Hi All. Don't forget to check last page or so of previous week for all the latest! Granddaughter made excellent time to AZ - got there at 4 p.m. our time - an 8 hour ride with minimal (comparatively speaking) traffic through LA early this morning. Thunder received hysterical greeting from Pepito, tiny noisy companion who wondered where Thunder had gone but was much too noisy and excitable to bring along. Brought Oro home for successful visit after which I went on a hunt-and-scoop mission to clean up yard after two large dogs. Oh fun! Daughter and I watched Wallace and Gromit DVD (the "were-rabbit" one) - a hoot. OH and I just remembered we have tickets for Charlie Rose (PBS interviewer) this evening so have to hose myself down, prop open my eyelids and try to stay awake for another few hours. Why do these things start at 8 p.m.?!
Thanks Alan for reminder re Phoebe (keep reminding us since I'm so busy running and fetching); four big storms due this week with threat of flooding, high winds, power outages. Sounds like real weather!! TerryM: Will pass on gerbil story to hamster! Lindybird: All hankies put away now! :-) Congrats on the redecorating and dibnlib: I'm with you from now on - hire the folks who can do it in half the time (at four times the cost, yes, but....)
Off to comb hair and make self presentable. Have a nice Sunday all.
OG you mention Scotland as being your adopted country. Where are you from originally? Was it just a quick hop over the border or was it further afield?. Anyway when you come to visit son at GOS maybe you will take the opportunity to come a little further north to Simpsons the garden centre I frequently mention. You can actually see it from the A9 as you are approaching Inverness so it is easy to find.
Have any of you met Oscar? His summer home is in Nova Scotia and he is surely one of the whitest chested ospreys in the world.
Tiger Signature
OG For pigeons the collective noun is flight, cote, dole or dule and for doves, either flight or flock, by the way for crows the collective noun I know is the rather horrible "murder of crows"!!!!
Thanks Tiger he certainly does have a very white chest and what a handsome bird.
Margobird
Tiger, Oscar is a very handome fellow. It is astonishing just how white he is. Bet he has no problem finding a mate.
Tish, lovely to see you on line and hear about your sparrowhawk'
Sun has been shining here and I have been able to spend time tidying up the garden. I feel so much better when I can be outside.
Everytime I look at Lily today, she is asleep. Haven't even caught her having a scratch.
Blackwater eagles have an egg:
http://www.friendsofblackwater.org/camhtm2.html
Annette – boiler drip man came – it was just a simple washer, but having started to deteriorate, it just went for it big time and virtually crumbled away while we were waiting!! Having had the front off the boiler, he had to do the safety check stuff too. Still nothing from Dyno man.
Dibnlib – yes, ‘twas just a hop over the border – well, a hop, skip and jump, as we originated in south of England and moved gradually north, then came here 6 years ago after 30 years in Lancashire. Of course, Dau#2 near Inverness tells us we aren’t really in Scotland because we are in the “debateable lands”! She’s been in north of Scotland 20 years now. We’ll be staying in a B&B at Muir of Ord a few nights in May when celebrating S-i- L’s 40th birthday, so I intend to stop at Simpson’s on the way!
Tiger - Oscar’s white front is spectacular – a very handsome guy – but still love Odin the Magnificent!
Ospreys Rule OK, but Goldfinches come a close second!
Thanks to everyone for your help. Comments option working today but haven't got to grips with bolding text ....I will get there. Lucky for you to see Sparrowhawk Tish.. they are handsome birds. Have left a message on your page Tish.
Maureen
Brenda H That is mate Ethel beside him. He is very attentive and spends lots of time in the nest with her.
OG Yes I know Odin is a favorite in these parts :) That is a great picture of him.
Thanks to all who commiserated with Fly. Last time I tried to write this, it coincided with the 'crash' of the system and I thought it was something I'd done!
I normally give my 'senior' (over 7 years old) dogs a supplement called Cortaflex which contains glucosamine and chondroitin, for their joints. I'd run out of it and Fly hadn't had any for some days, which may have made the arthritis worse. I'm trying her now on that and no metacam but will go back to metacam if she is in pain.
OG I sympathise with you having a drip from you boiler. When we were having an extension built it was necessary to have some walls knocked down, with much noise and vibration. We were wakened at 2.00am by the sound of dripping - a connectiion on th cistern for the upstairs loo had been loosened by the vibration and water was coming throught the hall ceiling, lots of water! Since then we keep a bucket under that joint constantly.
Alan Thanks for the new link to the Lily cam. Couldm't get the previious one to play. But that might just be me.........!