Life with Rick & his humans

  Back home and back to the familiar routines. Of course, in true British fashion, we’re being thoroughly dramatic about the weather. Yes, we’re having a heatwave—but honestly, the news coverage makes it sound like we have never seen the sun in Lincolnshire. I mean, thank goodness for the helpful experts reminding us to sit in the shade and drink water . Who knew? Still, we made the most of the sunshine with a quick spin on the bikes. It had to be a short one—we had a busy day ahead—but we stuck to our usual loop out to Waddington, with a little extension for good measure. This took us down a narrow lane flanked by unusually wide verges. So wide, in fact, that the farmer had mown them for hay. Clearly, this was irresistible to a mother sheep and her two lambs, who had taken the opportunity to stage a breakout from the flock and were happily munching away at the roadside buffet. We spotted them up ahead and slowed down. Surely we could just pass quietly and carry on? Of course ...

  Rick’s short seaside holiday has come to a close. We were up bright and early at 4:30, just before sunrise, and headed to the beach for one final stroll along the shore. Unsurprisingly, we had the place entirely to ourselves. Rick made the most of it, tearing about the sand and enjoying an uninterrupted sniff-fest. A peaceful way to say goodbye to the sea before heading back for breakfast. By 6 am, we were packed up and on the road. As expected, the M25 was already waking up, but our early start paid off — the traffic flowed and we made good time. A couple of leg-stretching stops later, we were back home just in time for a lovely lunch in the garden with a chilled glass of Prosecco. What more could you want? Well, maybe a bike ride… but not in this heat! That’ll have to wait for a cooler morning. First things first, I was keen to check on the greenhouse and veg patch. It’s amazing what a few days of sunshine (and a very kind neighbour with a watering can) can do. Everything had...

  Rain Watch and Race Day The weather has been all over the place lately — bursts of sunshine one minute, heavy showers and strong winds the next. Rick isn’t keen on getting wet, so we’ve been carefully watching for dry spells to squeeze in our walks. This morning, Rick was on rain watch from his usual lookout: the leopard print chair by the window. From there, he spotted his pal Barney heading out for a walk with Mick. Five minutes later, the heavens opened — poor Barney, that was going to be one soggy dog on return! Rick on watch We held off a bit, waiting for the skies to brighten, and it turned out to be a smart move. The sun came out, and Rick even helped wheel the bins down. At the bottom of the drive, we bumped into Bouncy Charlie — full of beans as always. He wasn’t moving on until he’d said hello to Rick. Luckily, it went smoothly today; Charlie can be a bit overenthusiastic. We took to the lanes for our walk. The wind was still gusty, sending the clouds racing by ove...

Well, Kat and Craig left us on Saturday to head down to Stafford, where they were camping overnight so Craig could ride in the Inter Services Time Trial. Go Craig!! This was after a bit of drama with their car — the electronic boot got stuck, which triggered the alarm sensor. Naturally, we thought, "The manual will tell us what to do." Err… no. "Google will know." Nope. "AI will sort it!" Still nope. After two hours, panic was definitely creeping in. But then — what’s the first rule of IT? “Have you tried turning it off and on again?” A car? Really? Yep — we disconnected the battery and then reconnected it. Everything reset, and bingo, problem solved. Meanwhile, Sarah and Andrew set off to pick up a turbo trainer to complete the pain cave at Andrew’s place. Then they were off to climb the Alpe de Zwift. Good luck, guys — I’m definitely not coming along for that one! Pain Cave picture by Andrew Now that the pack had dispersed, Rick settled happ...

 Kat and Craig arrived last night and are staying with us until Saturday morning. Rick, of course, was beside himself with excitement. Whenever we have visitors, he charges around the house at full speed, rummaging through his toy stash to show off his favourite. This time it was Mr Badger — a soft toy with a weighted head that Rick flings with surprising force and enthusiasm. It tends to land in the most unexpected places, making indoor navigation something of a contact sport. Hard hats may be advisable in future. I had the lunchtime walkies shift today, and we had a bit of sunshine. We suspected the overnight rain might have filled the Beck, but it was bone dry — not a drop more than usual. The village was a little busier than normal, with a few vans around. Rick is not a fan of vans, motorcycles, or surprise cyclists, and tends to make sudden manoeuvres when he spots one. He can pick out the postman’s red van from an uncanny distance. We had to take a tactical detour to avoid a...

  Rick was not happy this morning. It was raining — proper rain — but he still had to take his human (that’s me) out for our daily walk. Rick had his red coat on, while I sported my blue rain jacket and baseball cap to keep the rain off my glasses. We made our usual check of the beck to see if the water was flowing again. Still not much in there, so no paddling today. In the distance we spotted Bouncy Charlie, the ever-cheerful golden retriever, and gave a wave. No other doggie or human friends were out braving the downpour. Back home, it was time for breakfast. Sue gave Rick a good rub down to get him dry and warm again — he loves that bit of pampering. Later today, Kat and her husband Craig are due for a visit, so we’ve got bedrooms to make up and a bit of tidying to do. The whole family loves riding bikes and racing. I’m into Zwift and today was team time trial day. I joined the crew at 10am for a tough race around virtual London — complete with a huge climb. We did okay, bu...