Overall I’ve had a quiet afternoon. But I did look out of the window and the grey skies had lightened so I went to do a little work in the garden. I’m hoping to dig a third pond before spring but the site had a large rotted wood pile from the tree thinning a couple of years ago. This has to be moved before I can even think of beginning digging. So that’s what I did for a couple of hours even though the last 30 minutes were spent in the rain. Still it was interesting. I watched a couple of Sparrow hawks fly over and land in one of the trees and Mr Robin watching everything I did (or to be more precise the insects I was disturbing.) As I moved some of the wood I found a huge mat of fungus similar to the Japanese varieties. (Clusters of white caps and slender stalks) However I don’t think it likely to be edible.

Just before it began to rain there was a single solitary long roll of thunder and then a gentle rain fell for the rest of the time. But it’s mild and so after working a sweat moving all the wood it was nice to site and look up the hillside whilst drinking a coffee. I haven’t done that for the longest time. (Sit in the rain.) To cap it all as I walked back there was a rainbow arched over Darwen.

I’m sat here now writing this and there are now 2 spiders in the living room. There is 1 very big one which ran from under the couch, under my legs (it was polite enough to lift them up and do a Hoover on the way) and then it had the cheek to go underneath my Tannoy speaker and then there is also 1 smaller one which inexplicably is making its way towards the larger one. Perhaps it is a mating ritual or a death wish.

Isn’t life and nature fascinating...even when sat watching the TV or on the computer. What is the affinity spiders have with me? Think I’ll keep that one quiet. I am making my house sound like the arachnid zone at Chester zoo. Hope you had a good weekend.

I may pass out of time, perhaps out of mind, but never out of reach