dancefloorlandmine

In garden news, the brambles have attempted to come back, but I now have a pass for the local recycling centres, which accept garden waste, so I pruned a 'mystery shrub' and some of the brambles when it was dry earlier this week, and will be attempting to spend more time keeping things under control. Watch this space for how badly I stay on top of this.

It's been quite a while since I've seen any sign of the foxes in my garden. I was rather worried that the two ill-trained mastiffs that the neighbour's boyfriend had brought with him had had the effect of scaring them off - so I was rather relieved when, working from home today, I looked out of the open study door and saw a furry orange shape disappear into the long grass that I'd only five minutes previously been thinking I really should trim soon. The cub stopped to nibble on some of the stalks, but by the time I'd collected my camera and the long lens, it had lain down in the grass and was hard to see from my kitchen, and completely obscured from my study. Fortunately, after a little while, it appeared to have decided that the sunbeam was too hot, and got up, stretched, and moved towards the path, stopping and staring when it heard the click of the shutter, but not seeming especially concerned. It panted a bit, and then headed across the path to the shade of the cherry tree on the other side before heading back up the garden.

Welcome back.

( Sample photos behind cut )

Main gallery is here.

(Think this lens might be getting a little old - it was second-hand when I bought it when I was 18, for my 35mm Canon - it doesn't suffer 'zoom creep' so much as 'zoom rush', and the focus is looking a little soft now.)

The other weekend I popped into my garden with my camera, having spotted a fair-sized spider (and web) between the standard cherry and whatever plant is climbing over my fence. Getting out there, I realised that the radio had been correct, and it had indeed been good weather for spiders. So I took a few photos.

( More waffling on topic. )

The Gallery

( A couple of samples (warning - does contain spiders) )

There was a highlight of yesterday - while the electrician was working on the fusebox, my garden's most frequent guests made a reappearance - together with an extra visitor.

The Gallery

( Samples - warning: Contains cuteness )

For those of you who like my fox photos but were busy over the weekend ... here. I think I got spotted.

Found a reason to be glad I'd decided the lawn hayfield was too long for my feeble electric mower and used the shears instead ... I just disturbed a small frog that had been hiding in the long grass, and boinged away for more permanent cover, or possibly to my pond puddle.

I would have dashed back to get a photo, but my nearest camera currently a) has the 70-300mm lens on it (minimum focussing distance about 5ft) and b) has no memory card, as that is currently in the computer, shifting the latest photos of 'my' foxes (appearing on a screen near you soon(ish)).

You know you own a restful oasis of calm when not one, but two foxes decide that it is a suitable place for their regular nap in the sun. According to valkyriekaren she sees them quite regularly when she is at mine, but today was the first time that I saw them both while having my camera to hand. Unfortunately, they manage to sequester themselves quite neatly away from easy view from my flat's windows, but I got some shots. Also unfortunately, my long zoom is getting a bit soft on the focus at full zoom (it's the old Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6 Mk I ... second-hand when I bought it seventeen years ago), and the landing window from which I took some of the shots didn't help (it's technically part of the other flat's 'territory' in the house, and definitely hasn't been cleaned in five years, probably quite a few more!).

But for those who'd like to see them, the photos are here.

And, as ever, a couple of samples behind ( the cut ... )

More photos of the cherry blossom in my garden (this time it is the one in the icon). And one of the rosemary which has so far survived about three years of being virtually ignored in a pot.

( Best photos behind cut. )

Slow fountain of white
The cherry starts to blossom
Is this truly spring?