i'm actually having to check my diary to see what's happened since i last blogged... hang on a sec.

i would go on about the rugby and football, but i know it'll get me in trouble with mrs hope. the issue there is that i'm scottish (BSL=pretend to play the bagpipes under your right arm) and mrs hope is english (BSL=hold out your left index finger and stroke it with the tip of your right index finger. odd, yeah, but hey...) and, as a scot, i support scotland and anyone playing england (at anything!). i need ministry for this (quite seriously - it's not something i am able to rationalise) but take time to enjoy the losses of english teams along the way as well.

so, that's background to england losing three tests in new zealand and australia (rugby union) and losing on penalties in the quarter finals of euro 2004 (football). curiously the excuses trotted out by both teams sound remarkably similar, although the reaction of the popular press to the referee of the football match was disappointingly predictable.

well, there's always tiger-tim (at least for another 24 hours anyway!).

our car broke down - the clutch cable snapped to be precise - conveniently when we were about to host a couple from nyc vineyard. it happened as we pulled up at the bus station to pick them up, and was a slight inconvenience to the bus drivers that needed to get out of the station. hey, life happens. it got a temporary fix that night, and a proper one last week. we also put new shocks on the front end, which have improved the handling no end. our mechanic still reckons we should sell it though.

garden update

our sweetcorn is now about a foot and a half high; sunflowers just topping that. neighbours' cats still crapping everywhere.