Afternoon all: Geez. May already? This happens every year!
Sitting in garden with laptop! Under umbrella in shorts and trying to ID a pale pink hybrid rose I didn't think I'd bought but which is now blooming like mad. I went out to buy orange/apricot/peach and yellow roses and have no idea how this pale pink one got into the mix. Also, it doesn't have a little metal label, which the others do, and I'm wondering if it didn't get into the wrong bin at La Sumida, where I bought six bare roots. In the meantime, Amber Flower Carpet and Julia Child roses are doing brilliantly... Met friends for breakfast this morning: Had a egg-white and seasonal veggie mix - won't make that mistake again! Very boring and challenging since nothing stayed on my fork. Was forced to rectify the situation with a cafe au lait and a boysenberry and lemon scone!
Diane: I have a visor and a sweathshirt with a hood that I wear on windy days at the whale count. That's it! Daughter has several cowboy hats, including one with a woven decorative band she made from hair taken from Cimarron's tail (the horse she had to put down Feb 10). I'll check out Trucker Steve next.
Alicat: Bet you had fun with Bobbie. Have you sorted your naughty OH yet? :-)
Wendy: Dolphin visit sounds like fun.
Sheila: Argh! Take care of that knee. Geez. A 1.5 hour wait for food? Did everyone complain loudly? Apparently, several of our channels repeated the wedding video throughout the day yesterday; I'm watching the recording a bit at a time; can't stand to be inside on a lovely day.
OG: More fab azaleas! Good news that son is trying the part-time option; hope it works out for him. Really understand "more money than sense," which also applies to grandson who, sad to say, doesn't have much money, so .....! Still, he's young yet and as always, we live in hopes. Little vole looks awfully sweet.
Hallo also to Lynette. It's past 4; can now officially start new Weekly Chat!
Hi Diane, I think I'm a bit like your boxer too! It's easier to chat to strangers on here than face to face, but then we all have a common interest which is actually quite wide.
We had a frost last night, and it has nipped a lot of newly shooting plants (in the bud). I have a mulberry which is small in stature, but must be over 18 years old. It was given to me by the gardener (redundant many years ago) where I used to work. The mulberry was planted by King George V and Queen Mary in 1919 when the organisation I worked for was officially founded!! This wee plant had a neglected beginning when I failed to plant it in the garden and it remained in the pot for an overly long time. I am not sure whether that is the reason it is stunted! The frost caught all the new shoots. I hope it will start shooting again.
Birdie's DU Summaries 2018 https://www.imagicat.com/
CIRRUS, LINDIBIRD, GOLDFINCH, SHEILA, ALAN ET AL. Thank you all for your kind words.....and those wonderful pictures. I had my camera with me yesterday and, having decided to leave the case in the car, aimed, focused, click .......nothing!! Out of battery and the spares are in the case. As Cirrus would say, 'Rats'!! BTW, CIRRUS, So sorry to hear you are not well. Hope that having your feet up with BIRDS helps to make you feel a bit better. There are other more cheerful articles, but the affect last winter had on the Barn Owls is very distressing. Yes, mine arrived today and there were Gannets on the cover of Scotland News, too.
As an addenda to previous blog: for those unfortunate enough to suffer from both vertigo and seasickness there is a 'cam' on the stack at Troup Head which can be watched at the Marine Aquarium in MacDuff. If you flash your RSPB membership card you get in FREEE!
GARY, Please can I have a clone of TOFFEE? I think I'm in love.
The mind is like a parachute, it doesn't work if it's not open.
QW: I think I'm in love, too - Toffee is just gorgeous.. Gary, you must have loved her on sight.
Sheila: I said that Terry was "going in a few days" not for a few days!! :-) - she said that she was going to be too busy to post as she was preparing to go. Still hope that its a great holiday!
margo: I've already got possession of a man who can't remember what I just said 2 minutes ago, and can't do more than one task at once! We still wouldn't swap them though, would we?
Cirrus: Sorry that you're not too well - hope you recover or can get something from the docs to help. I'm waiting for my copy of Birds to arrive. Always sit down with it right away if I can.
OG: what a shame that your son is feeling poorly. Hope he soon recovers and can get back to the job again. And your fish are not too well either? Hope the petshop can help .
The link to the thing in China showed the men working up high, and mentioned that they were "up with the birds' which made me laugh, as it was so so high, I think I would have felt that I was up with the Angels!
Quick note to Annette:
Big Rig Trucker Steve is going to be travelling back through Arizona and New Mexico, close to the Mexican border. I think you wanted to watch him drive through that area (?). If anyone wants to see the Mexican border, you can watch here: http://www.bigrigtruckcam.com/
Will read everyone's posts later this evening. Must cut some newly dried out grass!
Thanks ALL for the holiday wishes, we go at the weekend for two weeks. Just managed to squeeze in some time on t’internet, may be back later!
Gary!!! You’ve done it again, beautiful pic of beautiful Miss Toffee. I definitely want one!
Alicat, you too, what a little sweetie Bobbie is, she looks like a toy, obviously enjoying being out.
Annette, congrats on all the whales, excellent that the numbers are looking good.
OG, did you have cake at Spey Bay? We thought they were rather good. Yes please to more pics.
Sheila, wow, yellowhammers, pheasants and foxes all in the garden together! We have YHs in the hedgerows around but they don’t come into the garden, we can hear pheasants in our field but don’t often see them, and we have evidence of foxes and see them occasionally (the hens say, too often).
Alan, sorry Hamish has to go to vet again, another lovely pic.
Cirrus, I have to agree about milk and cats not going together, ours always have water. (I also did not want to upset Margo.)
Joan, my dust bunnies are always safe – I find after a certain amount of time they don’t seem to get any bigger!
QW thanks for your descriptive walk/talk.
Terry in Cumbria
Just in case you get really busy over the next two days TerryM - please accept my best and warmest wished for a terrific holiday too.
Lovely captures Lynette ! Thank you.
Good girl Toffee - she looks gorgeous Gary
May we have a picture of Bison, Diane?
Thank you everyone for your well wishes. I hate to admit it but today I needed my compression hose (not very comfortable to wear as I refuse to wear a suspender belt so after a while they roll down to my knee LoL ) I just hope this isn't the way it's going to be for the rest of my life !! but they do make a sort of a difference. Didn't help much at work this evening though come to think of it - I was especially ''dunnin'' walking home.
Oh oh, OG , what superb photos - just wonderful. (you've posted over me so to speak so most of this post will be abouve yours)
Fish Tank Water tested too soft for new Guppies – expert reckoned others are acclimatised, but the new ones never made it (3 more dead when we got home!) Had to buy a remedy but got credit note for replacement fish when tank is sorted – reckon he felt bad because he had treated the tank they came from, whereas our previous ones had possibly come from soft water when we got them!
Cucumbers did get planted – and greenhouse watering done. OH also put supports around Euphorbia in case they got beaten down by expected rain.
Brenda – you are having to wait a long time for your computer – at least they didn’t come up with the Bank Holiday excuse! How inconsiderate of OH to want to use his!! I hope you will enjoy Bowls - my Uncle played until he was 90 – and then even had a go from a wheelchair! I think that big fish at Spey Bay might have been a Salmon.
Lynette – we are indeed lucky that we were able to see Ospreys at LG, Spey Bay and LotL while we were on holiday – and can visit others local to home!
Gary – looks like Toffee was keeping a close eye on the roofer. She really is a little beauty!
Diane – you are always so busy, you make that sound very mysterious …….Ah, I see it’s more mowing!
Sheila – sorry you are getting damage from the late frosts – hope the Mulberry survives.
Decided this will be the last from Spey Bay as I still have to cover LotL and then the “locals” at Threave!
This poor bird - a female, I think, made many attempts to catch a fish, and seemd to get very frustated when it just didn't happen for her. She started upsteam a few hundred yards, then right down at the mouth of the river, then back up in the part where it divides among sandbamks - eventually she flew way upriver in disgust!
Ospreys Rule OK, but Goldfinches come a close second!
Well, I got absolutely soaked on our walk today. Lovely.
Thanks Diane, Quiet Woman Shelia, Linda, Terry. She is very special and we feel she choose us (or Alison anyway)
Diane, that is a lovely image of Bison. They can look fierce sometimes but love the thought of him in the flower beds is great.
QW, had a proper read of your walk just now and it is beautiful. Thanks.
I would like to add that us men can't multi task or remember things so that's standard operating procedure.. lol
Terry, have a great holiday.
Jane, that sounds awkward and a little painful. If you don't mind me asking, is this quite a new problem or one you've had for a while? I hope they can sort you out.
OG, sorry about the fish but glad you can get some replacements. I wouldn't have thought about the water (not that I have fish.) Lovely photo's as always. Thanks
Hey, Terry, you snuck in there! Yes, we did have cake at Spey Bay, but I can’t remember for sure – I think it was chocolate cake – or may be Cappuccino with Chocolate icing! Actually, we seemed to have cake everywhere – but have just got back to my pre-holiday weight after two weeks – in time for the next one – a short break to see Gardens in Galloway, while you are away. Anyway, we hope you will both enjoy the Hebrides!!!!
One last one from Spey Bay, just for you:
Back from choir practice, well an hour ago. No more now till 1st June as next one in a fortnight clashes with a local concert in the church for Moulton's Festival week.
Cirrus - hope you feel better soon. Received my Birds mag but not yet read it, usually take it to the gym and have a read whilst OH is finishing what he does.
TerryM - have a lovely holiday and come back feeling refreshed.
OG - Simply stunning pics of the ospreys.
Back in the morning, Night, Night.
http://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/things-to-do/wildlife-webcams/loch-of-lowes/
RSPB Giving Nature a Home