Tuesday, May 31, 2005
Sing-A-Song-Of-Sixpence
Sing a song of sixpence a pocket full of rye, Four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie<.....
So the old nursery rhyme went. Well I happy to report, that the blackbirds nesting in our ivy, escaped the pie that the local cats had lined them up for and, they have returned to the nest.
Watching them over the weekend, we discerned a pattern of their comings and goings. The birds would approach the nest, from a tree on the opposite side of the garden to the nest and, size up the approach from there. If the coast looked clear the next step was to land on a stone bench halfway across the garden and once again take stock. It was then a quick dart into the foliage and into the nest, which is about 4.5 feet from ground level. It seems though the cats wait around the base, the tangle of ivy branches stop them from getting directly to the nest, thought they might try that bit harder if a bird was in the nest.
If a cat is in the vicinity of the nest the female bird in particular will sit in the tree opposite and let go with an endless din, which I suppose is a warning call. Only when a jet of water from the garden hose shifts the offending cats does the racket stop and the birds then continue with their work.
Further down the garden the willow tits have returned to the nesting box which is secured to our shed, what's more they have a brood of young which can be heard calling for food if you are stood nearby. Mind those calls go quickly silent when the parents realise a human or cat is in the vicinity, a quick tchit-tchit and it's as if the nesting box is empty. Our next door neighbour has finches nesting in a tree in his front garden. The nest is at eye-level and the birds can bee seen sitting like statues in the nest, if you look carefully into the tree. I haven't determined what type of finch the birds are yet, as I haven't managed to spot them flying in and out of the nest. I thought at first they might be goldfinches, but the colouring on the head seems wrong. The head which is all I have to go on so far is a black cap and white around the ears and eyes, I think the face is black but it's hard to tell in the shadow, it could be a red, the beak is white. I think goldfinches have a red face.
Another neighbour, further up the close, has house-martins nesting under their eves. I don't think I've seen so many species of birds in one place in all my life. It was all go in the garden this weekend.
So the old nursery rhyme went. Well I happy to report, that the blackbirds nesting in our ivy, escaped the pie that the local cats had lined them up for and, they have returned to the nest.
Watching them over the weekend, we discerned a pattern of their comings and goings. The birds would approach the nest, from a tree on the opposite side of the garden to the nest and, size up the approach from there. If the coast looked clear the next step was to land on a stone bench halfway across the garden and once again take stock. It was then a quick dart into the foliage and into the nest, which is about 4.5 feet from ground level. It seems though the cats wait around the base, the tangle of ivy branches stop them from getting directly to the nest, thought they might try that bit harder if a bird was in the nest.
If a cat is in the vicinity of the nest the female bird in particular will sit in the tree opposite and let go with an endless din, which I suppose is a warning call. Only when a jet of water from the garden hose shifts the offending cats does the racket stop and the birds then continue with their work.
Further down the garden the willow tits have returned to the nesting box which is secured to our shed, what's more they have a brood of young which can be heard calling for food if you are stood nearby. Mind those calls go quickly silent when the parents realise a human or cat is in the vicinity, a quick tchit-tchit and it's as if the nesting box is empty. Our next door neighbour has finches nesting in a tree in his front garden. The nest is at eye-level and the birds can bee seen sitting like statues in the nest, if you look carefully into the tree. I haven't determined what type of finch the birds are yet, as I haven't managed to spot them flying in and out of the nest. I thought at first they might be goldfinches, but the colouring on the head seems wrong. The head which is all I have to go on so far is a black cap and white around the ears and eyes, I think the face is black but it's hard to tell in the shadow, it could be a red, the beak is white. I think goldfinches have a red face.
Another neighbour, further up the close, has house-martins nesting under their eves. I don't think I've seen so many species of birds in one place in all my life. It was all go in the garden this weekend.
Thursday, May 26, 2005
Flown The Nest
Recently Birdman reported that he saw a thrush building a nest in a mixed hedge he had planted some years ago. I hope his thrush has better luck than the pair of blackbirds that set up a nest in some Ivy that is climbing up our garden fence.
A local cat discovered their nesting place yesterday,, Mrs C was in the garden at the time and heard a commotion emanating from behind a laurel bush which is in front of the Ivy, as she looked around she saw the blackbirds making a fast escape with some of their young who it would seem could fly. One of the blackbirds dropped an egg onto planted area surrounding our ponds waterfall, it ended up still intact on one of the rocks. The next thing she saw was one of the neighbours cats slinking out of the borders, it looks as if the birds managed to escape but will they come back?
I'm not quite sure what to do about the egg, should I leave it or dispose of it. I suspect the birds will leave it. Should I try to place it back in the nest in the hope that they return or should I dispose of it? The colouring of the egg is light blue with light brown speckles, not that that makes a great deal of difference. I'm pretty sure I saw one of the blackbirds going back into the ivy last night before it started getting dark. I know they are still around as I saw them feeding on the bird tables.
Maybe I should start sprinkling some form of cat repellent around the base of the ivy to try to keep the predators away. Can anyone recommend anything?
A local cat discovered their nesting place yesterday,, Mrs C was in the garden at the time and heard a commotion emanating from behind a laurel bush which is in front of the Ivy, as she looked around she saw the blackbirds making a fast escape with some of their young who it would seem could fly. One of the blackbirds dropped an egg onto planted area surrounding our ponds waterfall, it ended up still intact on one of the rocks. The next thing she saw was one of the neighbours cats slinking out of the borders, it looks as if the birds managed to escape but will they come back?
I'm not quite sure what to do about the egg, should I leave it or dispose of it. I suspect the birds will leave it. Should I try to place it back in the nest in the hope that they return or should I dispose of it? The colouring of the egg is light blue with light brown speckles, not that that makes a great deal of difference. I'm pretty sure I saw one of the blackbirds going back into the ivy last night before it started getting dark. I know they are still around as I saw them feeding on the bird tables.
Maybe I should start sprinkling some form of cat repellent around the base of the ivy to try to keep the predators away. Can anyone recommend anything?
Wednesday, May 25, 2005
Existentialist Me.
 | You scored as Existentialist. Existentialism emphasizes human capability. There is no greater power interfering with life and thus it is up to us to make things happen. Sometimes considered a negative and depressing world view, your optimism towards human accomplishment is immense. Mankind is condemned to be free and must accept the responsibility.
What is Your World View? (updated) created with QuizFarm.com |
To arrive at the final decision I had to chose which of two answers I'd previous processed took precedence over the other. Had I chosen the other way I would have ended up a Materialist as detailed below:
 | You scored as Materialist. Materialism stresses the essence of fundamental particles. Everything that exists is purely physical matter and there is no special force that holds life together. You believe that anything can be explained by breaking it up into its pieces. i.e. the big picture can be understood by its smaller elements.
What is Your World View? (updated) created with QuizFarm.com |
Stolen from Gert.
Tuesday, May 24, 2005
Reality TV
I like many other am heartily sick of the utter bilge various TV companies are inflicting upon us in the name of so called Reality TV. Amongst others we've had Big Brother and I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of here. Currently running is some total garbage called Celebrity Love Island, whereby such celebrity no hopers as Callum Best and Abi Titmus and others I've either never heard of or wish I hadn't, most of whom would shag a dustbin if it got them TV exposure. It's about time the TV production companies consigned such garbage to Noel Edmunds Crinkly Bottom.
At least there is one decent Reality TV program running in the schedules at the moment, Deep Jungle, this is reality TV in the raw. This is real reality TV, not some contrived junk thrown at the masses because, it's cheap and the moronic masses will watch anything.
Anyhow if the schedulers want to throw rubbish at us, how about something for the more thoughtful middle aged viewers? Something like "Celebrity Love Handles" could work.
At least there is one decent Reality TV program running in the schedules at the moment, Deep Jungle, this is reality TV in the raw. This is real reality TV, not some contrived junk thrown at the masses because, it's cheap and the moronic masses will watch anything.
Anyhow if the schedulers want to throw rubbish at us, how about something for the more thoughtful middle aged viewers? Something like "Celebrity Love Handles" could work.
Monday, May 23, 2005
Red Flag Day
As I drove into the car park at work today, I noticed that a few cars had red and white checked flags attached to their doors. I expect the numbers of such flag bearing cars to increase as the kick off the Champions League final on Wednesday night approaches.
Liverpool are definitely the underdogs for this forthcoming attraction, but I'll just point out a rather odd coincidence that I've come across:
In 1978 a pope died, a general election was called, Liverpool lost in the league cup final to the eventual winners of the old division one and Liverpool went on to win the old European Cup which was the forerunner to the current Champions Cup.
Whether they will win it or not, I've seen worse reasons for putting money on an outsider. To all those Liverpool fans out there, good luck on Wednesday night, may the luck of Arsenal shine down on you.
I'll leave you with one question; Can those flags be lowered to half mast in the event of a defeat?
Liverpool are definitely the underdogs for this forthcoming attraction, but I'll just point out a rather odd coincidence that I've come across:
In 1978 a pope died, a general election was called, Liverpool lost in the league cup final to the eventual winners of the old division one and Liverpool went on to win the old European Cup which was the forerunner to the current Champions Cup.
Whether they will win it or not, I've seen worse reasons for putting money on an outsider. To all those Liverpool fans out there, good luck on Wednesday night, may the luck of Arsenal shine down on you.
I'll leave you with one question; Can those flags be lowered to half mast in the event of a defeat?
It's A Beautiful Noise
From the Prologue leading into Crunchy Granola Suite followed by Desiree to the finale of the show, which included Cracklin' Rosie, the whole performance was superb. A packed Manchester MEN Arena witnessed Neil Diamond who, if not at his best, was damnably close to it. Beautiful Noise, Cherry Cherry, Love On The Rocks, America, Forever In Blue Jeans, You Don't Bring Me Flowers, Play Me, Holly Holy, Soolaimon, Brother Love's traveling Salvation Show, Morning Side, I Am...I Said, Shiloh..... They were all there, interspersed with numerous slower ballads who's titles escape me. There was even a place for some music from Jonathan Livingston Seagull, with a nice film sequence to go with it.
The highlights for me of the evening were 20,000 fans singing along with Sweet Caroline and I'm A Believer, from beginning to end, all encouraged by the artist who wrote the songs. Another highlight was Neil singing Red Red Wine, starting off as he originally wrote it and then as the first verse was finished he launched into the more funky UB40 variation of the song, he obviously enjoyed that himself as he called for more UB40.
The audience was on it's feet dancing and singing to anything vaguely catchy. The atmosphere was fantastic and The Diamond was obviously taken aback by the reception he got, as I'll swear there was a tear in his eye by the end of the show. If you have a vague liking for anything he has produced then I'd encourage you to get tickets to see him somewhere on this tour. I'd have paid double to see that show and still would still feel it was well worth the money. Nearly two and a half hours of non-stop music, Absolutely Brilliant.
If you have already booked to see him in a future show, then you are in for a treat. If you haven't got tickets and want to see where he is playing then; see this site. Glasgow is sold out, but last time I looked there were still tickets for Earls Court, Woburn Abbey, Ipswich and Bristol.
The highlights for me of the evening were 20,000 fans singing along with Sweet Caroline and I'm A Believer, from beginning to end, all encouraged by the artist who wrote the songs. Another highlight was Neil singing Red Red Wine, starting off as he originally wrote it and then as the first verse was finished he launched into the more funky UB40 variation of the song, he obviously enjoyed that himself as he called for more UB40.
The audience was on it's feet dancing and singing to anything vaguely catchy. The atmosphere was fantastic and The Diamond was obviously taken aback by the reception he got, as I'll swear there was a tear in his eye by the end of the show. If you have a vague liking for anything he has produced then I'd encourage you to get tickets to see him somewhere on this tour. I'd have paid double to see that show and still would still feel it was well worth the money. Nearly two and a half hours of non-stop music, Absolutely Brilliant.
If you have already booked to see him in a future show, then you are in for a treat. If you haven't got tickets and want to see where he is playing then; see this site. Glasgow is sold out, but last time I looked there were still tickets for Earls Court, Woburn Abbey, Ipswich and Bristol.
