A Rapid Change Of Light.

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Robin juvenile

Early this morning we had an avian visitor, in the form of a juvenile robin looking wistfully through the kitchen window, during intervals between frantic flapping. Jackie lifted it up and set it free, but didn’t wait for me to get in another shot.

Unbeknown to us, when we visited Lymington Quay a little later, we just missed Frances and her friends Dave and Kay who also spent some time there.

Young man on Mavis Robinson's memorial bench

Initially oblivious of the hydraulic load-lift behind him, a young man dozed on a bench

Ship Inn

against the backdrop of the Ship Inn,

Ship Inn rooftop

with its lichen painted roof.

The Boat House Café

Tourists gathered around The Boat House Café,

Waiting for a cruise

 waited for the cruises to begin,

Train and boats

or travelled on the ferry port train.

Boat detail 1

Rigging

while more regular visitors prepared the rigging of their boats,

Kayakking

and a pair of kayakers set off between moored hulls.

As the quayside filled up and the hot sun rose in the sky, we set off for the cooler, less crowded, forest.

Boxer Dog

At East Boldre an imperious boxer dog occupied his own personal observation platform. (See comments from arlingwoman and 10000hoursleft below. The dog is an Old English Mastiff)

Cyclists

Cyclists enjoyed their track around the Ladycross Estate near Brockenhurst

Woodland

where dappled sunlight played on the woodland trees,

Log rising from bog

and Jackie saw a dinosaur emerging from a dried up bog.

Ponies 1

In this weather, ponies tend to shelter under trees, utilising their fly whisks.

Ponies 2

It seems they have learned that those in white clothing need less shade.

Even before we arrived home, we could see mist rolling in from the sea. I didn’t need to suggest we went and had a look at it. My Driver just turned away from the house and made straight for the coast, where

Sea mist with invisible Isle of Wight

the Isle of Wight was invisible,

Beach scene in mist 1Beach scene in mist

and a light pall lay over those on the beach.

This afternoon we received a delightful surprise when the three people we hadn’t known had been at the quay arrived for a visit. We spent an enjoyable few hours together, naturally involving highly satisfying admiration of the garden.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s splendid chicken jalfrezi and savoury rice.

Not a bad day, really.

P.S. Barrie Haynes put the following additional information about the lifting device on my Facebook page:  ‘As an amendment to that, the heavy duty ones (as in this case) do use oil when going down. It is released through a small orifice, thus making the tail lift go down slowly and safely with a heavy load and taking the stain of up to a couple of tons off the operating mechanism. So you were right after all Derrick it’s Mechanical (two big chains) Electrical (separate battery on lorry) and Hydraulic (for safety). For anybody reading this, never use a tail lift on a hired vehicle unless you are happy you know exactly how to do it. They can remove fingers!’

49 comments

  1. I’d say it was a great day. I loved the stuck robin, the somnolent man, the boats, ponies, dinosaur (!) but I especially loved that boxer….. Thanks for a great ramble, Derrick.

  2. Never has a boxer looked more confident. You have a lot going on Derrick. You and Jackie are always on the go. I have had the back and front doors open of this building and I’ve seen birds fly right through. Last week, a bat came in and I had to call for back-up. We got it out and it flew away. But only after the cat and the bat spent an hour looking at each other.
    Ginene

    1. Thanks very much, Maniparna. We drove past the dog at first, because it was lying down. We actually turned round for some ponies, but the dog stole the show

  3. Thank you for once again taking us on a tour of your day. You picked the right word to describe the boxer dog–imperious indeed. I laughed at the white “clothed” ponies needing less shade. It seems like you had a very nice day!

  4. Wow! So many great photos…what a day! I would have had a difficult time setting that cute little robin free, Derrick. As for the boxer, I thought it was a statue!

  5. The little pony with the magnificent white mane is something, as is the photo of the blessedly released fledgling. I think that statuesque dog is an English Mastiff for a variety of reasons. The snout and the tail are two and the scale of it is another. Regardless, it looks as though it belongs in one of Yvonne’s Venetian bas reliefs!

  6. Looks like it was a fabulous day! I love the word imperious. Very well suited to the expression on that beast, even if he wasn’t a boxer. Must try to use it more.

  7. I didn’t think you could possibly offer us yet another view of the Isle of Wight and I am not sure that an invisible one counts 🙂

  8. The Boxer reminds me of Maggie Smith at her most magnificent (not that she looks like a Boxer merely that she has the ability to affect autocratic like no other! I’m glad Jackie was able to catch the little Robin – I have a stupid phobia of birds (not that I don’t like them, I actually love them but I can’t touch them) and have been known to cross several fields to find a person willing to come into my house and release a sparrow. Ridiculous.

      1. Interesting theory …. I have overcome the fear to the extent that I can sit with a duck on my lap which it turns out I rather like!

  9. Dear Derrick, your peaceful summer and holiday pictures make me feel good and comfort me times of brexit – I hope, you won’t leave us – terror and war all over the world ….

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