4th     Went and played in Carlo’s paddling pool today. Norman discovered how to pull a plug out by hooking a fang through a little loop and pulling. I prefer the double-pawed digging method as it splashes more.

8th     Had a few quieter days till now as Kate had vet appointments. Still made band practice though! They are practising hard for my concert and I gently snored my approval.

The farmer has mown the field up the lane and Norman and I have been feasting on mangled mice – a rare delicacy. We both ignored all whistles and yells and entreaties to stop.

Anyway, today Kate had another meeting at her house. I kept watch from the settee to make sure she wasn’t overdoing it. Then we went to the hairdressers and I turned into a yellow Lab until I shook myself down.

9th     Had a nice little ‘stroll’ up Cadyr with Dave in Wales today.

10th     More access audits today – Buntsford Gate Police Post and Redditch Police Station. I behaved impeccably (apart from wanting to gallop up and down the stairs at Redditch even though we were staying on the ground floor) and even met a couple of Dog Wardens (they smelt really good!). Had lunch at Carlo’s and drowned his fluffy chimp in the pool. He let me have a wonderful rope ‘pully-thing’ to take home as he doesn’t play with it. I love it! Kate says it’s for training.

13th/14th     People arrive for meetings both days – usually we would be going somewhere to meet them, but Kate’s energy is low as she’s still not right. I continue with my ‘pull’ ‘fetch’ and ‘touch’ games and can now be relied upon to fetch the paper every morning. I’m quite interested in the post……well, the first couple of pieces anyway. Kate says I will learn to fetch it all much more adeptly with Auntie Rita, Today the largest piece of post was addressed to me – a clean video of Carlo and me splashing in his pool. Sometimes it’s very hard to pick things up – Kate says it’s because I’ve weighted them down with my paw. Sometimes Norman tries to get in on the act too. He says he has been doing it since before I was born, but I don’t believe him as I’ve never seen him do it until I showed him how.

16th/21st     Kate and Gavin have both been attached to their computers typing frantically away trying to beat deadlines. The lines can’t be hard to beat if they’re dead already, but that’s only my opinion. On Sunday I left them to it and went off walking in the gales and sleet of the Brecon Beacons with Dave (managing to ignore sheep and not pull Dave down hills). When I came home, Norman had an attack of the ‘warm fuzzies’ – and I was glad when I realised I’d escaped the dreaded bath! Monday was spent beaming thoughts telepathically to Kate from the comfort of the sunny spot on the sofa (and no wind!) whilst maintaining the outward illusion of being asleep, when really I was being very supportive. I’m also preparing myself for a trip up to Sheffield on Wednesday……..

Paw Note: Big news! I caught a rabbit this evening. I carried it proudly back to Kate and Gavin (Norman was looking daggers at me with jealousy) and then floated past another Lab and Springer Spaniel showing it off. By then it was getting a bit heavy and making my jaw ache so I carefully put him down and let him hop back off into the hedge.

22nd     I love getting up early as it always means something good is going to happen. My tail has a life of its own and it wagged exuberantly all over the place prompting grumpy comments from those in the pack who aren’t as good as getting up as me (that’s everyone else). Anyhow, I was right, something good did happen – I had another training day at Sheffield. I even went and looked at the training centre (rebuilding hasn’t taken place yet, although I know all about building sites of course). There is a tide mark visible both inside and outside and it all smells rather damp still despite all the carpets being removed. They loved my training diary and asked if I would turn it into a blog (which is what you’re reading right now). The best thing, of course, is that on the internet, nobody knows you’re a dog.

We had a walk around Chapeltown (and remembered not to pull) showing off my road-crossing skills. I did goggle at a couple of pigeons – they sound different from those at home. Then we went into Asda. What a delight! Food up to the ceiling and wall to wall! Fantastic smells! When I’ve been playing carols with the band outside supermarkets I wondered what those noisy wire wheely things were for. Now I know! There’s so much food there that you need a wheely thing to put it in because it holds more than a mouth (even one the size of mine).

I decided that if I ever wanted a repeat visit then I’d better be on my best behaviour.

I had my best compliment yet – that I am ‘Norman with Attitude’

23rd     I heard the paper come through the door this morning, but resisted the urge to fetch it until Kate moved and groaned with pain i.e. she had woken up, before I went to fetch it. After all, she can’t give me a gravy bone if she’s asleep, can she?

She says she loves to see me trotting in with the paper as she can see my eyes sparkling over the top. She says that it is preferable to being woken up by a frantic-face-washing (whether I lie on her chest or not). It’s more fulfilling for me too, though I’d hardly say that a single gravy bone fills me full, but it keeps me going until breakfast.

We went to a large and important meeting today. Can’t give you any details here, I’m afraid, partly because it was a closed meeting, but mostly because I was asleep all the way through it. I did make sure that everyone else stayed awake though by having a very loud woofy dream halfway through.

I completely ignored an almost empty tea cup (with crumbs on the saucer) left on the floor near my nose. Somehow, when Kate picked it up, she noticed that two of my hairs had levitated from my body and were floating round in the slops. I just can’t keep track of them all!