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

Having braved fierce creatures (gecko's are lethal and don't let anyone convince you otherwise) I'm back in Cornwall and it hasn't taken long to realize why I left! lovely place but booooring in winter. Starting to think maybe I should have some kind of hobby which doesn't rely on being able to get into the sea.....nah!, most of my favourite distractions are hibernating or left these shores for warmer climates, Its going to be months before the basking sharks are back (sigh) dolphins are sulking offshore and whales are enroute still....thank god for squid and cuttlefish at least they are always up for a bite(me feeding them,not other way round) when I need a Fauna fix (very underappreciated animal the squid, near perfect design, v clever, and incredibly beautiful to watch a school of them change colour in waves). My mission for this year is to attempt to spread a little of the appreciation I feel for the wonders that are for the moment, available to us. I hasten to add I'm NOT a tree hugging nutter or rabid greenie, just an average bloke who is lucky enough to have a knack for finding and observing animals. come on, you'd go all gooey looking into a dolphin's eyes as well, I dare you not to! if you have the slightest shred of empathy! I've been lucky enough to experience this in the wild. Douglas Adams was spot on THEY ARE SMARTER THAN US! not so much "so long and thank's for all the fish" more like " what are those funny pink seals who live on land doing now? " anyway can't promise dolphins everyday but will try to update when I can and will flick through guide to see if in some small way I can contribute.

You live in Cornwall! A couple of years ago, my partner had some redundancy money, and wanted us to go on holiday abroad, I wasn't keen on that idea, said they were loads of great places I'd like to holiday at in the UK, before I think about going abroad, and one of those places was Cornwall, don't really know why, except for years I've heard it's a great place to visit.

In the end, we had a short holiday at a nearby campsite, mainly to test out our new tent, which was great, and never got around to going anywhere else.

I don't think you need to be a 'tree hugging nutter or rabid greenie' to appreciate the wonderful creatures we share our world with. I believe the only thing anyone should shoot wildlife with is a camera.

There's a hobby you could take up Ken, photography.

Emmily

lol, i've tried,tried and will try again! cameras and watches don't like me. investing in a waterproof, shockproof and hopefully me proof camera before my next trip. need some quality photos for my website (in progress). new year resolution is to improve my computer knowledge so here I am, being a chronic insomniac helps

if you do want to visit cornwall there are some truly fantastic places here, nowhere else on mainland uk you can swim with basking sharks 30m from shore and on a moonless night in summer the phosphorescence makes every movement in sea/estuary a vivid green flare. even the seaweed joins in! (blue when disturbed) the lands ok too, lol I'm biased. but if you do want to visit I can point you towards some stuff the tourist books don't know.

We've got a <./>Photographers</.> Group here, none of us are professional photographers, just a bunch of people who enjoy taking photos. One of our members, bluesue, has taken some great wildlife photos, such as this badgers one - A13391129

My insomnia has been pretty bad recently, I'd not been getting to sleep until around 4-5am, sometimes later, and sleeping til after 12 midday, missing out of a large part a normal person's day. I slept earlier and better last night, not sure how long that will continue.

If we ever get around to visiting Cornwall, I'll take you up on your offer of advicing of some places that tourist books don't know, or don't reveal.

Emmily