Full Metal Wheelbarrow

cat63 — Sun, 02 Apr 2017 08:05:47 GMT

March's books

35. Sun In Glory by Mercedes Lackey, et al.
36. Mrs Hudson and the Spirits’ Curse by Martin Davies.
37. Agent of Change by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller*
38. Wolverine’s Daughter by Doranna Durgin
39. A Bird in the Hand by Ann Cleeves
40. Libriomancer by Jim C. Hines
41. Angel by Carola Dunn
42. Conflict of Honors by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller*
43. In the Market For Murder by T.E. Kinsey
44. The Corpse With The Silver Tongue by Cathy Ace.
45. His Christmas Countess by Loiuse Allen
46. A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
47. Claimed by Shadow by Karen Chance
48. The Satanic Mechanic by Sally Andrew
49. Alas, She Drowned by Monica Knightley

Book Abandoned :- Shaded Light by J.A. Menzies

Best book of the month was definitely "A Monster Calls". It made me cry, but is excellently written.

cat63 — Sun, 26 Mar 2017 09:28:48 GMT

Some pictures from the last few days

Female siskin. First and only one I've seen this year.
No redpolls as yet, though they usually visit around the same time.

Psycho chaffinch. He's been tapping on the windows at the bacl of the house on and off for about ten days now. I've tried inviting him in for a cuppa but he always flies away when I open the door.

Daffodil, "Jetfire"

Oxlip

Hyacinth. I bit light on flowers, but the bulb's been "doing" for about five years now and still smells lovely.

Collection of crockery shards dug from the allotment in the space of about two hours yesterday. The amount of this stuff I find on the plot, you'd think it had been a ceramics workshop in a previous life (it was a market garden.)

View of Breedon church from the allotment. The house has been playing hide-and-seek with the church for at least twelve years and is still winning :)

cat63 — Thu, 23 Mar 2017 10:51:54 GMT

So, the protagonist of a detective novel is in an apartment whose owner has been murdered by poison.

Another resident of the same building has also died, within a day of the first victim, probably also by poison.

The protagonist is a criminologist, moderately sensible and intelligent.

They have just had lunch with the victim's wife and friends (sent in from a restaurant) and they are cleaning up the remnants while the others do things elsewhere.

They find a glass of cold beer in the kitchen.

They do not know who put it there.

They drink it.

On a scale of one to ten, how hard would you throw the book at the wall?

cat63 — Wed, 15 Mar 2017 08:37:47 GMT

The World's Dimmest Chaffinch is back trying to peck through my kitchen window.

Or else someone round here is trying to make a really low-rent production of The Birds....

cat63 — Sun, 12 Mar 2017 17:08:13 GMT

I was partway through crocheting a tiny top hat last night , put the thing down to make a cup of tea and when I came back in the hook had disappeared.

Since we don't even have a sofa for it to have fallen down the back of, I can only assume we must have Feegle in the house and the little hooters have taken up pole-vaulting....

cat63 — Sun, 12 Mar 2017 17:00:40 GMT

Just been reading a murder mystery.

Got about a quarter of the way through and there had been no detecting, nor yet any murder done. In fact we'd only met the detectives briefly in a short prologue. The first 90 odd pages of the book were introducing various members of a weekend party in modern day Canada and hinting at various reasons some of them might have for bumping off others.

Which is all well and good, but not my preferred style of mystery - I like to learn about the characters as the detectives do, so that I'm aware of the same evidence they are. Still I was prepared to give it a chance. Until one of the characters began banging on about her personal relationship with God in such a way that i strongly suspected she was a mouthpiece for the author.

I don't object to characters in fiction having sincere religious beliefs - indeed, one of my favourite fictional detectives is Brother Cadfael, a Benedictine monk - but I don't care for authors who *preach* at me. Shan't be reading any more of *that* one.

cat63 — Fri, 10 Mar 2017 13:26:09 GMT

Small things that irk me, No. 6921:-

When I'm logged into my account on the Parcel2Go website and it still insists on defaulting to Mr as my title.

Not sure why it needs to use a title at all, for that matter.

cat63 — Fri, 10 Mar 2017 12:52:14 GMT

On Monday I had to take the van over to Stapleford for a repair. The bad news was, they couldn’t do it there and then. The good news was that it’s a recognised fault and they would take pictures, get it authorised by Ford and organise the repairs later.

So I pootled off to Attenborough to visit the ducks as it’s only a few minutes away from the garage….

Mr swan was determined no-one would get past him with any food :)

Mallard drake. A rather underappreciated bird, I think. The spring sunshine shows off his colours nicely.

Male Tufted duck, squinting in the bright sunshine!

Red-crested Pochards. Male, female, synchronised preeening and finally the male again, complete with water drops after surfacing….

Egyptian Goose

Great Crested Grebe.

Dunnock.

Canada Geese, arriving at speed, only to be disappointed at my lack of food…

Two robins. Not fighting, must be springtime!

Tribbles! Onna stick!

There were several Long-tailed tits pobbling about in the trees. Unfortunately they pobble very quickly. Perhaps one day I’ll manage a shot showing the front of one!

I was fortunate to spot a male Gadwall swimming on a small pond/large puddle very close to the path. Lovelt subtle plumage patterns.

And a pretty white duck. Must use Persil to stay as white as that!

I also spotted a number of shoveler ducks but too far away to get a decent picture of.

cat63 — Mon, 13 Feb 2017 13:08:43 GMT

Scammer :Hello?

Me (with cheerful enthusiasm) Hello! Earwigs International, how can I help you?

Scammer: Is that Mrs Hag?

Me: (Still being annoyingly cheerful)What sort of earwigs would you like? Blue or pink? We have a special on orange ones this week!

Scammer: Mam, listen to me, I'm calling from Microsoft and...

Me Really? I'm so pleased they want some of our earwigs! We have some special polka dot ones!

Scammer: dial tone....

I'm particularly proud of this one as if was done entirely off-the-cuff... :)

cat63 — Mon, 06 Feb 2017 13:42:01 GMT

Today I haz sown All The Seeds!

What's that Sooty?

Oh, all right, perhaps that's a *bit* of an exaggeration.

Today I haz sown a frankly insignificant number of seeds when viewed on a global scale, but still enough to fill about a third of my greenhouse potting bench and a couple of small rows in the greenhouse bed as well.

These included, but may not be limited to (on account of me having a memory like a wossname) :-

Brussel sprouts, Evesham Special
Cauliflower, All The Year Round
Cabbage, Greyhound
Beetroot
Chives
Carrot, Koral
Lettuce,
Celery, red Giant

Tomato, Harbinger
Tomato, Tamina
Tomato, name torn off the seed packet...

Aubergine, Black Enorma

Pansy, Flame
Pansy, Black Moon
Eryngium
African Marigold
Calendula

Blue Sausage Tree (I kid you not - Thanks to rhiannon_s for the seeds!. The Latin name is Decaisnea fargesii. I really hope they grow.)

cat63 — Tue, 31 Jan 2017 20:21:50 GMT

January's books. I thought I'd not read many this month but checking back, I'm actually two up on this time last year.

As ever, the ones with asterisks were read aloud to Rob.

I would also like to make clear that the first book on the list has nothing whatever to do with a similar book, recently filmed, with a number in the title.

1.Shades of Grey by Jasper Fforde*

2. Strawberry Shortcake Murder by Joanne Fluke

3. Penric’s Mission by Lois McMaster Bujold*

4. Sword of Ice by Mercedes Lackey et al.

5. A Quiet Life in the Country by T.E. Kinsey

6. Dr No by Ian Fleming*

7. The Silvered by Tanya Huff

8. Lord Roworth’s Reward by Carola Dunn

9. The Germanicus Mosaic by Rosemary Rowe.

10. A Pattern of Blood by Rosemary Rowe.

11. Chains of Gold by Nancy Springer

12. The Perplexing Theft of the Jewel in the Crown by Vaseem Khan*

13. Rules of Murder by Julianna Deering

14. The Man from U.N.D.E.A.D. - The Curious Case of the Kidnapped Chemist by Darren Humphries.

cat63 — Wed, 18 Jan 2017 09:58:12 GMT

Congratulations YouView , you've rejigged your UI and made it less intuitive and more annoying to use.

The old version had the recordings in a simple text list, ordered by when they were recorded. It was clear. It was simple. It was easy to find the thing I wanted to watch.

The new one has pictures! Of different sizes! In no discernible order! And appears to be shouting in my face all the time! And have to scroll back across three screens to find the episode of Castle I want!

Hooterem sideways with the rough end of a pineapple.

cat63 — Fri, 30 Dec 2016 15:38:09 GMT

Just back from collecting Rob and his new velo from Newcastle ferryport this morning. I stayed up there overnight to make life easier and yesterday, I reached the Angel of the North just as dusk was falling...

cat63 — Thu, 15 Dec 2016 08:53:59 GMT

So, Rob went to the dentist yesterday, had a filling and *now* has toothache.

I may be wrong, but I rather thought that was supposed to work the other way round....

cat63 — Sun, 11 Dec 2016 11:16:12 GMT

There seems to be a competition on as to who can produce the most dirgelike version of "All I Want For Christmas Is You".

I'd say Michael "Monotone" Buble is winning over Lady Antebellum at present.

I'm just waiting for Coldplay to wheel out a *really* depressing rendition now....

cat63 — Sun, 11 Dec 2016 08:59:42 GMT

Rob's colleagues have asked if I'll be making them some mince pies again this year. Not sure if they're keen or fearful ;)

cat63 — Sun, 11 Dec 2016 08:31:32 GMT

Huge crash in the kitchen at about half six this morning.

Downstairs to investigate and there's the teapot - the *Denby* teapot, mind - on the floor and a rather subdued Rebus. Normally he's rubbing round my ankles in anticipation of breakfast first thing in the morning, but today he was into the lounge and observing from a distance, even before I saw what he'd done and called him a rude name.

Astonishingly, the pot itself was intact, but the lid was in a Several of pieces. I swept those up and then went to give Rebus a cuddle - we've got three or four teapots but only one cat, after all.

cat63 — Sun, 04 Dec 2016 15:55:17 GMT

On Friday we drove up to Caerlaverock Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust for a short break - just overnight, coming back on Saturday. The main thing we went to see were the Whooper swans which migrate here from Iceland for the winter, but there were plenty of other birds too.

Not the first thing that comes to mind when you think about birds and water, but these pigeons seemed to be enjoying their bath in the Whooper Pond :)

Male Wigeon. There were lots of these around.

Great Tit. We have these in the garden at home of course, but ours don’t stay still as well as this one did and I was able to get this picture with no glass between us.

We definitely *don’t* have these at home. Water Rail.

Chaffinch.

Teal. Mostly Eurasian Teal, but the one on the right of the picture with the vertical stripe on his shoulder is a Green-Winged Teal which is a related but distinct species from North America. This one must be a tourist ;)

Male Shoveler duck. Not the greatest picture, at extreme zoom range.

Gadwall (“And the same to you!” they cried!}

Wigeon in the afternoon sun.

The Caerlaverock Mute Swan Synchronised Eating Team.

The view from our bedroom window on Saturday morning.

Dramatic Posing Sheep is Dramatic and Posiing

Female Wigeon. “Oi! What are you looking at, mush?”
The warden described these ducks as “Just brown, all over”, but while that’s not exactly *untrue*, I don’t think it really does them justice.

Landing gear down!

Whooper swans Making A Fuss.
Seeing, or rather *hearing8=* the Whooper swans gave us a firmer understanding of why our native swans are called “Mute”…

Whooper Swan portrait

The reserve warden explained that these swans are newly arrived from Iceland, so their heads are stained from the iron-rich pools they feed in. The colour washes away after a few weeks, apparently.

As ane fule kno, swans are petrified of Big Yellow Wheelbarrows…

cat63 — Fri, 25 Nov 2016 19:51:55 GMT

Ironically enough, the best pictures I took at the zoo today were the ones of the wild birds ;)

Robin seems to think he’s posing for a Christmas card and wonders where the snow is :)

The three wise——flamingoes…

Starling. One of a gang having a wash and brush-up in the zebras’ pond.

Baby Emperor Tamarin. There were baby Pygmy Marmosets and Silvery Marmosets too, but they were even harder to photograph than this little one. It’s probably a good thing for parents everywhere that human babies aren’t quite so energetic and agile!

Baby South American Bush Dog.

“Pfft to your silly hoomin rules!”

“Dammit Edwin, some bastard’s stolen the piano again!”

“I tell you, Margery, the fish was THIS BIG!”

Striped Hyena.

Red Ruffed Lemur.

cat63 — Thu, 03 Nov 2016 12:21:19 GMT

October's books.

As ever, books read aloud to Rob marked with an asterisk

215. The House at the End of Hope Street by Menna van Praag
216. Boundary Born by Melissa F. Olsen
217. The Secrets of Wishtide by Kate Saunders
218. The Medium by C. J. Archer.
219. Guidebook to Murder by Lynn Cahoon
220. The Last by Michael John Grist
221. The Lost by Michael John Grist
222. Songsmith by Andre Norton and A.C. Crispin
223. The Paladin Caper by Patrick Weekes *
224. The Least by Michael John Grist
225. Jeremy and Amy by Jeremy Keeling
226. The Miser’s Sister by Carola Dunn
227. Finder by Emma Bull
228. Ginnie Come Lately by Carola Dunn
229. Magic Breaks by Ilona Andrews
230. The Man in the Green Coat by Carola Dunn
231. The Victoria Vanishes by Christopher Fowler*
232. Killing at the Carnival by L.A. Nisula (81 pages)
233. Firestorm by Rachel Caine
234. Lavender Lady by Carola Dunn.
235. Sword-Maker by Jennifer Roberson
236. Slash and Burn by Colin Cotterill*

The Secrets of Wishtide was a pretty good historical mystery with a female detective - I hope to see more books about her.

cat63 — Tue, 01 Nov 2016 10:11:40 GMT

I realise of course that it's a standard phrase, but when talking about an injured *jockey* it might be kinder to say something other than "in a stable condition"....

cat63 — Tue, 18 Oct 2016 14:06:10 GMT

Popped over to the zoo last Thursday. here are a few pictures.

Baby L'Hoest's monkey. Not best quality, this picture, but the reflections were against me this time. Can't really complain, because sometimes I'm unfeasibly lucky with the light on the glass of these enclosures. Dear little chap, in any case.

Kangaroos practising for "Strictly Come Dancing".

Diana monkey. More going on in that head than in some human's brains, it seems to me.

Red legged Seriema. He (or she) was going daft, watching the gulls outside his enclosure and chasing after them.

Crow, loitering around the penguin enclosure, presumably in hope of scraps. Given the way the penguins guzzle down the fish, I think s/he'll be disappointed...

Giraffe. Posing nicely in good light for once :)

The baby heffalump is growing apace, which is good, since the last baby heffalump at Twycross sadly succumbed to a heart complaint before he was a year old.

South American Bush Dog. These little guys always have a distinct air of Being Up To Something...
There were some tiny pups around too, but they were lurking behind the rocks and I never got a clear pic of them.

The Librarian and his blankie. A few moments after I took this he got up and wandered off, so it was a lucky shot.

Amur Leopard cub. First sighting of this little one and her sister for me.

cat63 — Sat, 15 Oct 2016 17:33:09 GMT

Given the issues with the Note 7, Samsung might want to change the music on the tv ad
for the S7 Edge to something other than Charles Trenet's 'Boum'......

cat63 — Tue, 11 Oct 2016 09:29:33 GMT

My new weed-bashing tool. Very good for weeding between the strawberry plants without taking out too many of the actual strawberry plants.

Currently reading Patrick Weekes' Rogues of the Republic series , and have consequently named it Arikayurichi, The Bringer of Order....

cat63 — Thu, 06 Oct 2016 11:59:59 GMT

Made another batch of Garibaldi biscuits today. This involves some egg white for the glaze, leaving me with a surplus-to-requirements egg yolk.

Last time, I presented this object to Rebus and he viewed it rather suspiciously until I broke the yolk open at which point he condescended to try it.

This time, his head was in the bowl almost before the yolk touched the china... He's a fast learner, at least where food's concerned.