Juggling life through a bi-polar lens. Sometimes up, sometimes down. Mostly trying to tread water in the middle. Creating a likeness to a normal life. Whatever "normal" is...

Monday 10 November 2008

Birthday animal treats!!!

Hurray! Now I know what my partner had been plotting when I wasn't around!!! My main birthday pressie is............ a trip to a London theatre tomorrow night to see The Lion King!!!!! Hurray!!! I've wanted to see that for years- ever since I saw a clip on TV about how the actors do all the different animals. Brilliant!!! I can't wait.

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My birthday itself was quite a sleepy day. We had toyed with the idea of going out for a meal in the evening, but instead we had a curry indoors. We were at my mum's from mid-afternoon and just had a lazy weekend all together, eating too much :)

But look what we found on the way to her house.....
.....just a minute or two from mum's place, we spotted a wee hedgehog just ambling along, beside the road, in broad daylight. Well, we had to rescue him-
-some hogs are having second litters in the summer months, but they don't always reach a big enough size or weight for hibernation, so they don't survive the winter. This one wasn't a baby, but at most was a young teen! No way was he big enough. And they should NEVER be out and about in the day- that always means something is wrong.
Now, I don't think I ever mentioned that I owned a woolly hat. Why would I? Let's just say it was a sort of Beanie type hat, but one worn by 40 year olds. (Can't say if a 41 year old would wear it, as I never had the chance.) So! I jumped out of the car, scooted across the road and ran along behind the hog, knees bent, with said hat opened in both hands. It must have looked a bit odd. I slipped the hat over him like a tea-cosy and scooped him up. Et voila-

One be-hatted hog.We stopped at mum's long enough to explain and to get her to come with us to a RSPCA woman in the next town who takes in strays of all types and sizes. Mum is hog mad, so wanted these souvenir photo's taken :) It's a pity we didn't keep the camera on us, because in the warmth of the car he began to relax and unfurl, sticking his nose out above the hat, and very soon we were all being observed.

Now, have you ever noticed that some animals get smellier the longer you hold them???? Rabbits are like that. And guinea pigs. Yes, definitely guinea pigs, in particular, I think. Do you know, when he lived in Ecuador, my partner ate a guinea pig? But that's another story and not at all cute. Anyway. Yes. The hedgehog is right up there with his guinea pig/hog friend. Phwar!

OK he was still cute and scrummy and loveable, just from a greater distance, that's all.

We dropped him off at the woman's house.
Another birthday present of mine had been a £10 note, slipped inside a card by my aunt. Well, I gave this to the woman as a donation towards his keep, not that I suspect it will go far, as she ends up with so many hoglets in the Autumn.

He was quite snotty, and, as I had held him on the journey, I had felt his breathing was a little laboured, and I could feel his lungs seemed a bit gravelly, like when you have a chesty cough. Never mind. He is in safe hands now; she said that she would go and put him straight under a heat lamp.

As we turned to go, she asked, "Would you like your hat back?"
I passed.

I think this close encounter was my best present of all.

16 comments:

Lynda (Granny K) said...

What an adventure, both for the hedgehog and yourselves! I'm glad you were able to help him/her.
Hope you enjoy Lion King!
Hugs, Lynda
PS When DH went to get his waterproof trousers out of the bag he keeps them in in the garage, he discovered that a mouse had eaten through them and made a nest. (Not there now though!) DH is now known as Mr. Mousetrousers!

mrsnesbitt said...

Gorgeous! Yes, you did best to pass on the return of your hat! Itchy head is not a social grace! LOL!

Bear Naked said...

What a marvelous adventure to have on your birthday.
Enjoy "Lion King."

You'll have to blog all about the show.

Bear((( )))

Paula said...

Hi,
I'm a regular reader of your blog, but a rather lazy blogger i'm afraid...I apologise for not commenting sooner!!
aren't hegdehogs just the most fascinating things!! I'm sure he will treasure your hat forever!!

Hope you enjoy the Lion King...it really is awesome... makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up... (or perhaps thats just me!)

Paula x

BumbleVee said...

awww poor little Hedgie.... I hope he is okay...and good on ya for rescuing the little guy.

Dragonstar said...

How exciting to have such a close encounter with such a dear little creature. I hope he manages to recover
Do enjoy The Lion King.

Els G. said...

Seems like you had a great birthday, and not that lazy at all, when I read the adventurous encounter! So nice of you to rescue that little hedgehog! And yes, they tend to smell a bit (I used to have one that prefered to live inside my home, before I moved to the city again. He used to make a lot of noise when he was eating too, no table manners at all, lol!). I would have left him the hat too, lol.
Love all those great pictures on your blog!
Enjoy your theatre trip!
Els
x

Julie said...

Ooh! I'm so jealous! Have a wonderful time tomorrow. The Lion King is fantastic.

Well done for rescuing the hedgehog. xx

Theresa Momber said...

Ahhh, what a sweet hedgehog. So kind of you to rescue him.

Kristin Eberline said...

Wow...what an awesome story! I couldn't even imagine happening across a hedgehog during the day. Much less scooping him up and taking him to a shelter! You have a heart of gold :O)

Rach said...

awww Helena what a lovely thing to do..I love hedgehogs, they looks so sweet. I don't blame you for passing on having your hat back...ewwww. smelly and itchy...lol.
glad that you had a wonderful and restful birthday. hugs rachxx

Hanna said...

What a lovely story! So lucky for the hedgehog that you happened to pass by!

Mary said...

Hope you like the lion king. I always loved the animated movie I kept drawing the characters over and over after I saw it and obsessed over it for years when I was a kid. Such a sweet hedgehog you have there.

L. Alida said...

Oh Helena, you were an angel for that dear little wee hedgehog! What a nice way to remember your Birthday.
I sent you a card quite a while ago, but I'm so afraid it was lost! My husband thinks customs didn't like the tea that I sent along, but it was all properly enclosed in it's manufacturers wrapping. Now, I'm worried about the Card Exchange... Could you e-mail me your snail mail again? Perhaps I didn't get it right. (which is pretty common for me)
I hope you had an amazing time at The Lion King. The movie made me cry so I imagine the musical would require tissues too! I bet it was wonderful!
Hugs,
Lorianna

VP said...

Glad we don't have smellivision in blogland, so I can safely say awwww cute!

Happy belated birthday - and I see from Bob you had a rip roaring time at the Lion King :)

Anonymous said...

A birthday animal adventure. I would have left the stinky hat too. My neighbor saw a porcupine in his yard... a much larger prickly animal.