What the hell is a stile? It's steps or a gate or a ladder that's placed along a right-of-way across farmers' fields (or into farmers' fields) to allow the general public access to the field.
Yesterday, I was walking along a road and saw a sign for a public footpath, just along the side of someone's house. I climbed a stile and was in a field and was very tempted to take the puppy off his lead but (rightly!) decided I had better become more familiar with the field ... there was a herd of cattle at the top of the hill I had to climb to go from one end of the field to the other! I don't know what Sam would be like with cattle (didn't even see if they were male or female - and I was wearing a red jacket), so I'm glad I erred on the side of caution.
I can't rave highly enough about these footpaths (rights-of-way) - they're wonderful and allow for very interesting walks.
My plan is to soon walk over to Pitney (about 2 miles away), meet Gill there (she travels on her scooter), and have lunch at The Halfway House Pub. That should be fun - and the dog will probably be welcome.

Today, I went with my Walking Group on a 4 1/2 mile (note, not km!) walk, ending up at The Riverside Tavern in a village called Creech St. Michael (I had ploughman's lunch - yum, yum). We began with a tour of the 13th century church in the middle of the village (you can see the spire jutting out in the photo - click on the photo and you should obtain an enlargement of it) and then walked along rights-of-way, over stiles, and followed pathways across fields. Actually, there were herds of cows and flocks of sheep in a couple of fields we sauntered across. Fortunately for us, yesterday's heavy rain was spent so that the sun could shine brightly on us while we rambled around in the countryside.
The puppy is persona non grata on these walks so far. Maybe he will be allowed to go sometime in the future.
Yesterday, since it was raining, Gill and I watched a British romantic saga set in Cornwall (on DVD), called 'Poldark'. It was excellent. There were two DVDs - that means several hours of viewing ... and that was only series one. Now, I have to order the second series. I can't wait to see what happens next.
On Saturday night, we had seven dinner guests. It was loads of work but also loads of fun. They were mostly neighbours of Gill's and I had met them all previously a few times.

Who has Richard Prefontaine's e-mail address, for pete's sake???!!! He's the only one missing from my contacts and I would love to include him in my messages. Can anyone help???

Ooooh, I'm in love ... with Wells! What a beautiful medieval market/cathedral town. It's actually a city - England's smallest city. The cathedral there is magnificent. In fact, it's overwhelming in its majesty and architecture. I think Wells will be seeing a lot of me in the future as, not unlike the City of Bath, it's very easy to get around in the core areas.
While in Wells, I bought a lovely red berret (haven't owned one of those in years) and saw quite a few things I wouldn't mind getting at a future date - unfortunately, not a pony (sad :-( ).
I checked on the Internet this morning. Our weather is similar and we're both at -2C. So there we are, both headed toward spring. Woop-te-dooh and tra-la-la.
Gill and I watched Billy Elliot last night. Although we had both seen it before, it was just as pleasant again. Now the idea is to get to see it on stage in London. Anyone interested????
We're planning to have six people in for dinner on Saturday evening and so will be preparing over the next few days. In fact, right after breakfast, I'll trot over to the butcher's and buy a couple of chickens, bring them home, Dr. Gill will slit their throats with her surgical knife, and then we'll both remove the feathers. The entire process will take a mere 15 minutes. Do you believe me? Or would you rather think of me buying chickens that have already been plucked and that are ready to be cooked? We're going to start preparing in advance as it's hard to get everything done on the day itself, as some of you well know.
I've been making my mother's brownies and dreamcake lately. They're so easy to do and never fail to be tasty. If anyone wants the recipes, please let me know.
Oops - time for breakfast. Eat hearty, me lads.

As I was walking around the fields tonight with Sam, I thought it would be nice to introduce you to Somerton. They have a Website at

http://www.somerton.co.uk/history/virtualtour/menu/index.htm

which you may visit. There are some nice shots of the place and you'll have a better idea of the picturesque place in which I am nicely ensconced. I walk by so many of the houses and buildings you will see on the virtual tour. Judi Beaman, Judy Murphy, Joy, and Judi Ryan (all J's!) will recognize some familiar sights.

A bientot tout le monde.

Rambling in the fields and on screen!

Sam had a bath and a good brushing yesterday, so he looks pretty spiffy today. I was soaked from head to toe by the end of the process - and Sam absolutely hated the ordeal, but he's less smelly and certainly a lot more shiny.

Although it continues to be cold to the Brits, it's very manageable weather for me. Early this morning, I donned my hiking boots and took Sam for a ramble across farmers' fields, over stiles and along nice right-of-way paths. It was lovely. Both of us enjoyed it immensely. The area we were walking in is just nicely hilly ... very pretty.

Right now, Gill has a meeting of her flower-arranging committee for the church. I make the coffee and serve it but keep well away from the activities. It's 'not on' for me to be involved in flower arranging and in church activities. However, I must say that the church they meet about is absolutely beautiful, with a carved wooden ceiling and hanging chandeliers that burn real candles. It's very old and dates back to the Normans (I think). It's right in the middle of the town, across from the beautiful town square.

Speaking of churches, I plan to go to Wells tomorrow to walk around Britain's smallest city, visit the cathedral and take in the other sights. My next plan will be to go to Bristol - probably next week - to see a film called Bugs at the Imax theatre there. Has anyone seen it yet?

Toodle-oo for now.