Around the corner

Spring is in the air! Why else would I be sat in my study watching the rain, pissing down, with sleet showers forecast for later in the day? The local Magpies and Carrion Crows are actively engaged in nest building and I've already seen Sparrowhawks displaying over the three territories, which exist nearby, when there's been a suitable break in the clouds.
Because of stuff which is happening, well beyond the scope of this blog, I've needed to take a couple of "emergency days" holiday. This has given me time to attend to the personal stuff which Bev has been juggling in between hospital visits, plus I managed to get the van MOT'd and a new windscreen fitted. With Bev going over to QEQM, yesterday afternoon/evening, with her brother, Gary, I even managed a very short, impromptu, session down at the syndicate. That I blanked shouldn't be a surprise to anyone, but I did get to meet the bailiff and have a chat with a couple of guys. All seems good. A Great Tit was singing nearby as I unloaded the van and it was a pleasant twist when I spotted a displaying pair of Great Crested Grebes on the old lake.

A Cetti's Warbler noisily announced it's presence in some bank side vegetation and, to top it all off, a Barn Owl drifted over my head in the half-light at dusk. So despite not catching a fish, the session wasn't without merit. Once the sun had gone the temperature rapidly fell away and I was happy to get packed up and head back home to the comfort of the central heating. Must be getting soft, or is that sensible, in my old age?