THIS YEAR IN TUSCANY-2014

PONIES GETTING READY FOR WORK!

My New Year's resolution to write ONE blog a week went out of the window after about a month, so here is a précis of the year with pics!

Not a year to remember weather wise, some nice weather in early spring but then a downpour that lasted for the rest of the summer!!!   We read of England basking in its warmest summer since records began while we listened to crashing torrents of water coming down our normally dry river beds.   The grass never stopped growing only to be overtaken by the weeds.

The ponies got fatter and fatter and hay I had bought for the summer months went uneaten.

SALINO

Salty has behaved like the perfect gentleman and not thrown me off once this year.   He has tried a few times but failed.   I keep thinking I should send him off for cat food but then think that the day I give up taking risks is the day I will lie down and pull the sheets over my head.

AZIZ SAYS THIS IS THE BEST PHOTOGRAPH HE HAS EVER SEEN OF ME!

Paulo our gardener found a Bambi asleep under a pile of leaves so brought him down to see if I would like to add it to our growing collection of animals but Fabio told us in no uncertain terms to return it to its leaves as soon as possible and its Mum would come to feed it.   Probably one of the most endearing of young animals but a bottle every two hours would not have appealed to me.  Worse than having another child!!!

We had Liesle's daughter's, boyfriend's donkeys to stay whilst they went to chant in Thailand.   Not only did they pull me face down in a very dirty ditch and drag me for half a mile but they ate everything in sight.   Not just the grass but the olive trees, bark and all, my cypress trees, two cherry trees and various other things I would rather they had not eaten.   

No good deed goes unpunished.   I open my mouth and out come words I wish I could have eaten.   Words like, of course you can leave the donkeys with me for a couple of months, no problem.  Ponies do not behave so ungratefully and I am sure Jesus did not teach them such bad habits.