h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

It is strange as although our parents food might be said to be bland, I sometimes deliberately go for say stews as get bored with more exotic foods or even say pasta which is common now.
A liver and bacon casserol if done well can be tasty but still a traditional dish. Liver isn't that popular but have always liked it, my parents cooked it a lot perhaps as not that expense a meat. Casserols fortunately don't require great preperation.

Well, I have just had half an hour that shows the joy and beauty of nature, but also the horror.
As you may know I am proud and blesed to have a Great Spotted Woodpecker nest which they built in a tree trunk in my garden around a month ago.
They seem to be doing ok and this morning I caught a glimps of a fluffy black and white young Pecker sticking its head and gapping mouth out of nest hole!
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It was lovely to see it and watched through binos at comings and goings and at one point thought I saw a young pecker out of nest as saw a lot of black and white flapping in nest hole. I looked again and realised it was a bloody Magpie trying to grab a young Pecker chick!
I openned window to frighten it away and had to run in garden as it wouldn't go. It was gone when I got there but was sickened although I thought an atack by a predator was possible and Magpies do take young birds.

Hi gandalfstwin,
thanky your for your compliment.

We have a lot of Magpies in our garden. They make a rest on our pond. I don't like them, they are so impertinent. We have to throw little stones to them (we don't hit them)that they fly away. A Magpie had injured our great tit "Siggi", but we remarked in time, and could the magpie repulse. In the pond there are many water-snails, salamanders and water-spiders. It is relaxing to watch their doing.

The problem is Magpies, crows, Rooks, etc are liable to kill and eat young birds, Squirells too. While it is possible to dislike what Magpies do, I can't hate them for what they do as they are wild animals/birds and it is part of nature. Even a House Sparrow has been filmed killing a rival at nesting time. To be honest the animal that mainly kills for fun is Mankind so we can't really blame animals/birds who kill for food and to protect their young.

I must admit I caught a young frog sitting on a lily leaf in my pond at the beginning of the week and was more surprised than him when I found him in my hand , so I tried to teach him how to fly

That wasn't very nice, Arnold!!



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Last year one frog stayed at my pond ror about a month and ate all my fish , it isn't going to happen this year

How big are the bl***y frogs near you???

Or, more to the point, how small are you fish???!!!!



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My fish are Medaka up to one and a half inches long the new ones I bought last month to restock are less than an inch , last years frog was about two and a half inches but thin in the beginning ,ended up twice as big and very fat, I did talk about it on one thread here somewhere , I couldn't catch last years one but got lucky this week

Should get Koi, Arnold!!!

They will eat the frog!!!!!!




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I want koi but my pond is to small , My wives cousin has a koi farm and exports all them over the world , so I know I could get some good ones for free even

Just dropped my daughter off at her art teachers house for her class and their garden/entrance way is really lovely all planted in many types of flowers all in bloom , I have to remember my camera next week

Just treated myself to a pair of Nikon ActionCF EX 10x50 waterproof binos!
My others were sadly not waterproof and I ruined them with water. Mainly they are for Birdwatching so worth the money to me, £150, as will get used quite a lot.
I have just seen a baby Great Spotted Woodpecker looking out of its nest with a more detailed black and white set of feathers and the characteristic red head top of a juvunile. Its beak is the customery black but is a little smaller than adults still. However I have no doudt it will be big enough to peck any pushy young Starlings just like last year, lol!

for the baby woodpeckers

for thhe Great Spotteds!!



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I forgot to mention, yesterday I bought 2 black long sleeved T Shirts as seem to wear my only one a lot of time as can be sleeves up in sun or sleeves down at home in evenings when a bit chilly. I also bought some Mock Crock black rubber shoes as half price in sale for only £6.
That makes 4 pairs I have now, the new Mocks, an older pair of £5 Mocks, and 2 pairs or real Crocks at half price of £15 each. I have a larger size 9 pair for wearing thick socks with in winter, smaller sizes for no socks in summer and a slightly differant smaller pair in a differant design.
Although I wouldn't pay the full £30-£35 price for real Crocs, there is no need to really as always in a sale somewhere, I do like them as comfortable, hardwearing and easy to clean as don't absord dirt, sweat, etc. They are also a bit quieter on gravel paths and in woods when Birdwatching. They also work out cheaper in long run as so far they have lasted longer than trainers and sandles I have had.
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The weather is wet and windy at moment but they said it would be sunny later which would be nice as would like to go bird watching with my new binos! I don't mind the rain and new binos are waterproof, however my glasses get wet so can't see well through binos and more importantly land based birds don't like rain much so shelter hiden in trees.
I should buy some food but would rather avoid the busy Sainsbury's and go tomorrow I just really need milk or something to drink and could get rest tomorrrow.
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it seems we did better in Eurovision Song Contest, fith place rather than out usual bottom-ish. I started to watch but can't concentrate much at moment so stopped after a short while. Is it a new voting system which is why it is fairer and we came fith instead of constantly near last?

what a good idea - croc lookalikes - I'm going to recommend it to my daughter as her two eldest are always 'falling' in the pond in the park/nature reserve when they go out to play. They are fascinated with the tadpoles and ducklings. They always seem to have soaking wet, smelly, muddy trainers needing a scrub. Croc thingies would be better wouldn't they? Do you think they would stay on a boy's foot in a situation like this, or would they slip off? Wellington boots would be ok, but you can't really run around in them or play football. As well as the 'reserve' part there is a play area for ball games.

Yep, I believe they do Mocks/Crocs from very small sizes in assorted colours. They are also I understand ok to go in a washing machine(not recomended by maker of course) , although to be honest as they don't absorb sweat or dirt they really only need hand washing. I think they are great and only buy black as go with anything, they are actually ok for using on boats which is what they were actually invented for by a sailor as kept slipping on his boat, the rest is history!

I'm going to ring her now and pass message on, the eldest has to go on a school activity week and needs more pairs of (waterproof) footwear. Thanks SS