Short and humpy

Yet again, another Wednesday (or hump-day) has come and gone, meaning we're over the hump and rolling steadily towards the weekend.

Today has been pretty short on news - it has been something of a routine day, if you like (or the closest thing to routine we've managed sine being here): I left Helen working in the office and took Reggie up to Lanciole with me for a day's pruning (told you it was a slow news day).

It was another chilly day (more ice breaking required this morning), and even in the bright sunshine, there was a cold breeze that kept the temperature feeling decidedly nippy.

When I arrived at the house in Lanciole, the first thing I decided to do (before taking my secateurs out of my pocket) was to go and sweep all the sweet chestnuts and leaves off the platform of the tree house as I figured there were definitely no more leaves left to fall now.

It wasn't long before Reggie decided he didn't want to be apart from me any longer and he negotiated the open tread steps (made from logs) to join me on the platform. While I swept, he had his first taste of sweet chestnuts. I'm not sure he was all that keen (they were way past their best by now), but maybe another taste this autumn will turn him.

On descending from the platform, I heard whimpering from above - I turned around to see a dog looking down at me from the top of the steps. He didn't look at all confident about getting down them. I barely had time to put the broom down and turn back before he decided he was going for it - not in a tentative fashion, more like a sprint. Not the best decision he's ever made, although he got two thirds of the way down before two of his legs went through the open parts of the treads, which was immediately followed by a face-plant into the soil at the bottom.

I'm not sure whether he was a bit sore or just embarrassed, but he came straight over to me and sat next to me for some comfort - although with his back turned to me. Other than that, and generous amounts of barking, the day was uneventful and I pruned until it was time for us to get back into the car again and go home to Helen.

After looking at the weather forecast and seeing that today's beautiful clear blue skies are due to turn into wet grey ones tomorrow, I decided it would be prudent to move the logs of oak cut yesterday on the terrace below the house up to the cover of the wood pile before they doubled in weight with rain water. Helen couldn't resist the chance of a second workout for the day so the pair of us spent an hour or so throwing heavy logs up the bank onto the lawn before wheel-barrowing it all to the wood pile.

We'd almost finished when we were interrupted by a set of headlights approaching from the darkness of the driveway. Unless we're expecting someone, it's very rare for anyone to drive to the house other than the postman, so this was a bit of a shock and I couldn't for the life of me work out who it could be. I took my gloves off as I approached the car, and Reggie let fly into a torrent of barks. When the driver's door opened, the cabin light illuminated the face of Antonio, the Stihl guy from up the valley! He was already returning the sharpened chain for my chainsaw - which he had told me yesterday would be ready next week. What an odd Italian he is for being ahead of schedule - an odd one, but a really nice one and I wished I could converse with him more fluently, as saying 'thanks' in as few Italian words as I have available just doesn't seem enough to reciprocate the kindness and helpfulness he's shown to us. Maybe one day we'll have him and his family round for lunch.

After I had paid Antonio and he'd introduced me to his sister, Graziana, in the passenger seat, he drove off into the darkness and we called it a day, taking some crates of wood back into the house for the evening's fire.