The happy frog

A more relaxed and homely day today - I only went out to take Alex to Orton Pit and collect him again - and he had a short day too, as the site manager is on holiday!

Most of the day has been spent pottering. I put two coats of paint on the remaining walls in the kitchen. Fortunately I like the colour - a soft turquoise blue called 'water'. And then I filled in the calendar with all my known commitments so that I can start planning where everything else will fit. I also spent a little time in the garden measuring boundaries. Our fences are all in various states of collapse, and unfortunately we're responsible for the two longest boundaries of our triangular garden. I think we'll have to have a planned programme of replacement over the next 4-5 years.

The frogs have now laid their first clump of spawn, but for the second year running the numbers are right down, a consequence of the drought and the very cold winter, especially 2010-11 when many froze to death. It's unfortunate that the heron still sees tham as a prime food resource, and we've found a number of attacked corpses around the garden. But at least this one looks happy!!

The Frog
BY HILAIRE BELLOC

Be kind and tender to the Frog,
And do not call him names,
As 'Slimy skin,' or 'Polly-wog,'
Or likewise 'Ugly James,'
Or 'Gape-a-grin,' or 'Toad-gone-wrong,'
Or 'Billy Bandy-knees':
The Frog is justly sensitive
To epithets like these.
No animal will more repay
A treatment kind and fair;
At least so lonely people say
Who keep a frog (and, by the way,
They are extremely rare).

We keep toads as pets - does that count??