Greetings from MouseHouse on
this frosty February morning. The Village members are snuggled in their
well-stocked, amply insulated homes these days, enjoying the rewards of careful
autumn preparations. Of course, life goes on, and they too have to get to their
various businesses and schools when possible.
So this latest round of snow
has caused the DOT (Department of Tunneling) crew considerable overtime since
the only way to Big Rock School or Underground Warehouse, and surrounding
businesses is—yup, you guessed it—through under-snow tunnels.
Sir Fivel has slowed down
considerably these days, being the elderly gentleman that he is now, so he mostly
spends these wintry days close to Walnut Woodstove. Still, being the
industrious gent that he is, his hands are never idle. He continues to work
magic with his woodworking, albeit small projects now.
Fivelina is busier than
ever—funny how that works! Just when her own nest empties and it would seem
life would slow down a bit, the grandchildren arrive. So she stays busy being a
doting Gramma to an ever enlarging family. Thankfully, most of them are nearby,
so not a day goes by when she doesn’t see one or many of them. She keeps the
cookie jar stocked, and the craft basket full of things for little mouselings
to do when they come.
And in the evenings when all
is quiet again, she is busy knitting sweaters and mittens, and sewing pinafores
and bloomers for each of them.
Bret and Betina have six
little ones now, the quads and then this past summer they welcomed twins.
Bic and Ben have joined the
PSU (Protective Services Unit) and are busy practicing maneuvers and serving
the village wherever needed. They assist the DOT in the tunneling projects by
shoring up the finished areas with popsicle-stick beams. The LMG (Lantern Management
Group) provides and services the tiny lanterns that light the tunnels—both snow
and underground, and businesses too.
Little Bitsy, still her
delicate diminutive self, is assisting at a dressmaking shop there in
Underground Mall. She came with considerable experience, having trained with
the best—Mama Fivelina, so her services are highly sought after at the shop.
She lives with Tina at Miss Winklesnout’s cottage—the latter having had an
addition put on for her beloved adopted daughter. It was her hope that if she
made the accommodations spacious, Tina would want to stay on awhile.
Bitsy and Tina being closest
of friends, spend considerable time together anyway, so it works out to both
their advantages to live close to their work and still be there to help Miss
Winklesnout.
The elderly school marm
continues to teach at Big Rock School, but she too is feeling her years so she
is happy to have the help of some young assistants who’ve been training at her
side. Tatiana and Trieste, the last of Sir Fivel & Fivelina’s children, are
among them.
On this post-Valentine’s Day,
after their usual school party complete with scrumptious treats, several
mouselings are absent from class this morning due to belly aches. Ah! Self-discipline
is a difficult thing to learn, isn’t it? Especially in our youth, but, as with
so many things, consequence is an effective teacher.
Then there’s cousin Olaf—you
may remember he’s Fivelina’s nephew—the one with the speech impediment. He and
his new bride, Edwina have settled in a lovely condo unit at Tall Oak
Settlement just at the edge of Hare Hollow Woods. It’s small just now, but being near Tap Root
Footing, their unit has potential for ample expansion—should the need arise.
