Wintery musings from Somerset

Blimey, this is the second posting in less than 24 hours (here). I must have had a bang on the head or paid the electric bill. Something like that. Well the news is all about snow, wintry conditions and how we're all heading into months of freezing temperatures. I've long thought it was an interesting omission of the climate change journalists a decade or so back, in that they forgot to tell us in the middle of their sooth sayings that we'll all frizzle in the summer, that in the winter there'll be a lot more energy in our weather systems, and therefore more moisture in the air, which when the air turns cold could lead to more snow than we've been used to of late. I'm not complaining for one. I love snow. Makes life difficult travelling, but it's beautiful to look at.

Unlike this chap who was seen walking in the 1/2 inch of snow we had this weekend on the Somerset coast. Note the sartorial elegance of his baggy trousers, the raffish tilt of his bobble hat, and what is he wearing under that fleece? It is a smorgasbord of bulges and sticky-outy bits. At least I think it is what's causing that effect. Anyway just after this we were chased by a herd of frisky bullocks, obviously desperate to discover the source of those many bulges. Maybe they thought is was hay!

So far, as alluded to, down here we haven't had much snow. More of a dusting really as can be seen from the window of my house this weekend. Its enough to keep me happy at the moment, especially as we're all travelling to WWT Welney on Friday to make a radio programme in front of a live audience on Saturday. I hope we get snowed in, then I can indulge in some birdwatching on the fens.

The snow that fell on Friday night was unexpected, as the forecast said it would miss us. And so in fabulous sunshine on Friday morning, I put my weks washing out.... Oh dear this was the view on Sunday morning, a mere 48 hours later. Eventually it defrosted itself and dried and was put away. But it was well rinsed through, and smelt fresh. By the end of the weekend the snow had all but melted here, but the temperatures were freezing all day yesterday and today I woke to more snow, the lightest of powdery snow gently falling as dawn broke.

What is worrying me is that although I have all the feeders out and full, there are hardly any birds about. Its puzzling. I back onto open countryside as far as the Black Mountains in Wales. I've only been in this house since December 2009, but lived just around the corner for 10 years and used to have loads of birds there. But here all is quiet. I appreciate my garden is mainly grass and decking, but at the back of me are many thick shrubs, then nothing but classic dairy farmland of grass and hedges for 2 miles to the Bristol Channel.

There are cats about, but there always have been. So where are they? I noticed on Ragged Robins blog she mentions a lack of collard doves. Funnily enough I saw my first one for ages this morning. Collard doves are in a decline for reasons no one really knows, but this weather must affect them as they are birds of much further south in Asia. Last winter took its toll on many birds at the northern edge of their range. Luckily for many a good breeding season helped restore the population balances, but this cold snap, if it is prolonged could cause another population crash of this years juveniles, especially of the smaller passerines, such as wren, goldcrest and so on. I hope they come to the feeders soon.

One bird I shall not worry about is the Jay. This glorious bird sits most morning outside my office window. Today I had my camera with me and managed to snap this shot through the glass. I tried to lift the window but off it flew. Jays are common in Clifton and used to be very secretive. Now though they are becoming bold, or bolder. And I love the fact they are around these busy streets. If jays weren't crows, or so common, people would be desperate to take photographs of them. Just look at the plumage of a Jay the next time you have a chance and see how beautiful it is, with that lovely flash of electric blue along it's flanks.

Another beautiful bird is the goldcrest. Slightly harder to see in the wild so I was thrilled and delighted when, this afternoon as I sat dunking a kit-kat into a mug of tea, Julie e-mailed me with a sketch she'd just finished today. Being a gardener Julie is not working at the moment, so practising her art which she hadn't done much of for years. The photo I believe doesn't do it justice as it was taken on her mobile phone and I had to photoshop it, but I love it. I love all wildlife drawings which are what I call half finished. Just the two birds and some twigs in this case, it really doesn't need anything else. As a teenager I fell in love with a Danish painter called Mads Stage who produced fabulous scratchy evocative drawings, Julie's style is quite similar. Lovely

Well that's enough of this winter wildlife, it's time to head home into the Bristol traffic and then have a nice cup of tea.

Sunday afternoon with a 2B pencil

I thought with this posting I'd be a little bit self indulgent and go through a drawing I made over the weekend and the very haphazard unplanned way I work.

Yesterday afternoon I found myself indoors for a change watching the Burleigh Horse Trials on BBC2. I do like a good three day event. Anyway sitting still for more than 2 minutes is difficult for me, but yesterday for the first time in a long while (actually since Good Friday) I unleashed my 2B pencil, some heavyweight cartridge paper, a mug of tea and while watching the TV began drawing.

At the beginning of my drawing I had no idea what to draw, but as a horse jumped over a five bar gate and a fence at Burleigh, I began with a five bar gate, and from that beginning a fence emerged and the makings of a tree.

Onward I went. Filling out the tree and then a link fence, some back ground and then a second tree in the field. At this stage I still planned to do a summer tree, i.e. one that is in leaf. But that never happened, possibly as it was more like winter out there than early autumn.

So now my trees will be sans foliage, what else can I add? How about some rooks !

Yes that's not too bad. It lifts the drawing and gives it movement. Adding some shadows and a few more defined branches at this point I thought yes this doodle is now just about finished. It wasn't meant to be a massively polished drawing, just a sketch really while I watched TV.

And then I broke a golden rule. All paintings, drawings and sketches suddenly shout out to the artist, "stop, please stop I'm finished now". At this point do not fiddle about any more or add anything else. But then I did and added a few more rooks which wasn't too bad, and then in a moment of madness some empty rooks nests in the front tree. And that's where I overcooked the drawing, and yet again I've learnt a valuable lesson in drawing and artwork "know when to stop". And yes if you are wondering I only used a single 2B pencil...... my art comes cheap!

Mind you I don't think Molly was too impressed!!

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And one final mention about the Corfe Mullen BioBlitz which happened over the Bank Holiday. We're planning to broadcast a piece from this tomorrow, but Steve Davis from the Dorset Wildlife Trust has written a blog article just now which sums up the day wonderfully

His blog entry is here

Perseid meteor shower

This pencil drawing of mine completed in 2008 of a "henge" has nothing to do with this posting, other than a shameless plug of my artwork and that I shall be looking into the skies tonight.

Tonight is the peak activity period for the Perseid meteor shower something I've not seen before. And as it happens my new camera has just been delivered (so no more Blackberry photos on the blog). If the weather holds, so far it's fine and sunny in the West Country, I may head off after supper and attempt a photo of two.

Ideally I need to be somewhere dark and away from streetlights as I need to look into the northern skies. I may head into Dorset, to my favourite hill, as shown below in another pencil drawing completed by me in 2007 (after being inspired by Gordon Benningfield).

Predictions of 80 meteors an hour are being forecast for tonight, but even if the shower doesn't show it's true spectacle, I'll love being outside at night looking at the stars.

I may even see a moth or two if I take my candle with me as in this 2005 charcoal drawing of mine, the only drawing I've ever regretted selling, but it now languishes somewhere in Somerset hopefully still giving someone pleasure.........

More on the Persid shower here