Seal Wrestling

Ok, I lie, it wasn't a seal, it was my bulldog Gertrude. But trying to hold her down whilst waving a small bottle of eyedrops in the general vicinity of her eye is no mean feat. Gert, being a wise old lady now, has got wise to the stealth approach, and only seems to sleep on her side with her good eye showing. She is also a lot more vocal now, I dread to think what the translation would be of her growling.
Yet another trip to the vet this morning, to get her eye checked, and her trauma starts before she even gets onto the vets examination table. I think it all stems back to the time a thermometer was inserted into her nether area, (a traumatic event by anyones standard). She now has to sit on my lap whilst we wait, nothing strange there I hear you say. Now imagine 4 stone of quivering bulldog on your lap, complete with whining noises, and you can see why the whole episode is such an upheavel to her normal routine.
I think she was actually pleased last weekend when Paul & I were at Tewkesbury show, as it gave her chance to catch up on her sleep!
We had a really good show, and it was nice to talk to so many people, who were interested in Ochre & Ocre, We also met some other interesting exhibitors. Marc from Riverford organic food boxes was one of those genuinely nice, down to earth people. The fruit and veg he had on display looked fantastic, and with prices cheaper than supermarkets you can see why they are so popular.
There were some lovely local cheeses, our favourite was the lovely blue veined brie from Simon Weaver organic.
With over 7000 tickets presold for the James Martin cookery demonstration, there was no chance of seeing the man himself, although I did sneak off the stand for a while to hear Ben Axford talking about cheese and wine tasting. He certainly knows his cheese, and I picked up some interesting tips. Did you know that mature cheddar actually goes really well cider!
We were in the craft section, and we also met some really nice people there too. If you are ever near Tewkesbury why not make a detour to Conderton Pottery, Toff Milway was a great character, and he certainly knows his pots.
Our next show is going to be a long one, 5 days at the NEC, at the Good Food Show. I'm glad to have a few weekends off before then!