I’m on vacation, back in the same lovely hideaway in England that I went to last summer. But no hedgehogs yet! Faithful readers (and I’m grateful to you) might remember that last year we had hedgehogs around our house — wonderful silly animals, so much loved in England that vets will treat sick ones free. And the three babies near us did get sick, and were saved by the local vet. Here’s one of them:

Follow the link above to read more. This year, no hedgehogs yet. We put out
hedgehog food — “Spike” brand (I couldn’t make that up), available in
British pet stores — each night, and slugs come to eat it, a wry but
potentially fatal irony, because slugs are one of a hedgehog’s favorite
foods. The lucky hedgehog who finds our offering gets two meals in one.
Until i’m back, sometime in the first week of September, I won’t be posting comments. When I return, I’ll try making comments automatic, as one commenter suggested. They’ll go straight to the site without needing my approval, which might make for faster conversation among readers. If it works — if we don’t get flames and trolls — that should be fun.
Have a great August, everyone. Thanks for reading, and I’ll be back in touch in a month.


Recent Comments
Greg Sandow on Good news from Toronto
Thanks! It's wonderful to have this corroboration. I'm sure Peter Oundjian is a crucial part of the Symphony's success.Greg Sandow on Philharmonic clarification
Christina, when the Philharmonic played in Lewisohn Stadium, they didn't have any marketing department. Or any corporate sponsors. Those things...D Shapiro on Good news from Toronto
As a subscriber, and a parent of a 29-year-old, I can provide a little insight. My daughter is fairly typical...Christina Jensen on Philharmonic clarification
If that is true, it's unlikely any publicists were involved, but rather marketing departments and corporate sponsorship folks. http://nyphil.org/support/corporate_benefits.cfmJon Silpayamanant on Good news from Toronto
Some classical music institutions attract a young audience by lowering ticket prices, but then they need funding to offset the...