Shetland Misfit

Thursday, 27 October 2011

Owl Town

At last the wind has died down a bit, only 25mph today as opposed to 45 yesterday. After noticing that the Great Tit was in the garden and flushing a Long-eared Owl out of the honeysuckle hedge, I set off around the patch. As soon as I got over the fence 6 Short-eared Owls came out of the field by the house, followed shortly afterwards by a Little Auk out from Scord Beach, and then the 'bastard bird' of the autumn - a locustella kicked up 3 times from the dunes by Scord, before it just disappeared into the marram grass, despite extensive tramping and thrashing the grasses with a stick, the bird was never seen again. Around the Old Scatness dig another 2 Short-eared Owls were put up, and anothe 3 came in off the sea down at the south end of Scatness - making 11 in total for the day ! Elsewhere around the patch were - 120 Barnacle Geese, a Robin, a Blackcap and a late Wheatear.

Short-eared Owls - inc a couple coming in off the sea

Great Tit

Barnacle Geese

Tuesday, 25 October 2011

Tit Movement

After 2 days of south-easterly gales, birds are at last beginning to show up. I was a bit fired up yesterday after it was south-easterly all night, but all that was on the patch was 2 Fieldfare, a Redwing and a Skylark ! A bit better today, but still 40mph winds, with 100+ Fieldfares and 30 or so Redwings in the fields on the patch, but today the garden came up with the star bird - a Great Tit ! I know that may sound a bit crap to anyone from 'down south', but since I've been on Shetland, Great Tits have been rarer than Olive-backed Pipits ! And this is the second record for the garden, so I'm well overdue an OBP. Also in the garden were 2 Bramblings and a Blackcap.

Today's Great Tit

and the Great Tit from March 2006

Brambling

Redwing

Thursday, 20 October 2011

Ruby Porn

Finally went up to Gulberwick for the male Siberian Rubythroat, I would have gone straight away yesterday when news broke, but being has it was lashing down with hail and snow showers, I waited until today.
What a porn star of a bird ! especially with the sun shining on it as it fed around the track to the house, add to this close views of Pechora Pipit and a fly by Hen Harrier - a pretty good day.
This is now the third Rubythroat I've seen on Shetland, with birds on Fair Isle in 2003 and 2005. Plus a good few in India.

Pechora Pipit - Gulberwick

Siberian Rubythroat - Gulberwick

And another one - Fair Isle Oct 2005

And yet another, this time from Sattal, India in Feb 2008

Wednesday, 19 October 2011

Belated Update

Now that the broadband seems to be moving a bit quicker, time for a quick update from the last few weeks.
A day out dipping the Alpine Swift at Laxo on the 29/9, was salvaged a bit with Lesser Grey Shrike nearby,
A Brambling and a Jack Snipe were patch year-ticks on the 30/9 and so was Greenfinch on 2/10, a day when there were Olive-backed Pipits all over the place, apart from Scatness that is, where I managed to find a Tree Pipit instead !!!
A quick dash up to Cunningsburgh on the 1/10 and Alpine Swift gripped back - putting me on 349 for Shetland !
The big 350 fell soon after with an adult Sabine's Gull in front of the house - county tick, patch tick and house tick !
Bits and pieces around the patch included 4 Grey Plovers and 7 Snow Buntings on 10/10, and another patch tick, Little Grebe on the 14/10 and 2 Short-eared Owls on the 16/10.
A few interesting Moths at the end of September, the best being Red Sword Grass and Dark Sword Grass.

Alpine Swift at Cunningsburgh and Lesser Grey Shrike at Laxo (Phots - Jim Nicolson)

Grey Heron

Greenfinch

Grey Plover

Redwing

Whooper Swans

Little Grebe

Short-eared Owl

Snow Bunting

Red Sword Grass

Dark Sword Grass

Wednesday, 12 October 2011

Coming soon....

....a big update from the last few weeks, that is once BT have got there act together and got the broadband up to speed, at the moment it seems to be powered by this -

In the meantime, here's another 'Simon's Cat' -

Thursday, 29 September 2011

Covers

Sometimes bands can go a bit too far with cover versions - this one is as mad as a box of frogs !

Tuesday, 27 September 2011

Aurora

A few pics from last night's Northern Lights -

Monday, 26 September 2011

Garden Mega

Not much on the patch today - just a Blackcap and a Kestrel, which makes me think it's a waste of time getting out and about until the wind changes ! As I got back home though, all the Starlings went nuts - the culprit ? - the oiled Pallid Harrier going over the house roof !

Crap photo I know, but it is a Pallid Harrier going over my house !

and then over the runway

and finally over 'The Fray's' house

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 !!!!