First an explanation into why I am a day late with this week’s blog. We went to get another vital part of the grooming room and got hopelessly lost. We headed into County Cork using the main roads but around one town there were diversions and road works. Anxious to avoid a trip into Cork itself we moved onto smaller roads. Big, big mistake. We drove for over an hour through a maze of tiny roads. Many were not on the map and they had only road numbers – also not on the map. The only signposts were to places – yep, not on the map. And several were knocked down or moved round so sent us in the wrong direction. In the end it was a seven hour trip but the countryside was lovely. So were the people we went to see so it was just a long Sunday drive really.

We are firmly into autumn now and the leaves are tumbling. For a few weeks there are beautiful displays of colour, then piles of vegetation around the house. Many of the changes are the same as in England. The swifts have left, the starlings are back in force and all the birds are eating as if they are starved. There are more colours here on the trees as a lot of homes have maple trees, beech and rowan amongst others that go a glorious red. We are hoping to plant some American maple and copper beech next year to replace the heart of the wood. Hopefully we can also add some fruit trees and perhaps a hazelnut or two that we will share with the birds.

Mind you, we miss the amazing display of trees around Middlesbrough. There you are – not a sentence you ever thought you’d read, right? When local councils were awarded a grant for planting trees, many years ago, Middlesbrough decided to use theirs to “green” the main roads, especially the A174. The planting is inspired with a wonderful mix of trees giving an amazing show for weeks.

There are other differences too. For the first year since 1989 we had no Halloween callers. This is not all that surprising. Despite have a number of neighbours “just across the road”, they are actually up to 3 kilometres away. Not an easy 3k either – it was a stormy night, pouring with rain and the road was muddy. Bit of a hike for a handful of chocolate I think. With no 5th of November we are spared the fireworks that seem to begin in late September and end after New Year in England. We are lucky that our dogs don’t mind the noise. The oldest used to get up at the window and pull the curtains aside to look out. Charlie grew up with the TV on as a puppy so is used to loud noises and sudden bangs. Maybe that’s why he’s hyper vigilant towards strangers. He’s expecting someone to ride into the house, all guns blazing.

I suspect we are heading for a pre-Christmas “circuit breaker” lockdown here in Ireland. Covid cases are rising fast and there is a hint of returning to work from home for many people. We hope to learn from our previous experiences and will do our “non-essential” shopping next week. We are also bringing the new freezer in and putting it into the little utility room so we can bulk-buy the dogs’ meat and freeze it. Getting enough was a nightmare last time and only one supermarket will come up here to deliver. I’m also getting a job lot of overseas stamps so if I have your address I can send a card this year. If you’re not sure then DM me and I’ll add you to my list.

We are also still fighting with the waste collectors who are coming to remove the bins despite not telling us or answering our emails. As no-one else operates in the area I’m at a loss – and very angry. Still, we have overcome much greater obstacles in the last year and I’m sure we can sort this out somehow. Meanwhile I am composing an icily polite letter of complaint that will go to them, their trade association, the local council and, if necessary, the Environmental Protection Agency.

Have a good week and thank you for reading!