November.

4p.m.. I just got back from the Lighthouse Museum and it really hit this is now post clocks back and I have now very few daylight hours in which to draw and paint.

Sunset will become even earlier in the coming days.

Although we are still experiencing unseasonal high temperatures once 3p.m. is past its colder.

 
 Around 5p.m. the central oil fired heating comes on, also heats the water.  We eat at 6p.m. ish, then the stove is lit and off goes the liquid gold.  Not long before the woodburner  heats the whole house, well the bit we live in.

I should own up to having a fan heater in the shedudio. I did try a convector but the shedudio is quite large and a blast from a fan heater works better, plus once its got the space up to the required temperature it switches off so I am hoping it wont be too expensive, but to be honest I dont care that much so long as I am comfortable.  

The DP and I have struggled financially all our lives, 4 kids under 5 led to them all being at university at almost the same time, and many of you will know how much that can cost.  I have lost count of the flat deposits we have paid and never seen again, bloody landlords. 

At last the girls are all launched and apart from the occasional propping up financially what we get from our pensions is ours.

We both still appreciate that there is so much in life which does not cost a penny.

 


November, and for the whole of the winter months, this is the spectacle at dawn as the Pink Footed Geese leave for their feeding grounds from the Loch of Strathbeg.  Many of the geese go over our house, calling to each other.  Along with the Whooper Swans.

 November - lovely.
 

Aroond and aboot.

The Dawn Patroller went off on one of his jaunts with fellow photographers.  Not too far today.

Rattray Head Lighthouse.
 

 Most of the time it is surrounded by the sea.  In this second picture you can see the tide coming in.

Nearby there are wrecks from long ago.  The plan had been to photograph them for the challenge in the local photographic society on decay.  On the landward side of the lughthouse are sand dunes, which have moved considerably in the strong winds and storms we have had.  So much movement, the wrecks were nowhere to be seen.

Yesterday I met Ian Cowe.  Photographer.    His aim is to photograph all the lighthouses that are/were under the jurisdiction of the Northern Lighthouse Board.

His take on Rattraay.

 Kinnaird Head.

 

Nearby is the Loch of Strathbeg, our local RSPB Bird Reserve.  Which has a visitor.

 The Little Egret is a small, white heron which feeds on small fish and crustaceans. Once a very rare visitor from the Mediterranean, Little Egrets are now a common sight around the coasts of southern England and Wales as they expand their range, possibly due to climate change. It first bred in the UK on Brownsea Island, Dorset, in 1996, and has been moving northwards ever since; it was recorded as breeding in Berkshire for the first time in 2007.  So this one moved Northwards to visit us.

I finished off removing all the Christmas decorations.  

Then carried on, and almost finished my boxing/dancing hares.

 
 I take photographs of work in progress.  As I look at the photograph the glaring mistakes are obvious.  Hopefully tomorrow all will be good!

Hope yours is too.

Loch of Strathbeg - bird ringing.

Two posts today, please don't miss Mum's Spring Fest posted earlier.

But I thought some of you might be interested in the Dawn Patroller's adventures today.

While I was enjoying my morning of not doing very much, (and recovering from a wonderful meal last night with lots of red wine at the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses)  he was away at Loch of Strathbeg where they were bird ringing.

A fine mesh (Mist mesh)  is hung between trees that traps the birds without harming them.

Gently removed.

They are placed into a bag.  Its dark inside which reduces the bird's stress.

Gently placed, head down, again to reduce stress, the birds are weighed.

And measured, wing to tip.

And ringed.

All the information is put onto a computer and if anyone finds a bird which has a ring on there is also a website on the ring (poor bird, carrying all that info!)   so you can inform the British Trust for Ornithology.  Rings do come in different sizes for each species!

Willow Warbler.

Once all the info has been recorded the birds are taken back and released.

 Blue tit.

Blackbird.

Greenfinch.

Goldfinch.

Male Chaffinch.

Tree Sparrow on the left, House Sparrow on the right.  According to the experts of the day rare to see the two together, they should visit our garden......

Yellowhammer.

A good day for all involved.  Wonder how they manage to ring the White Tailed Eagle?

As big as me, but worry not, it was ringed when a chick, before releasing, and the tag can be checked with binoculars.  This is Ralf.  Called such as his tag includes the letters.

We do a weekly bird count of the birds in our garden, why not do the same, although it becomes addictive!  Check out British Trust for Ornithology web site http://www.bto.org/

If you see Ralf in your shrubbery do let me know.

Convalescence now allowed......?

One of the 70 plus wee pirates who came to the Museum of Scottish Lighthouses on Thursday.

The following day I was doing my volunteering stint on the admissions desk and in the shop.  We have a new till!  Which sounds very much like the dustbin lorry in reverse.
6 a.m. Saturday I was up, sorting out paintings, cards, pasting table, curtain to cover over, printing off labels and laminating them.  Loading up the car.  Bitterly cold morning but the sun was shining and there was no wind.  Off to the Loch of Strathbeg.

Managed a half decent display, given the short space of time I had to do it all.

Now view this, see the cars, beyond them you can just see a barn, with closed doors.  Well that is where we were, with the doors open.  Holes in the roof, (being a bird reserve they dont want to stop the birds nesting), it was COLD..... It was warmer outside......  Picturesque piles of straw bales,  I felt like getting inside one... I have never been so COLD.

Inside the barn was a proper artist, illustrates books no less, a wood turner, another artist, a display of stuff by Rosie's Social Enterprises - Aberdeen,  moi and the Grampian Guild of Weavers, 

(Picture taken somewhere warmer.)  They were a great bunch.  Tried to get me to have a go, but by this time I was a block of ice and was worried I would break the spinning wheel.

Inside the actual Visitor Centre, which wasn't much warmer, but didn't have holes in the roof or walls, were jam makers, and other artists and other crafters.  

At one stage the Dawn Patroller (DP) relieved me so I could drive round and blast the car heater to warm up a bit, but it wasn't long before I returned and felt my damaged lungs feel like iron ones.

All good things come to an end and by 3 p.m. we were home.  I sold quite a lot of cards, and received two commissions...... No pressure there then.  I really should get the message and stop pratting about painting things that are true to life (?) and go for the 'hit of colour you dont expect ' 

This art lover (idiot) wants a big picture of three sheep.... and another wants more of these.

Now, what do they say, a boring woman has a tidy house?  

This morning I began to blitz the house, the car, the washing, the sorting,  as I am now totally bored with that and feel a swoon coming on, I raise my glass to you all. Cheers.

Sorry.

Must have upset everyone, no comments....., well one, thanks Rusty Duck.  Loads of Anonymous ones, do I really want to view websites on acne, pornography, et al.  No.

Nature inspired arts and craft this Saturday (April 6th) at Loch of Strathbeg, Aberdeenshire.A diverse range of artists will be selling pieces of their work and this event is free to the public, running from 11am until 3pm. 
Stunning artwork, photography and crafts will feature in this one day event which includes Grampian Guild of Weavers, Spinners and Dyers, nature images, etc.....

and me.

As if I hadnt enough to do with the Kids Activity Morning at the Lighthouse on Thursday.  The DP has signed me up.

Might not be blogging for a few days.

Birds in the North East of Scotland.

Every evening this happens.  As darkness slowly gathers the Starlings begin to line up on the wires.

The wires bow down almost to breaking point as thousands of starlings gather in preparation for roosting.  

Then the magic begins.

The dance before bedtime.

Painting the sky.

This morning we woke to this.

And these two, also dancing.

Big Daddy and Little Daddy.  Sadly we did not snap them as they rose into the air with claws and wattles rattling, but they did, and then pretended nothing had happened.

And sloped off.

Later, I braved blizzards and visited the Loch of Strathbeg for the Wild Art Weekend, where our group were portraying birds to the best of our ability.  Sadly the weather had put off everyone else, so no-one was there to see our display.....

No, not this one, 

Or this one, it was supposed to be about birds wasn't it?

Ah, there we are.

Loch of Strathbeg.

Our nearest RSPB bird reserve.  About twenty minutes from Fraserburgh, ten from our house.  (Bit longer on the bike for the Dawn Patroller)

The Loch was created by the shifting sand dunes many, many years ago.  Until then it was a busy harbour!  You will see on the map to the right, Old Rattray.  This was a bustling fishing village, but as the harbour was no longer useable, indeed one boat was trapped in the Loch following the great storm which sealed it up. everyone left.  There is still a ruined church, St.Mary's Chapel.

The main way in to Strathbeg is from the village of Crimond.

The church has a very strange clock, it has 61 minutes on it.

The Lord's My Shepherd, 23rd psalm was set to music by Jessie S. Irvine, a daughter of the parish priest in 1872.

Her most famous tune is Crimond, which is best known as one of the most popular^[1] settings for the (paraphrased) words of Psalm 23: "The Lord's my shepherd". It is believed that Irvine wrote the tune while still in her teens, as an exercise for an organ class she was attending.^{[2]Wikepedia.}

Every year thousands of pink footed geese arrive to spend the winter.  As they go out in the morning to feed, many pass over our house and their calls are magical.  Also on the repeat journey back home to roost.

Part of the management team at Strathbeg are a herd of Konik horses.  Originally from Poland they help the manage the wetlands.

The Loch also has a fairly regular visitor - a white tailed eagle.  Plus lots and lots more visitors of the feathered kind.  Check out the web site if you want to see the latest updates.

Beyond the Loch, over the dunes, is this fantastic beach.

I met with the Publicity person on Monday and we have much in common!  Both passionate about our area, the Loch and the Lighthouse.  So lots of planning.  Why do I do this?!  (its  better than vacuuming.)