A Near Miss and a Surprise Hit

Poor DiL’s been in the wars since leaving us last week. He was pootling around on his allotment on Monday when he decided to lift a piece of old carpet, inadvertently disturbing a wasp nest. In the mayhem that ensued DiL was stung repeatedly on the head and face. No one else was about, but somehow DiL managed to grab a garden hose and turn it on himself until the wasps had had enough. He then drove himself the short distance home where a horrified MiL, who doesn’t drive, summoned a friend and got him off to hospital. Fortunately DiL’s not allergic to wasp stings and various pills and potions have patched him up, but it’s one of those incidents that has shaken us up too and made us appreciate – even when their undercrackers turn up in unexpected places – how very precious our loved ones are.

Ma’s been having an exciting time too, although her experiences have been rather more positive than DiL’s. My brother-in-law whisked my sister off to Venice for a long weekend to celebrate their silver wedding anniversary (well done, you two!) leaving my nieces, aged 10 & 12, with Ma. Not being close enough to pop in, I started ringing every day to make sure they were all coping. Well, I don’t know about my nieces, but Ma’s had a lovely time, with Izzy (12) getting her on the internet, showing her how to book cinema tickets, telling her where the best seats are and persuading her to buy a Chinese takeaway on the way home.
‘What did you see? Toy Story 3?’ I ask Izzy.
‘No, KitKat (my nickname),’ she says with contempt. ‘That’s for little kids. We saw The Karate Kid.’
‘And very good it was too,’ says Ma, in the background.
Hmm, if my mother turns in to a junk food, junk film addict I shall know who to blame.

Painting is 'Sunset - Bardsey' by Tom Tomos