Sydney the wood pigeon.

She was awoken abruptly by a ticking sound coming from the balcony, as though someone was throwing stones at the balcony glass door. No, she wasn’t mistaken, there it was again, tick,tick. Well seeing as she was awake now, she decided to investigate.

She walked over to the window and opened the curtains. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing and started to laugh.There on the balcony was a magnificent grey wood Pigeon, intent on picking up stones with his beak and throwing them at the window.He looked at Mary and threw another stone. “Ok, ok I’ve got the message, you are hungry.” She said looking the pigeon in the eye. “Let me see what I can find.” She remembered there was half a packet of nuts she had put in her bag for the journey. She got them from her bag and opened the French doors to the balcony, the pigeon flew onto the railings, eyeing her with suspicion. Mary emptied the bag of nuts onto the floor and went back inside the room. When the pigeon saw it was safe he flew down and gobbled up the nuts. When he had finished he flew away. “Well, that’s gratitude for you, not so much as a thank you.” Mary laughed to herself.

She quickly got showered and dressed and went to look for breakfast.

The restaurant was a bright sunny room with about ten round tables, already laid with clean crisp white tablecloths, fine porcelain cups and saucers, cutlery and a small plate. A long, serve yourself table was stacked with toast , briosc, croissant, jam and butter in individual packets and fruit juices, with a large bowl of fresh fruit at the end. There were also four or five different cereals including a pot of piping hot porridge , Milk, coffee and tea.Mary looked around for an empty table and saw Johnathan beckoning to her, “Mary, Mary,” he called, “I’ve saved you a table by the window.” Mary walked over to join him. It really was a lovely position.The sun was streaming through the window and she could see the sea, it’s rocky waves splashing onto the silvery beach. “How kind of you to do that, thank you, I will enjoy my breakfast immensely.” “You are more than welcome . Now, can I get you any cooked breakfast? We have full English if you are hungry enough ?.” She smiled at him , “ Yes, I think I am hungry enough, it’s going to be a long day today and I don’t know what condition the kitchen is in,” “If you like I can pop over at lunch time and bring you a packed lunch.” Mary said she thought that was a great idea and eagerly accepted. She had learnt to accept the kindness of others when it was offered sincerely .

When she had finished her breakfast she felt invigorated and ready to go.She gathered up her things and headed to the car park. She waved to Johnathan at reception on her way past, he briefly waved back. Mary noticed Johnathan was occupied with two local policemen, “I wonder why they always go by twos?” she thought.

Mary headed over to the car park where her little car was waiting, It was packed full to the brim with all her worldly belongings, what couldn’t go in the car had gone to Charity. She looked fondly at the little car, she knew she would have to give her up along with her licence, soon it would be too dangerous to drive.

“Right,” she said to herself, “ first stop D.I.Y. shop.”

Following Jonathan’s instructions she drove out to the industrial estate and the biggest D.I.Y. shop she had ever seen.She was pleased with what she saw, she would be able to buy everything she needed, including the garden equipment.

She set up an account with them so she would be able to order from home and get things delivered easily. She picked up lots of pamphlets with special offers and discounts. She noticed they were offering an architectural service for planning new kitchens and bathrooms .There was also a landscape gardening service.

She picked up a few essential bits and pieces like paint brushes, scrapers, turps, overalls ,cleaning products etc.She signed it all to the new account and asked them to wait for her phone call before delivering , so she would be able to add things to the delivery.They handed her a pretty pot with a red and yellow kalanchoe plant, as a welcome gift .

She looked at her watch, it was eleven a.m , time to take her medication and just the right time for a coffee break.

She walked past the pet’s section on her way to the coffee shop, there were lots of small pets including cats and dogs. She would love to get a dog but she knew she must be sensible about it and think it over carefully. She picked up a packet of nuts and seeds for wild birds. “ I will give these to Syd in the morning if he comes back. Yes Sydney is a nice name for a wood pigeon whether he likes it or not.” she thought smiling to herself.

She drove the short distance to the cottage and parked outside.Mentally taking in the condition of the garden as she walked along the garden path until she came to the cottage door.

Mary got out her key and went inside. She heard a flurry of wings as she stepped inside, and just caught sight of a bird flying out of an open window. “Must be the national feathered friends day or something.” She said smiling to herself.

She looked around the room, on the whole it wasn’t too bad, lots of cleaning and painting to be done , the kitchen and Bathroom she would have to decide whether it would be cheaper to replace them or refurbish. She would have to start thinking about aids, such as grab rails and maybe a walk in shower and a stair lift. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind, she would get the architects to come and make an estimate.