Web

Nestling in the Nettle Tops

Many ladybirds were nestling in the nettle tops yesterday morning, including a pair of the scarlet and black seven spot sort.

Swallows come Home

The swallows were a welcome sight last night as a trio of new arrivals dipped and darted low across the pasture of my neighbouring field looking for food. I yelled the news up the hill to my neighbour Nick, who later saw around twenty five in the field about his house. They were hard to photograph in the dull cloudy light, but I made some studies in ink.

image source:http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/earthnews/3336271/Climate-change-confuses-migrating-birds.html

Neighbours

Lucy and Mike, my temporary neighbours from across the river, visited the Egg this afternoon when the tide was in. Apparently, from over the way, the Egg glints like silver in the spring sunshine.

Resurrection

Chorus for the Moon

Green Tea

I thought the tea made in a dim pre dawn moment this morning had an unusual taste. A mid morning brew shed new light on the situation.

A Swan Alone

Charcoal

Fallen branches of riverine oak were split and packed sardine like into two tins, which were then heated over a fire for nearly eight hours. The charcoal produced is of excellent quality for drawing, but its four ounce weight required four pounds of logwood charcoal to create it.

After Life

An examination of the two dead mice found last summer revealed different processes of decomposition; one of dry mummification and the second of slimy rot. I will remove the slime on the latter and bring into light its skeletal structure.