This morning when I woke up, I witnessed one of the romantic spectacles I have ever seen, right in my back yard. A pair of Magpies were gathering nest material. Firstly, I thought they were looking for food. However, they were both on my hanging baskets, on either side of my shed.They were pulling the lining out of the hanging baskets simultaneously, to use as nest material. The male then moved to the wall to keep lookout, whilst the female gathered what they had dropped and some moss from the ground. Needless to say, it was an awesome start to a Monday morning. At the weekend, I also managed to get so close to a Goldcrest, had I been faster I would have been able to catch it, it flew right over my shoulder and perched on a tree a few feet in front of me. I have been attempting to get better at recording, identification and behaviors, as I see them. I often enjoy seeing birds, even if i don't know what they are. I am currently using a trusty notebook (Betty), the WP checklist app, the RSPB bird identifier and a copy of "Hamlyn guide to birds of Britain and Europe".
On the weekend I managed to tick off Coal tit, a bird again I had previously seen but not correctly identified. I enjoyed watching a small group of these birds, foraging on the pine trees, in the wooded area, at the base of Friar's point Barry island.
Last weekend, after some words of wisdom from my spiritual shaman Rhodri Desmond Cording, I fixed my bike, a vintage Raleigh racer named Nancy (after Nancy from Oliver Twist) . I took Nancy for a spin from the island to the Knap. As I crossed the old Harbour causeway (see Causeway rocks by Annalise) I stopped to have a look what birds were on the flats, as the tide was out. To my surprise, there was a lone, Little Egret foraging in one of the pools, I hadn't seen one there before. I cycled down to the Knap sat at the lake and watched the ducks and swans for a bit. Then I sat on the pebble beach and listened to the waves crashing in for a bit. When I got home, I decided to document the Little Egret sighting using Indian Ink.
My current listening has included:
Also, the sun coming out has meant I have been flying my kite on the beach and I managed my first triple loop de loop, naturally I rewarded myself with a chip butty (sand optional).
Also, the sun coming out has meant busting out my fave desert boots
A Thousand Arrows The other night, one of my favourite UK bands of the past few years hung up their boots. I think I loved them so much because four people with often very different music tastes, but a shared common ground, and it was reflected in their sound. They take elements of At the Drive In, Refused, Quicksand, Helmet, yet when they play together, you can here all of their own individual influences, coming together to form their unique sound. I have many fond memories of the band, namely playing with them/putting them on at Halloween, they dressed as Zombie Nurses, we played as dead sailors, our dear friends Attack Vipers! also played that night too. Also playing travel scrabble on the way to support AC4 in Bristol.
Their last gig was at The Full Moon in Cardiff and they went out in style, I think Daf's writing style and guitar sound is also what gave them an edge. Fave song on the night: Anchorite If you haven't already check out their album Defaillance They will be sorely missed. RIP ATA
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This morning when I woke up, I witnessed one of the romantic spectacles I have ever seen, right in my back yard. A pair of Magpies were gathering nest material. Firstly, I thought they were looking for food. However, they were both on my hanging baskets, on either side of my shed.They were pulling the lining out of the hanging baskets simultaneously, to use as nest material. The male then moved to the )
At the weekend, I also managed to get so close to a Goldcrest, had I been faster I would have been able to catch it, it flew right over my shoulder and perched on a tree a few feet in front of me. 
