Life with Rick & his humans

  Wow—it’s been very hot here in the UK over the last few days! So, Rick’s daily walking routine has been tweaked a bit. He now heads out very early in the morning and again late in the evening. I’m not sure he entirely approves—he does love his routines—but needs must in this heat. Gardening chores now have to be done before coffee because it’s simply too hot after that. I try to grow as much of our own veg and salad crops as possible in summer. Last year’s courgettes were a bit of a disappointment, so I planted a few extras this time around. Well... they’ve gone into overdrive! We’re now playing a daily game of courgette Jenga . I either need some excellent courgette recipes—or a lot of friends willing to adopt some! Meanwhile, today was the big day for our kitchen radiator upgrade. We’d decided to swap out the old one for a stylish anthracite cast iron model. The young plumber arrived bang on time, and I showed him exactly where we wanted it. I’d even carefully marked the flo...

  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 ...

It’s been a busy few days here, with lovely weather and a long list of jobs to tackle before we head off on holiday. Rick, of course, has been right in the thick of it—or at least supervising in his own special way! Rick has been chilling out in the garden, supposedly helping me sort out the lawn and veggie patch. His idea of “help” mostly involves chasing the mower and trying to bite the wheels. When that gets too boring, he drops his ball right in the mower’s path, forcing a quick game of fetch. I'm convinced the lawn now takes twice as long to mow. The spring-planted first early potatoes—Maris Peer—were ready to crop, so that was next on the list. Rick took up his preferred supervisory spot under the apple tree. It’s a strategic location where he can keep an eye on me and stay alert for his arch-nemesis, the postman. We ended up with a pretty good haul! Pro tip: cook way too many and enjoy the leftovers fried with chorizo the next day. You won’t regret it. While I was under ...

  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...

 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...