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Hello, Elle!
Lots of students have part time jobs.
Which, I suppose, is good in a way as they gain more experience of other kinds of work.
I think one of the best things young ones can do, is learn to drive.
And even better if a gran or granddad pays for the lessons.
I think the free Uni tuition up here is a good thing.
Education is very important (says he who escaped school at 15!).
Your cousin and me both with the bad weather, I see!
Our forecast for the next few days is quite good, though.

Hi, Rusty!
Yes, I agree with you that education is important, but I think its meaning encompasses more than just an academic qualification.
A good education should successfully turn out a well -rounded individual, who has developed fully to the best of his or her potential, in all fields, and is well able to think for his /her self, and hold his /her own place in life.
It is not just a question of "formal schooling", but also learning from/ through experience.
There - one of my hobby horses!
We have an appointment at the vets in the morning for the dog's anal glands check!
She will love that!

Hello, Elle!
Your hobby horse sounds fine to me.
I had to look up "well rounded".
I did not think you meant "fat"!
Hope your dog gets a good report from the vet in the morning.
I've no plans for tomorrow.
Will just see what the day brings forth!

Hi elle
Arachne in Th Guardian today!
https://www.theguardian.com/crosswords/cryptic/27646

Good Morning, Rusty!
Lovely sunshine here, but cold!
A great walk....... and then straight to the vets!
All is well...dog's anal glands were duly expressed and dog is now quite happy!
I am a tad behind times.......
I missed my early morning coffee, and apple and cheese, so will go and rectify that.......
I hope your weather is better today?



Thank you, Chris!
I shall print out the crossword and have a go at it later!

Good morning, Elle!
Yes, a fine crisp morning here!
Good the vet visit went well!
I timed my trip to ASDA to perfection.
Lots of lovely smells from the bakery department.
So, I fell for some glazed doughnuts.
Very nice they were!

Hi, Rusty!
The vet's visit was very nearly a disaster, though!
Our own vet is away on holiday and not due back till towards the end of November, so we were down to see a substitute.
Imagine my horror, when this turned out to be the dog's bete noir...... a young Greek vet whom my dog absolutely hates!
(And usually, she likes everybody!)
In the interests of the vet's safety, and my own sanity , I had to refuse to see him!
Instead we saw a very nice young female locum, with whom the dog bonded instantly!
So all was well in the end!
I have done a few minor household chores since coming home.......and now I have the rest of the day to myself!
I am about to take a look at today's crosswords......
Have you done yours yet?

Good afternoon, Elle!
Your vet visit went well eventually, that's what is important.
The dog is fine, and now you will have a clear mind as you get stuck into the book sorting out.
I finished my puzzle earlier, Elle.
Just home. I was out for a brisk walk for half an hour.
It is not warm out!

Good afternoon, Rusty!
No, it is not warm here, either!
But at least the sun and the blue sky offer up a good psychological effect!
I have finished today's Times Cryptic puzzle!
It seems a very straight forward one?
The definitions were easy to get, and I mostly did the parsing afterwards.
Apart , that is, from "hooch", "barsac" and "lancejack", where I had to rely on the parsing to provide the answers, as they were all words that were new to me.
As usual, I had trouble with the Spoonerism!
I have "drillhole" = "result of boring", and it took me ages to realise that the spoonerism must be "hill drole"....
But I do not pronounce "droll" ("amusing" in clue) like "drole"?
I say "droll" rather like "doll" without the "r"?
I looked up a vocal pronunciation on Google......
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-0BvR9F9cM
What do you reckon?

Hello, Elle!
I feel sorry for poor old Spooner being linked to such an awful Spoonerism!
Took me ages to try and work out what it was!
I would say droll rhyming with hole.
It is a lovely day here now.
The kindly folks at Screwfix have sent me a voucher for £10 off my next purchase there!
Very nice of them!