19/5/13 Summertime

I really do feel summer has arrived today. It seems like we are on a different continent compared to yesterday which was rainy, cloudy and very cold. Today is the polar opposite - SUNSHINE!

My other half has been working hard in the garden; mowing, strimming and weeding. Bubbles has been playing outside, the birds have been singing like mad and the washing has dried freely in the warm, sunny breeze.

I think the birds were quite scared by the appearance of a large, black, furry cat looking hopefully up at their tree. Their idle chirrups suddenly changed to panic stricken calls - probably warnings to each other to beware.

They are not used to Bubbles being outside because it has rained so much she has stayed indoors and the young fledglings are probably not "cat savvy" as yet. They are learning quickly though as they sit, high up, safely in their tree.

I am really careful not to let Bubbles out in the garden when I see them pecking about on the lawn. I would like to think she would not hurt them but it is a cat's natural instinct to chase and catch birds so it is best not to take the chance!

12/5/13 Arctic May

The glorious weather of the Bank Holiday weekend has given way to more Arctic conditions, with Baltic style temperatures this weekend along with torrential rain. I have even had to wear my winter coat!

I washed and dried my hair which was a pointless activity as it received a soaking during the three steps it took me to get from the front door into the car.

Bubbles is also displeased with the dodgy weather as it means she cannot go out to play. Well, she could but I doubt she would want to; not being so keen on a soaking herself!

It's a good job she has plenty of toys to occupy herself with when confined to the house

5/5/13 Bank Holiday Weekend

Woo hoo! A wonderfully hot, sunny bank holiday weekend, which has GOT to be worth a mention (probably in the Guinness Book Of Records!)

The weekend could have started off better, however. We had a major crisis with some work being done to the bathroom. It turned out a simple job of fixing the taps and removing a slightly damp area was not quite so straightforward.... damp had leaked through to the floorboards, which crumbled like rotten cardboard. I had to abandon my heroic other half to hold the fort, whilst Bubbles and I skedaddled off to my Mum's house for the week. (Cats + raised floorboards + workmen + scary loud banging / drilling really do not mix.) Besides which, I had some uni work to complete, which was quite an impossible task given the noise reverberating from the bathroom.

Bubbles had a lovely week of being spoilt at my Mum's house.... On the Saturday evening she shared some fresh salmon for her tea then on Sunday enjoyed a nice dish of Roast Gammon for her Sunday dinner!

It was really exciting being able to check out all of Mum's rooms and she found all sorts of fun hidey holes to relax in. Her favourite one had to be the cover on the armchair, which Bubbles managed to crawl underneath to make into her own little "den"!

28/4/13 The Motorbike Show

Today, we went to a classic motorbike show. Now I'm not really a biker kind of girl but I did make some technical observations of the many bikes we saw:

Some were "shiny", some were "silvery", some were "blue", some were "red", some were "big" and some were "uncomfy looking". I have to say, this is the limit of my motorbike knowledge. There were some rare and interesting looking bikes from World War 1 and some amazingly long, solid looking contraptions that made me wonder how on earth they ever managed to go along whilst staying upright (riding motorbikes is also not my forte; after a rather unpleasant incident one holiday in Greece involving a slow motion parking problem between the scooter I was attempting to ride and a tree!) The classic bike owners had all restored their motorbikes to beautiful condition and many had won rosettes for their efforts.

All in all it was a fun day out but the weather could have been somewhat warmer for the time of year. At about four o clock I looked at my watch. I felt it could have been four o clock on a cold, October day, with a dusky tint to the sky and icy cold air.

When we arrived home we cranked up the heating in order to defrost, much to Bubbles' pleasure, as she had a lovely evening baking by the radiator!

                             

21/4/13 Home Sweet Home

Bubbles is really pleased to be home again, which she has shown by purring and kneading her bed; now back in its rightful place by the bedroom radiator! She then fell fast asleep; tired out after all her big adventures!

14/4/13 Bubbles' Big Adventure

This week has been rather exciting, as well as eventful! We went on our first holiday with Bubbles, up to the Lake District. Everything was packed neatly in the boot, Bubbles was safely tucked into her travelling cage complete with toys, comfy bed and litter tray, I had a good book (a holiday pre-requisite) so we were off....

.... Twenty miles later the car decided to blow up on the motorway! Not good in a normal situation but utterly terrifying knowing we also had Bubbles on board! Quickly, I called the breakdown service, then we carefully bundled Bubbles into her small travelling carrier which we had taken along with us JUST IN CASE!

She hates being put in her small carrier as it has large associations with visits to the vets, however, she was as good as gold & did not protest once as we clambered out of the vehicle and lurched our way down the steep, grassy embankment away from the dangers of the fast moving traffic.

The breakdown service were absolutely excellent, turning up in just fifteen minutes. I was highly impressed and breathed a large sigh of relief when we were finally on the move again - this time with Bubbles and I riding in the front of the breakdown truck and my other half having the slightly less appealing task of sitting in our old banger, steering under tow, all the way home!

Great minds clearly do think alike because once back at the house, we both announced we thought we should hire a car and still go on the holiday! After all, we had already paid for our accommodation and it seemed silly to let it go to waste. Once again, I was on the telephone; this time ringing round the car hire companies. Yes, there was a car ready straight away.... But it was a little Fiat 500.

"What's one of those?" I wondered, as my other half dashed off with our neighbour to fetch it. A few minutes later I heard a car pulling up so went to the front door to look out. A funky little blue "Bubble car" was waiting outside. I'm sure it was grinning cheekily!

My other half stashed all our luggage quickly in the tiny hatchback. Feeling a weird sense of de ja vu (or maybe feeling like I was in the film "Groundhog Day") we, once again, popped Bubbles into her large, fabric travelling cage. Truth be known I was a little envious of her travelling accomodation, which was rather like a tent and put me in mind of the fun of camping!

So off we zoomed, once again, to the lake District.

When we arrived, I was taken aback at the loveliness of the lodge we had rented. It was only small but warm, clean, modern and just perfect for our short break. To top it off, it had a super view of the lake! Bubbles could spend hours watching the waders and other birds swimming, landing and taking off from the water.

While we were there, she also perfected the art of being a "nosy neighbour"....

Then happily curled up for an evening relaxing by the fire, while we cooked a nice meal and also began to relax

7/4/13 To Flea Or Not To Flea

Bubbles is looking mightily suspicious here and you might well wonder why but ensconced in my hand, hidden from view is a pipette containing her flea prevention treatment!

What ensued next can only be described as a "wrestling match" with me grabbing Bubbles before she had chance to scurry for cover under the bed!

I grabbed her. She instantly stiffened then seemingly relaxed in my grip but no, this was just a ploy, a trick to convince me to loosen my grip; as if she was going to sit still and allow me to apply the stinky syrup. I don't think so!

The minute my grip loosened slightly to snap the plastic covering of the pipette, Bubbles tried to make a lunge for it! I (for once) was quicker and we both ended up on the floor in the style of a very ungraceful rugby tackle.

Bubbles hunched down, again, as if to suggest she might allow me near her with the foul smelling mixture but as soon as I altered my position she tried to shuffle underneath me, attempting to escape backwards until I was almost sitting on her!

This was not going well but with the cold wintery snow having given way to much warmer, Spring weather, I knew plenty of bugs, insects and fleas would now be flitting mischievously around the garden waiting to infest themselves on any unsuspecting creature so I was determined she must receive the preventative treatment. As my Mother always says; "prevention is better than cure!"

I would not give in. This time I held Bubbles firmly, parted her neck fur and quickly squeezed the contents of the pipette onto her neck. She "miaowed" piteously as if I was torturing her. Soothingly, I praised her for being so good then the minute I released her she bounded away, up the stairs, to recover her composure under the bed!

I, meanwhile, went panting into the kitchen in search of a much needed large glass of water to drink!