spotty pigs

The Man is in Wales at the moment at some kind of farming event. He is learning how to grow organic vegetables and looking at livestock to buy for the land behind his B&B. He is particularly fond of Gloucester Old Spot pigs but over the weekend, he found a breed that is even cuter and e-mailed me a picture this morning, which really made me smile. They are called Oxford Sandy Blacks (or something similar). They look adorable, though I have to admit - stop reading now if you are an animal lover - that my first thought was what a fabulous pair of shoes you could make with those wonderful spotted hides. Only joking! (And anyway, I already own a pair of Prada shoes in an almost identical print.)

While he has been shopping for piglets, I have been very industrious here in the Poitou-Charente. Over the weekend, apart from attending a flamenco concert with my French friends Francoise and Henri (a whole other story) I have been working non-stop on my novel and now have 30,000 words - nearly half way through. Only another 45,000 to go!