A Year of Much Bickering by Jane Ayres

  SOME LIKE IT HOT IN MUCH BICKERING      JELLY BABIES AND A RABBIT Nanny’s niece phoned. She told me they have moved her into residential care near Newton Abbot. She’s been getting increasingly confused and has had a several falls, and the family can’t cope any more. I’m sure it’s for the best and about time she was looked after properly. I hope she got the Easter card I sent. She hasn’t replied to my last few letters.   Anyway, I thought  I would pop down to on the train and drop in some Christmas cheer in the shape of a lace hankie and bottle of 4711 and have a chin wag. Nanny is always pleased to see me and knows the right thing to say when I’m  feeling low, and let’s face it, who isn’t after the election? I’m terribly worried that Alyona will have to go back to Estonia after we leave the EU and we’ll never find someone to replace her…not at minimum wage anyway. Maybe Nanny would know  somebody suitable. The ‘home’ is quite near the station, so if 

HAPPY THANKSGIVING   A PERFORMANCE AND A PARTY Rehearsals for ‘War Horse, the Musical’ moved into the final furlong with Stubbins taking his part very seriously. I caught him cantering around the sunken garden, whinnying, and I knew we would get no sense from him until the wretched production was over. According to Cook he has been insisting on apples and oatmeal for breakfast instead of a fry up. If he really wants to sleep in the stables with Zim-Zam the pony I suppose it harms nobody, but in my opinion that is taking method acting a little too far. However, he returned from the dress rehearsal looking very pleased with himself and told us that every performance was a sell out. Luckily, I had bought tickets in advance  and  the Trehorlicks family filled the front row at the village Hall, and even Granny T came along wearing her pony club scarf.  The lights went down, and on to the stage trotted Stubbins and Mr Hobbs…not in that order, obviously.  All those rehearsals