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20:35:00 o'clock BST
Feeling Happy
Out and about
Due to domestic problems, I have been unable to go out for a while for we have yet to be able to get our everyday belongings out of the many boxes we packed away so that major works could be undertaken to our home.
To be honest, for it is going on for six weeks now, we are beginning to tire of the whole experience and long to be able to get back to some kind of normality in the house.
I know we have, at the side of people who have had their homes flooded, nothing to complain about but I just feel a little 'down in the mouth' at the moment and would like to be able to find some of my belongings.
Having said that, the work that has so far been completed, in our home, is first class and we are very thankful to the professionals who have come into our domain. They have been courteous, helpful and also sympathetic to our needs.
Today, Monday, even though the weather was gloomy, I felt I had to get away from it all and let the work men go about their business under the watchful eye of my wife.
When I set out, in the afternoon, the weather was unpredictable so I catered for it by putting on a fleece and also throwing a rain coat into the boot.
When I reached my car journey destination, and as I opened the car door, the weather had changed again; it had become too warm to have both coats on.
Eventually, I reached a particular part of my walk that took me to the side of a large lake. Close to the edge of the lake there was a makeshift seat, made out of carved tree wood, where I sat for a while.
On the lake, there were lots of birds and in among about 150 grazing geese, there was an Egyptian Goose. Tagging along side of this goose was a bird that looked like a Canada Goose but it's neck was a tan coloured brown and it's body was almost white all over. I wondered if interbreeding had taken place here.
Although I did not sit on this seat for long, by the time I decided to move, all feeling had gone out of my hands and I felt the need to put my hands in my trouser pockets to try and get them warm.
I was amazed to find that the weather temperatures were fluctuating so wildly. You would never have guessed that we were having our summer.
Once I began to walk, as I put on a spirt, the feelings soon came back to my hands and all was well again.
I walked on, to get out of the strong winds, until I came to an old wooden hide and when I entered the shelter there were too more people with the same idea as myself.
These people, a friendly and easy to get on with couple, had come from Norfolk and were visiting the area, I had gone to, and had taken to birdwatching with a very keen interest.
The gentleman, of the duo, was 'Digiscoping' and I took the opportunity to ask him if he knew what 'Vignetting' was and I was grateful to learn that here was a man who, like me, took the trouble to learn as much about something, as is possible, before making a purchase.
I was suprise, on several fronts, how informed the couple were for they were among only a hand full of people, I had ever spoken to, that had heard of Charles Warterton of Walton Hall.
Charles was a man way ahead of his time and it has been said that he was the first man in the country to create a nature reserve.
Although Charles was a wealthy man, he believed, when he went into jungle country, that he must first toughen himself up so that he could live like the natives that were going to help him as he looked for birds animals that he had not seen before.
Charles would scrim up trees, presumably to get fit, and also sleep with a log under his head, where a pillow would normally be, long before his next intrepid trip to probable uncharted waters in parts of the world that some people may well have never heard of.
Round the Hall, where Charles lived, he spent a great deal of money to have a high wall built all the way round his land.
At the back of his land, there was and still is a canal and it is thought that the wall had been built to keep Bargees out of his land.
There has been lots of information written about Charles and yet relatively few people seem to have heard about him. Of course, in the growing numbers of people who have begun to love nature and the outdoor life, as I have for over forty years now, Charles has become highprofile and we could, if we were able to, learn a lot about the ways of nature if only we could tap into some of the knowledge that he had gained.
After spending some time with my new found friends, I looked at my watch and found it to be time to be moving on. Has it happened, I was beginning to feel the cold again so I made my way to the car park and the warm car.
I made a slight detour and walked into a sheltered area with trees at either side, there were a few species of butterflies around but, due to my butterfly books still being packed away, I thought it best to walk on and just enjoy looking at the butterflies without trying to identify any of them.
To my amazement, when I reached the car park, my new friends had also managed to get there and, while we were chatting, I explained to them about the U3A in the hope that they would find the University of the 3rd Age a place of learning and a place to meet new friends.
On this occassion, I was unable to make my usual detailed notes, of my walk, but there were, as well as the Canada Geese, about 200 Lapwings on site.
Earlier, when the floods were with us, I was fearful that all the Lapwing chicks had succummed to the dreadful weather conditions but, thankfully, there were more Lapwings on site than I thought would have been after a dreadful breeding season.
I am still unable to reply to people that have been kind enough to write a comment to me, about the information I have been putting in my Blog, so please do not think that I am not writing to you because I have forgotten you.
By for now,
John.
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I know it can be chaotic when things are all in boxes and frustrating too. I hope everything gets back to normal for you and your wife soon! What were the temperatures that day? You must have mild summers! We roast in summer boy do we!
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How nice that you happened upon a couple with your interests to chat with. Hope everything goes well with your home and getting everything back in order. Paula
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Lovely posting once again John .Very interesting.I hope you soon get everything sorted with your home and you get back to normal as you call it, as soon as possible.It's a nightmare if you are a person who is organised and one cannot find things.This kind of thing would drive me mad Haaa.Though it's not funny,we have to have a laugh or we would cry at times I am sure of it.Take Care Have a lovely Tuesday.Rain and wind here today and pretty cool too.Grrrr.God Bless Kath
astoriasand http://journals.aol.co.uk/astoriasand/MYSIMPLERHYMES -
enjoy your week:) i love the way you write i don't need pictures as i can picture it in my mind
Deb
03/09/07 17:23
I understand not being able to reply to some people - my computer died on me recently and I had to get a new one.
Hoping things get better for you at home!
suz