Back to Normal.

The Dawn Patroller is back on his early morning forays.  A cold and frosty morning.

The Pink Footed Geese in front of Cairness House.

Which as soon as they spotted the DP were off.  As they fly they call to each other and this is quite magical.  The birds arrive here in September and are now beginning to fly home, to Northern Europe.

I have yet to see one of these birds, in the flesh, a Bullfinch. They do not visit our garden.  Though I live in hope.  He is perched on some Pussy Willow.

This is a Buzzard.  We have lots of these birds of prey around.  They take rabbits, but join in with all the seagulls following the plough and therefore are not adverse to the odd worm.  Difficult to tell from the photograph but they are quite big birds, one swooping past the windscreen of your car blocks out most of the light.

On a Monday the DP becomes a man with a trolley on a mission and goes to the supermarket.  You often get stuff cheaper on a Monday, and we are but poor pensioners when all is said and done.

But he usually makes a detour.

Sanderlings on Inverallochy Beach.

The Bay at Inverallochy.

Looking Northwards to Cairnbulg.

I have mentioned these two villages before.  Two small fishing villages, our nearest to the sea, were divided by a stream, now a road divides them.  Inverallochy on the right and Cairnbulg on the left.

While he was doing all that I was finishing off my catch up of cleaning, what with pleurisy, Kids Activities etc., I had let everything on the housekeeping front get in to one hell of a state.  We do not use shop bought cleaners, we make our own, white vinegar in water and in a spray bottle, and borax or bicarbonate of soda.  Plus soda crystals down the plug hole every so often followed by a kettle of boiling water.  My bathroom now gleams again.  And I have had no nasty chemicals stopping me breathing. (I also use the vinegar mixture at the lighthouse when I do the lenses, as the stuff they use is enough to fell me at six paces.)

Once lunch is over - duck eggs today, yum, its down the shed.

Work in progress.

Blue tit is finished.  Its tiny.  I can knock one of them off in the afternoon.  This is our task at my Wednesday Art Group, think small.  Hmmmm.

I would far rather be splashing the paint on big time.  In fact I am on a bit of a roll at the moment.  I had a delivery this afternoon from Great Art, which included three new, all different sizes, but large, paper pads.

I had to force myself to leave the shed, come back to the house, force myself to have a glass of wine, and stop myself from starting at least two other ideas I have buzzing. Well, you have to stand firm sometimes, cheers.