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Good morning, Rusty!
It was chilly here, too, first thing.......but the sun is surprisingly strong today, and warmed us all up whilst we were out walking the dogs.
Yes, wearing a fleece sounds like a practical move!
( I had a jacket on, this morning!)
I think I might need to make a list to remind me ....."Things to Do".... check out "clocked".. .ask daughter about Margaret Hamilton....!
I was thinking about Mike Tomkies and Moobli......
I bought "Mrs. Mike" at the same time.....I liked her!
Were there any sequels?
I cannot even remember who wrote it?

Hello, Elle!
Just a bit airy here, too!
Have not you found out about "clocked", yet?
Now, "Mrs Mike".
There is a follow up book written a few years later.
It is called "The Search for Joyful".
Briefly, Mrs Mike's friend, Oh Be Joyful, a Cree woman, dies during a 'flu epidemic.
Mrs Mike adopts her daughter, Kathy, and that is what the tale is about.
I have not read it, Elle, so how it compares with "Mrs Mike" I do not know.
You are on your own in this one!
Have a look on Amazon.
Mrs Mike was written by Benedict and Nancy Freedman.

Hi, Rusty!
I have had a look on Amazon for " The Search for Joyful", but all the copies available at present are not particularly "cheap"....
I shall leave it for a while.......you know how these "deals" fluctuate!
I may find a reasonable offer next week!
I have some money in my Amazon account so am not looking to buy elsewhere, as yet.
Meanwhile...home on the range... my copy of Robin Pilcher's omnibus (two books combined) has just arrived !
Very good condition for 40p - and over 1000 pages long...so I am well pleased!
I have finished, bar one parse, today's 15 x15 crossword !
I though it a lot easier than yesterday's puzzle?

Hello, Elle!
You are right! Not cheap at all!
There are copies of the two books in one volume.
"Mrs Mike and The Search for Joyful" but they are pricey, too.
A pity, Elle!
What I regularly do on eBay is, I set up a "Search" for something.
I type in the details and each day eBay emails me with what they have found.
I do not think Amazon do this, but I am not sure.
I thought today's puzzle was much tougher than yesterday's.
I have just completed it, though I am by no means certain of my parsing, what with musical notes and foreign and Cockney words, etc.
So well done if you have found it easier than yesterdays!
Would you like help with your parse, or go for a walk then it will jump out at you!

Hi, Rusty!
Well, I found yesterday's puzzle inordinately hard!
So it wasn't surprising that I thought today's easier!
I wondered whether you would understand 'Whitechapel' as being a Cockney reference........but obviously you did!
I had never heard of the Italian name "Piero", but the parsing made it obvious, didn't it?
Yes, you can help me with the parsing that I cannot follow, if you will?
I don't think it is going to "come" to me!
28a: More prominent surrounds by Oriental tree (3,5)
?O? / E?D?R
Something "elder"?
With "tree" as the definition?
I cannot see further than that?
I am not liking the look of our sky.........so am going to take the dog out now, before it rains!
Back in a bit.......

Hello, Elle!
I had read about the Whitechapel murders of 1888 and knew it was London.
I know many Italian cyclists but none called Piero.
Several called Pietro, though.
I think you may remember Rosalind in Chesapeake insisting she wanted no "box" in her garden?
It is "box elder",
The parse is "more prominent" = "bolder"
"by" = "X" as in "times"
"Oriental" = "E" for Eastern.
I'll have to dash.
Willie Mullins has Thomas Hobson running at Doncaster in a minute and I have taken an interest!
Fingers crossed!

Hi, Rusty!
A pleasant walk.....still a dark sky ...but so far the rain has held off.
I remember Rosalind........but not the mention of "box".
Thank you for the parse!
How did your horse do?
Does " taken an interest" mean that you made a bet?
Did you "win" anything?

Hello, Elle!
Rosalind disliked box and would not have it in the garden.
Yes, taking an interest means having a bet.
My horse was second.
In racing terms he was "tapped for toe" in the final furlong, which translates as, "he was not as fast as the winner"!
I made a small profit as I had him each way.
Just off to have my tea!

Hi, Rusty!
Well done on your win!
I hope you enjoyed your tea?
We had sausages and fried potatoes with lots of onions and thick gravy!
Delicious!
Now, how is this for a strange coincidence...?
Recently you were telling me about two guys in opposing teams on University Challenge........
One of the two, Bobby Seagull, appeared tonight as Captain of the Challenging team on Eggheads!
He was telling Jeremy Vine all about how well he and his team mates did on University Challenge....
I thought he had rather too good an opinion of himself?
Anyway, he was first up and chose to take on Kevin......who made rather short work of him..... and the captain was soon out!
I felt he deserved that!
(Perhaps I was being harsh...)
I have "Cold Feet" to look forward to watching tonight!

Hello, Elle!
That is a co-incidence about Bobby Seagull!
Kevin simply knows almost everything.
He is incredible!
I like Kevin, and he seems a modest man despite knowing everything.
I could not be doing with CJ at all!
I have treated me seeing I made a profit on Thomas Hobson.
I ordered "Between Earth and Paradise" by Mike Tomkies.
It is about his time on Eilean Shona (not certain that is the correct spelling).
I am going to visit Miss O'Hara tomorrow and have been looking out suitable clothes .
She has a very, very, affectionate pup, whose claws do my trousers no favours at all!
And she spilled a cup of coffee down my shirt.
It will be good fun though!