:: back due to popular demand...

No, Bertie's coat is not still green. He scrubbed himself up and down the hedge while it was wet and then dried off on the carpet. Oh the joys of pet ownership.

In other news ... well, nothing. I've got a couple of good books on the go (All Families are Psychotic by Douglas Coupland and Ilium by Dan Simmons) and sped-read another, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon. Oh, and I've also started Oryx and Crake, by Margaret Atwood. I recommend them all, though Ilium is only for hard-core sci-fi fans. Having said that, it has inspired me to download Homer's Iliad from the net and store it on my Palm. How sci-fi is that? I've got four other books on there, plus all my addresses etc, several photos, calculator and what-have-you, and plenty of room left. Twenty years ago I was all excited to have a computer with two floppy disc drives (and they really were floppy); now I've got a library in my handbag. I love technology.

I had a lovely letter from Uncle Jock, who sounds in good spirits despite having 10% kidney function and a crook ticker. Dog tucker, he reckons, but he's not letting it get him down. I've resolved never again to whine about my arthritis.