He sent a rook – no, not a chess piece – A ROOK. It landed in my wood burning stove yesterday morning after scrabbling away at the flue liner and making a right racket, the baffle was removed and there he was staring at me from the back of the stove demanding that I write a blog post this weekend. There wasn’t time for idle chatter as the bird was off via the conservatory window before I could whisper a question, or offer it anything shiny. Only Mr Devine would have sent a bird to do his bidding!! And obviously I have been downgraded from Cormorant to Rook. Then again I’m not sure a Cormorant would fit in the wood burning stove?
So where have I been?? What have I been doing??? What does my mantelpiece look like now??? That’s easy to answer, it looks like this….
….it’s now a cupboard. The cupboard is Rook-proof. Ha. Though my shelves are not…
Anyhow, the upshot is that I can no longer continue my thrilling series of posts entitled: News from the Mantelpiece. Instead I will excite my readers with: Tales from the Cupboard – I know – a truly inspired title! And here is the first:-
I only wish that I looked as calm and serene as Edna when I was dealing with a storm; or rain; or acres of mud; or a rook down my chimney.
P.S It is Mr Devine’s birthday on 22nd March – Happy Birthday if I don’t see you again before then!
Wonky Words 
So much for me to decipher! I mean, it MUST be a coded message, surely? Not just boring bloody rook down the chimney. No! I think there’s a hidden message…I shall have another glass of Whatever and study this closely. The picture above the cupboard may be a clue…
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Dinah – What is going on with the WordPress comment box??
Oh crikey – go away for five minutes and everything changes!
Apologies – it was simply a Rook down my chimney yesterday morning! And it made me think of Mr Devine. I wish I had a photo [of the Rook, not Mr Devine] because I’ve never seen a Rook so up close and personal before – it really was splendid – but it was far too distressed to have time for a photo opportunity. It flew off, and didn’t seem to have been injured by the experience – well, not physically.
Sx
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I sent Beaky, not a rook! That lazy blackbird must have bribed a rook to take his place and do my bidding because he couldn’t be bothered to fly all the way to Devon. I shall have him stuffed and used as a shelf ornament/light fitting (like yours) when I get my hands on him.
Anyway, splendid chimney-cupboard, Ms Scarlet. And that was nice of Picasso to rustle something up to hang from it.
Thank you for the advance birthday wishes, too! I hope yours was a happy one a week or so ago.
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Mr Devine – Beaky doesn’t seem the type to navigate a chimney, so it was a wise move to engage a Rook to do the dirty work. I still have sooty wing imprints on a window – I should have photographed those for my post!
I’ve had my eye on the bird light fitting for a couple of years and I finally had the courage to waste some money on it – I love it! It always remind me of Beaky.
I seem to have a bit of a bird theme going on in my room!
Sx
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I’m all for cupborad peeping !
Edna & Joyce, friends for life. Now we only need Mr Thorax thrown into the fry …
Glad to see you back.
And of course : Best wishes, young lady.
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Thank you, Mr Mags!
There are plenty of tales from the cupboard. The cupboard has more tales than I do.
Yep, my birthday was last weekend – there was cake, and a lot of angst.
Sx
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I am very sorry to read that not-nice, German word. I meself think it is a very good thing that you grace the Earth. And here is some Sunshine – hope you enjoy it. There is Sax in it !
(I tried to use a new “block”, there are pre-formatted ones for yt. But nothing happened for ages, after more than five minutes watching that little blue rotating circle I decided to quit. So it is a traditional link. It should work and open in a new tab.)
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Are you sure it wasn’t Edna that sent the rook? She looks like the sort who might have a “familiar”… Jx
PS I am so pleased you’re back! I was getting worried.
PPS the WP comments thingy is asking me to “choose a block”. What colours are available?
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Jon – Awww!! I am fine – I think the last 10 years just caught up with me and I could not get my arse off the fainting couch for love, nor money. And this Winter has been so dire – too much mud, and sooooo much rain. And for some reason I just got really angry at the concept that is Christmas!
I look at that picture and I’m sure it’s Joyce who has the problem – she has knarled lips – slightly twisted, and she has more of a frown – so I think it’s her who’s the wrong’n, and who keeps a supply of familiars under her bed! Maybe I will read the story and find out! That’d help, wouldn’t it?!
I wish it was a nice block of colour instead a weird formatting system.
Sx
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Happy belated birthday from a cold, wet Scotland! X
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Thank you, Eryl!! Too much water everywhere!
Sx
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oh dear I don’t think I’ve had enough gin yet today ….now wait a minute, didn’t you return to Blogger? And now you’re back on WordPress? Have I had too much gin or did I miss something? And you actually had a fireplace taken out? Although the new cupboard is handsome. And I love the Raven holding a light bulb on The Wire. How do you like it? It is a raven isn’t it? I I’ve seen those and thought about getting one myself. I’m full questions today aren’t I? Oh my God did I just asked that with another question? Oh my God I did it again? Anyways I hope you’ve been well? Oh my God I did it again didn’t I?
Xoxo-
Maddie
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Mistress B – I’ve been calling it a Rook, but I think it’s actually a Crow, and it is rather fun – I’d recommend getting one – I don’t regret it as it gives my shelves a bit of a pop.
Yes, I did try to reacquaint myself with Blogger, but it didn’t really work out so I came back here, and then I took to my fainting couch for 4 months.
Is it possible to have too much gin??? Or too many questions?
Sx
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“A Rook in the Stove is worth two in the Grove”. (Old folkloric drivel). Nice to see you again Scarlet, but by golly this block editor thing gives me the pip.
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Batarde – All Olde Folklore drivel welcome!
I think we can ignore the block editor and type as normal. The editor is a blockhead.
Sx
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Ooh! WordPress has added the editty thing to comments.Now I’m scared to see what’s been going on at my place. Probably just as well I don’t have a chimney
And a big goanna was crossing the road the other day. I wonder if it’s all some sort of cosmic message from that new Artificial Insemination bot …
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Dinah – Have you tried the new AI assistant yet? I let it write about Mogwash – it read like a tour guide pamphlet, which was amusing. I might publish it one day as it was funnier than anything I could come up with!
Sx
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OH sweet bleeding wotisname! AI could never improve on your light hand. Are you sure, like, completely positive, it wasn’t Charmaine messing about?
Crikey! Muriel might get ideas! I mean, you can’t be sure, can you? And the folks that own Photoshop are threatening to sue, though I was talking to her just the other day and Sue denies any involvement.
Still, you’ve got a nice safe-disguised-as-a-cupboard to keep your drafts in. Much better than the chimney!
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Dinah – It does look like the cupboard is hiding a safe, doesn’t it?! I wish I had something to put in a safe!
Yeah, the AI assistant was scarily good – I must do something with it at some point.
Sx
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Happy Birthday a few days late, but raising a glass in your honor! I love your crow on a shelf, sweetpea! I’m glad you’re back, even if it is on WP! (j/k) I like your cupboard, and yes, it does look as if it’s hiding a safe!! xoxox
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Savvy – It looks like a safe in an old Western film!! Never mind.
Thank you for the birthday wishes – I ate so much cake that I’m getting symptoms of pre-diabetes, so I better knock the sugar on the head until next Christmas.
Sx
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People used to lob hens down their chimneys in the olden day, to have your flue cleaned out by Mother Nature is something special. I would love a rook/crow lamp but I don’t have anywhere for it to dangle.
I’ve heard of ‘cupboard love’ but I’m not sure what it means.
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Mitzi – That’s what I said – that we wouldn’t need a chimney sweep anytime soon due to the Rook having done a bit of routine cleansing!
Cupboard love describes what a dog does when it’s hungry – it looks at its owner adoringly because it knows the owner keeps the biscuits in the cupboard.
There aren’t any biscuits in my cupboard.
Sx
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On reflection, I think it was a tip I once read in Viz. Very wise Scarlet, I only allow Carmen to bring, lemon puffs, pink wafers and Viennese swirls in the house, because I don’t like them. Do you remember Lincoln biscuits with the knobbly bits?
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I can imagine a bird down the chimney would make quite a racket and then careen all over the place before making an escape. Are you bird phobic? so many people are, it would be a nightmare.
I like the raven light, I was just looking at those last week and wondering where I could put one.
Your room is looking fabulous
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Downgraded from a shag? How sad.
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Happy birthday Miss S and Mr D! You are both — especially Mr D — quite close to mine in birth day terms — I entered the next block of years you have to tick on surveys and so on a fortnight ago.
I love your black bird, whatever its correct name. Good to see a bird doing something useful.
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