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Hi, Rusty!
Well, well...... who would have believed at breakfast time today, that the first, second, and third seeds would be gone from the Queens tournament in the Second round?
Andy Murray has just been beaten by Jordan Thompson!
Ironically, Thompson would not even have been playing were it not for the fact that Aljaz Bedene (another Brit) had to withdraw with a wrist injury.
What an upset at this stage of the tournament!
It does rather take the edge of the rest of the matches.
But how did your horse do?

Good evening, Elle!
I expected Andy to go a bit further than he has!
Maybe the heat had something to do with it?
Wimbledon is not far off, either!
Thomas Hobson was a good "choice"!
He won very well, indeed!
Ryan Moore rode a super race on him.
His stable girl, Rachel, was very emotional.
She was in floods of tears leading him in!
These girls are just devoted to their horses.
I have little to read so am picking my way through a Screwfix catalogue!

Hi, Rusty!
I think Andy was very definitely off form.......but there is no denying that his opponent played very well.
Strange though that all three top seeds went out !
And I think that all the Brits are now out?
You are indeed in a bad way if reduced to reading the Screwfix catalogue!
I thought you had recently ordered some more books?
Still very hot and humid here.... I think we are in for another sticky night!

Hello, Elle!
I get ideas from the Screwfix catalogue!
I read that Andy was pretty poor today.
I do not think it as warm as it was.
I have a breeze coming in my window, but I am going to close it soon.
I woke up some time ago with a starling flying about in my bedroom after leaving the window open.
Not something I want to repeat!

Hi, Rusty!
A breeze? I am in danger of forgetting what one is!
And tomorrow is set to be our hottest day yet!
But the forecast has changed somewhat, and it now appears that it may go cooler by Thursday with maybe even a little rain!
Roll on Thursday......
We never close our bedroom window unless we are going away on holiday!
It stays open even throughout the bitterest cold weather!
and hurricanes!
But I hadn't contemplated having a starling for company....!

Good morning, Elle!
I have heavy rain and thunder forecast for afternoon!
Will make a nice change!
I had visions of Hitchcock's "Birds" the day I met the starling.
At least the bird did not panic and we eventually came to a mutual agreement that he would leave by the window that he flew in.
The departure went very well, I am pleased to say.
Not as sorrowful as "Leaving Nancy", but we parted on good terms.
PS. This "Nancy" was a lady, not the French town.

Good morning, Rusty!
I have been up since 5 am - it was far too hot to sleep!
I took the dog out very early and found it was quite tolerable in the park at that hour.......with a fresh (yes, really) breeze!
I have two loads of washing out on the line - it will probably be dry shortly.
Unfortunately we are forecast a temp of 32C by midday - would that we were expecting your rain and thunderstorm!
But we may get it tomorrow!
I found "The Birds" really scary the first time I ever watched it!
I hope the starling didn't put its head on your shoulder, as did Nancy-O?
Daughter and YB are coming over later this morning....just got to hoover.......

Hello, Elle!
Not sure when we shall get rain.
Seems cooler now.
Ah, you know about Nancy-O!
That song was about the last time Eric Bogle saw his mother, Nancy.
He never saw her again.
Said farewell to Nancy at the train station, then on to Australia.
He is one of my favourite song writers.
"As If He Knows" is one my favourites.
It's about the Aussie soldiers preparing to shoot their horses before they go home.
Very sad.
136,000 horses left Australia to go to war.
Only one, Sandy, came home.
Yes, "The Birds" was a smashing picture.
Tippi Heidren played the lead role, did she?

Hi, Rusty!
Yes, a song by the Dubliners?
I do not know the other one that you mentioned though.......and I do not know the story of "Sandy"?
How did one horse manage to return to Australia?
Yes, Tippi Hedren was in "The Birds" with Rod Taylor.
I always wondered why the two love birds did not "turn" and become vicious?
I kept awaiting their attacking her...... but it never happened!
The film was based on a tale by Daphne du Maurier.
I dimly remember reading it ...but the terror did not across as it did in the film.
Did you know that Melanie Griffiths is Tippi Hedren's daughter?

Hello, Elle!
Yes, the Dubliners and the Furey's sang it, but it was written and sung by Eric Bogle.
Bogle wrote several anti-war songs, including "The Green Fields of France", and "The Band Played Waltzing Matilda".
Sandy was in the care of a very senior officer who was killed by a sniper at Gallipoli.
It was his dying wish that Sandy be returned to Australia.
If you type "Sandy the Horse" into your search box you can read all about Sandy.
Eric Bogle wrote "As if He Knows" as a tribute to all the horses who never came home.
I thought everyone knew about Sandy!
I knew Tippi had a famous daughter but could not have named her, no.
The Times puzzle today, is a qualifier for the Championship.
I have not looked at it, yet.
Been looking at the runners for Ascot!