This week in Oxfam has been rather a bumper one.

I think I may mentioned the very nice woman who donated some art books – well they boosted our sales nicely – and that is not a phrase which is usually on the lips in January.

Then there was the complete set of the Sopranos – all 28 DVDs in a box set. But we couldn’t sell them in the shop because they were not properly certificated for sale in the UK. No PG or whatever.

But it happened that Rosemary who ‘does’ the DVDs was in at the same time as me and asked if I wanted them.

(I like the Sopranos but stuck with French telly – hopeless – we rather got into box sets and had done the whole series more than once and back here of course there are the delights of Antiques Roadshow and Broadchurch.)

Anyway, I thought maybe I could sell them on ebay under my name and put the proceeds through the shop. So I brought them home, stuck them on for thirty quid and sold them within half an hour. Not bad.

All good things come in threes, as another volunteer told me, and she was right.

I had put to one side a children’s book which had been one of the few things rescued from a less than enticing donation and on Thursday I got round to rootling it out from under a pile to have a look online.

Now, what you may not know, is that books with nice illustrations are often valuable and this one had a series of rather lovely simple paintings of animals. (It is called The Square Book of Animals, which pretty much sums it up.)

But we have strict rules in the shop about childrens’ books being of very good quality in terms of their condition so a book like this – aged and a bit battered – could easily have got thrown away.

I was expecting say £20 and would have been happy with £10. So imagine my surprise when the cheapest one on the net was £800.

I rang our Old Book Expert and he duly came post haste and confirmed what I had found. (Most of the time, I get very excited about something and he has to dampen my enthusiasm and tell me it is worth £4.99.)

It turns out William Nicholson went on to be a significant artist and this was an early work and there are not many around.

So, here we are with a treasure and as I suspect there are not many people in Petersfield with the inclination to pay £700 for a book, it will go online.

And now I have to fess up to something.

Oxfam have decided to up our online sales targets by 10% in the next financial year. This is a lot when you are dependent on what people give you, and that is never certain.

Our financial year ends of March 31st. £700 is the most expensive book we have ever found. And do you know what, I simply won’t find the time to put it on the internet until Wednesday April 1^st.

Observant readers will have noticed that this is only the second of the three good things but I must break off to feed the dog and man so the next installment will follow.

Last week was freezing and the birds were lined up pleadingly. I suspect they got together and asked the robin to sing its heart out on top of the arch over the gate to get us to break out with another round of fat balls.

Today, there is just a touch of spring in the air – not to be relied on of course – but it does remind you that it won’t be long before they are dashing about with estate agent prospectuses in their beaks looking for a nice place to build starter homes.

The Virginia creeper was a fave with the blackbirds and one year we woke up to find that the bit near our bedroom window had collapsed, exposing a nest of startled blackbird fledglings. Nick propped it back up, and all was well.

The following year though, we had building work done and they had to make do with the climbing Hydrangea – but everyone has to downsize now and then.

We put one of those nest boxes with a camera in it (a nice Christmas present from the son) in just the place they used.

Not a dicky bird as they say.

Nests built above and below it, but an assiduous avoidance of being watched.

The back hedge though is the garden’s housing estate with numerous sparrows and tits in residence.

They make a great racket so I presume there are neighbour boundary disputes and the avian equivalent of kids of bikes and BBQs in the back garden.

The only time it is ever quiet is when the Sparrow Hawk comes over. It is an impressive sight to see every little sparrow face clamp its beak shut and dive for cover.

The Sparrow Hawk uses the back hedge like a tapas bar  – but then its name is rather a give away.

Anyway, all this is leading to the fact that we have to cut a significant section out of that back hedge if we are to build the platform which will be the basis of our George Clark style Amazing Space.

We have a fabulous view from a ladder perched against that hedge but want something a little more stable and able to accommodate more than one person at once.

I have visions of something which will act as a spare bedroom-cum- study-cum- place to sit on a small verandah watching the Downs.

The man himself is starting out with a platform and a couple of deck chairs.

Either way, if we are to build it, the hedge needs to come down and before the residents start re-building their nests.

I hasten to add , there are plenty of other hedges all round the garden but persuading someone to reduce their recreational space so you can squeeze in a three-chick home next twig, may take some negotiating.