Another lovely sunny day

I tried out the new technology and had some fun finding out how not to go about it. As a result, I have plenty of blurred pictures of bits of bird. I couldn't make up my mind which was the best of the worst. Here's one.  

Can you guess what the right side looks like?

For more colour here's another wedding picture, with the scene set for the evening action - definitely a preferred subject compared with moving creatures.

You'll have to imagine the people and the sound.

If today's contribution is somewhat lacking in whole birds/animals/subject matter, be grateful it didn't focus on the results of the ear-plug research which has been ongoing since the arrival of the mixed pack from the Snore Store a few days ago! The latter almost rivals the excitement created by having a pile of bricks inside the house a couple of weeks ago, the results of which are still to be disclosed.

Switch of focus

Enough of birds, flowers, bricks and taps. It's been a few weeks since our return from Australia and definitely time for another adventure. Don't get me wrong, the evenings are much lighter, blossom is appearing on the depleted cherry trees (post the harsh winter freeze) and the pile of indoor bricks is now in situ out of doors. Picture to follow.

So, first things first. I find it necessary at the planning stage to put a shape to a country, and here it is, courtesy of the Birds of Nepal (2009, 2nd edition) by Grimmett, Inskipp and Inskipp.

There are several second most important things. I've been wearing walking boots indoors for two days, to help me decide on appropriate footwear. Of course this breaks one of the major house rules. As I make the rules I reckon that I'm allowed to break them, with cleanliness provisoes. The aforementioned items are super clean.

Another second most important pair of items are ear plugs, to block out night-howling Nepalese dogs and loud snoring. I wonder which will be the loudest of the two? I spent ages carrying out research at http://www.snorestore.co.uk/  this afternoon and will report back on how successful this was in due course.

I ordered a more exciting item which falls into a first category, last week. This is a contraption to enable me to progress my enthusiasm for digi-scoping. It should enable me to transform my telescope and tiny camera into a giant version of the previously mentioned binnocular/camera onesy. I have practised this technique in the past, but have not used anything more sophisticated than an adapter made from a section of cardboard from a toilet roll. I used the toilet roll method to capture (not literally) the Ferruginous Pygmy Owl in the picture below, taken in the Pantanal, Brazil in August 2006. It is a tiny little owl and was about thirty feet above the ground, semi-hidden in the foliage of a tree.

Because you are so interested by now, I'll include one more owl picture, photographed with no toilet roll adapter - just the little camera and the telescope. This time it's a Scops Owl a long way up a tree (take my word for it), photographed on the Greek Island of Lesbos in the Spring of 2010.

Aren't they just so cute?