Scavengers

It is a stunning day today – a real shame that Mr L is at his desk and not either fitting windows or away in the van. It’s still and sunny – this of course means that my washing is on the line but not blowing, and also the garden is full of midges.

Monday is rubbish collection day. We are not permitted bins and must use poly sacks. These have to be out at the gate by, I think, 07:30. This was no too bad when the lorry came round at 08:30, but he appears to be coming by mid-morning now. We have noticed over the last few weeks that our carefully tied rubbish bags have been infiltrated and each week we have needed to go out and pick up the rubbish strewn across the verge.

For a while, I blamed Nell. She’s never sated. The dogs always come to the gate with me when I put the rubbish out. It’s a weekly treat that they look forward to. Obviously they know that the bags are there. I wondered if when they went out after breakfast they were raiding the bags, although they normally observe the rule that they do not go out of the gate without permission.

Eventually we began to surmise that we had a rat problem so today we stashed the bags on top of the stone dyke. That’ll fool ’em, we thought. Maybe, had the problem been the rats that live along the beach, it may have done so.

I have just been out to hang some washing and noticed a Raven sitting on top of my bin bags. He had friends and they were squabbling over a chicken carcase.

Blighters.

The thing is… what do we do to stop them? As I understand it, once a member of the Crow family has learned a lesson it does not unlearn it.

If I delay putting the bags out until 10:30, the collection is sure to come by at 08:30 and I’ll be left with my rubbish for an extra week. We could use a wooden “hide” to fasten the bags in until they are collected but it would have to be  a mighty sturdy construction to survive the elements right by the sea there. It would most likely end up on Fair Isle.

Ideas?

Washing’s out, dishwasher is loaded, washed, emptied and reloaded, lunch is simmering – not bad for someone who had scarcely a wink of sleep and is barely functioning today. I’m making a simple lunch,  one of Mr L’s favourites: mince, tatties and peas. I normally serve it up in a Yorkshire Pudding for him but the ladies are providing no bounty at present – so no Yorkies. I am making a cobbler of it instead, by topping with tasty herb dumplings and then baking.

It’s time that I found Morgana’s wheels and prepared her for an outing to Spinning Group.

Oh, yes – Hugo made lots of progress last night as mindless knitting was all that I could cope with, a 3 day migraine having escalated to a very nasty crescendo by then. I have overnight been formulating a new plan for my knitting. I may not knit for the Show this year. I may just concentrate on my UFOs and knit up all the half-finished garments. I have the feeling that I want to be wearing them.