Tag: gulls

Windblown Flames

After a full day of tidying and clearing we took a quick trip to catch the sunset at Mudeford.

Jackie managed to transport a carpet upstairs, one step and a time; we then moved a computing desk from the days when the devices all had towers downstairs to extend the long wooden desk I bought 34 years ago from the previous owner when I bought Lindum House. This enabled me to arrange iMac, scanner, and printer in a less cluttered manner, prompting me to tidy out the drawers on the basis that if anything inside them related to equipment I no longer used it was binned. I also continued disposing of ancient paperwork.

We drove though a dramatic shower and a range of moody skies which, by the time we reached our goal were quietly smouldering until

the flickering flames of a bonfire blew across the skies.

A stately cavalcade of swans and cygnets sailed past a row of mallards

A woman pushing a pram, and perching gulls provided picturesque silhouettes.

A dashing dog scattered other birds.

On our return, I published https://derrickjknight.com/2021/11/26/a-knights-tale-70-earning-the-gratitude-of-neighbours/

Later, we dined on Jackie’s wholesome winter stewp with fresh crusty rolls with which she drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Fleurie.

A Sunset Seagull Squabble

We spent the morning packing up clothes and other items we won’t use again and storing them for charity shops or recycling outlets. One of Richard’s next projects is the entrance lobby. I also emptied a cupboard which is to be removed from there.

After lunch I posted https://derrickjknight.com/2021/11/07/a-knights-tale-60-i-come-a-cropper/

Later this afternoon we visited Mudeford for

the sunset.

Suddenly the air was rent by the screeching of squabbling seagulls, prompted

by a gentleman flinging food for them.

When satisfied, they soared towards the lowering sun or paddled at low tide.

Another photographer focused on the sunset, missing inland scenes.

Rows of masts stood out against the darkening skies while the rippling seas attempted to drive the light inland.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s spicy chicken jalfrezi and savoury rice, with onion bahji’s and a plain paratha, with which she drank Hoegaarden and I finished the zinfandel.

He Caught The Sun

As we ease off in the garden we are embarking on the next stage of the internal refurbishment of our house which was in a sorry state when we bought it in April 2014.

Our bedroom with ensuite bathroom drops down from the alleged dressing room through which it is accessed. A large chunk of this room has been sacrificed to a rather pointless extension of the airing cupboard. As with every other D.I.Y. effort throughout the house it has been a botched job.

Richard, of Kitchen Makers is to start work on various rooms, beginning with this on Tuesday.

For seven years this room has been only good for a dumping ground. When our craftsman removes the extension of the airing cupboard he will build a useful structure into the former chimney breast seen in the centre of this trio of pictures.

Although we still have to clear the clutter shown above, this morning we emptied the now obsolete extension.

The third picture in this second gallery shows the door frame to the inner original cupboard which will be reinstated. The variously textured walls will be refaced and eventually redecorated, removing

our predecessors’ stencils and the false wall oppressing my great great grandmother, Elizabeth Franks.

I have eschewed flash photography for many years. I didn’t use it for the pictures on this post, but I have a project coming up next year for which it may be necessary. It must have been some time in the ’90s when I bought a rather complicated flash gun with instructions for use with film. I have never used it. This afternoon I made an effort to understand it and eventually produced some passable images. Nevertheless I need to seek further advice before deciding whether to find a simpler device.

Later, Jackie drove me to Mudeford to have a look at the skies.

Gulls in a feeding frenzy rather dominated a few hopeful starlings hoping to peck up scraps.

On the harbour side of the quay a few people waited for the sunset and a sailboarder caught the sun.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s wholesome stewp, with fresh crusty bread. She drank Hoegaarden while I drank more of the Comté Tolosan Rouge.

Gulls At Sunset

After a rain shower on another unusually warm and sunny day, while waiting for a call back from Peacock Computers, I wandered around the garden;

produced another batch of photographs including fuchsias, dahlias, begonias, clematis Margaret Hunt, Ginger Lily seedpods. petunias, cosmos, Morning Glory, and the ubiquitous self-seeded bidens surviving from summer 2020; then girded my loins in order to set about the struggle to upload them into WordPress media.

This time only one failed to upload because of an error, but two were relocated from the desktop as incompatible with the new operating system. I was able to put those back where they belonged.

Max from Peacock Computers has arranged a home visit on Thursday.

Buoyed by my earlier success Jackie drove me to Barton on Sea to watch the sunset.

The ten photos I loaded when we arrived home were accepted by WP without a glitch.

Later, we dined on a refreshed reprise of yesterday’s roast dinner, each with our preferred beverage.

Today’s Hobbyhorses

Our extended Indian summer continues.

Early this morning the three of us spent some time in the garden where I photographed

a number of blooms, the names of which are all included in the galleries. The blue Morning Glories only flowered for the first time last week. Bees are still plundering the cosmoses.

After this we shopped at Ferndene Farm Shop, and continued on a forest drive.

Pigs and their piglets scurried across the road at Pilley. Louise, who lives in the house on the corner seen beyond the scene including porkers, a Shetland pony and a walker, stood for while at the gate flagging down motorists to point out the piglets they could not see as they approached the cattle grid. Jessie joined me in photographing the animals. Its bright berries enliven a cotoneaster tree on the green.

The beach at the end of Tanners Lane was gathering visitors like the two above; teasels grew in the field at the top of the slope.

This evening Jackie drove us to Mudeford to catch the

sunset.

Swans were unperturbed by gulls taking flight.

I watched approaching its runway.

Two children sped along the shore on bikes with no pedals (Dandy horse bikes)- today’s hobbyhorses.

This evening we dined on tender roast lamb; crisp Yorkshire pudding, roast potatoes, sage and onion stuffing; crunchy carrots and cauliflower; tender runner beans, and meaty gravy, followed by coffee cake and New Forest ice cream, with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden, I drank more of the Fleurie, and Jessie drank water.

‘Why Do Swans Have Such Long Necks?’

On another darkly dank afternoon, after visiting Milford on Sea Pharmacy we returned home via Keyhaven.

From Saltgrass Lane we watched geese, gulls, and other waterfowl fishing,

flying, and floating fast on the tidal current. The colour picture in the first gallery and the first two in the next are Jackie’s.

Walkers, dogs, and cyclists exercised at safe distances. The Assistant Photographer provided the first image of this set.

Swans tend to gather under the bridge linking the lane with the spit.

Today they were accompanied by

cygnets, no longer Hans Andersen’s Ugly Ducklings, but yet to shed their cinnamon plumage and acquire an orange beak.

This one is not too big to avoid mother’s sharp reprimand.

Emma, West Sussex recently wondered why swans have such long necks.

Today’s observations suggest that it is to enable them to reach the river bed.

Here I am photographing the swans.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s scrumptious sausages in red wine; creamy mashed potatoes; crunchy carrots and cauliflower, with firm Brussels sprouts. The Culinary Queen drank Hoegaarden and I drank more of the Shiraz.

Late Afternoon

The 106 m.p.h. wind that ripped through The Needles overnight howled around our house and garden.

Numerous plant pots were blown down;

tables and the new pig hit the deck;

owls were knocked off their perches;

broken branches and scattered trugs tossed around;

an arch bent and a rose dislodged. I had the sun in my eyes when the rose accosted me and pierced both my head and my jacket.

Late this afternoon we drove to Milford on Sea watching wild waves whipping up spray, lashing wooden breakwaters and wetting glistening rocks. Gulls swooped overhead; numerous walkers braced the bitterly cold wind. One group descended the slippery shingle, then attempted to avoid the rippling waves licking their feet. One young lady had forgotten to cover her legs.

It was hardly surprising that no-one sat at the picnic tables of the Needles Eye Cafe standing in reflecting pools.

My fingers tingled enough to send me back into the car while I waited for the sunset.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s post-Christmas soup with crusty bread followed by gooseberry and apple crumble with which the Culinary Queen drank Hoegaarden and I drank more of the Montaria.

Just In Time To Catch It

I spent much of this day of sunshine and showers writing Christmas cards and making prints at my desk which has a direct

view into the kitchen.

It wasn’t far off sunset when we posted the messages, but we just had time to catch it at

Mudeford. Note that the capsized boat I spotted a week or so back has still not been righted. The penultimate picture in this gallery is by Jackie who also photographed

me at work,

and gulls in flight against the golden light.

My gulls were generally basking in their reflected glory until, squawking in a squabble over breadcrumbs,

they auditioned for a remake of Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds”.

I also photographed a cameraman who may have produced an image like

this one of Jackie’s incorporating dusky masts, buildings, and darkening clouds tinged with pink.

This evening we dined on Jackie’s spicy hot pasta arrabbiata with garlic; and stir fried garlic with three coloured peppers and green beans, with which the Culinary Queen drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Malbec.

A Reflective Conversation

This morning Ronan of Tom Sutton Heating gave our boiler its annual service and investigated our inability to control the heating by thermostat. He found a piece of equipment was malfunctioning and will book in another visit to fix it. I didn’t really take in what it was.

After lunch we drove to Elizabeth’s to return the suitcase in which she had packed Mum’s presents. She wasn’t in so we left it on the doorstep and ran away. The day was cool, clear, and bright, so we didn’t think it would rain.

On the outskirts of Brockenhurst skeins of cloud stretched across the moors on which ponies cropped the sward.

Jackie parked the Modus on the verge of Church Lane where pools reflected the now skeletal trees and the woman of this friendly couple expressed pleasure at seeing the sun again and its perfect light for my photography.

More reflections were visible in the bubbling, swirling, stream, and the autumn leaves bore the touch of Midas.

Jackie photographed the stream as it ran through the garden beside which she had parked, and the autumnal trees above it.

I produced pictures of a gentleman paddling a boat; moored yachts; starlings perched on masts; and a couple of young female cyclists engaged in a reflective conversation.

Jackie, meanwhile, also photographed starlings claiming crows’ nests; a gull taking a rest; a street lamp lit up in readiness for the evening; and swans approaching gulls in a row alongside vacant rowing boats.

This evening we dined on oven fish and chips, cornichons, and pickled onions followed by custard tart, with which Jackie drank Hoegaarden and I finished the Shiraz.

Communal Bath

Quite early this morning we drove to Mudeford to look at the sea. The sun briefly outlined the horizon; the waves were very choppy and

determined to bubble over the wall onto the promenade. I needed to be unaccustomedly quick on my feet to keep them dry, whereas

a reflecting fisherman just paddled patiently.

As I watched the water dripping from a walker’s uplifted foot I wondered whether his dog really wanted a walk as it hopefully hugged the bollards yet would probably pick up wetter paws when circumventing each vacant bench ahead.

Sailboarding was under way –

more so in the more sheltered harbour away from the open sea. Some of these gentlemen, nevertheless couldn’t keep out of the water for long.

One came a cropper behind a capsized sailboat against which the thud of the waves syncopated with the

tinkling of the rigging of the parked sailboats

and drowned the gentler lapping of the soft sea foam frothing over the coastal pebbles.

From her car Jackie focussed on a more distant fisherman who was himself beset by spray battering rocks.

Nearer at hand she was so engrossed with a clutch of iridescent-flecked starlings that she might have missed the one perched upon her wing mirror had it not begun to shout at her.

Gulls soon moved in, one pointing out the necessity to pay for parking, and another

attempting to join in the starlings’ communal bath.

Finally she snapped her fisherman packing up.

The evening we dined on “definitely the last serving” of Jackie’s still succulent beef and mushroom pie, boiled potatoes, carrots. cauliflower and runner beans, with which she drank Hoegaarden and I drank The Second Fleet Lime Stone Coast Shiraz 2019.