impressed by the range of flours and bought some to try with my bread maker. Also had an enticing selection of wines. Andrew cooked when we got home, and did a slow pot roast of a haunch of venison, cooked with red wine, herbs and mushrooms, followed by chocolate mousse. All went very well.

Sunday morning I did a late and relaxing brunch of pancakes, blueberry and maple syrup and crispy bacon. Then it was over to Tredegar House where we had tickets for a tour of hidden Tredegar - bits of the house that are not seen when you do the main tour of the rooms. Most interesting, including cellars, attics, nursery rooms and all sorts of staircases. Bits of the house are medieval, so all sorts of funny shapes, windows and levels. Then out to the stables, which are magnificent, the orangery and then back to the Brewhouse for a cream tea (included in the price of the tour). Photo attached of Rita and Roger over tea.

Returned home, and relaxed over a cuppa. Rita and Roger departed later and we were relaxing with the Sunday paper when Andrew called me to come quickly and look out the window. A sparrowhawk was perched on the garden bench eating one of our regular sparrows, amidst a pathetic pile of fluffy feathers. Andrew tried to take a picture - attached - it hasn't come out brilliantly but you can see the bird if you look carefully on the arm of the bench. It really does seem to have been a weekend for wildlife.

As promised in my last post, I went to a card making workshop at Inkspot on Saturday afternoon. As usual, enjoyed thoroughly. On Sunday, went over to Busy Bees for a workshop on making a log cabin chicken. I don't usually post much on this blog about my craft related activities, as that is what Silver Nutmeg is for but I am so chuffed with the little chap - I think he's gorgeous. He doesn't yet have a name, and I am open to suggestions. Have a look at the picture and tell me what you think. He's made from two log cabin blocks - the workshop was a double bonus as not only did I learn the chicken but also how to make the block and even better, a shortcut to making two at a time. I've often seen log cabin quilts and the block is a joy to do - suspect will be doing more in future. There were six of us in the class, with a lovely tutor called Sue from the shop - haven't learned with her before, but she is excellent. One rather endearing characteristic was her referral to her class as "Girls", as in "Now girls, this is how we attach the next piece" and so on. Given that all of us were most definately middle aged and upwards this was lovely. She also confessed to being a secret Fig Roll addict.

Returned home with my new friend and placed him in a prominent position in the living room, so I can gaze at him lovingly. Both greyhounds have been warned that if they touch him, they can consider themselves as lucky to get away with being turned into a greyhound fricassee. Andrew is normally supportive in general of quilting but is completely bemused by the chicken, finds it vaguely funny and occasionally stares at it as if he can't quite believe it's sharing his home.

On Wednesday we went to the St. Mellons Show, over at Tredegar House. We were woken in the night on Tuesday by the heaviness of the rain, and at 7.30 on Weds it was still bucketing down. Waited a bit, and went over at around 10.30, wearing my winter coat and boots. By the time we returned home, I had mud in my hair, down my neck, on my face and my legs were a solid encrustation. Andrew also. However we did have a very nice time, looking at sheep, pigs, rabbits, a few dogs, assorted show ponies and cobs, jumping and a farrier display. The appalling weather had obviously affected numbers of visitors and exhibitors but as is traditional at these events, every one tried to make the best of it. Watched lots of vehicles stuck in the mud, even 4 x 4s.

I took the dogs over there again this morning, and the mud was spectacularly squelchy - we ended up nearly as mucky as yesterday. The dogs were fascinated by all the smells - their favourite was some straw from the pig tent, which both of them were burrowing into in an ecstasy of sniffing.

I also attach a gratuitous greyhound shot (it's been a while), some love in a mist from the garden and one of our Japanese anemones which has just started flowering.

A while since my last post and mixed news to report. Had a fairly quiet weekend. Made the most of a dry spot and had a BBQ out the garden on Saturday night. Went extremely well. Although the weather is generally atrocious at the moment, the garden is a lush green jungle, and is looking good. The pond is fuller than I have ever seen it. A friend I was talking to on the phone last night made me laugh. She was describing how she went out to her garden to harvest some potatoes for her supper, and as she was pulling them out,the hole was filling up with water. I imagined a paddy field of rice, rather than a Carmarthenshire farm garden.

This coming weekend, I am looking forward to my chicken workshop. I received the list of requirements in the post yesterday e.g. fabric, buttons, felt etc... On Saturday, I may also be going to a craft workshop at Inkspot.

I mentioned the news was mixed. Was talking to another friend on the phone and it turns out that she is dealing with a recurrence of her cancer after fifteen years. She's at the unfortunate stage where dealing with the medication and its side effects is temporarily worse than the original illness. We discussed this a bit- one of the other difficulties is dealing with how other people treat you. She doesn't want to be treated any differently, or spoken about in hushed reverent tones as though she were already dead - unfortunately this often happens. We also talked a bit about how it feels when cancer recurs. For me, this is the hard issue to deal with, even only four years on from my original diagnosis. How do you maintain normal life and relationships while also juggling the waiting - I don't always manage this very well - sometimes you have a paranoia about every little ache, twinge and cough. It really is a hypochondriac's charter. The one good thing about talking to her last night was that for much of the conversation we both knew what it was like - this is enormously powerful as a shared experience and is one of the few things in life I think where even the most skilled and empathetic friend or listener cannot totally understand. Even a clutz like me was able to get my head round at least some of what she's going through at the moment. Fortunately, she hasn't lost her sense of humour, which was wonderfully anarchic anyway and was also sharing a funny story about a greyhound she is fostering (Charlie, who probably deserves his own blog, as he is such a character). Charlie decided to do a midnight raid on a fruit bowl and was accumulating a stock of clementines - not to eat, just to collect. Because of that tip tap tip tap of little grey hound feet on the floor as they trot around, she was kept awake at 2 in the morning, and said she felt like simply throwing the entire fruit bowl and its contents at him... I sympathise as we've got our own strange kleptomaniac here although I am very relieved that he doesn't do so at night, generally.

Last night was particularly eventful for us. We had an early night as A had an early train this morning to London. All peacefully asleep when some neighbours decided (at 11.30 p.m.) to have a huge firework party with the loudest and brightest they could find. Booty was terrified by the noise and was shaking - she leapt onto our bed and hid between us - I ended up cuddling her as much as I could. Andy hid behind the sofa and was also very unhappy. Neither of us could sleep for ages and the lights were so bright that flashes were visible even through our blackout curtain linings. Eventually stopped around midnight - is this really appropriate for a week night, this late, so loud? I love fireworks myself but do think there has to be a balance between the pleasure of the individual and the respect for neighbours. It would be much easier to sympathise too if they weren't so damn loud. Apart from terrifying the dogs, most people at this time of year sleep with a window open, and the sheer volume sounded like a re-enactment of the Blitz. As a consequence of all this, we were all very sleepy this morning. Took Andrew to the station at 6.20 and was in the park by around 6.45. Had it to ourselves apart from lots of ducks, cormorants on the river and the usual wonderful array of flowers, butterflies and swallows.

Sunday was a beautiful day, possibly too hot. Andrew was running in the BUPA Great Wales Run, down the Bay. Regular readers will recall he ran it last year too. Because of his hamstring related lay off this was his first 10K for a while. Picture attached of him just before the start. In spite of his worry about his time, he actually did a very respectable 52 minutes, which he was very pleased with, considering he only started training again in May. Next run is the Swansea Bay 10K - this year will be his 3rd in this race. Although we were only out for a comparatively short time, at a reasonably early time, (race started at 9.30) Andrew found by the evening that he had caught the sun on his arms.

One of the most dispiriting things about the race was parking at County Hall; we then walked round to the start area by the Millennium Centre and I was shocked by the amount of litter, an overflowing bin by County Hall bus stop that had clearly not been emptied since the night/day before, and the bus stop itself was deep in leaf litter, fag butts and detritus - not swept for some time. Irrespective of extra litter caused by the run itself (mainly plastic bottles) this was not good outside the Council's main offices and right by a key tourist area. It also does not bode well for the forthcoming Eisteddfod which will be a major cleaning challenge.

Andrew was in London today, at the Institute of Directors in Pall Mall. As I often do, we got up earlier so I could drop him at the station and then walk the dogs at Hamadryad Park. After almost eleven years of marriage, he's learned that it's best not to engage my brain till a coffee or two has hit the spot. This morning though he posed a wardrobe dilemma. The IoD has a dress code - which struck me as slightly stuffy and old-fashioned these days, but anyway. He didn't want to wear a suit, but also did not want to fall foul of the sartorial police who presumably would eject him if he did not meet their exacting standards. Smart business casual is much harder for men than it is for women - once you get past the classic suit, you need good taste and a bit of thought to get it right. I think it's even harder in summer, for both men and women. Most Brits (myself included) just look hot and miserable when we get our few annual days of sun and humidity, and simply don't have the continental style found in say France, Italy or Spain. I think it's no surprise that one of the best shops for women's smart summer clothes is Zara, which of course is Spanish. Its clothes manage to look good without falling into either the trap of "wedding guest" look or "just wandered off the beach" approach. Anyway, Andrew eventually decided what to wear after a lot of rummaging, though I had reservations about his belt.

Another humid day today - I did a spot of baking and made a coconut cake - it smelled delicious while it was in the oven. Bread also made, and a bolognese for when the young master returned from London. We watched the F word, which was on the Sky box, and GR ate puffins - nooooo! Far too endearing to be eaten. Yes, I know it's soppy and illogical, and if I was a starving Icelandic herringwife, I'd be glad of it, but could you really eat one?

Two mornings of early trips to the railway station to drop off the young master. Dogs are bundled into the boot and we then walk down at Hamadryad Park, on Clarence Embankment. At 7 a.m. it is peaceful and very attractive. I like the river, there are often early morning rowing teams out, and a wide selection of birds, including cormorants, gulls and swans. You can see both the Millennium Stadium and the Millennium Centre, St Davids Hotel, and close by, Century Wharf. We rented a flat there very happily for a while when we were househunting in Cardiff. We loved being so close to all the attractions of the Bay, it was wonderful to be able to stroll out and have such a variety of bars and restaurants on the doorstep. The development itself was very peaceful and secure, although there was the most horrendous noise every morning from the entire urban gull population which roosted nearby on a set of factory roofs, and decided to start an enthusiastic dawn chorus at 5 a.m. every day. Each morning we'd groan and wish for an Uzi.

In the park, I'm particularly struck by the abundance of wild flowers - very attractive at this time of the year. After our trot round the park, with an occasional squirrel sighting for Andy, it's back in the car, and back past County Hall to return home, for an eight o'clock breakfast, for woofs and for me. Then a brisk couple of hours attacking the housework, followed by an encroachment (but not a full invasion!) into the ironing. When domestic duties are completed, a refreshing shower, lunch and then a peaceful afternoon with my cross stitch, accompanied by two snoozing hounds. Booty prefers an upstairs bed, where she can rest her little head on a pillow, and get some serious power-napping done. Andy likes to keep an eye on me , just in case I suddenly feel the urge to throw cheese at him or leave a steak lying around the kitchen. Young master not too late tonight - prawn curry though he had to miss out on the poppodums, on account of his war wound, which is healing nicely.

A relaxed evening with a bottle of wine, watching Barefoot Contessa (like her cooking style), my evening dose of the Tour and then an episode of Lewis, which I must admit seems to be streets better than Morse. Tomorrow the Tour will be decided by the time trial - there is still only a matter of seconds in it, and some particularly strong riders. Unusually, I don't have a strong personal favourite, although it would be nice to see Frank Schleck get it, or Carlos Sastre. Somehow, I have enormous respect for Cadel Evans, but find it difficult to root for him. This year it's been a really close race all the way through, although there hasn't been the high drama of last year's race with Vino, or even the year before with Floyd Landis, who did that extraordinary chase back to regain time, won and then was discovered to test positive. Quite operatic in its intensity and excitement. I love it.

Firstly, a quick update on the young master. Took him to the dentist this morning. He was ushered in to the inner sanctum and emerged shakily a little while later. His tooth had been removed, but the dentist was so skilful that he hadn't even realised that the deed was done. Wow. Came home, very numb and pale, and sensibly spent the afternoon on the sofa cuddling Booty. I went for a haircut and picked up a few treats for him, including some thick milkshakes and some rice pudding. This evening he had a relaxing bath and is now looking a lot better.

Secondly, praise where it's due for a company. My dear friend Leila has in the past used the website Figleaves and reported positively on them. I decided to have a browse. Well, what a selection. Everything from the budget and sensible right up to the most frothy lingerie imaginable, just what you'd imagine wearing on a hot date with Jean Reno (or other hot date of your choice). I made my selection and ordered on Sunday evening. Yesterday, I had an email confirming dispatch of goods, and today a beautifully wrapped parcel arrived, with a packet of lingerie goodness nestling in luxurious tissue paper. All fitted beautifully and am very happy. It's nice to be able to give good feedback about a shopping experience. I also can't imagine that there will be many high street shops with such a fantastic selection in a good range of sizes.

Finally, isn't this weather wonderful? tomorrow, I will be glued to the sofa as ITV 4 will be showing live coverage of the Tour on the stage up to Alpe d'Huez - a really famous climb. The race is very close in the top four and tremendously exciting - I am really enjoying it.

Some domestic dramas since I last wrote. Andrew has a deep, almost pathological hatred and fear of dentists, owing to an unpleasant experience when he was very much younger. He hasn't seen a dentist for a number of years, and any suggestion that he should is met with horror. Anyway, some eight weeks ago, he lost half a tooth and on Thursday night said tooth began to ache agonisingly. He was in so much pain he took a painkiller (something he never normally does, unlike me) and still had difficulty sleeping. On Friday morning he seriously considered pulling it out himself, but I went ballistic. Eventually, after a lot of nagging and drama, he allowed me to phone the Emergency NHS dentist service. To my amazement, the service was fantastic. Spoke to a lovely helpful lady, who managed to find an appt for the young master in Butetown at 11 am (I phoned just after 10). Dashed down to Loudon Square, where the health centre looks incredibly grim, but again staffed by lovely friendly and charming staff. He had no waiting and was whisked in to see a delightful dentist promptly at 11. In fairness, I can honestly say that in 11 years of marriage I have never seen him look so awful - not just white but a kind of grey colour, with a pallor on his skin. They thought he might faint so gave him glucose tablets. Anyway, after injections, he was still able to feel the tooth, so the dentist decided that the infection in it needed to be settled before it could be extracted, so home we came with a prescription for antibiotics. They have worked brilliantly and he's booked in tomorrow at my dentist for an extraction. He's on soft food, so I've made lots of soup and we've eaten tonnes of rice. I will update on the patient after tomorrow.

We had a good weekend. On Saturday, Busy Bees (where I go for quilting lessons) was celebrating its tenth anniversary by holding an exhibition at the Dyffryn community centre, just at the back of the Tredegar House carpark. We visited, and it was stunning, full of beautiful quilts and other handmade textile goodies, all done by people who'd attended classes or workshops at BB. Very inspiring. Then went over the shop to choose some sashing and backing fabric for my latest quilt top, and to pay for my forthcoming chicken course in August. Also treated myself to another charm pack in delightful Christmas colours. Will update further on this on my craft blog.

Sunday was equally enjoyable. We went down to visit Penny (another greyhound friend) who lives close to old friend Liz in the wilds of Carmarthenshire, on a very nice farm. She is the owner of two wonderfully affectionate and bonkers lurchers who bounced all over us, chased each other round the garden and through the raspberry canes and then collapsed in a heap, looking contented, before getting up and repeating the exercise. It was lovely to sit outside in the garden and Penny also took us up to see her latest foal who was beautiful and also had a really stunning mum, a gorgeous Section B palomino mare with a very sweet nature who came over for a neck tickle although I think she really wanted her feed bucket.

Today, it's actually been hot and sunny. This morning, after walking the woofs, I set about cleaning. In the afternoon, I decided to do some stitching out in the garden, to take advantage of the sunshine. I was only out there for a little over an hour, but my arms have caught the sun. I am normally very careful about not burning and religiously apply SPF 15 moisturiser every day for example - I guess I've got so used to having constant cloud and rain, I completely under-estimated the power of the sunshine. It was lovely to sit out there though - butterflies and bees in abundance, lots of birds, distant hum of lawnmowers, really relaxing and summery.

Talking of birds, I am sorry to report that they have nicked the majority of the ripe blueberries. I have now learned my lesson and the ripening berries on the other two bushes will be picked as soon as they are ready, rather than being left on the bush. Next year, I might invest in some netting or a cage to keep them off.

As TS Eliot so famously said in one of my favourite poems - "In my end is my beginning" and that's how I feel today, as I embark on my new life as a full time housewife and megastar. One of the important challenges facing me is what to wear. Should I opt for the Waynetta Slob look, as modelled locally comprising vast gold hoop earrings, scraped back dyed blonde hair and a variety of polyester leisure wear? Generally accessorised by a couple of screaming and feral toddlers. Or the Nigella Lawson "domestic goddess" with a cashmere twinset and a hopelessly pornographic approach to cooking the dinner? This would involve staring lustily at Andrew while making suggestive licking and stroking gestures with any available root vegetables or kitchen implements. Since watching her show I've never seen a nutmeg grater in the same light.

Actually, on one of my many forays into the byways of the Internet, I''ve come across a number of patterns for retro pinnies - you know, the ones that are frilled and that your granny probably wore. One of those in a nice vintage print would be just the job. Judging by the number available these are becoming popular once more - possibly to be worn with a gingham shirtwaister, red lipstick and maribou trimmed mules?

Andrew has (jokingly I hope) suggested a range of performance indicators and of course with my background I am clearly destined to set up a domestic Cleanliness index with interior zoning and time bound constraints for restoring it to perfection. I am also in the process of setting up a range of spreadsheets to help track various tasks and to assist in menu planning. Fortunately I have reached the stage of my life where I can laugh at my characteristics without feeling any need to change them.

Andrew's chip arrived in the post today for his next run - he's training for the BUPA great Wales run at the end of the month. Today has also been a day of industrial action by Unison and Unite over local government pay issues. When the Echo arrived this afternoon, it was nice to see some familiar faces either in the pictures or being quoted in the article. Generally, the dress code for picketing seems to be based on a "smart casual" approach - usually jeans as they give a nicely classless air with a nod to their working origins. I wonder if anyone has ever done a serious study on the messages of dress and industrial relations? Would be interesting reading.

In other news, our blueberries are ripening and we have some ready for picking. Unfortunately although this is very exciting, there are only about 8 of them so Andrew and I will have to share them without baking a glorious blueberry cobbler or some other delicacy. Maybe a smoothie?
The gourds are also in full flower, which should give us a bumper crop in the autumn.

Blimey - 78 people from the Council have read my blog today. I must leave more often. Thanks to the mystery commentator, much appreciated.

One of the handy features on my webstat counter - well, they're all good - is a listing showing what searches bring up my blog, organised both by search engines and also more interestingly by search term. Not surprisingly, Google is far and away the most popular search engine, with Google Blog search and Firefox appearing occasionally. Andrew is an enthusiastic user of Firefox. If I was starting my blog again, I would not use a title that had the word "mistress" in it, as the internet caters for slightly more adventurous searches using that word. It's quite odd to see search results with a heavy mix of greyhounds, nipple clamps and spanking (and those are the politer ones). One of the funniest to have popped up recently was something to do with a threesome of lesbians ironing - frankly, I'd welcome them with open arms if they wanted to come and do mine. One of these days I'm sure I'm going to see a search phrase combining greyhounds with some particularly kinky pursuit - doesn't bear thinking about.

An early start this morning to take Andrew to the station. Miraculously it wasn't raining, so bundled sleepy hounds into the back of the car and after dropping off Andrew by station front, drove down to Hamadryad Park on Clarence Embankment. Took the woofs for an early morning constitutional, not helped by part of one of my teeth falling out on the way. Now will need emergency dentist. Still it was lovely by the river with early rowers on the water, ducks bobbing and a wonderful selection of wild flowers in the park. Drove home via Tesco for a paper and some shampoo - and treated myself to one of their new bags for life shoppers. Three ticks in the box - made from recycled plastic bottles - hurrah! Raising money for Marie Curie, one of my favourite cancer charities - hurrah! Designed by Cath Kidston and covered in jolly flowers - hurrah! As I got back to the car with my purchases, it began to rain, and it is now bucketing down. Am about to do battle with laundry - oh, frabjous day, as Lewis Carroll put it. Woofs content on sofa in post walk torpor, having devoured breakfast.

Inundation. How else to describe yesterday and today? Near constant rain, heavy, persistent, soaking. We seem to be constantly mopping floors, needing lights on against the darkness and generally feeling very un-summery. Every time the dogs go out the garden they return soaking wet, even after only a couple of minutes.

Received some news today (long expected) that confirms my employment with Cardiff will almost certainly come to an end early next week. Cue a mass breakout at Lamby Way of singing "Hurray, the witch is dead." We have no particular ties to the city (my roots are in Swansea and its western environs) and Andrew's work can be carried out anywhere in the UK provided he has access to good transport links. Accordingly, I think it unlikely that we will make our permanent home here. The friends I have made since moving here are generally greyhound related and if we stay in Wales would continue. Can only think of a few people from work I would want to stay in touch with - inevitably,and quite naturally, work relationships generally wither without the daily contact and work setting. And of course there is the equally important point that very few people would be wanting to stay in touch with me, particularly as I have never made much of an attempt to win any popularity contests. This has been brought home to me recently as I have been surprised by the deafening silence from colleagues. My handy site stats show that the blog is receiving a lot of readers from the Council, averaging around a dozen a day with peaks well above that. I suspect people are reading it in the hope of work related gossip or the online equivalent of gawping at a car crash - sort of cyber rubberneckers. A number of other blogs have been writing about my departure for some time so I suspect that for most people it will be old news. Further reflections on my time with Cardiff will follow.