Diana Had A 2 Hour Driving Lesson,

first thing this Morning, 

so I popped out to Kelsey Park to take a few more photographs of the herons as they are getting ready to leave their nests, I parked in Manor Way, 

which I thought would save a bit of time, 

but the pathway had lead me back,

to where I normally enter the park, I should have parked further along Manor Way, anyway past the gate house,

and over the bridge, 

and past the waterfall,

this is where I thought the side gate would bring me,

I continued walking to the heronry, 

and set up my tripod and camera, and there was one, hiding, and that was that for the next hour and a half, the herons today were totally uncooperative and stayed hidden in their nests,

I made a move back post a small building by one of the flower beds,

and up the path that leads to Manor Way,

my car was way, way down there, next time I will remember to park further along, 

arriving home I had a look at the few photographs I had taken whilst the herons played at being camera shy, I liked the metallic look of this ducks feathers, I will crop the photograph and maybe print it on metallic paper, 

one of a gull,

 

and this was as much of a heron as I saw, so that was that, after which,

time for my evening read and sherry, 

for tonight Diana had made me a huge prawn salad, so huge I left some for a stater tomorrow night 'Cheers!', then time for a film as not a lot else was on the television this evening, 

Outlaw King, a almost all action movie, great cast, story, (manly true), and scenery, I followed that with,

Mrs. Brown's Boys this show really divides people into those who love it or hate it, as it happens we both love it and we even went to the stage show in June 2022, after which Diana arrived home from work, when a real treat started, 

And Now For Something Completely Different, Monty Python at it's best, for instance, the parade ground for the UK's fighting men,

which sums up the film nicely, Diana went to bed before it finished, not quite her sense of humor and she was tired, another 10 hour day today, for myself I watched all of it, priceless, before I too was off to bed.

Out Fairly Early Again,

I was getting dangerously low on spiced rum,

just one 1 liter bottle for the weekend, that will not make it to Sunday night, so out past the snail mail box, and on to a number 354 bus to Bromley, 

arriving there past The Partridge, 

and HSBC on the corner, wedged between the 2 Primark store fronts,

as it was Thursday a few stalls in Market Square today,

one of the many jewelers on the corner,

next to the haberdashery stall,

a few stall holders yet to arrive,

 

the seafood stall here as usual,

into LIDL, I particularly like their James Cook Gold spiced rum and at 35% it is not to strong to drink neat, 3 bottles and a couple of sherry, plus some other nonimportant stuff like food, and I was on my way home,

as I passed Foxgrove Lodge I stopped to take a quick photograph of the pink/mauve rhododendron, 

and nice it looked too, as I neared home I meet Diana coming the other way, she had been called in a couple of hours early, I was going to give her a lift in, but she said the bus would be here in a few minutes and it would be quicker as we were near the stop to take that, arriving home I decided to pop out to Norwood Lakes, taking the new tripod with me, 

luckily there was plenty of space nearby, 

there is not a car park here, so curb parking it is, past the very impressive house at the entrance, 

and here I was in the park, so I started snapping away, 

as soon as I put the camera on the tripod, there was a grebe on her nest, I should say I took all of these with the 500mm lens and a 1.4 converter, wow! that really sounds like I know what I am talking about!

there were so many, 

baby coots, 

they were everywhere, it must be a bumper year for them this year,

and here they are, 

this is what I was hoping for, female grebe and her chicks have taken to the water

at the far end of the lake a few sea birds, 

the male grebe put in an appearance, 

a Egyptian goose preens itself on one of the floating manmade islands, 

some of its feathers looking so metallic in the afternoon sun,

in the far distance a water fountain, I guess not so much for show but to aid aeration of the water, 

one of the male grebes stretches its wings, 

one came quite close, 

meanwhile the female looked after her chicks, 

and stretched her wings as well, 

OK I give up, ducks have ducklings, swans have cygnets, geese have goslings, so what do coots and grebes have?

I guess I should ask her! I have not played with any of these, they are straight out of the camera, I will play with them in Affinity over the next week or so, whilst the weather is nice I will go to a few lakes and nature reserves, and play with the photographs when dull days come back, as an aside the new tripod was just so good, no tired arms after hours of holding the camera, I then made a move for home just in time for the last half of The Chase before my evening meal, after which it was a couple of films, firstly, 

 Fantastic Beasts and Where To Find Them, absolutely superb special effects, and thoroughly enjoyable if you like fantasy movies, and I do! after which I followed that with 2 other fantastic beasts as I watched, 

AVPR: Aliens vs Predator - Requiem, it has to be said so much of the film was dark, as in nighttime, for myself a great story line as it took up after the last Predator film, Earth becomes a battlefield for two extraterrestrial species fighting for supremacy. With humans caught up in the middle, after which Diana arrived home, as our cruise is coming up in a couple of weeks we spent some time reserving places on trips when the boat docks, we are travelling down Spain, into the Mediterranean and out going down to Morocco, then back home to good 'ole Blighty for tea and medals, we both love cruising, although I can understand that many people do not, but for us especially Diana, it is a complete and utter beak, no household chores or work to do or think about, by the end of that it was well past midnight so we were of to bed.