Lester cleans up, and we have a practice.

The snake: (continued from yesterday's post).

That pile of fence posts into which the snake had gone, and which had been cluttering up the courtyard since they were rescued from the flood waters last year, have been moved. I have been wanting that untidy pile to be shifted for a long time, and it took the fright of the snake to get Lester to get the job done. 

So in the foreground is the where the pile was, and in the background, the doors to the half barn, which is where we sleep. The snake was over by the step. If it had been of a mind to do so, it would have been quicker for it to have taken shelter inside the barn rather than slither the over to the wood pile. 

Apparently the snake was a whip snake, and non poisonous. Lester said that it still gave him a fright, and that he didn't care what sort of snake it was, it was horrid (or words to that effect).

Anyway, a pile of stuff got shifted out of the courtyard, which is a good thing. The snake is probably still in the courtyard though. We are being watchful.

All the chickens went up the tree last night, and it took ages for Lester to get them down again. He thought that the snake was probably in their hut, and that they had taken fright. But he manhandled them back into the hut. We don't want to lose any more hens to the foxes. 

Went to church this morning in Mazeres, a little village just down the lane. I play my keyboard so the people can sing to live music rather than taped. It is an English service, held once a month. I don't join in with the words of the service, but use the time in between the hymns to go into a zone of calmness. Lester says that he has been watching internet videos about the way that gardening, particularly veggie gardening, can also put one 'into the zone'. He says that he wants to achieve this state of being. A friend asked if those gardeners were growing any particular type of veggie, such as 'pot', which would account for them being 'in the zone'. Lester said that he thought not, but would investigate further, but not by 'doing' pot, but by re-watching the vids. I await with interest the outcome. Lester says it is the hard work of veg plotting that results in the zone arriving. I await with interest to see how long the zone takes to arrive for him. 

Just had a long practice on the keyboard. Finally got Lester to have a practice with me,  because we have a little gig coming up tomorrow afternoon, and we really do need to get some tunes into a better state of being. We are playing at Mazeres village fete, during the community lunch, which should be accompanied by plenty of wine. That should help everyone to loosen up. We are also having the lunch. So we should also be loosened up. Which should improve our playing enormously. I hope. There is, I feel, still much room for improvement.

Have invested in band equipment though.... speakers, a mixer, and microphones. It would seem that the band is to go forward, no matter how well, or not, that we do tomorrow. 

I am singing three songs. I have never sung solo before, unless it has been with a choir, and then it has only been a line here and there. I am singing, but also playing the keyboard at the same time. My tummy already feels nervous. But I do have this deep rooted amazement that I am doing this at the age of 67. 

I think it is nice to be amazed by the antics one gets up to. 

I think it is nice to surprise one's self. 

I think it is fabbo to live a life which is taking on a vaguely eccentric tone.

Hope you are still able to surprise yourself by being yourself.

Vx

PS. Dead mice at the bottom of the laundry basket, which have hitherto gone un-noticed, provides the elusive, much thought about, reason as to why one's undies waiting to be washed have suddenly taken on an unusually exceptional pong. 

The dead mice was found.

It had been dead quite some time. 

The pong had been going of for quite some time as well.