Unwelcome Visitor

Just happened to spot this furry visitor to the bird feeders:



Time to put out some 'special' food in a safe place!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Magpies v Suet Cake

As well as spreading seed on the grass for the ground feeding birds I added an Insect and Peanut suet cake to see who would be interested. Most of it was gobbled up by a group of five Magpies.



The suet cake was put there at 9 a.m. and all completely gone by midday. The Pied Wagtail continues to visit every day.

A Negative Day

Woke up to another colder than usual day for mid December here. As the readings (stored on the Wunderground web site) from my new weather station show it never reached the dizzy height of 0C all day - up to the time of writing:



My old weather station was starting to become unreliable so I invested in a new one which I installed a few days ago when the temperature was better at +3C. The indoor readout is quite spectacular:



A large display, bright and clear, readable from anywhere in the room as it is hung on the wall. It comes with the outdoor sensors as usual but also has an extra module which I have in the unheated conservatory to show temperature and humidity in there. The only reading which needs adjusting is the air pressure. That is a bit fiddly to set on this display.

I didn't really want to get out of bed this morning but eventually surfaced to the winter wonderland. Looking at some of the greenery you would be forgiven for thinking it had been snowing



but it is just days of accumulated frost building up on everything. As the ice in the bird baths is now too thick to remove easily yesterday I put out a large plant-pot saucer filled with fresh water. This morning the ice in it was 10mm thick but I managed to remove it and refill with water. The Pied Wagtail was one of the first to take advantage. That was at 9 a.m.. By midday it was frozen solid again and needed refilling.



It has been spending most of each day in the garden. As it will only search for food at ground level I scatter some seed on the grass for it to find. There appears to be a possibility we may have some snow tomorrow, Wednesday.

Misty, Icy Weather

Temperature dropped to -5.3C at one point in the early hours of the day with freezing fog. It has stayed below 0C all day with a cold mist. The area looks as though Nature has added its own Christmas decorations to everything.







I don't think the spider webs will be catching much ..



It always surprises me that this is the time of year the corkscrew Hazel starts to produce its catkins ready to open when Spring warmth returns.





Some shots were a bit hurried as my fingers were freezing but at least there was no snow, yet, so walking about was easy.

Magpies Bathing

There was a thin layer of water over a thick layer of ice in the bird bath but that didn't deter



the three regular Magpie visitors from having their daily shower. The Pied Wagtail spent several hours in the garden today.

Pied Wagtail Returns

Today I set up the camcorder ready for any interesting visitors to the bird feeders. After a night where the temperature dipped down to -3C there seemed to be far fewer than yesterday. One which did return for another quick visit was



the Pied Wagtail. I was ready for it this time. It was quite bossy and kept chasing the local House Sparrows away from where it wanted to feed.

Busy Bird Feeders

As the weather has been so cold, yesterday and today the bird feeders have been in great demand. Along with the usual small birds I counted four Rooks, three Magpies, several Crows and a couple of Jackdaws. One which took me by surprise was a fleeting visit from a



Pied Wagtail. Managed to grab a few hurried stills but as soon as I started to set up the camcorder it flew away. I have often seen them in nearby grassy areas but I don't remember seeing one in my garden before today. I always have a smile at the antics of the Starlings. I emptied all the ice out of a bird bath and refilled with water. Within a few minutes the Starlings were having a good old splash around in spite of it being all of 1C out there.

Monday Mystery - Answer

Last week's mystery photo ...



proved to be a really difficult one to identify. Ellen D. was the only person to get it correct.



Yes. I had snapped the top view of a battery.
I think I will make that the last one for this year. I've run out of inspiration for now. Maybe I will find a different way of making mystery photos in the New Year. Thank you to all who have kept following this through the year. Look forward to seeing what I can come up with in 2023.

In other news - a few days ago a Blue Tit investigated the camera nest box. Unfortunately it was a dull day and the video wasn't very good. Bird feeders are busier again after several weeks of very little bird traffic. There seem to be more corvids than usual here. Crows, Magpies and Jackdaws but no Rooks as yet, plus the usual squabbling brat pack (Starlings).

Monday Mystery

Last week I showed



Well done to Ragged Robin, Ellen D. and Kev Scott who gave the correct answer. Yes it was



a tape measure. Thank you to all who had a go. I'm at a bit of a loss for an object this week so I opted for another Circular Studio pattern made using a photo of a single object.



If you would like to guess what was used please leave it in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

A Second Inspection

Earlier in the week there appeared to be a very brief visit to the nest box by a Dunnock. Too brief to be absolutely sure on the identification. Yesterday's visitor was much easier to identify:



Another visit from a Great Tit.

Monday Mystery

Last week I showed



What made it difficult to identify exactly was the lack of any clue as to it size. Here is the full object



It is just the right size to fit over a cup and Kev Scott was very close with 'teabag strainer'. Ellen D worked out it was a strainer. In fact, as Adrian worked out it dates back to the days when tea was made with tea leaves kept in a tea caddy. Teapot warmed up, one teaspoon of tea leaves for each cup plus 'one for the pot'. Boiling water added and left to brew, not forgetting the tea cosy to keep the pot warm for as long as possible. Then came the pouring of the tea through the tea strainer to keep any tea leaves out of the cup. Much more of a family ritual back then! Thanks to all who had a guess.

A full view of an object this week



If you would like to guess what it is please leave you guess in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

Unusual Lithops

When I set up the large propagator I added to my small collection of Lithops plants. They are often called Living Stones or Living Pebbles as that is what they usually look like.



When I saw this much more unusual one I couldn't resist buying it:



I had no idea whether it would have a recognisable flower or when it would show any. Yesterday I noticed a small speck of yellow. Today, while the Sunlight was blazing through I saw ...



A closer look:



Its first flower. All of 15mm across. It looks likely there is at least one more to open very soon. That helped to make up for a fraught day yesterday when, as a result of a burst water main locally, there was no tap water all day.

Monday Mystery

Not many guesses for last week's mystery object.



I guess it was more difficult that I expected. Two correct answers though. Well done to Adrian and Ellen D. Yes is a pie funnel / vent / chimney. One of my Mothers. It must be at least fifty years old and was used regularly. My thanks also to Ragged Robin for having a go.

Part of an object this time:



Once upon a time it was used daily but rarely sees the light of day now. If you would like to make a guess as to what it is please leave it in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

A Brief Inspection

Checking to see whether there had been any activity in the camera nestbox I was pleased to see this Great Tit had given it a brief inspection a few days ago.



It is the time of year when some birds do the rounds of possible nesting sites. It certainly made a change as over the past year the only activity recorded has been the occasional wasp, fly, butterfly and spider.

Monday Mystery

Last week's Circular Studio pattern



was indeed created using



a photo of a Sunflower. Well done to Adrian, Ragged Robin, Ellen D, Kev Scott and Wilma who all guessed correctly.

This week there is no tinkering, just a straight forward photo of an object.



If you would like to guess what it is, please leave your answer in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

Ready for Winter

It was time to think about some protection from low temperatures for some of my plants. I have had this heated propagator for some time but it spend over a year unused in the greenhouse. Time to bring it back in the unheated conservatory.



Now set up with my home made thermostatically controlled unit. Basically that is a bit of bought electronics which can be programmed with a start (low) temperature and an end (hight) temperature. That operates a solid state relay which is designed to safely use a low voltage (12V) to switch a couple of mains voltage sockets. As it is now it switches on the heating element in the propagator when the temperature drops to 10C and off again when it reaches 12C.

A few small and miniature orchid plants with some succulents occupy it at the moment.



The orchid plant top left spent the Summer outdoors and has started to produced a flower spike for the first time in a couple of years.

Monday Mystery

I am running more than a bit late with everything I had intended to get done today. Ah well, why break the habit of a lifetime? Anyway, here we go.. last week I showed



which was correctly identified by Ragged Robin, Ellen D., Wilma and Adrian as



tongs. Very useful for lifting or turning over food items in the hot air cooker. Well done all.

This week is something different. I put a photograph of a single item in an app called Circular Studio which can produce all sorts of patterns using that object.



What was the original picture of? If you would like to make a guess please leave it in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

Monday Mystery

Last week's photo:



saw most recognise it as



some sort of plug in aroma therapy type of gadget. In fact this one is formulated to help calm dogs in stressful situations. I used it for Penny as she was badly stressed by loud noises, especially fireworks and thunder. Though not a complete cure it certainly helped. As for the faint scent given off - to my nose it reminded me of the odour of freshly dug damp earth. These are not an instant 'cure'. I found it worked best when plugged in for a few days before any known or suspected noisy events and not used unless needed.
Many thanks to Adrian, Wilma, Ellen D., Ragged Robin and Kev Scott who were all near enough to the answer.

I suspect that this week's 'bump picture', as FX Studio Pro calls the process,



will be a tad easier to identify. If you would like to make a guess please leave it in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

Sunflowers - again

Two of the smallest Sunflowers are now in full bloom and one of the larger variety is beginning to open. These photos were taken of the small ones. Total height of the stems is only up to knee height and the flowers are about 3in (75mm) diameter.



Here is a close up photo of one of them - uncropped.



Close up taken with The Canon EOS M5 fitted with 18-150mm zoom lens and the Raynox DCR-150 Macro / Close-up conversion lens.

Monday Mystery

Last week I showed this embossed photo:



which was correctly identified as:



a drone by Wilma and Adrian. Well done. My thanks to all who had a go.
The embossed photos do have little detail in them so this week I will try a different process. The app I used to add frames to the Sunflower photos has may different way of modifying the appearance of a photo. This week I will try the filter they call 'linocut'. So, can you work out what this is?



If you would like to make a guess please leave it in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

Nearly There

What a difference a few days make. The Sunflower taken this morning in a short lull between strong gusts of wind:



Taken with the Nikon Coolpix S9050, on camera flash used to help darken the background. Frame added using the Mac App FX Photo Studio Pro.

Late Sunflowers

While I was topping up the bird feeders I had a close look at the Sunflower plants growing from seeds dropped by the birds. Most are tightly shut but one was beginning to show yellow petals.



If the night temperature doesn't get too low and the strong cold winds stay away for a few days more maybe it will bloom.

The bud on the largest plant was tight shut ...



... but at least a Ladybird was finding it a useful place to shelter.

Monday Mystery

I was getting a bit annoyed. I used to have a couple of apps on the iPad which were somewhat unique in what they could achieve with very little effort. One was ideal for making a Halloween themed video. The other (Hyperdroste) made videos with changing spiral patterns created from still photos. It took a while for my remaining active grey cell to work out why they had vanished:



Chances are they were amongst many useful old apps which stopped working when I updated iOS a while ago. Unfortunately they are irreplaceable as they were never updated. Consequently they are no longer available on the app store. Yesterday I deleted at least a dozen more apps which will no longer work and have not been updated. At least Uface (used to make the avatar above) remains active.

As I was checking through the various photo manipulation apps I still have I came across XnView Photo which, among other things, can create embossed effects. That got me thinking I would try a few of those for the Monday Mystery photo so here is the first one:



What was this a photo of? If you would like to hazard a guess please leave it in the comments. They will be revealed, with the answer, next Monday.

A few Feathered Visitors

I was fortunate to spot a couple of Long Tailed Tits visit the bird feeders. It is quite a while since I last saw any visit my feeders. Unfortunately they didn't stay long as there were scared away by the noisy arrival of a Wood Pigeon. When I checked the automatic camera recordings I saw that Great and Blue Tits are also visiting. Not recorded by the camera was a brief visit by a Coal Tit.



You may have noticed some late Sunflower plants growing near the feeders. In the late Spring I tried twice to get some seeds started in pots for planting in the front garden. They all failed to germinate! These plants are the result of randomly scattered seeds dropped when the birds drop them whilst feeding.

A Cloudy Tiny Planet

I am still out of inspiration for suitable mystery objects at the moment. To fill the gap here is a tiny planet video I put together a short while ago.



I had been searching for the one and only timelapse I made of a Sunset but it has eluded all efforts to find where I stored it. This timelapse was of daytime clouds which looked a bit insipid until I added the 'blast' clip filter in iMovie.

As we are heading to longer and longer dark evenings and nights I have been adding to my stock of audio books. I do use Kobo for eBooks and audio books. They are limited to use on their apps and hardware. I also like to have audio books in mp3 format. I can have them on a USB stick so I can play them on anything, especially my audio system. To that end I found quite a few download sites with free to download and use recordings. Two I have used a lot are Digitalbook.io and audiobooksworld.org. Most books are decades old as they are now out of copyright. They tend to be Librivox recordings which are all in the public domain. You could, of course, go direct to librivox.org though I find their site a bit more daunting to sort through. As far as I can tell all the books can be listened to on line as well as being available for download.

Monday Mystery

After watching and soaking up the atmosphere from the live broadcast of the final journey of the late Queen Elizabeth II I must say I feel somewhat melancholy this evening. I think it brought home that this really is the end of an era for the UK.

I've not found anything suitable for a new mystery photo yet but here is the answer to last week's close view. I showed ....



which was in fact part of a multi sharpener for various items with cutting edges ....





A simple but very effective manual sharpening device. The end section which some thought was like a tiny pair of scissors for cutting wire in fact is designed for sharpening secateur blades. The white strip is for scissor blades and the darker strip for garden shears. At least that is what the instructions indicate. The round knob at the other end unscrews to reveal a small oil reservoir with a sponge built in the knob.

Thank you Adrian and Ellen D for having a go. All being well things will be back to normal next Monday or at least what passes for normal in the Midmarsh household.