Thursday 17 February 2011

A send off in stlye?

No birds again today but I thought I might ramble on a wee bit about birding and birders as a whole.  Well, yesterday I mentioned that Jan would have something to say if I tried to go birding every day, and rightly so too.  Yesterday morning my copy of the monthly magazine Birdwatch arrived and I’ve just sat and finished reading it.  On page 23 Jonathon Lethbridge one of the mags regular writers has penned a piece about the manic state most birders get themselves into every December 31 ready for the start of the new birding year on January 1.  Jonathon has decided that he is going to try to take it easy this year and not run around to do a ‘year list’.  For the non-birder reading this I should perhaps mention that most birders have lists, one is a list of bird species they have seen since they started birding, a ‘life’ list; another list for all the species they have seen in any one year, a ‘year’ list; and lastly a list of birds they have seen in their local ‘patch’, a ‘patch’ list.  OK, but do they run a life and year list for their patch I wonder?  And what happens if the move home?  I also remember seeing something about other birders having list of bird they have seen on the telly!  And in films!  Oh dear, I think I agree with Jonathon, time to take it easy ;-)))  Have a look at this one then ...



This 'pied' jackdaw I got some time ago at Bradgate Park.  I've only ever seen it the once so I'm glad I got the chance when I did. 

A nuthatch at Coombe Abbey.

A bullfinch but I can't remember where.
 A mandrin duck at Richmond Park I think.
 A hooded crow on the shore of Lough Neagh, Antrim last year.

It's bird club tonight, I shall report on it tomorrow.


Oh dear, we are in the kids bad books.  Rusty and Bella had to go for their second jab today and they also had a micro-chip inserted too.  They have both bleed very badly after the micro-chip which seems strange to me.  Cindy didn’t and as far as I remember neither did Sally when we had her done.  Anyway, it’s all done now and they have been feeling very sorry for themselves.     
The other week I was sat in the Felix Holt, a Whetherspoons pub in Dorktown and I found one of their in-house mags on the table so I took it home for a read.  One item that caught my eye was about the amount of time you have to wait to be served in their pubs.  The only place I have experienced this is in the Felix Holt where on a regular basis there is only one person behind the bar with a long queue of customers waiting, and yes I do get a tad uppity over it!  But what annoys me a lot more is having to pass through a gang of smokers standing outside the front door filling their lungs with poison.  The Felix Holt doesn’t actually have a smoking area so up to a point I can accept it but I still don’t like it!  However, the Bear and Ragged Staff in Nonetown does have a smoking area out back but the smokers won’t use it and us non-smokers have to walk through it every time we go in there.  I’ve complained to manager o a number of occasions, I’ve even phoned their head office but it is still happening.  So much for customer service then eh?  So you might then be tempted to ask, “Why do you go there then?”  Simply, they are about the only places where I can my scooter inside safely. 







St Pancras Station in front of the new Library.

St Pancras clock tower
 Hyatt reflection, Brum.

Today from the Sage ... 
A very prestigious cardiologist died, and was given a very elaborate funeral by the hospital he worked        formost of his life... A huge heart... covered in flowers stood behind the casket during the service as all the  doctors from the hospital sat in awe. Following the eulogy, the heart opened, and the casket rolled inside. The heart then closed, sealing the doctor in the beautiful heart forever..
         At that point, one of the mourners just -burst- into laughter. When all eyes stared at him, he said, 
                     'I am so sorry, I was just thinking of my own funeral... I'm a gynaecologist.'

The priest fainted !!

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