When you’re orange and a bit of a tit.

But luckily someone comes to talk you down off Tit Mountain.

So you stare at a fence post instead.

And then suddenly, with your butterfly mind, you see a distraction.

And so you eat it.

But you get shouted at by your “Mum” and instantly look miserable and sorry for yourself.

So you just go back to being a bit of a tit.  But a lovely orange tit.

Oh Efstur.  Stop being silly and stop being a tit!

While Taktur eats his “Handsome Prince” food and Efstur also has his “Potential-Athlete-(watch-this-space)” food, the other two, that would be Dreki Dragon and Kappi, are carefully distracted by Flossie.

To be fair on these two starvlings, they are jolly nice about their friends getting food while they don’t.  They try very hard not to hassle but it is wearing a bit thin with both of them, I can see that, so they share a bag of carrots to say thank you for being nice.

After his carrots, Dreki still needs to be constantly occupied or his brain automatically switches to looking for his best friend, Efstur, who still has his head in a bucket and is eating.

Flossie and Dreki have developed a sweet relationship.  They both genuinely like each other.

Some days, I can really see Taktur in his son.

And then some days, I just see a giraffe going through his gawky 2 year old phase.

They all look like this at that age.  There is an old horse “rule” that you only look at a horse/pony at 3 days, 3 months, and then 3 years. 

Dreki has a very kind face. I think, once he grows up, he is going to make a very kind and conscientous family horse.  Just the type I wanted to breed. I am very pleased with this lad.  Well-built with a good brain.

And while we do all this to-ing and fro-ing with buckets and carrots, Her Maj waits paitently watching, always watching.

I don’t waffle on nearly enough about Waffle.  Out of them all, Waffle is my sensible little chap who I can rely on in any crisis.

He has always had a very grown-up (and beautiful) head on his shoulders.

When the first three arrived as depressed starved foals (Storm, Silver and Waffle) all those years ago (back in January 2014), it was Waffle who was easy to catch and work with so the other two followed his lead. He made life much easier and in turn taught the other two how to behave and trust me.

Now five years on, everyone is doing well.  The only permanent damage, apart from obvious lack of height, is that Waffle’s the type of chap who puts on weight by just looking at food (a bit like me then). As a weaned foal, his metabolism had been forced to get the most out of every calorie.  So he looks like a bit of a table now despite my best efforts.

Today Storm was being annoying.  He had that look about him.  You can see it.  Pure wicked.

So Waffle told him.

But Storm was not giving up.  It is not his nature.

And Storm probably thinks it is his job – Chief Annoyer to Waffle.

(Storm has very short legs – just sayin’)

And so to town for my absolute last (but it might not be) Christmas shop.  En route, I fed the ladies (OH kindly taking the Sandness route for me to check on Brá and Minions).

There are actually three buckets – one each but they always insist on bucket-hopping.

But as long there are no arguments and everyone shares nicely, I don’t mind.

The girls didn’t get much (don’t stick your tongue out at me, Hetja because you think you were hard done by) – just a token gesture to tell them I love them – and then I changed my wellies for my posh (just read clean, really) town shoes and went on my merry way to “buy local”.

Town was, well, not very busy though I did struggle to find a parking place.

I checked on my little flock. They were all doing fine and I noted I must make some more black curly ones.

The Christmas windows (for those that made the effort) were very good.

These knitted baubles have all been made and donated by knitters around the world – they will be auctioned online at the end of January and all proceeds of sale will go to the MRI scanner appeal. I would look at their @mrimaakers Facebook page if you want more information nearer the time of the auction.

Lerwick was, as ever, looking beautiful in the calm winter afternoon.  Light is very precious, if brief. There aren’t enough daylight hours for me in the day at the moment.

A nice time pottering around by myself but the Christmas songs were everywhere. I rocked around a Christmas tree after I had driven home for Christmas!  Agh!  Too much. It was a constant tinsel earworm.

This is my lunchtime view – not bad. Fish and chips from the Fort.

And, once done, home via the garage for some petrol.  I love this!  Very Shetland.

There was this bright thing shining up in the sky this morning.  Very strange but I made the most of it and went out to take photos of my old men (and Her Maj)  in their field.

Klængur has joined them as I think he missed “grown-up” conversation.  I led him over with a haynet around his neck as I forgot to bring a headcollar!

This morning also saw Haakon cantering towards me (and perhaps my bucket of food).  It is something I haven’t seen for a few years now. The last 5 years immediately vanished and Haakon was all enthusiastic and happy.  I could’ve cried with happiness.

In his bucket he has daily roughage/fibre with TurmerAid and Devil’s Claw, mixed in, which seem so have really helped his stiffness and general “old age” attitude.

I am so pleased. It is lovely to see. Long may it last.

Meanwhile, Iacs was thrilled to have a new person to share his hay with.

Iacs has always been very sociable and this enforced confinement with Haakon has its limits.

So now the three boys are together.

We will see how they all get on together.

And then later Klængur and we went for a lovely ride together.  My new riding companion laughs when Klængur spooks, which makes me laugh and that has done a whole lot of good as we bomb up the road.  I am less nervous and we are both much more relaxed.

So all is good.