Aberystwyth Pier

Backblipped on 18th April 2012

So, the morning dawned when we were due to go away for our mini-holiday in Aberystwyth, where we go each spring, to stare at the sea, blow away the winter cobwebs, and recharge our batteries.

There was a worry though, Charlie was still poorly. What to do? Quandry? I rang the vet surgery, and waited for the vet on duty to finish consultations and phone me back. In the meantime we got on with packing, ate breakfast, set the "video recorder" (actually a hard disc drive since we went digital), and then I spoke to the vet.

I explained my predicament, my worry, and how we had no family nearby, nor anyone who could be called on to nurse a sick rat, but how we desperately needed a break. I think I was semi-hysterical with it all by this point.

The vet, bless him, simply said it was easy - he could come in, stay in the hospital as an inpatient, and they'd care for him. It was arranged that he wouldn't go alone, since that would probably stress him more than staying at home, so I prepared a cage into which I put Charlie, Jeremiah, and Valiant.

My logic ran thus: can't send Moses because he's the alpha and there'd be a power vacuum. Can't send George, Henry or Elijah because they're far too big - one big rat in the hospital cage is quite enough. Won't send Vulcan or Obadiah because they're quite shy and might get stressed. Isaiah is massively into bar climbing, so would hate a smaller cage. IV-XL will want to stay with Henry (blues together), Victor will want to stay with Vulcan (blacks together), Norman and Stanley are still young and settling in so don't want to disturb them.

Thus, the decision was made for Jeremiah and Valiant, who aren't fully grown yet, but are both confident and happy little chaps.

We whizzed round to the vets, who assured me they'd look after the three little lovelies, and then went home to finish packing.

It was a lovely drive to the coast. I was much happier knowing that Charlie was in the vet hospital than I would have been if I'd left him at home. We'd had a little lunch before we left, so didn't need to stop. We had enough petrol, since I'd filled up the day before the government decided to cause a crisis all by themselves.

We got to our usual home from home in the late part of the afternoon, went up to our room (on the top floor - lots of stairs, but an amazing view over the sea), had a cup of tea, and then went for a walk along the sea front.

The stresses of the last few weeks started, finally, to recede!

We LOVE Aberystwyth. Its magic draws us back year after year, to the same hotel, and the same room.

This year we had a new bath! Very nice!

And, we noticed with considerable pleasure, I was considerably fitter than last year. Last year I had to stop on the stairs on the way up to our room, at least once, and sometimes twice. This year I bounded up them in one go, like a little spring lamb!

THAT'S what losing a stone and a half and doing a few months of hard physical work and cage shifting does! I'm still fairly overweight, but now so much fitter that life is a lot easier. Just need to lose the extra ounces now and then it'll be "watch out world"!!!

Tonight, however, the world was safe, because I was tucked up safely with a jacket potato and a glass of wine, watching the waves crashing onto the shore, then falling asleep to the sound of the sea!

"I wish we had a sea front and sea at home" I said to the Wonderspouse.
"Not sure where we'd put it" was his response!!