WEEKLY CHAT (non-osprey) SUNDAY APRIL 26, 2016

Great news, MARGO!!!

Margobird; Hurray for continuing good news. I hope you're enjoying the nests..  :-)

Heather: The San Andreas is a strike/slip fault (the plates slide past each other); the (allegedly) super-ghastly (note scientific language!) potentially catastophic ones (that can also produce tsunamis) are mostly thrust faults, as in Indonesia a few Xmas's back and the recent Nepal quake. However, that said, the San Andreas is a biggie and I'm sure the residents of 1906 San Francisco and more recent communities that have suffered smaller quakes in its neighborhood since then might have other opinions.  That's the "good" news. The new "bad" news is that USGS has discovered that a hitherto apparently shallow fault that runs right between us and the Channel Islands is much deeper than originally thought and is thus connected to other faults, including the San Andreas, and could not only trigger a "mega-quake" but also huge tsunamis.  They are telling us to sit up and take notice....and here I was fretting about the weeds. The other bad news is that the huge increase in the number of earthquakes in Oklahoma is now definitely linked to oil fracking. 

Alan: This one's for you: Someone spotted an injured baby badger on a local highway. It was scooped up by the wildlife rescue folks and is now doing well in addition to being a major "aaahh" attraction on our local website.  There was some discussion as to its being a Honey Badger, but it's a plain old American badger. Cute, eh?

Laundry under control; just popped to local store for some basics. They were playing Bill Haley on their musak thingy

Thanks ANNETTE, now to do some research! I am aware of the thoughts re fracking, though. Bill Haley? Ha ha. I remember Rock around the clock from the Fifties. Oh dear.

Annette : Thanks for the news on the baby badger, looks a bit different from UK ones.

Great news that 14 from the Lakes is on the way home.

PS Now,Rock around the Clock will be in my head all night! I remember Auntie from Finland telling us that they called that kind of thing an earworm. Where is Auntie these days? Does anyone know?

Well, I was wrong about absence of snow here on south coast of Scotland – top of Criffel was wearing it this morning, and we could see more in the hills beyond Dumfries. We had the usual four seasons here today, except that the wind was not allowing the brilliant sunshine to warm anything up. Rain and sleet were quite heavy at times, but we didn’t get wet until making our way indoors from the car at home! Compensation was an excellent lunch at Loch Arthur – Haggis Melt on Sourdough Bread, with Chutney and Salad. I also confess to a very good slice of coffee cake!

Brenda – our laundry (tops which I don’t tumble) had to dry indoors today. How lovely to hear the lambs and sheep; we see a lot as we drive to Dumfries, but nearest on foot (scooter) are about a kilometre from us. Since your neighbour has had dogs before, I assume she has some idea what life will be like with a puppy around the house; but will the “baby gate” work with a dog as small as a Jack Russell? I worry about older people falling over small dogs as they get less steady on their feet, and as others say, JRs are rather “yappy”.

Annette – pleased you have some improvement; I hope the cough won’t linger. I think the unpredictability of earthquakes is possibly the scariest part. I think you have told us before that when they strike, instinct kicks in and you do the sensible thing – and that you are always prepared for emergencies. That Baby Badger certainly has the cute factor!

Margo – pleased about your Good News – sorry about your failed and lost post on here.

Heather – now you’ve got me Rockin’ Around the Clock with an earworm, too, but it has got rid of the one I still had from church on Sunday evening!

We haven't had any rain today, but Margo told me that she had, had hail showers in Poole.

Heather,Annette, you have confirmed what my OH says. He says JR's  are yappers. His sister always has two, as one dies she gets another pup and I do know that they always bark when they go outside at night. She always blames the foxes who are often in her garden, or nearby.

OG, Neighbour is a very agile, young sixties, so she should be fine with the pup, but she will be upset if it barks, when in the garden. I love to hear the sheep but I don't look forward to a yapping dog :-((  The couple in the house nearest to us have two dogs, but we very rarely hear them.
I always think it is good to go out, whatever the weather and especially to enjoy an excellent lunch. 

Annette, It is not unusual to see dead young small badgers or foxes on the roads in our area. They haven't become aware of road dangers yet, especially on the unlit country roads and lanes. An adult badger, especially the male, would certainly damage your car if you hit one. Your badger looks different and seems very young.

We have been working in the garden again and OH managed to cut the grass, while I did a quick dust and vacuumed the downstairs carpets. 

Eagle-eye - glad to bring back the memories.   Apparently the broad we visited (Salhouse, I think) can only be reached by the private boats and moorings have to be paid for so that is the only way they can receive their ice cream, rather novel.

Margobird - that is good news.

To those feeling under the weather with colds etc, hope you feel a lot better soon.