We All Have To Have Some Perks

A bit of a quiet weekend, often the case after New Year. No races to do and no dog shows to cock up. So a bit of food shopping then I drop L at the gym before taking the boys on our usual circuit of the park. Both were very lively and I had lots of words, especially with the younger model when he tried to eyeball the cats, the squirrels, other dogs, the deer, a chap in a motorised wheelchair and a selection of female runners. I let him off the later though; we all have to have some perks.

So whilst L get nice and toasty in a post-gym sauna, the boys and I 'chill', quite literally, it's a bit on the brass monkeys side, on the park. Daughter joins L for the sauna, which is cheating a tad, as she didn't do the gym first.

Today is the best day of the football season, FA Cup third round day. Derby are involved in one of those traditional ties with loads of banana skin potential, playing non-league Forest Green Rovers at their ground, which is called the New Lawn but which turns out to have nothing in common with lawns at all, let alone a new one. Well unless your lawn is like ours, trashed by a puppy and consisting of mainly mud, frozen mud.

Forest Green storm in to a 2-0 lead, so here we go again, more embarrassment, but amazingly Derby are level by half-time. We then dominate the second half only to let them sneak one on the break. Thankfully we level again almost immediately and then nick it with a penalty a few minutes from the end. Skin of the teeth or what? A classic tie as you would say but I have no fingernails left. Even ITV seem impressed and make it their main game on their highlights show.

In the evening, we finally get to the Flowerpot to try out those Christmas ales, although someone seems to have got there first and drunk them all. Oh well, still a good night.