`30/5/25

This place can be incredibly busy at times. Humans are going about their day in all directions.  Some days, this makes me dizzy, and I thought these two humans had retired. Yesterday, the Mistress shoved me in bubble wrap, then towels, and into a bag. I dislike her doing this to me, as I would like to sit and watch where we are going. It's very claustrophobic in there, and nothing for me to see. This makes me recall the massive trauma I went through when she left me in Waimate, and that friend of hers put me in a box and sent me with the courier back home. She didn't tell me how many days this would take, and I was thrown around in that horrible van. But mighty pleased to have the Mistress open the box, and out I popped.  

We are house-sitting at Doyleston. His Lordship's brother and sister-in-law were off to Italy for their brother's wedding and needed someone to care for the horses, chickens, cat, and roosters. I had never heard of such a place, and I was excited to see if they had any Gnomes. Checking out these chooks from my position on the table and looking out the window is rather interesting. Those roosters make a heck of a noise all hours of the day and night. They like getting in when the gate is left open. 

I went outside yesterday while the humans were out and explored this place.  I needed some mates to hang out with, as there is so much to explore around here. There's no sign of any Gnomes around here, and no neighbors either. Being a small lifestyle block, there is enough for them to keep occupied. So, what am I to do with no mates? This cat is not much fun either. He zips in and out at a fast pace and never settles anywhere. He meows a lot too. Quite a friendly thing. Smooches around these humans when he's inside. He has 3 beds on the floor and never sleeps in any of them.

Outside, I had to be very careful of little piles of dung all over the place, as these chooks have free range and go anywhere they like. The Mistress isn't at all amused with these little piles at all, as a chook did its business against one of her bags on the patio. This poor human had the job of cleaning it up. She is not accustomed to this type of living, as she usually is a city dweller, and finds it impossible to adapt to country life. This might be a long process of getting back to the caravan. She hasn't advised me on how long we will be here, but my gut feeling is that it will be quite a while. 

Another interesting thing I have observed while exploring this house during the night, as they slept. There is a peculiar heating system here, and it was pretty warm upon our arrival. The Mistress immediately went over to investigate and put a log of wood in it. She informs me it is a log burner and heats the whole house. His Lordship stoked the fire up when they went to bed, and it stayed going all night. This is the first time I have laid eyes on such a thingumajig.

They took me to meet these 6 horses. It took some encouragement for them to come to the fence; they too looked at me, rolled those big eyes, and then had the cheek to sniff me out. What a cheek. I would stay away from those big hoofs, as I could be squashed very quickly. The Mistress had some carrots in her pocket and gave them to the horses. They wondered what on earth these were for. She doubts they have seen them before. What would it be like to ride a horse? I will drop a hint and see what happens. 

Moving on to check out these very noisy roosters, met with silence. What do these creatures do, I ask? They are protectors of their flock, fertilizing eggs to allow for the hatching of new chicks, and leaders in protecting the hens from predators by alerting them to danger.

They stood still, ready to pounce on me if the need arose. Hmm, I shall watch from a distance. I could become their dinner.

This resident cat has three of these beds, and I have not seen him in any of them.