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Hi, Rusty!
I have just finished my Sunday night hour- long chat with my cousin.
She has been having similar weather in Blackburn to us here, "April" showers and then periods of bright sunshine.
Like you, we had a fine evening earlier on, but now it is raining.
My cat is still very suspicious, and trying to find out from whence the bird noises came!
Nothing planned for tomorrow other than walking the dog, and "tidying up"!
How about you?
Right..........time for a coffee and a shortcake biscuit......

Hello, Elle!
Your cat would like the app I downloaded from Google store.
"Nature Sounds".
It has birdsong etc on it.
My only plan for tomorrow is to buy red lentils.
Lydia has started her round and has a four shot lead, now.
Fingers crossed for her.

Good morning, Rusty!
What a storm we had last night! I guess that was a visitation from Storm Katie? She certainly made her presence felt!
The wind howled...and the rain lashed against the windows!
I feared for our huge copper beech tree!
Not very pleasant out this morning either!
What sort of weather are you having? Did "Katie" visit you?
No plans ...other than to do a few chores..... and the crosswords....and another walk later ......
I have received three xwords from my friend this morning!
How is Lydia doing?

Good Morning Elle and Rusty,

Pretty windy here too ! Katie is making her presence felt and the rain if flying almost horizontally; yet 10mns ago, there was sunshine !

Just had a peep at the Osprey, and it looks quite wild there as well - I can hear the wind howling away; Lassie seemed busy organising some moss around to make the nest nice and warm; it seems enormous compared to my little tit's nest !

Good morning, Elle!
Katie seems to haved missed me, but i was out and about earlier (drove to cemetery etc) and noticed some branches down. Maybe I slept through it.
It is a lovely morning here and no wind to speak of.
Lydia won, Inbee Park (who I feared) was second.
Think Lydia is taking driving lessons.
The tournament was sponsored by Kia and a car was part of the prize.
Bad news in the cycling world.
A rider killed yesterday in Gent-Wevelgem race.
He was in a group that crashed, then got hit by a motor-bike.
My chores are all done.
Not looked at a paper yet, or checked up on Lassie and Laddie!

Good morning, Pigale!
I have not looked in on the ospreys yet today.
Been out and about.
Seems to be a few of our shops closed?
Time for a coffee and plan the rest of my day.
Hope Katie is calming down for you!

Hi Rusty,

Here, all shops and businesses are closed today - Easter Monday is the most important of the three days period (4 days for you since Good Friday is a day off).

I think we are just getting the edge of Katie here, inland, but the Brittany/Normandy etc are getting the brunt of it. It must be really wild there, I remember how blowy it can get from my years living in Alderney and Guernsey.

Hi, Rusty!
Our wind is beginning to die down, and the rain has ceased - the sun is just - rather dubiously - poking his head out!
Last time I went over to the crematorium/ cemetery, there was quite a lot of devastation caused by the high winds.
Some of our plant pots were smashed - and the plants had subsequently died.
That is awful news about the cyclist being killed - it is such a dangerous sport!
Was it by one of the motorbikes touring alongside? I thought they were supposed to go very slowly?
Well done, Lydia! how nice to win a car as part of the prize!
(So what amount of money does the prize total, then?)
I have done two of my four crosswords - today's GK and the QC.
How about this one?
10A: A word we hear in a German accent? So it's alleged (7)
P. S. Chores not startted yet!!!!!



Hello, Pigale!
Our storm is dying out a little. It wasn't nice out early this morning!
"Lassie" was busily rearranging her moss when I looked in!
She would move it from one part of the nest to the other.......maybe much as we might move our sofa to a more favourable position?!

Hello, Elle!
Hope the winds are dying!
Great day here.
I do not know the prize money in ladies golf but it is a lot less than the men.
In NZ Lydia's earnings are way behind the male golfers.
Yes, bad about the cyclist.
The race was not covered on Eurosport, surprisingly.
So, I only know what has been reported, and what Cancellara has Tweeted.
Frankly, I am astonished there are not more crashes with motor bikes mingling with the riders.
It can be dangerous!

Hello, Pigale!
Seems a bit breezy at Lassie's nest in the pine tree!
Much moving of sticks going on.
There is a piece in my local paper today saying that blue tits have been stealing the furry material covering the microphone on the webcam! Great for lining cosy nests!
The mike has now been replaced by some of the volunteers, though, and all OK now!
Hope Katie has left your area!

Hello again Rusty,

The last dog I had was a (very white) Golden Retriever - beautiful, tall and rather impressive when he stood on is hind legs; he was taller than me by almost his whole head !

Anyway, he used to lose his winter coat by packets and we used to see birds coming on the terrace to pick them up. Whenever I saw empty small nests in the hedges, I was amazed at the quantity of dog hair there was intermingled with twigs and moss !

Was lucky earlier on - saw both Laddie and Lassie in the nest !

Good afternoon, Rusty!
It is a glorious day here, too, now!
We have been out walking this afternoon, but goodness, what a lot of damage has been done by "Katie".
We have seen four huge trees down.....two in their entirety, completely uprooted... and the others split down the middle, with parts littering the ground.
One tree lies across part way across a main road.... no sign yet of the cavalry!......and so many huge and jagged branches down everywhere........
Fortunately so far as I know, there have been no local casualties.
I have been looking in on the ospreys, Lassie is being very vocal - to the cat's puzzlement; he still hasn't sussed it out - and is giving herself a good groom.
It will be lovely when the chicks come, won't it?
Did you do the (quasi)homophone I sent you?
(I doubt you would like it!)
Any more Sport to watch today?