Shetland Misfit

Wednesday, 3 April 2013

More Sun

Out on the patch today - 4 Red-breasted Mergansers, 26 Great Northern Divers, 5 Common Scoters, a Snow Bunting, a Dunnock and the first Ringed Plovers of the year.

Dunnock

Red-breasted Mergansers

Ringed Plover

In the moth trap - 2 Brindled Ochre and 18 Hebrew Characters.

Brindled Ochre

Hebrew Character

A few bits of miscellaneous debris...

Fair Isle from Scatness

Clouds over Lerwick last week

Tuesday, 2 April 2013

Everyday Sunshine

A few shots of this evening sunset, taken from the sitting room window.

Wednesday, 27 March 2013

Click, Click

Glorious sunshine again after work, just a quick walk around Clickimin and Helendale, not a lot about, apart from 2 Wood Pigeons in Helendale.

Wood Pigeon

Snipe

Tuesday, 26 March 2013

Got home from work at 06:45 to bright sunshine and a flat calm sea at Scatness, a quick scan of the sea and 5 Common Scoters, 19 Great Northern Divers and an Otter all showing pretty well from the sitting room window - pretty good end to a 9 hour shift !

Otter

Common Scoters

Friday, 22 March 2013

Hell 'n' Dale 'n' That

Now that it's light enough in the morning to go birding after work, I've been checking Helendale, Clickimin and Seafield before the 9 O'clock bus home. This week was a bit like being back south, with 2 Blue Tits, 2 Great Tits, a Sparrowhawk, 2 Wood Pigeons and 3 Chaffinches in Helendale. Seafield a bit disappointing with just a few Redwings and Blackbirds.

Blue Tit

Great Tit

Blackbird

Sparrowhawk

Monday, 18 March 2013

Evening Skies

A few pics from early March, taken from the sitting room window -

Friday, 1 March 2013

Flasher

A few pics of the green flash from Feb 26th -

Tuesday, 5 February 2013

Swell

A quick look around the patch after yesterdays storm, not a great deal of damage - a dry stone wall washed away and a bit of the cliff has fell off. Out on the headland 31 Snow Buntings were new in and the Golden Plover flock has dwindled to one, elsewhere there were 55 Wigeon and a single Lapwing.

Odd looking slab in the bottom of one of the Geos, about 4 foot long

Still a big swell at Scatness

Wigeon

Saturday, 2 February 2013

Gross Misconduct

Pine Grosbeak at Collafirth, no need for any write up, the photos say it all !

Wednesday, 30 January 2013

Trog

'Shetland' Wren and other bits and bobs from the patch -

Golden Plovers

Shetland Wren

Hybrid Duck

Sunday, 27 January 2013

So Far, So Good, So What.....

What with working all night and sleeping all day, visits to the patch have been very few and far between - it always seems to be pissing down on my days off ! The best bird of the year so far is a Grey Plover in front of the house on 23/1, other than that, it's just the usual stuff.
Some random photos from January -

Long-tailed Ducks in West Voe of Sumburgh

Moon over Fitful Head

Snow cloud over Fitful Head

Moon and Fitful Head one morning

A large 'Anvil' forming out at sea

The first 'proper' sunset of the year

About Me

Sometimes I try to do things but it just doesn't work out the way I want it to, and I get real frustrated and then like I try hard to do it, and I like, take my time but it just doesn't work out the way I want it to. It's like, I concentrate on it real hard, but it just doesn't work out. And everything I do and everything I try, it never turns out. It's like, I need time to figure these things out, but there's always someone there going “hey Steve, you know we've been noticing you've been having a lot of problems lately, you know? You need to maybe get away. And like, maybe you should talk about it, you'll feel a lot better.” And I'm all like “oh, nah, it's ok, you know. I'll figure it out. Just leave me alone, I'll figure it out, you know? I'm just working on it by myself.” And they go “well, you know, if you wanna talk about it, I'll be here, you know? And you'll probably feel a lot better if you talk about it. So why don't you talk about it?” I go “no, I don't want to! I'm ok. I'll figure it out myself!” But they just keep bugging me, they just keep bugging me, and it builds up inside.I was in my house and I was just like staring at the walls thinking about everything, but then again I was thinking about nothing. And then my wife came in, and I didn't even know she was there. She called my name and I didn't hear her and then she started screaming “Steve, Steve !” And I go “what ? What's the matter ?” She goes “what's the matter with you?” I go “there's nothing wrong” She’s all “don't tell me that ! You're on drugs !” I go “FFS, I'm not on drugs. I'm ok, I'm just thinking, you know? Why don't you get me a Pepsi?” She goes “No! You're on drugs!” I go “I'm ok. I'm just thinking.” She goes “No! You're not thinking, you're on drugs! Normal people don't be acting that way!” I go “just get me a Pepsi ! Please, all I want is a Pepsi !” And she wouldn't give it to me! All I wanted was a Pepsi, just one Pepsi, and she wouldn't give it to me! Just a Pepsi !I'm sitting in my house, when a couple of my mates came in. they pulled up a chair and they sat down. They go “Steve, we need to talk to you.” And I go “ok, what's the matter?” They go “we've noticed that lately you've been having a lot of problems, and you've been going off on one for no reason, and we're afraid you're going to hurt somebody, and we're afraid you're going to hurt yourself. So we decided that it would be in your best interest if we put you somewhere where you could get the help that you need.” And I go “wait, what are you talking about, WE decided ? MY best interests ? How do you know what MY best interest is ? How can you say what MY best interest is ? What are you trying to say? I'm crazy ? They say they're gonna fix my brain. Alleviate my suffering and my pain. But by the time they fix my head, Mentally I'll be dead. They stuck me in an institution, said it was the only solution, to give me the needed professional help, to protect me from the enemy, myself !
Doesn't matter, I'll probably get hit by a car anyways !!!!