Thanks everyone for your birthday wishes, and sorry I’ve been AWOL for a while – book thoughts will return soon, but tonight instead I’ll take you through our birthday celebrations (the ‘our’ here being me and my housemate Mel, whose birthday is this week, and who had a joint 50th with me).
In the morning we went on a road trip to a place with a funny name. In the past this has taken us to Kingston Bagpuize, Thrupp, Shipton-under-Wychwood, Horton-cum-Studley, Marsh Gibbon, and Hinton St. George, amongst others. On Saturday we went to a little village in Oxfordshire called….
What’s the weirdest place name you’ve visited?
It was frankly false advertising. The road went right through it. Highlights included some rather lovely houses, though. And a jam stall – but they included such delights as ‘Plum, Coconut, and Cardamom’. We didn’t buy any, but it wasn’t the end of the world… ba-dum-crash.
On the following day we went off to the donkey sanctuary. If it weren’t for my borderline-insane love of cats, I’d have to put these as my favourite animal. Here’s a little video…. (Video! I know! How clever is THAT?)
Aren’t they beautiful?
And in the evening, we had a party here, enjoying the lovely cake Our Vicar’s Wife sent via a friend. Count the candles – there are twenty-four of ’em.
I’ll be back with books soon, promise – maybe a list of the ones which have found their way to my house over the past week or so. And that happy single woman book I said I’d talk about… now I’m all old and responsible, I’ll keep my promises. Promise.
A most Happy Birthday wish!!
Oh, you should get one of those marvelous donkeys. If only for their wonderful ears!
Were any donkeys named Eeyore?!
Happy Be-lated Birthday! I can't think of anywhere I've visited with such an unusual name. Had to groan at your end of the world joke, but as it was your Birthday–you're forgiven! :)
I am so glad that you had a lovely birthday.
I can't think of the weirdest named place I have ever been… actually thats a lie but its name is not publishable!
Oxfordshire does have some good place names – I'm keen to visit Aynho. I've done Marsh Gibbon, Steeple Ashton, Horton Cum Studley, Kingston and Thrupp…
Happy birthday!
I am not the biggest fan of donkeys – when I was nine, my class in school went to a wildlife refuge, and the tour guy said, Whatever you do under no circumstances must you ever ever ever push the donkeys, which I took to mean, The donkeys will bite your whole arm off. And while we were wandering around, a donkey came up to me and stood on my foot, and it hurt so, so much, but I didn't want to get my arm bitten off so I didn't dare try to get away.
(The video is cute though.)
Love the donkeys! They would make ideal birthday companions I'm sure. I grew up with donkeys and they are so much more intelligent than horses. We had one that used to come into the house and select a biscuit from the tin, very very gently, and after giveing each biscuit her considertion.
On the name front, we have "Pratts Bottom" not too far away from us, which always makes the boys giggle.
Henrietta – what a wonderful story about the donkey and the biscuits, I can picture it now!
Jenny – how sad, and what an unfortunate name to have if you don't like donkeys!
Happy Birthday. Place names: there's a little town in northern Idaho called Hope, and about five miles farther into the mountains there's a smaller town called Beyond Hope.