REINDEER SIGHTINGS

Deer have been sighted in the garden three nights in a row. Real deer. We think maybe they are attracted by Rudolph and Bambi. Certainly they are attracted to Ronnie's vegetable patch because they ate his brussels sprouts last night, and one was seen gambolling away with a large sprout in its mouth. (Some people might think this is just Ronnie's excuse not to have to eat his sprouts with his Christmas dinner.) They have also chewed Jeanette's flowering plants, and left hoof prints all across the snow. We are amazed they come so close to the houses, but they do so under cover of night. Our three neightbours have all now seen them, so our household will need to be more vigilant to spot them before they eat up all Ronnie's veggies..

I drove back from collecting daughter Tessa from Edinburgh airport yesterday, alternately through thick fog and glaring low sunshine and temperatures that gradually fell from -0.5 to a very chilly -13.5. Once it got to about -5 it became impossible to clean the windscreen as the washer fluid just turned to ice as soon as it hit the glass. By -7.5, the fluid resolutely refused to spray, the nozzles must have iced over. I made a mental note to add more anti-freeze as it's impossible to drive in these conditions without wiper fluid as the road and other cars continuously spray up muddy globbules, making visibility a nightmare.

Such resolutions were quickly forgotten when we woke up this morning and another foot of snow had fallen overnight. Our deer were up to their tummies in it:



My car had to be dug out of the snow BY ME with a shovel (Tessa vanished like a sprite into thin air). Our laneway was completely blocked and every time I thought I'd dug enough snow, the tyres would burn rubber and more snow had to be shovelled until finally I managed to slide up the lane and onto a very snowy road so that Tess and I could get to Blairgowrie for some last minute Christmas shopping. There were hardly any cars on the road which wasn't surprising as all the side roads were blocked, and even the main road was quite treacherous. The snow has taken everyone by surprise and travel by air, train or road is severely disrupted. We wonder if our guests from London will make it up tomorrow.

Safely back at the cottage and there was a loud rap at the door. Gordon was standing behind an enormous bouquet of flowers. This time we both knew who they must be from as only one person is known to organise completely over-the-top flower displays for his Australian wife. A correct assumption. The more difficult question was where to house them. I was glad Jeanette and Gordon had enjoyed them for a day.

Mahri trudged over from the other side of the village with my cake that she has baked: chocolate and bitter orange. It is absolutely beautiful, we will be sorry to have to cut into it, but that would be an insult to Mahri so later today Tess and I will conduct a taste test:



I don't think anyone would be fooled if I pretended I'd made it, either.