Full of the cold

A rather drippy cold has been worming its way through the family and it's now arrived, at full spate, with young Padrig. This is the first cold he's had in ages and, although wearisome to be hitting while on holiday, we're very relieved and grateful to look back over the recent months of treatment in good health, in spite of mixing with all sorts of germs at various stages. In fact, he's not missing much because the weather has closed in. Before the clouds descended, yesterday he toddled about 300 metres to the famous Hockings ice-cream van, and, more remarkable still, back up the hill to the flat. Before setting out, he needed the assurance that at any point we could swoop down and rescue him with the wheelchair. Hockings can add Padi's Plaudit, to its clutch of awards, although he was not able to get through more than half a cornet.