It's not procrastination

but as I am sure that I can finish the box by the end of next month – I gave myself a day off. Here is a picture of the completed lid to prove I am well on the way.

As it was lovely and sunny when we woke up, we decided to have a tripette out to Stockbridge Down, National Trust downland with an Iron Age hill fort on top. It was less sunny when we went out after lunch, but still warm enough not to need coats. We had a pleasant walk – fortunately the car park is at the bottom of the hill so we did the climb while we were still fresh and stumbled downhill again at the end. It isn’t really very far but we are old and decrepit!

We did seem to be the only people there without an animal of some sort, canine or equine – apart from what Cheese Major once called a ‘joggler’. [CMa was about three at the time.]

The views from the top of the Down are stunning – this is Danebury Ring, a neighbouring hill fort which recently featured in a TV programme. [You have probably go the impression that Wensleydale and I watch a lot of TV – we don’t, but the programmes we do watch seem to link to places we visit, like Danebury, or would like to visit, like China, Japan, India again, Egypt again …]

Of course I couldn’t come back empty handed so as there was no National Trust shop to spend money in – I acquired these. The star shape is flint. Any bone experts know what animal the bone might have come from? The hill side is riddled with rabbit holes, but it looks a bit big for a rabbit.

No tea shop either – we could have gone into Stockbridge to find one but came home instead, rather than offset the benefits of the walk with tea-shop cake.

Half an hour after we got home the heavens opened –rain, thunder, the full works. It has eased off a bit but it is still raining pretty heavily. Of course it is schools’ half term holiday…

Back to work this evening – I will work on the hand embroidery on the sides of the box while I listen to the TV – or more likely, Radio 3.