The problem with a log burner is that, so far, my Mistress is finding it harder to regulate the office heat. We can have it hot, cosy and sleepy or we can have it cold, brisk and needing to move, but we don\u2019t seem to be able to have it somewhere in between. Ari regulates his temperature by going and lying by the back door, but unless the settee is moved down there then that is not an option I will be taking. My Mistress just starts to doze over her keyboard until I nudge her or one of us barks. And that\u2019s another problem. If she dozes off or gets engrossed in her work she forgets to put another log on the fire. I can sit there for ages giving gentle coughs to remind her, but it wouldn\u2019t be the first time it had gone out altogether before she had realised it was out. Then there is the problem of running out of logs in the house and having to go outside in the pouring rain to bring some more in. While I\u2019m at it, I\u2019m a little worried that her \u2018just in time\u2019 policy of ordering replacements might be cutting it a bit fine. Last time we ordered wood, there was a delay because the log man fell and broke his leg. She has reassured me that in an emergency we could turn the central heating back on, but I know what she\u2019s like and she\u2019ll just go and get a pair of gloves and a jumper. She\u2019s so determined to prove the fire was a good investment that I can see the rest of us freezing. Mind you, when she worked out what we would save with the fire, she had not reckoned on the oil price going down. That might just mean her calculations are wrong to begin with. I won\u2019t point that out though.<\/p>\n
Alfie\u2019s Diary \u2013 the Book is available at Amazon UK –https:\/\/www.amazon.co.uk\/dp\/B00583ZGSA<\/a><\/p>\n You can find short stories to read at www.alfiedog.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"