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Good morning, Rusty!
We had a storm here last night....howling winds and heavy rain.
No damage to the trees in our garden , but a lot of heavy branches are down in the park.
The sun is peeping out now, though, and it look like being a nice day.
We have been to see the builders, this morning
Someone will come on Wednesday to check out the rest of the ceiling to make sure it is safe.
(They did offer to come tomorrow, but we couldn't manage that at the suggested time)
And the eldest brother, who does the assessments, will come next Monday (he is away on holiday this week) to give us an estimate for the repair work.
So all is underway......

Hello, Elle!
It has turned into a fine day here!
We appear to have missed Storm Freya, up here.
That is encouraging news from your builders.
You can relax a bit now and stock up on tea bags and biscuits!
If you get round to it, there is a good puzzle today.
4d, 5d, and12d, are all new words to me.
I liked 24d!

Hi, Rusty!
Well, if it were Freya who visited us during the night, she appears to have gone now!
It is a reasonably pleasant , though chilly, day.
Yes, the builders - brothers and their sons - are a great lot of guys.
We have known them, and their father before them, for many years, and trust them implicitly.
I am relieved that, in the interim between now and repair work, they are coming to check the existing state of the ceiling.
6ft by 4ft 6 inches is a mighty big hole!
Today's is a hard puzzle........unless it is just me?
I have five clues that I simply cannot do at all.... but too early yet to throw in the proverbial towel.....
Of the ones that you mentioned, I know "phylum ", so realised that "phyla" is its Latin plural.
"Yah" is a new word to me in that context, and I cannot yet do 12d.
I am puzzled by 20d? the answer would appear to be "barking"?
Now, I have heard of "barking mad", but not "barking" on its own, meaning "mad"/ "up the pole"?
What did you think of that?
Coffee needed!

Hello, Elle!
That's a fair sized hole, Elle!
Yes, once the builders turn up you will have a far clearer picture of what lies ahead.
20, if someone is said to be "barking" it could mean they are "mad".
The "mad" can be dropped from "barking mad", I think.
I think that clue is OK, though "barking" is rarely used hereabouts.
12, definition is "china", I think, and it has a capital "C" because it starts a sentence.
Is that a rule in English grammar?
I am heading out for a dander!

Hi, Rusty!
Did you have a good walk?
How far afield did you venture?
We also have been out for a walk......and got somewhat wet for our pains!
The dog thought it was great...all that rain ......and mud!
I have never heard of just "barking", but "barking mad" is fairly common usage.
Chambers has it, too, as "crazy ; raving mad"...but "barking" in that sense is not in the dictionary.
I still do not get 12d?
The wind is getting up again......

Hello, Elle,
Beautiful day here!
I just had a walk to the building site.
My Collins Dictionary has "barking" = "mad or crazy".
So do the online dictionaries.
12d, the US author wrote "In Cold Blood".
Could "vague" be "dim"?
The answer is in Italian, I think, but I am not sure.
But, online it is one word, not the three in the clue.
Just read that an osprey was spotted about 5 miles away from me at Piperdam.
Carrying a fish.
This was today.

My Chambers 13th has "barking" adj.( sl) barking mad

under heading bark 1
after barker and before barking deer

Hi, Rusty!
I am beginning to weary of different meanings in different dictionaries, altered word meanings, and bad grammar.
I sometimes long for "how things used to be"!
I have given up on today's puzzle!
Now , the osprey?
I do not know of Piperdam?
Is this near to "our" osprey site?
Is it likely that this osprey could be Lassie or Laddie?

Hello, Elle!
If you feel like that, perhaps take a break from crossword puzzles for a while.
It's no good if you do not enjoy doing them.
12d is "Capo di monte".
"Capote" is the writer, vague is "dim", "on" is in clue.
Piperdam is on the road to Coupar Angus.
About 25 miles or so, South of Loch of the Lowes.
It could be our bird, but there are many nests North and West of here.
The webcam at the loch is not working.
I emailed Cherry about it on Friday and she assures me they are working away to get it fixed.
The squirrelcam is not working, too.

Thank you, Cerasus!