In which I take a photo every day that I'm 50, and post it here on this blog, with a bit of related blurb.
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| it's alive! |
Over at my brother's house this afternoon I thought I'd stumbled into some dystopian nightmare when this lumbering zombie shuffled, moaning, into the room.
Turns out it was just the BirdZombie, reanimated after a miraculous display of self-healing, defying all the doctor's predictions, and back in the land of the living.
I recommended getting into cosplay immediately and heading for the nearest ComicCon...he looked at me blankly, and for a moment I was concerned that he is actually zombified...but no, he was just being a teenager!
Anyway it was fantastic to see him up and about, and I hear he's enjoying daily visits from the nurse, so you know, I reckon he's living the teenage dream!
;-)
Following that we visited Kim to see how she's getting on setting up her new business. Roob had built this elaborate light stage to get professional quality photo's for their website.
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| light show |
I'm really impressed at the quality of the work they're producing between them, and I'm sure they can make a go of their business...can't wait to see them progress!
Meanwhile, our local sparrows seem to be joining forces to make a lovely big flock that flit around the gardens and hedgerows...it seems as though several families are enjoying the safety in numbers, and the flock is now around 50 individuals.
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| superfly |
This morning, they all appeared in the hedgerows outside my lounge window, and before long a clutch of them were in this loose, fine soil, where drainpipes have just been laid. Some were grazing on the grass seed that's been sprinkled on the disturbed lawn, whilst others were taking the opportunity for a dust bath!
There are around 30 sparrows in this photo...whilst the flock includes two or three tree sparrows, I can't spot any in this picture...
(update - Anna spotted a tree sparrow, on the far left, just below the centre line of the photo)
Anyway, to end this rambling weekend post, for those (hopefully few) of you who are still with me, here's a rare treat...
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| fro |
This is Kim and I, around 1990, give or take...Kim just gave me this photo today, so I felt obliged to post it here for posterity...
I'm not proud...
:-/
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| bill's mother's |
These ominous dark clouds, blocking the sun and threatening to completely overshadow us with darkness, seemed disturbingly apt today.
A couple of my nephews were involved in a horrific accident last night, which has resulted in the younger Ollie being in bandages up to his elbows on both arms, due to burns, whilst the elder Chris is unconscious in intensive care, badly burned on his head, neck and arms...
To make matters worse, they were on holiday in Mallorca...16 year old Chris has been flown to Barcelona, where he will have to remain for a couple of months, and several operations at least...
It's a terrible tragedy, and my heart is aching for Chris, Ollie, and the rest of the family who are having to deal with this nightmare...not least my bro', of course, because, you know, he's my bro'...
It's been a trying day all round...
Somehow, after all the exercise I do, I put my back out pretty badly turning over in bed in the early hours of this morning.
It doesn't feel like a huge, long term problem, but I'm not sure...certainly today I've struggled to stand up or move around, despite all the drugs I've taken, as well as both icing and lightly exercising it.
I'm really hoping it's not going to cause problems for Fontainebleau...bad enough that it's putting a spanner in the works of my preparation programme!
Then I had to spend a supremely painful hour or so trying to get Orange to give me a PAC code so I can finally give them the boot after 18 years and 8 months of being messed around and over charged by them.
Still, they offered me £30 to compensate...it didn't... :-/
Also, after several hours rain, I checked the two last inspection hatches in the drainage systems (old and new) - and neither of them are moving any significant storm water...so where's it all going?!
One tiny bright spot in all of this was a flock of sparrows that were clustering in the hedgerow just outside our lounge...
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| pair of tits |
There are 17 house sparrows in this photo, and a couple of blue tits...more sparrows were out of shot, along the new fence that just went up yesterday, for example...
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| spot the tree sparrow |
They're mostly juveniles, I think, recent broods out and about, and finding safety in numbers.
So it was good to see them doing well this season, even though the dark clouds were so thick as to drain all colour, barring blacks and blues, out of our day...
Please send all thoughts, vibes, prayers - whatever your preference - to young Chris and family as they face challenging times ahead...
Thinking of you, Bird...
:-(
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| (not this one) |
This isn't today's post...this is a bonus post, you lucky people!
As I was so busy yesterday, I asked Anna if she'd mind taking a few shots around the garden, as I needed an image for the blog. Secretly I was intrigued at what she'd come up with, being more skilled an experienced a photographer than I.
Sure enough, despite some camera software issues, Anna caught a handful of really nice, atmospheric shots.
Here, a sparrow perches on the edge of the hedgerow, on a grey, wintry day. Somehow Anna has captured the damp stillness of a bleak day in the countryside...
Great composition.
The next two are not the most amazing photographs, but they do demonstrate the skill of opportunism - critical in wildlife photography, or so it seems to me.
Anna was sitting on the sofa in the lounge, as we discussed the various buttons, features and functions of the camera, when one of our local buzzards flew by. Showing amazing reaction, Anna quickly took a shot, and caught this beautiful profile of a raptor in flight (click on the picture to see it full size).
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| buteo buteo |
Dashing outside for a better view, Anna then managed to capture two buzzards in the same shot!
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| buteo buteo, buteo buteo |
Consider how fast a buzzard passes by when cruising like this, and then consider how long it takes to point a camera, focus, take a shot, jump up, rush to the front door, open it, go outside, spot the buzzards again, point, focus, snap...
Seriously that's quite a remarkable feat, isn't it?
No? I'd like to see you do better...
:-p
