Wednesday, January 30, 2013

Wooden Fork's

Wooden Fork's

I have been known to raid the rubbish skip's in town. Now before anyone thinks I am really down on my luck! let me explain. There is a carpentry shop in town that throws a lot of offcuts into a skip. There is often some very good wood amongst all the rubbish. The size is also just right for knife handles and a few other pieces.

Before Christmas I was looking for an idea to compliment the pickled onions I had made as presents. As kids we always had a sharp knife with a thin blade that we had used to retrieve pickles from the jar. Much like a kingfisher darting into the water to catch fish. We speared pickles!

Mothers tend to frown on this sort of behaviour at the lunch table. So the pickle fork has come into being in the Pattrick household.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Little Swift

Little Swift

We have a colony of Little Swifts nesting under the eve's of our roof, there are literally hundreds of them. They seem to decrease in the winter months as some move away and some remain. 

The thing that has us stumped is why we find so many young falling out of the nests. There are the tiny pink helpless ones right up to the almost fully grown adult looking birds. We have managed to raise one ! so far !!

Everything I have read does not mention any form of cainism? My only other thought is that the parasite load gets to much and they vacate the nest to try and get away from mites etc??