Laden

There's always a feeling of sadness and emptiness when a welcomed guest leaves, and life returns to its everyday routine.

And so it was when our cycling friend left this morning to continue his travels up north with his temporary home, all 57lbs of it, stowed front and aft on his bike.
I hope the weather holds for him as he has already battled atrocious conditions throughout England, with rain, wind and flooded roads.

Having only cycled with back panniers, I can't imagine how heavy it must feel to have front ones attached with a tent strapped on as well. Strength is everything.

You can see why a fireman's lift would have posed no problem to him had my Chinese lantern set the homestead on fire in the small hours of yesterday.

With his Lordship now safely ensconced behind his Door, I'm free to get to grips with making soup for Poppy's arrival tomorrow. We have three months of gossip to exchange free of any male interruptions as 'Postie' is not coming and his Lordship will be communing with the sheep near Biggar.

Bring it on!