I started doing this diary in June, it's quite new. If you haven't been following have a look at the Cast of Characters which gives a quick low down on the essential day to day characters who are mentioned here...it will make more sense if you do.

First thing I noticed was the horses had busted out again, this time they had barged the staple that held the hook closed out of the post. Obviously not strong enough but I was going into town anyway so I could just buy something that I can bolt on. I had a lunchtime appointment to meet up with Vicky, a student in the local university who I've been corresponding with by e-mail for months now. Despite the fact that I'm often in town and that I'm very obvious (there's certainly no other blue hooks in Lampeter, if anywhere for that matter) we had never bumped into each other and decided to finally meet over egg and chips in the New Bridge Cafe. An added reason for this meeting was that I had circitoutosly been asked if I could do a redesign on the masthead for a newsetter they produce called Absolutely Campus. I forgot to ask her if she was on real world time or Welsh time (about 1 1/2 hrs behind everyone else) but fortunately she was there when I arrived, a real-world-time person obviously. Vicky was remarkably mature for a 19 year old, I do not seem to remember being like that when I was that age, but then I was an art student so that's different (or that's my excuse). After the lunch and clutching my back issues of Absolutely Campus I went off to the hardware store to buy a better bit of post furniture. Strangely enough they didn't have such a thing and suggested I go to the local blacksmith. Walked down to the blacksmith's and explained the problem and what I wanted and he said he would make me up a couple of bolt-on plates and I could come back for them in an hour. I wished then that I'd done that before I went for lunch because by the end of an hour I'd bought a pair of dungarees, a sledge hammer, two spanners, three cds and packet of super-ultra-maxi nightimes because I am mysteriously bleeding again, after only 18 days. Blacksmith was finished when I got there and charged me only £2 which I though was a bargain actually.

Clare was on the answering machine when I got back and without a car so I went over to collect her and brought her back here. We put the new fastner on the post and then, because that had been so easy thought we would tackle another job in the field. There was an old harrow lying buried at the edge of the field and although it was 90% under the ground it could easily have become a hazard. That was quite a tough job involving pulling clumps of roots from the top of it and yanking up the chains. I dread to think how much that thing weighed, probably about as much as both of us together but we did get it out of the ground, dissasembled and removed from the field...somehow.

We have a new target time for dinner...7.00pm so by the time we had finished with the harrow dinner was ready. After we ate Clare and Looey took the horses out for a walk and I went to look at the back issues of Absolutely Campus and read my copy of Step Forward, the newsletter put out by the Limbless Association which had arrived this morning. I was just falling asleep with it when Clare came back, limping badly. Princess had bolted with her and rather than let go she had clung on until she flew, and then hit the ground. So now she's got a very sore leg. When Princess bolted with me I knew that I had to just let go, that I didn't have the strength or size to stop her, where I was stupid was in having my hook through the halter which meant I couldn't let go....but Clare was stupid in trying to hang on. We were both stupid...just in different ways. She was meant to be borrowing my car tonight and tommorow but after a bath and ministration of various forms of arnica she has been persuaded to stay the night. She reckons she might go gardening tommorow but I've got other thoughts on the subject. I was just showing Clare some stuff on the computer when Looey came round clutching halters and said the horses were out. I had already noticed they were out of the field, having now learned to open the hook fastner but she meant they were out in the garden, I hadn't realised that they did not close the gate from the orchard to the garden. Nor were they easy to catch, being rather delighted at having got into a place where they never usually get to go but I did manage to get Princess and hauled her back to the field, Nelly eventually followed her up. So now they are back in again and the fastner is tied down with string but I think I'm going to be back at the Blacksmith's again tommorow to get a different fastner, the challenge being to find something that I can open but they can't. I think I'm going to subtitle this 'And are the horses going to stay in the field today?' Hmmm, we'll see.

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