Almost forgot about starting this one! Off to read last few posts of last week.
Hi Terry, Yes it was Nathan Fox who I corresponded with in Sept/Oct and sent a contribution for putting one or two seats on the way up to the top. He said they hoped to do it in February, it sounded pretty definite. Just rustic ones, like the one further down. Hope it is fine weather for your overnight session tomorrow.
More interesting notes on your holiday, I would be interested to see Callanish stones, I had a phase years ago of looking at stone circles and visited several in various parts of England and Scotland. I have the Julian Cope bookThe main ones here are Castlerigg and Long Meg, as I'm sure you know.
To OG, I have seen carrot cake at Jumping Jenny's, but I usually go for the flapjack type of cakes.... The soup is nice.
Lovely birdy photos from OG and Alan again, thanks.
Tiger, I forgot to say great that you solved the Bassenhwaite original female's ring letters, now we know for sure. Hope you had a nice time there.
Must mention good luck to Margo for when you go to LG very soon! I'm sure you will enjoy it there. Also it is very entertaining to hear the saga of Billie the cat !
Hi Terrym, it was OH that changed the date we should have gone the day after our anniversay on the 18th he changed it to the 25th june but parents couldn't look after the cat that week so i changed it to the 4th june he changed it so he could go to a bikers weekend which im not happy about as it clashes with our anniversary on the friday and as i have to be at home to look after bobbie and the cat it didn't go down well with me so he has a lot of groveling to do to make it up to me as i will be celabrating it on my own
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I am making peace with the Wasp Queendom. Well, at least, I've entered into peace talks with them.
I have very good windows sweeping all around my enclosed porch. Each window has 3 panes of glass and an outside screen. Unknown to me, during a recent storm, one of my screens became loose, allowing a Wasp Queen to slip in and begin building a nest between the screen and the window.
Wasps have always hated me. For some reason, I inspire territorial aggression in wasps -- or maybe they just think I stink! -- because they've tried to sting me in the past. So I was not best pleased to see this Queen making her home on the outside of my porch.
I could just close the screen and let the Queen and her offspring perish in there. Or I could use some wasp spray for a quick genocide. But I couldn't bring myself to do it. I just can't intentionally kill some creature for no good reason, so I let her live.
I've been richly rewarded, though. I've spent a few minutes every day watching her build her nest and nurture her young. I am absolutely fascinated watching her so close up. Through the window, I can look right down into her gray paper-like nest. She is in constant motion, building up the nest and caring for the young. I've developed a new appreciation for them.
Today, I had to pull some weeds outside, right under her nest. So I said, "Now, your Highness, I let you live and spared the lives of your offspring, so return the favor and don't sting me, please!" And she didn't! She watched me intensely while I worked and buzzed a couple of warnings, but she didn't come near me. Ah, diplomacy!!!
This is a photo of a Paper Wasp Queen starting a new colony, taken from the Wikipedia Commons. Photo is free for any use under a GNU Free Documentation License. Photographer is Alves Gaspar.
Evening all: Nice day here today but rain (!) forecast for this weekend (where am I? Loch Garten?). Very unseasonal. Busy day with grandson and daughter; he had a job interview this morning and has an other one tomorrow. In the meantime, granddaughter has been offered her former job (EMT for ambulance company) back fulltime, which she's not sure about right now. Her OH is starting another job tomorrow, so it's all happening.
Diane: Well, at least one chick survived; shame that the other three were possible victims of your lousy spring. How wonderful to get a front row seat on a wasp's nests - do you think the Queen will be able to keep the inhabitants in line in the weeks to come? Thanks for giving us an idea of what it looks like.
Djoan: Great to see a real live avocet for the first time; imagine it was as thrilling as when I saw the bobcats yesterday. I thought we all had our hair cuts last week!
Wendy: Prattle away; interesting to hear about Roy Denis's talk - always good to hear knowledgeable people speak about their field.
Lindybird: I think disposable BBQs aren't big here because many people BBQ year round and probably not economical in the long run.
Margobird: Tell Billie not to leave her hair in between the keys on the keyboard.
OG: Great feeding time shots!
Tiger: Always fascinated by Titanic stories; will gear up for the anniversary onslaught.
TerryM: I mentioned somewhere last week that we had a wren or something making off with bits of our outdoor mat and that we'd spied her nest in the orange tree. Tiptoed by there two days ago and she was nowhere in sight; got a mirror and no eggs either! Mr. Fox is indeed a wonderful name for a warden! The ocean north of Stornoway sounds wonderful - I thought they only had turquoise water in the Caribbean! Like the sound of the Potting Shed Tearoom. Thanks for providing links! And there's ChrisyB talking about carrot cake at a place called Jumping Jenny's! :-)
Alicat: Had to smile at the thought of your naughty OH groveling to make up for spoiling your anniversary! Grrrr. Did you tell him all the women on the LG blog were upset too? :-))
Just heard loud racket from rear walkway and see that the Orioles are literally hanging about the hummingbird feeders again.
Off to putter and research chocolate supply; take care and thanks ALL for posts and pix!
Have NO idea what happened to that last post - it was fine when I first uploaded it; now it's gone silly. Also, earlier this evening, logged on to see no "Reply" buttons on the page.
Annette: How wonderful for you to see the bobcats. That is really a special moment -- a sighting you will never forget. I'm so glad that your grandson and granddaughter have financial opportunities opening up. I'm sure you are relieved, too.
re: Paper Wasps. As soon as the young are old enough, they leave the nest area, and the small spring/summer nests are completely abandoned. In the fall, the local colonies will gather together to make a giant nest for all of them to hibernate in together during the winter. I intend to make sure that my attic and any other possible small entrances to my house are sealed! Don't want my house to become a Wasp B & B.
Diane: Ah so - didn't know that about paper wasps (never heard of them before). Good idea to seal things up before fall. Hope weather is kinder to you tomorrow - did you finish cutting the grass?
I guess the Space Shuttle is preparing for a 2:25 a.m. (Eastern Time) landing tomorrow (Wednesday)....
Annette: I didn't finish the grass. I usually do it in 2 installments. I have to mow about 1/2 an acre. The battery gives out just about the time I do, so it works out very well. LOLOL I'll do the rest in the morning before it gets so bloomin' hot. It was 93 F / 33.9 C. I saw that about the Space Shuttle. I may try to stay awake and watch it. Don't know if I'll make it.