If it’s been quiet around here for the last few weeks, it’s because life has been somewhat up-ended by the arrival of another daughter into the Hedgewalker’s household. We are all adjusting to the idea, new daughter included and – not unexpectedly – it has meant that the time available for shooting-related activities has been vastly reduced. In fact, once again, I find that I haven’t managed to get into the fields for nearly a month!
What spare time I have had between attempting to hold down a regular job on insufficient sleep and being useful to the lady of the house has been taken up by with decorating and organising the reconstruction of our lounge, which I believe I’ve mentioned was damaged by flooding towards the end of last year. This puts pursuits such as testing .410 loadings and reloading out to pasture for the foreseeable future, I’m afraid.
Whilst the necessity of doing the work has proved to be a welcome distraction from nappy-changing and an occasionally-irate and similarly sleep-deprived wife, not to mention the positive effect it’s had on my collection of power tools (never underestimate the value of a 100% genuine, fully-justifiable reason for going out and buying all of those man-tools you always fancied acquiring!), it does add, somewhat, to the overall strain of life.
Things will no doubt get much easier soon, as the bathroom repairs get underway next week and the lounge redecoration progresses. The plumbers have advised us that having children in the house next week would probably be difficult so my wife is taking them all to visit her parents whilst I stay to hold the fort. I might even get out shooting with a bit of luck.
Finally: reader, if anyone ever tries to persuade you that it’s a good idea to cut chases for cables in a plaster wall using an angle grinder, disbelieve them.. With a diamond disc, my machine cut through the walls like a red-hot samurai sword through warm margarine, but the dust… Oh, the dust!