It will be a huge relief to me when Judy gets back! Someone has been riding her horse today. Her rug is off, the brand new, never been used saddle was thrown roughly over a gate (exposed to horse nibbles, rain etc), the bridle has been hung roughly back in place with the bit covered in chaff.... Remember this is a horse that has not been ridden for over 12 months, who has suffered an injury in the past and will need very careful riding for some time before she is ready for more exciting stuff. And from the evidence it looks like a teenager has been at work. And none of the teenagers next door have the first clue how to treat a horse. And clearly they knew they should not have been doing it as they had ridden her up the road, not down the lane to the recreation ground.

I have put the saddle back on its rack and covered it with a fleecy sweater I found lying around. The door to the stall had also once again been closed, but since it seems it has been blown shut I have tied it back to the post to ensure it doesn't cause any injury or prevent the mare from entering her stall. It will be seven tonight and 20 tomorrow so the rug is not such an issue as it might have been.

Since the door had clearly been closed all night, there was no waste in the stall, but quite a bit elsewhere in the paddock, so I took the barrow around and cleaned that up, putting the results into the raised bed whose soil I am building up.

I was not able to start the chainsaw today which was annoying as I had planned to be cutting up the remainder of the woodpile that I have not yet stacked. Still it is all to one side, so the next load (due this coming week) can be delivered with out impediment.

The washing was put out early but was still not quite dry when I had to bring it in because of afternoon showers. This is mainly because it was cool, damp and overcast for most of the day. But still, most of it is done and I have some clean clothes once more.

Seb and I went for a walk this afternoon and on our way back checked if the saddle was still where it had been left (which it was) and so called in to sort that out. I left Seb to play with Micky and this time they actually engaged with each other, playing chasings, which is a good thing. Micky was stuck indoors as the door had swung shut (someone is using the washing machine to do several loads), so I popped the footscraper in the way so it would not close and leave him stuck outside in the rain.

It is a bit too warm indoors at present as I lit the fire when the day showed no sign of getting warmer, and then it did, to spite me, lol. But i am letting it burn slowly as I expect it will be needed when the sun goes down.