A Better View 🌄

savingholmes

How lovely on hearing all the birds - and the nest site. 

Well done on the sewing. LOL at it showing too much cleavage. 

Sorry about the pigeons destroying your fruit trees. I'd find that gutting. Hope the rest of your mini orchard is okay.

Greying_Pilgrim

Oh how spiffing Fortune - I had to look Linnets up, as I wasn't sure if I have ever seen/heard one - still not convinced I have.  But interestingly the tail of a linnet is very like one of the 'mystery' birds that was around here the other week.  Must look up to see if it's a tail shape shared by others, as it's quite distinctive. 

And big LOL at the freeloading 'stumpy toddy' 🤣 Can't imagine you won't be able to offer those swallows the 'right' type of mud this year though - mother nature has been busy manufacturing enough of it all winter..... 😉

Greying X

SandyShores

Reminded me of the cockney song 'My old man said follow the van'.  According to this article Linnets were regularly kept in cages and prized for their lovely melody.  Also reminded me of my gran who used to keep a Myna bird in a cage at home.  I've never known anyone else who kept one but looking on the web it seems its still a thing - I think it used to talk but can't ever remember it singing.  I'm happy that the birds stay in their natural habitat though, its lovely to hear their singing they sound so happy.

Fortune_Smiles

🎵 One day like this a year would see me right 🎵

It's another glorious day in the Shire.  It's days like these that keep me going through the long, wet winters.

Mr F was supposed to be working yesterday but the client couldn't get him set up on their system until late afternoon.  We took advantage of the situation by looking in at our local brewery for lunch after our dentist visit.  It was wonderful to sit in their orchard in the sun on a school day 😊

In less sunny news, I have broken a tooth.  An old filling came loose and took half the tooth with it 😲  It's left a deep hole 😲  The options are to fill it or crown it.  Either option may fail and result in inflammation or infection and having to have the tooth removed.  I'm going for the filling - less time, less pain, less cost.  If it fails, at least I won't have paid a fortune for the privilege 😆

I dropped our spare seed potatoes round to a friend in the afternoon and was provided with tea, biscuits and conversation in return.

We weren't hungry last night after our big lunch so made do with the last of the Rhubarb & Sour Cream Cake 😊

Today the Boiler Guys are here.  They've already removed the old boiler and are fixing the new pipework ready to receive the new.  So far, it's going well 🤞  We've discovered that our walls are three courses deep 🙄  No wonder we struggle to get a mobile signal in the house 📡 I'm providing cups of tea and cake and keeping out of their way.

I hate having work done in the house.  It irritates me.  So I'm keeping busy by using up more rhubarb from the veg patch - Rhubarb Cordial and Rhubarb Crumble Muffins.  Lunch was Thai Curry Noodle Soup and supper is likely to be Smoked Salmon Pasta.

The Boiler Guys are soldering at the moment which keeps setting off the fire alarm 🔥  At least we know it works 😆  There's a dribbling tap in the kitchen where they are draining the system and general knocking and banging.  I might take myself off for another walk around the meadow.  It's beautiful out there at the moment and, most importantly, peaceful 😂

I'm hoping the water will be back on by this evening so that I can deal with the huge pile of washing up that's accummulated.  We do have water in the Annexe and I've been popping in and out of there all day to refill kettles and take comfort breaks 😳 (it's the dripping tap 😆).  They'll be finished by tomorrow so I think I can hold out until then.  Hoping for a long, hot bath tomorrow evening to celebrate 🛀

Hope it's glorious in your neck of the woods too ☀

Fortune x

Fortune_Smiles

savingholmes said:

How lovely on hearing all the birds - and the nest site. 

Well done on the sewing. LOL at it showing too much cleavage. 

Sorry about the pigeons destroying your fruit trees. I'd find that gutting. Hope the rest of your mini orchard is okay.

Thanks SH - there's 'too much' cleavage and theres 'all' the cleavage.  The original neckline fell into the latter category 😂

Greying_Pilgrim said:

Oh how spiffing Fortune - I had to look Linnets up, as I wasn't sure if I have ever seen/heard one - still not convinced I have.  But interestingly the tail of a linnet is very like one of the 'mystery' birds that was around here the other week.  Must look up to see if it's a tail shape shared by others, as it's quite distinctive. 

And big LOL at the freeloading 'stumpy toddy' 🤣 Can't imagine you won't be able to offer those swallows the 'right' type of mud this year though - mother nature has been busy manufacturing enough of it all winter..... 😉

Greying X

I haven't see one either Greying - I hope your mystery bird was a linnet.  I will look out for the distinctive tail shape too.

It seems that there is plenty of mud around until the swallows start to build.  Our meadow has completely dried out now and it was saturated a week or so ago.  We have a couple of terracotta nests up though so, hopefully, one will suit... and Mrs Wren will decline the offer of the one in the porch.

SandyShores said:

Reminded me of the cockney song 'My old man said follow the van'.  According to this article Linnets were regularly kept in cages and prized for their lovely melody.  Also reminded me of my gran who used to keep a Myna bird in a cage at home.  I've never known anyone else who kept one but looking on the web it seems its still a thing - I think it used to talk but can't ever remember it singing.  I'm happy that the birds stay in their natural habitat though, its lovely to hear their singing they sound so happy.

Yes Sandy, I much prefer to see birds in their natural habitat.  I think my gran had a Myna bird too!  Must have been popular in the 1950s/60s.  Sad that it's still at thing.

Fortune x

savingholmes

Glad the weather is kind. The fabled golden orb finally came to town and lingered.

Seasidegal58

Finally caught up with your lovely, lively descriptive diary Fortune!😀
im staying with my DD in the Highlands at the mo and she was quite excited when a linnet deigned to use the bird table the other day. She's also waiting on the swallows who nest in the eaves - they usually appear towards the end of the month. 

Talking of Mynah birds reminded me of a story my mum told when she was visiting her brother during the 60s. Mynah birds had just become rather the fashion then for their talking prowess She was sharing a bedroom with a good friend who was also my uncle's SIL when a largish black bird flew into the room and careered around wildly flying into the mirror before they managed to shoo it out. My mum said 'I think that's a Mynah bird - they are supposed to be really good talkers'. Her friend ( who had just been pooped on by said bird) replied rather sarcastically''Well, I didn't hear it say 'Ouch my bleeding beak when it crashed into that mirror!' (Cockney accent to be imagined here). ......🤭

LadyWithAPlan

Loving your top! 

You reworking the pattern is beyond my current dressmaking skills but I will get there after a few more dozen courses 

so annoying re the birds and your fruit trees! 

Greying_Pilgrim

Seasidegal58 said:

Finally caught up with your lovely, lively descriptive diary Fortune!😀
im staying with my DD in the Highlands at the mo and she was quite excited when a linnet deigned to use the bird table the other day. She's also waiting on the swallows who nest in the eaves - they usually appear towards the end of the month. 

Talking of Mynah birds reminded me of a story my mum told when she was visiting her brother during the 60s. Mynah birds had just become rather the fashion then for their talking prowess She was sharing a bedroom with a good friend who was also my uncle's SIL when a largish black bird flew into the room and careered around wildly flying into the mirror before they managed to shoo it out. My mum said 'I think that's a Mynah bird - they are supposed to be really good talkers'. Her friend ( who had just been pooped on by said bird) replied rather sarcastically''Well, I didn't hear it say 'Ouch my bleeding beak when it crashed into that mirror!' (Cockney accent to be imagined here). ......🤭

Seasidegal58 - I loved everything about ^ this post 😂😂😂 

Greying X

badmemory

A lot of animals imported around that time were done quite without conscience.  They spent weeks aboard ships without proper food, then the pet shops.  Back 70 years ago my life savings along with those of my sister went to buy a marmoset from the local pet shop which we had seen whilst out shopping we did not like what we saw.  Checking on its food requires had all the neighbourhood kids turning up with matchboxes full of spiders & the like.  The thing was it didn't live that long.  The reason according to the vet when it got sick was the time spent before us when it wasn't getting its required diet.