Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 24 December 2023

HAPPY CHRISTMAS 

To All Who Celebrate

I hope you all enjoy the holidays.

Santa will need a good GPS system on his sleigh when he arrives here. The temperature is soaring and likely to be 60F or 15.5C or higher tomorrow. So strange for us. The soaring temp has created VERY dense fog rolling through the woods and fields. I just saw a massive white-tailed deer buck in the bean field across the highway. He looked quite surreal bounding through the heavy fog and mist. 

Love and hugs to all.

  • Thank you Diane. You should be getting our storm there pretty soon; hope it won't create too many problems. I think about you in your little house in the woods. I hope the bar down the lane is quieter now....

  • DIANE – Thank you again. The weather bureau after predicting 29, 28, 24, 21 C for tomorrow, has now settled on 22 C. Quite cool for all the χmas BBQs. This afternoon it is quite windy, big gusts. Rudolph may have a few problems this eve!

    I wish EVERYONE a happy & peaceful Christmas and better health for those ailing. May Santa fill your stockings with goodies!

  • Thanks once again for starting us off Diane and for the description of your patch and the critters. I hope the warmer than usual weather continues for a while longer.

    Here in Suffolk it is wet and very windy but also warmer that usual - predictions for almost 14 degrees here.

    To everyone on here and those lurking or just taking a break, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas.

  • Thank you Diane for starting us off once again. I envy you to be able to see interesting wildlife whenever you look outside (fog permitting). All I can see from my third floor flat are birds, but I like to see them. A lot of magpies, the crow family (I am not so good at identifying those), geese and sometimes ducks and swans fly over. We can generally hear the swans first,

    I also wish everyone a happy Christmas and hope that all with health problems can enjoy the holiday.
  • Unknown said:
    the crow family (I am not so good at identifying those)

    You're probably seeing crows, jackdaws and rooks.  Jackdaws are the smallest of these - they have a shorter beak and a pale blue eye, and they make a fairly high-pitched sound:

    Rooks are bigger and they make a croaky sound ;

    That beak of theirs is also a dead giveaway!

    Crows are a similar size to rooks but their beak is different and they sound quite hard and angry:

    They are handsome birds, as well.

    Hope this helps!

    Our herring gulls are red listed birds.  Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.

  • I bet those are your brilliant photos Clare.
    Thank you for starting us off again Diane. I love to hear the tales of your critters. Enjoy the warmer weather.
    I have been to the zoo with some friends this morning. It was busy but had a lovely atmosphere.
    Am going to listen to the 9 Lessons and Carols from Kings soon. I always do.
    I hope everyone has a good Christmas. I understand that it isn’t an easy time for everyone, but I hope that in some way it can be special.
  • Good afternoon, all.  What a day I had yesterday - I was given one of my best presents, ever!  It all started at an inter-county shoot in April.  One of the shooters in our county team asked me if I'd send him a few of my bird photos - it turned out that he was an artist and that he wanted to try painting birds but wanted photos to use as models.  I sent him a selection of birds, which he thanked me for.  I next saw him at the annual prize-giving do in June and to my pleasant surprise he'd brought a painting to show me.  It was of a wheatear from one of the photos I'd sent and it was absolutely beautiful!  Both of us ended up being congratulated for our efforts.

    Out of the blue he emailed me on Friday.  He knew I was coming to the range the following day and he said he'd left something for me at the club.  On arriving there I found a small frame laying face-down and my chin nearly hit the floor when I turned it over:

    I'd included a couple of gannet shots among the photos I'd sent him but I've never photographed them underwater.  He'd originally painted a stonechat for me but then thought there was little point in sending me a painting I already had a photo of ..... so he did this.  I'm absolutely over the moon!

    Our herring gulls are red listed birds.  Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.

  • rusty2 said:
    I bet those are your brilliant photos Clare.

    They are mine and I'm glad you like them.

    Our herring gulls are red listed birds.  Think about that the next time you hear some flaming idiot calling for a cull of them.

  • Clare - What a wonderful and thoughtful gift! I'm sure you will treasure it always. And it seems as though you and the artist may have started a mutually beneficial relationship. I do hope you are able to work together in the future. Your wonderful photographs certainly deserve a wider audience.

    Rusty - I will also be listening to the Carols From King's in about half an hour. In the meantime it's about time I did something for lunch. It's been a manic week, and not finished yet. By this time tomorrow I should be 140 miles away, with the family, and completely wiped out. Please, Charlie - play quietly and leave me alone for a few hours!

    I wish everyone who reads this thread - and those who pop in occasionally - a very happy and peaceful Christmas and everything you wish for yourselves in 2024. And may that peace spread wider than us into the rest of the world, where there is so much conflict and unrest.
  • What lovely thoughts expressed by everyone. I can only echo them and send special wishes to OG and Heather.

    Clare: No surprise to us that your photos attract such positive attention. I absolutely loved the three photos showing the jackdaw, rook and crow and seeing the differences you describe. I've often stared at these all-black critters and wondered which they were. (But dare I ask where the raven comes in, or is that another name for one of these three?) (Clueless in California...)

    My husband announced last night, just after I thought I wouldn't have to go to the stores for days, that we're just about out of wine.....

    Peace on Earth seems like such wishful thinking this year, but maybe we can spread a little about in our own lives. Hugs to all.