Fungal update

Here's what's about just now.

Birds in flight

Fossicking

After many visits to the spot on the estuary edge in search of smoothed shards of pottery and glass, I've worked out that the reason for their proliferation in this one particular spot is not that they were washed there by the tides, accumulating in a backwash or eddy, but because they were dumped there long ago, as household rubbish. Biffed over the bank these bottles were perhaps whole when they were dumped, the pottery maybe intact. Many years later, at the point when I am fossicking the tiny beaches, they are small remnants only, shaped by time and the jiggle provided by tides and waves. It's a lot more glamorous finding the little gems now than I imagine it would have been when the hiffing was done, so I count myself lucky, but still believe it's wrong to jettison our unwanted materials thoughtlessly. Here are the results of my afternoon; pretty little things captured in my camera.

Coming in close

The kereru are relaxed almost to the point of pulling up a chair and lighting their pipes. This one's sitting almost withing arm-reach of the veranda, though he did give me a message as I stole his image, by  turning his back on me.

Spent hazel nuts

I'm really referring to the "clasp" that the hazelnut sits in, left behind once the nuts have fallen, but can't think of the name for these. In any case, they are still on the tree, as are the fruits of the Chinese hawthorn.

Chimneys

Bird/symphony

From inside of the house...

...the outside world looked cold this morning.

Twice as frosty as yesterday

Improvised buggy

I found a rejected buggy, unpinned its faded covers and fitted these cushions in their place and now I have a Buggy Supreme upon which my grandson sits like a little mandarin. Each wheel is individually sprung, the tyres are on-road, off-road and the machine runs like a dream. Good times ahead.

Frosssssssty morning!

Visitors to the apple basket

Shelley's washing

On the beach

Seal visits Riverton

This slippery wee fellow was drifting, relaxed and unconcerned, under the bridge at Riverton at the same time I was passing overhead. I had my camera and he didn't see me till I had his image. He or she, I've no idea how to tell one way or the other, was fully engaged in a bout of flipper grooming and it was only when I spoke, "That's wonderful!" that he/she looked up, saw there was an audience, and languidly sounded.

Get Growing - cones

My "crop of the week" for Get Growing this week was cones and conifers. You can read, should you wish too, the rest of the article here.

Blackbird visits apple basket