George and the Magpie...

10 November 2010

My friend and neighbour Mary has a beautiful (if slightly antisocial cat called George - basically he hates other cats with an absolute singlemindedness).

Over the years we have noticed many times how magpies can hold their own against cats... we have seen them bully cats... but this one really was incredibly sure of itself...  it carried a couple of pieces of bread up to the garage roof from the bird table... making plenty of noise... George pretended to ignore it...

While the magpie had breakfast George studiously pretended to be interested in something else...

The magpie still took no notice even when George gave in and turned around to watch it eat breakfast...

Yep... Magpies surely know where they are in the social pecking order... and it is well above cats...

The Magic of Trees...

8 November 2010

Macro Monday at Lisa's Chaos... an event that I have enjoyed very much over the last couple of weeks.

There is the odd tree and place on the hill that feels very magical... This spot is one of them and I always find myself pausing here to look at the view... touch the tree... and then move on...  I have also seen other walkers doing the same...  it is also a tree that people seem to like to carve their initials onto...

I love this knot on the tree bark... where a branch has been removed a very long time ago...

wonderful heart shape in the bark...

there are new initials...

older names...  (and no this was not carved by my DH)

and initials carved into the bark that have been there for such a long time that they have become distorted by the growth of the tree...

I wonder why so many people love to stop by this particular tree... just like I do...

Shane Snoozing...

7 November 2010

Shane is very much better this morning... he went for a short wander around in the woodland rather than a morning walk... had some breakfast... and settled down for a snooze on the rug (wearing his red sweater - which he doesn't normally let anyone know he wears - scared of losing all street cred I suppose).

A Stressful Day... and a Kind Stranger...

6 November 2010

It was a beautiful morning... sun and blue skies...

Autumn colour has almost gone with most of the leaves fallen from the trees...

Shane and I set off for our usual walk... he was walking extra slowly and I was stopping to take photos...

He was taking lots of interest in all the scents... and wearing his winter coat as it is very chilly...

The sky was beautiful, blue and clear...

And then the worst happened... Shane was walking along and then just after I had taken this photograph he just collapsed into the grassy verge...  I sat down beside him for a bit... and then I picked him up... I know he has lost alot of weight in recent months but he is still reasonably heavy... I carried him back along the lane and we stopped a few times... then a very kind lady dog walker who we had met and chatted to earlier stopped and offered to carry him for a bit... it made such a difference to have some help... I got him back to the car and after I had stopped shaking... drove home... Neil lifted him into his bed... he lay on his bed for a few hours and then stood up and took a small meal and a drink of water... then went back to sleep...  It has been such a worrying day... I probably took him too far... we shall have to keep to much shorter walks in future... he is 16 and we all love him dearly...  and I am so thankful for the kindness of a stranger today.

Christmas Socks...

5 November 2010

Christmas is creeping up on me at an alarming rate... normally by this stage in the season I have most of my Christmas present shopping completed, wrapped and waiting neatly in a box...  

However, this year is not like that and I have one present bought and still waiting in its plastic bag to be wrapped... so far behind...  I have at least written my Christmas present shopping list...

This sock is the first of the Christmas presents that I am knitting... my family have been watching my sock knitting and listening to me enthuse about the comfort of a hand knitted sock

and how warm and cosy my toes are in my lovely wool socks...

so hints have been dropped... some more subtle than others...

Christmas approaches...

4 November 2010

Torture... as I keep thinking about the contents of the large Amazon.co.uk box...

Oh but how exciting...  inside this box which arrived today... is a Nikon D3000 which is my Christmas present from my sister Pip, my mum and my SIL Steffi... all arranged by Pip...

Neil is buying me a Sigma 70-300 Macro lens for Nikon DSLR cameras for Xmas...  ok... I am not a great one for surprises and am even worse at keeping surprises secret... although I do try...

Pip had it delivered to Belfast so she wouldn't have to carry it over... so now I have to look at it in its box for the next 50+ days... oh the temptation is great.... lol

Macro Monday...

1 November 2010

I love Autumn... the plants as they die back often take on a new type of beauty...

My second week taking part in Macro Monday...

I thought the stamens on this blackberry blossom were beautiful... sadly it has missed being a blackberry this year but it reminded me of the tassel heads on the clematis...

The dead ragwort blossom head was beautiful... I loved the star shapes left long after the blossom has gone.

The rushes are all dying back... they go a beautiful shade of yellow ochre and the flower head has long since turned to a seed head and lost its seeds...

Amidst so much plant life dying back the new growth on the whins (gorse) was beautifully green...