Sue Woodcock: In my busy world, wishes need to be kept under strict control

Little Boo is finding her feet, things to chew, and new inaccessible spaces to explore. When I take her out on the field she has now got enough confidence to play hide and seek with me and the other dogs in and out of the clumps of reeds. That is fine in daylight but after dark it means I suddenly get ambushed, or more specifically my wellington boots do. She has a thing about my boots. At night before I fall into bed I usually put them neatly under a bookcase ready for pulling them on first thing in the morning to let the dogs out for their first run. Now, I discover them in her bed and as they are about the same size as her she must have quite a task getting them there. She doesn't damage them, just gets comfort with them next to her. For a labrador she is quite bright. She is also very affectionate. I look forward to many years of friendship with her.

I decided to get a new bed, hopefully one high enough for the dogs, especially Brillo, to be unable to get on. I found just the thing at an obliging bed shop where the young man there was incredibly helpful, assisting me in dismantling the one in the showroom and taking it to my car. Having got it home I spent the rest of the day reassembling it. I had also visited a large supermarket store and brought loads of shopping and had treated myself to some new bedding and some half-decent clothes. By the time I had made up the bed, moved the other one into my front bedroom and made that up too and unpacked the shopping I was ready for a good night's rest.

I went upstairs to find Brillo was happily asleep on the bed. The other dogs were asleep in the space underneath the bed where I had put their blankets.

I had chucked out a load of old clothes, including some very threadbare T-shirts. I was sad to do so because some of them were mementos of my travels to far-flung places but they have gone to start another life as rag rugs that my friend is making.

I even managed to tidy my bedroom, at least until the puppy had rearranged it again. Then I got a call from my cousin who said she and her friend needed to stay for the night, so I hastily cleaned the bathroom, the sitting room and the front bedroom.

With my cousin came the most delightful young Australian lad from Brisbane, a friend of my niece, and a teacher who had taken the opportunity of seeing Durham and had tagged along. We went out to a local pub for a meal where we were joined by a local couple and the evening was most enjoyable. Three of the group were, or had been, teachers so they had a lot in common.

Interspersed with all this activity film crews are still all over the village. Two new families arrived and introduced themselves. All of them seem nice people and when I had to vote on the Sunday it was a difficult decision. The TV company is putting a lot of money into the local economy one way or another. I know some locals hate it but it will not last forever and the village will get more trade and tourism as a result.

The weather has again been variable. The winds have blown my buckets across the field again and the dogs and I have been going round collecting them. On my way to Kettlewell the other evening I was startled to see a large mink run across the road. It was close to the river but I didn't know they frequented the area. They are vicious little brutes and a danger to all sorts of livestock, chickens and small animals especially. I hope there is not too large a colony of them.

On my return from the pub after the quiz I came back with a wonderful year-old border collie called Paddy and two charming black cats while their owners are on holiday. The cats have settled in my front room and seem quite content. Paddy was immediately accepted by my pack and has displayed remarkable restraint with the ducks, chickens and geese, having been told they were not for him to play with. He loves to run and can be seen leaping through the mire with great gusto before coming back just to set off again. He will take some exercising.

He is a beautiful dog and very affectionate and was a little unsure of himself the first night and needed extra cuddles. Brillo firmly put him in his place and a pecking order has been established.

I went through my socks in my tidy up. I was able to discard the holey ones but was still rather taken aback at just how many I have. I ruthlessly got rid of the old ones but still I have at least three drawers full. But I do need most of the good ones as they get heavy and harsh use. Now I just need to tackle the coats and trousers and after that will come the tops and jumpers. I have far more clothes than I need and not enough drawer space.

I have a busy week ahead with several commitments. The talk season is in full swing so I shall be travelling around a bit meeting new people and visiting interesting places. When I retired up here I never dreamed that my life was going to be so full. I am just very fortunate to have so many friends and readers. So much for a quiet retirement. As I say, be careful what you wish for!

CW 16/10/10