Monkeys of both kinds

It was all very well having a white Christmas, but we’re now well into January and the the frozen white stuff is still showing no signs of departing.

IMG_1704

You wouldn’t want to go using the hand rail on our deck..

IMG_1697

At least not without thick gloves..

IMG_1687

And the burn that runs by the back of our garden is still frozen over, though some intrepid critters have punched a hole through to the running water below

The brass monkeys might have been wise to stay indoors today, but monkeys of the cheeky variety had good reason to venture outside. It started when Parcel Force finally dropped off a package that the UK Customs Grinches  had been holding for us since before Christmas:

IMG_1651

We paid a lot for Customs to delay our parcel

IMG_1655

I just hope we weren’t charged for the services of a sniffer dog…

IMG_1661

…’cos our two are always happy to do that for free

IMG_1665

Although even a thorough sniffing left Biggles a bit puzzled

Yep our portable lure coursing kit – from Grimner Greyhounds in the States – was finally here. The kit comes with a battery, control switch, four pulleys and about 300 yards of line. It’s amazing how all that fits into such a tiny box.

IMG_1673

Needless to say we had to go out into the garden and give it a try despite the freezing conditions. We didn’t have any deer or rabbit skin to use as the lure, or any of Kevin Rose’s tripe juice, but it turns out that a Tesco value tea towel liberally smothered with the contents of a tin of sardines does just as well.

OK, it was just a short straight line run but still it’s enough to declare a successful test, and Beanie & Biggles both loved it. It’s also worth noting that the sacrifice of the tea towel didn’t hamper our kitchen activities in the least; we have a cache of ’em because the Biggly Boy has a thing about them. Stealing a phrase from the fashion world, you might say that the tea towel is the “new” sock as far as Biggles is concerned.

So, we’ve got our own working lure. All we need now is for the weather to warm up a bit so we can have a few sessions on the beach, though judging by the freezing conditions late this afternoon, that’s not going  to happen any time soon!

IMG_1709

IMG_1730

IMG_1753

Yes, that really is chunks of ice getting washed in by the tide!