Blogging and human kindness.

It was 22 degrees when we went out on our early morning inspection walk - at long last there were clouds this morning tantalisingly holding out the promise of much needed rain. Temperatures that would have graced a really good summers day in Scotland struck me, in the new incarnation here in the olive groves of Italy, as being decidedly chilly. Time to dig out the sweaters.

Digby seems to have bad cuts on the underside of his paws ( despite much thought we can't even begin to imagine where he got them) and lay stretched out immovable on the driveway while Wilf ambled alongside me exuding simple undiluted canine contentment. As top dog Wilf clearly feels that the morning walk justifies and reinforces his position in the pack.The two of them are now asleep under the table in the breakfast room.

You wouldn't know it from reading the blog but we've brought the boyz up in quite a Calvinist way. No getting on the furniture, no begging from the table, waiting until after we've finished eating before being fed and so on. Yesterday, as the 'fonts' car came down the road after three nights away the two of them sat by me watching in absolute, well mannered silence. Wilf did his very best to control his mounting excitement and sat stock still while the car approached, the luggage was unloaded and the font (after what must have seemed like an eternity) finally chose to appear at the garden gate. At that moment any pretence of having well trained dogs disappeared - Wilf let out a high pitched howl of delight ( the really loud embarassing sort that must make non dog owning neighbours think he is being tortured with a cattle prod ) and rose, as if propelled by a huge jet of compressed air, four feet in the air in an entirely natural tongue licking frenzy of welcome. The 'font' puts the warmth of the welcome down to a simple recognition by the boyz that the kitchen is once again in competent hands.

Discovered while reading a book on the Dark Ages that that the word Easter in English comes from the spring festival of the Anglo-Saxon goddess Eostre - whose name was sequestered by early Christian missionaries to Wessex.

The blog is coming up to its 500th post. What is really interesting to me looking at the daily comments is how decent and natural the internet has made us. In responses posted by people quite unknown to me,and frequently half a world away,there is a sense of trust,gentleness and kindness that seems to contradict a cynical world weary wariness .That's an outcome and response to technology I'd never have anticipated when the first post went up last Fall.