Daisy dear, they’re hiding from that bull who’s obviously got designs on one of us and oo-ooh……………! Mooove over, it’s me!
Category: Nature
Nature’s pride
A khaki rucksack on his back
Holds his illegal catch
A good nights work, 2 rhino horn,
It’s not yet dawn.
Ladybirds: have they flown away, home?
Last year we had so many ladybirds. This year I have hardly seen any.
Ladybirds in my clematis last year
I was reminded today of the ladybirds while on a walk with a friend, when I looked closely at the old man’s beard illuminating the hedgerows. No nesting ladybirds. Continue reading “Ladybirds: have they flown away, home?”
The Great Backyard Bird Count for 2013
Yes, it is a real event, the 2013 count is coming up beginning on February 15th and this year it is open to submissions world-wide. Sponsored by the Audubon Society and others it is a snapshot record of birds sighted on one weekend, individual counts are submitted on line and are totaled by species and number. Last year there were over 100,000 submissions counting over 17 million birds
There is also a photo competition associated with the event. Now I am no expert at photography, I do have a decent camera and occasionally pull of a decent image but some of the photos in this contest are truly superb. This little gem was the overall winner, I just wish I could get pictures like that.
You can find the rest of the finalist photos here:
http://www.birdsource.org/gbbc/gallery/2012-winners-finalists
They are well worth a look and maybe while you are there you can download the entrance form and do your very own backyard count on February 15th
French leave – again
Complaining of gross injustice at home, the gross Gerard Depardieu left for Moscow – a Napoleonic choice, I fear. We’ll see (as my 6-year-old granddaughter is wont to observe). But soft, what other luminary at yonder port of entry breaks cover? It is not Rosy-fingered Dawn but Carla and Nicolulla with a couple of sons, migrating to London – allegedly. Now I can see why Carla might fancy it – some of her ‘best friends’ are natives – but will the little fella really let a high tax-rate drive him out of (one of) his ancestral home(s)? I can only applaud his good taste if he does.
Quite a Handfull
I haven’t seen Bearsy around for a while.
Last I heard he was seen around Ballarat trying out his Christmas prezzie, a state-of-the-art metal detector.
Fractures in the US/Saudi alliance
There was a report in yesterday’s The Times (sorry no link, Times Online is a pay site) regarding the soaring production of shale oil in the US. BP forecasts that this year the States will overtake Russia and Saudi Arabia as the world’s largest producer of oil, most of it from rising shale output. Understandably, OPEC is not amused and will have to cut production to avoid a collapse and keep prices steady.
The loss of hegemony for OPEC in the oil market can only be good for consumers. Analysts predict that the price of a barrel of oil will drop by 20% in the next decade. Europe seems to be lagging behind in the development of shale reserves because of environmental concerns, fracking bans and lack of infrastructure.
The shale revolution has thrown on its head, for the time being anyway, the general consensus that global oil production is in decline. While welcoming the fact that the Arabs are squirming, the Middle East might become a more volatile place in the upcoming years.
Just asking
These wild horses are obviously intent on going west.
Any idea why?
Happiness is……
A longed-for pint, another half;
A break from endless rain.
A finished job, a grandchild’s laugh;
A car that starts again.
The Beaujolais, the Stilton’s tang;
The orange evening sea.
The days when fruits abundant hang
From every plant and tree.
A place we know, a new one too;
A gentle hill to climb.
A welcome bed, a stunning view;
A shared remembered time.
Beyond my Reach
Just as the frost bound night gives way to dawn
dark silence echoes still across the tranquil lake
some early glancing sunbeams seem to wake
those placid waters as a mirrored, golden lawn,
and fleeing darkness all despond does take.
My fond, frail happiness, born so coffee hot
by morning fire of light, if not yet heat
must soon, before the waking day, retreat
and leave behind a vision which will not
until the next bright dawning e’er repeat
But I will know you when we meet again
lit only by the glowing eastern sky
before some first bird’s early morning cry
more lasting pleasure to perhaps attain
to fail perforce, but always, then to try.
Boadicea's Chariot 
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