Scary electrics

22nd August
The zeppelin-shaped electrician who lives nearby is my biggest challenge yet in the comprehension stakes. He talks incessantly in a strong southern accent while managing to simultaneously laugh and wheeze. I asked him to drop by the Lovely House to see if he can sort out a dodgy socket. While he’s here I persuade him to look at the leaky shower. He took one look at the shower and told me to get the original fitter back (I have now left at least a dozen phone messages for the original fitter). I pulled out the festering raffia flooring a few days ago and burned it - so at least it's not smelling now.

Once I’ve got the hang of zeppelin-man’s idiosyncrasies he's a mine of information, mainly village gossip but I also learn that the fuse box and electric meter for the Lovely House are locked in a bunker on the other side of the big lake – yes, and see how the wooden pole holding up the electric cable that leads from the bunker to our house is bending alarmingly towards the water.

Fabulous day yesterday, perfect for filming demoiselle damselflies. There’s a narrow canal running through a nearby wood, vegetation hangs over the water and the air is thick with flappy blue-black aeronauts. It’s the usual story; the lads stake out bits of territory and show off to the girls trying to persuade them to have sex. The girls look on unimpressed - but every now and again someone takes pity on one of them and gives it a go.