Sid is coming

I'm going to turn this into an epic because: why not?

Sid the cat is coming today. fjm has volunteered beyond the call of duty to convey him by train to Bath, where I will collect him.

More later. T predicts that he will be Sid Vicious after the rigours of a train trip but we will see. I will try and get some photos, so that everyone who contributed so generously to Sid's welfare can see him.

Weekend

Mainly the usual mixture of work, writing, cooking, and gardening. I spent rather too much time on the phone trying to locate a farrier, as our usual one was not answering his mobile. Eventually he did answer it and turned out to be someone else entirely, but still a farrier, so what the hell. He's coming on Tuesday. I groomed both horses (which is not a daily past-time in this establishment) because instead of a little white pony, we had a little black one instead. Jasper (the large one) regards any attempt at grooming as a gross infringement of his personal stylistic expression and informs me that 4 foot brambles in the tail are very 'in' this season. I shall be going out with the scissors later and boy, is he in for a shock.

Weather has been great (if you're me): heavy frosts in the morning, followed by clear bright skies and starry nights. I went up to Bristol last night for an Imbolc thing and came back to a chorus, if one can call it that, of screech owls in the orchard.

T stayed up for the Superbowl as he'll admit to an occasional interest in American football.

Cat on a train

fjm is a mistress of detailed planning and she and I had Sid's arrival all worked out: she phoned on reaching the station in London and I set off for Bath. Sorted! Until she rang to say that there had been a fatality in Ealing and all the east-westbound services were completely screwed. She's still en route and I'm killing time in an internet cafe in a very chilly Bath, too far from anything Austen-y or shopping-wise in the time that we've got. My day is fairly free, but fjm has other stuff to do.

Sid, apparently, has sensibly gone to sleep, while we fret and re-plan. That's a cat for you...

Sid is here!

He slept all the way home. We have put him in the living room and he and the Rottweiler spent some time boggling at one another, but have not got as far as touching noses yet. No hissing, though. The Alsatian hasn't quite realised there is another cat here, but as someone said last week, since this is a dog who doesn't realise when he's on fire....

Sid then beat a prudent retreat under the sofa, but the positioning of some cat food led to him venturing out. He has explored the north face of the living room, had a look at the new, weird Outside from the window, and has now colonised T's lap, where he is purring.

We left the camera in the shop. T is picking it up tonight or tomorrow.

BLOODMIND - review

Eric Brown has very kindly reviewed BLOODMIND for the Guardian:

http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,2003969,00.html