Rain Stops Play

I've been enjoying myself (and getting wet, inside and out) at the England v Australia Test Match at Edgbaston this week.

The game was marred by the lashings of summer rain that have been pelting these shores for a couple of weeks now, after a long dry spell previously which had crisped everything up.

We seem to swing from one extreme to the other, with not a lot of 'normal' weather inbetween. It may well be my imagination, but every few weeks seems to bring reports of hottest, driest, wettest, windiest, coldest this that or the other since records began. Must be hard for the birds and beasts to know whether they are coming or going.

They were still swifts over the skies and along the canals of Birmingham this week, but there weren't a lot of insects for them to scoop up, thanks to the wet stuff.

Butterflies were aplenty though when the clouds intermittently relented, making the most of the thousands of intrepid buddlhea which have colonated the miles and miles of deserted industrial sites and towpaths of this historical city.

Plenty of wasps in your beer too, but you'll find reports on Aussies, cricket and wasps in a much earlier post on this blog.

Back to the real world now, and some reporting work to do for the shooting, fishing and hunting newspaper, The Countryman's Weekly (more on the publication here at www.countrymansweekly.com)

Screaming of the swifts

Spring is getting close to top speed and ready to burst, full-stride into early summer.

We've had an outstanding few days on the weather front, helping to remind me that when we get our dose of decent sunshine, there's nowhere better to be.

The evenings now draw on incredibly late and it's still light enough to walk the dog at 10pm. Those dark, dank winter days seem like someone else's memories, so distant do they seem while I sit sipping a G&T watching the sun go down.

Surely someone somewhere has carried out a study which proves that people are happier when it's sunny? As I write, I can hear kids playing outside, and the smell of burning charcoal wafts through the open window as barbecues get dusted off and wheeled out for a chance to cremate some meaty offerings.

Birdlife is frantically busy, nest-building and chick-rearing, with barely time for a few hours' sleep before the sun is out once more and the whole process begins again. Cats are prowling all hours too, taking their massive toll on our songbirds.

Another added benefit of having a dog is that these furry feline marauders are kept out of the garden. Diesel's training is going well, with multiple retrieves and even some water work taken in his not inconsiderable stride. The light evenings mean fitting this in after a day's work is no problem. The children adore him.