Of Sunday roasts and other birds...

Today was spent between Liss and Standford (where the parenticals live), Standford being where lunch was provided... :-)

Bright sun and blue skies all day and free food to boot - a good day methinks.

Between the two locations I notched up a fairly good list of avian species, including a few exciting (for me) ones...see the coloured entries...

Final count for the day:

Blackbirds (male and female)
House Sparrows (male and female)
Robins
1 Chaffinch
1 Wren
Collared Doves
Wood Pigeons
1 Blue Tit
1 Great Tit
Magpies
Jackdaws
1 Green Woodpecker
1 House Martin, and.........
1 Buzzard

:-) not bad for one country garden, walks down local roads and a brief riverside stroll eh?

I also heard but didn't see a Pheasant.

And on the way back in the car from the parents we almost (but thankfully didn't) ran over a very cute baby rabbit - it was just sitting on the edge of an A road, apparently unaware of the danger! - can't think it will last long if it continues doing that...! It was really tiny though, bless it.

Unusual Nesting Sites...

Take a look at this...
Bless our little feathered friends...I do wonder though, just how long you need to leave your washing out on the line for!

Pizza, Reminiscences and Cakes

The lack of posts over the last few days is due to my having had a guest staying with me over the weekend - an old university friend who I lived with in Halls. We hadn't seen each other for a couple of years, so it was a good catch-up and reminiscence time. Pizza was enjoyed on Friday night (extra pepperoni and mushroom, with garlic pizza bread) :-) - just to whet your appetites... A good time was had by us both.

One thing I did notice this weekend though, was the difference between walking with a non-birder and a birder. I've got so used to stopping and searching the hedgerows and trees for sign of a singing bird, it was a bit unsatisfactory when my companion this weekend continued walking and acted slightly impatient at my stopping and starting... I think this proves I've got the bug!

Saw many examples of my favourites over the weekend though, Blackbirds, Robins and Sparrows, along with a beautiful Song Thrush who ran into the hedge as soon as she saw me (I've always thought of Thrushes as female somehow...). On Sunday morning I heard a very distinctive bird singing, couldn't see it as the trees were too thick, and I was unable to stop and look properly (due to my company), however the song was made up of trills, warbling and running of scales, really impressive, and definitely not a Robin or Blackbird. Wish I could've identified it. I'll keep my ears open from now on in case I hear/see it again...

Today has been a 'domestic' day - doing the laundry and baking cakes! :-) Chocolates cakes to be precise, and very good they are too... :-) - jealous yet?!

Green Woodpecker vs Blackbird...

An interesting feature in the Wildlife Extra e-zine I get via email...

Green Woodpecker versus Blackbird
- some pretty impressive pictures of what must be a fairly unusual fight... In my opinion the Blackbird looks to be the winner...

Sparrows, Robins and Blackbirds

Yes, that's what I've seen today...

Rather more exciting than it sounds, for me anyway, as Robins and Blackbirds are my favourite birds :-)

Had a fantastic couple of minutes hardly daring to breathe when a Robin flew down onto the path almost right in front of me. He pecked about happily and threw a few leaves around before looking at me with his beady eye and flying off... :-)

The Blackbirds were on fine form today with their singing, I think I can safely say that the Liss Blackbirds are excelling themselves this spring.

Many Sparrows were seen in the hedgerows, fighting over which part of of the hedge was theirs :-)

Some good news on the job search front...

FINALLY, some good news to report on the job search front.

A week or so ago I applied, through the recruitment agency 'Priority Legal', for this. As always, I applied then thought no more about it - no one seems to bother replying these days, let alone invite me for interview. However, today (surprise surprise!) I had a phone call from a guy at Priority Legal asking for more information about me, and was really enthusiastic about what I told him...(particularly that I'd done a medical law module during my degree). He asked me to email him with a covering letter, detailing everything I'd told him, and making it clear I had a real interest in this area etc etc etc... Which I have just done! :-) He'll be in touch as soon as he has an update on my application, and will hopefully try and get me an interview in a couple of weeks...!

And to top it all, my friendly local blackbird is singing his heart out outside my front window and the sun in shining - a good day methinks...

Chough nesting on Anglesey

This is exciting! : http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/wales/7998988.stm

...I wonder what the man thinks of this as a future holiday destination... :-)

Kingfishers, Easter Eggs and Grandma

The Easter weekend is now drawing to a close and for me it's been a pretty busy one.

The man arrived on Friday early afternoon after his first long-distance motorway drive, without incident and gasping for a mug of tea :-). We went to our favourite Chinese restaurant in the local town for a meal and ended up bumping into an old college friend of mine in the pub.

On Saturday we drove down to Somerset to spend the day with my Grandma. Arrived there at about half 11 and had a wonderful warm, blue-skied sunny day there, leaving behind the drizzle and grey clouds.Whilst there the man and I took the opportunity of exploring the local countryside and river walks (whilst Grandma had her afternoon nap). Lots of birds and butterflies seen, whilst having a gentle walk along the banks of the River Brue.

Final bird count for the day was:

Pheasant,
Blackbird,
Jackdaw,
Starling,
Blue Tit,
Robin,
Great Tit,
Wood Pigeon,
Collared Dove,
Dunnock,
Goldfinch,
Grey Wagtail,
and........................................(!)
Kingfisher

Yes, we finally got one... got two sights of him, both in flight, and the second gave us a great view of the electric blue - well worth the wait! :-)

On the butterfly count, we saw some Peacocks, and our first Small Tortoiseshell of the season.

I have decided I NEED a proper bird book! - I can't wait for our trip to Norfolk, my aim is to see, or hear, some Bitterns.

I have yet to have an Easter Egg! The closest I've got is a creme egg from the man's brother a couple of weekends ago... :-( Still, they'll be going cheap soon :-)

Children wear me out...

A couple of weeks ago I got 'volunteered' to help out at a 'children's activity morning' down at St Mary's, where I sing in the choir, and today was the day...!

Got down there at 10 o'clock and have just got back. They were doing all sorts of activities (involving PVA glue, glitter and tissue paper...!) to illustrate the Easter story from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. I was helping them make open tombs (involving pasta and lentils...?!) with little paper cut-out men to put inside a.k.a. Jesus...

Twas fun but energy draining...

The man will be arriving this afternoon, probably around about 5 o'clockish :-) But it's raining here at the moment, has been all morning, so it's unlikely we'll be able to go out anywhere exciting later.

Oh, and as a last mention, I now HATE white vans and their drivers. I was walking into the village this morning and a white van sprayed me with a deep puddle whilst I was walking on the pavement - NOT happy. He was driving way too fast for a 30 mph limit road as well...
Grrrrrrrr.

Well that was slightly embarrassing...

As mentioned earlier I had a choir practice tonight.

Only I didn't. Apparently.

Not only do I turn up at the Church right on half 7 (due to my Great-Aunt calling me ten minutes before I wanted to leave), but when I do turn up there's a service about to start (which I really ought to have known, seeing as it IS Holy Week, and today IS Maundy Thursday). So I'm already through the door and obviously stay for the service, but I'm in frayed, slightly shabby jeans, and a university hoodie...! - fine for choir practice, but not what I'd have chosen to wear to a service! *rolls eyes* Nevermind...

A good thing though - my headache has disappeared, due probably to paracetamol and an afternoon in bed sleeping it off - what a good job I'm unemployed... (what a good 'job'...?!! - get it?!) haha...

Beginning...

I have finally succumbed to the phenomenon which is 'blogging' it seems...

I woke up with a headache this morning, so have been consuming copious amounts of water and tea to try and kill it. Not had much success so far, so I may be reaching for the paracetamol soon...

Spent the weekend with the man and went to RSPB Rainham Marshes to see some birdies and go walking. Went there on the Saturday and the Sunday, though twas a little birdless for our liking. However, some good views of Reed Buntings and Herons. I'm getting a bit too into this whole birding thing, all the fault of the man I might add, and it looks like I'll be investing in a spotting scope (smaller than the man's) whenever I have money...

Stupid BT have sent me a bill for a service I'm not supposed to be receiving from them anymore! I'm registered with Virgin Media for it, and their records confirm that; so God knows what BT are up to. They're as bad as British Gas sending me bills for a property I hadn't lived in for 3 months!

An amusing joke from 'Auf Wiedersehen Pet': "You know the difference between a hedgehog and a Range Rover? - The hedgehog's got pricks on the outside."

Looking forward to seeing the man again on Friday (wait, that's tomorrow!), yay! He'll be arriving under his own steam for the first time, so fingers crossed for a stress-free drive and minimal traffic. Will be heading down to see my Grandma on the Saturday to take her out for lunch; she lives in Somerset. Hoping there will be some good birds to see from her garden as it overlooks rolling fields and hills further away - good spot for sparrowhawks.

We're going on 'ho-li-day' soon :-) Off to what will hopefully be a sunny North Coast of Norfolk, with a couple of friends for a long weekend's birdwatching, walking and exploring. It's a part of the country I've never been to, so I'm looking forward to the change of scene. The man and I will be trying out his new 5 man-sized tent, as we'll be going by car, so we'll be enjoying the extra space it affords I'm sure.

Got choir practice tonight, back to the Church choir, as The Waverley Singers (semi-professional choir I've just joined) have got two weeks off over Easter. Just as well really as Sunday's services will be extra important due to it being a) Easter Sunday (one of the biggest events in the Christian calendar) and b) the last service of our Rector before he retires and moves to Cambridge.

Had something exciting through the post this morning - a freebie! :-) How I love freebies. On this occasion the item is a mini cookery book on Bramley apples... Lots of tasty-looking things inside to try I'm sure. I'll bet the man agrees with me too...