October 2013
Somewhere in Lithuania right now there is an old red lawnmower newly arrived all the way from Piccotts End! For nearly 20 years our Westwood ride-on had been keeping the grass down. We inherited it with the house when we moved here in 2003 and it proved to be a very reliable performer. However it finally gave up the ghost this month and ended up on e-bay for spares with a starting price of £25. I didn’t expect it to raise much more than that so imagine my surprise when a flurry of bidding chased the price up into the hundreds.

A couple of days later a gentleman with a thick East European accent phoned to arrange collection. At 8.30pm that night, in pitch black and with the mower abandoned at the far end of the garden, a big white van with Lithuanian number plates pulled into the drive. Two burly men descended and the transaction was completed. There was still one problem: how were we going to get a heavy, clapped out tractor all the way across the garden, up a slope and into the van. With very little assistance from me the two men huffed and puffed until it was hauled to within inches.

The van, by the way, had been emptied of an assortment of racing bikes, fishing rods, spare wheels, a swivel chair and various other items to make room. Then, with another burst of brute force, they heaved and grunted and heaved again until the little red beast was lifted into the van. Job done! A couple of minutes later they were en route back to Lithuania, a 30-hour journey via Germany and Poland. I’m not sure what their plans are but one way or another it will be soon be helping to keep the grass down in Vilnius!