New camera, 31.5.2017.

As I mentioned in my last post I bought a new camera on Sunday from John Lewis in Handforth.

I took it to Etherow today with the intention of giving it a good trial, but was met there by my Pall Bob and his wife and was invited to the Windmill with them for dinner!, I said I would have to pop Pepe home and met them there as it's too hot to leave him in the car this weather.

Thought it didn't seen too hot outside, it soon get's very hot in the car, I remember asking in the car show room about the roof opening we used to have in the older cars and was told you don't need it these days with Air Conditioning!, which as I said at the time it doesn't help when you switch off and leave the car!.

Still on to the camera.

When I got home sat in the garden and got the new camera out and gave it a few snap's.

Notice the bird on the chimney on the house opposite, No!

This is it! and that's without a tripod to steady the camera.

As it say's in most of the reviews I checked out on the net, the Zoom is its selling point I think.

Sat on this.

Needs the chimney pointing perhaps!.

Looking further to the right 

My red Tug boat.

Needs a paint touch up as well

General View.

My Green Goddess, not looking too bad after a second winter.

Macro view of my Clematis, 'Josephine' 

The Flapping 'Duckie' in the wind

The 'Lad' looking a tad warm in this weather but he was only washed and trimmed last week and he could go indoors and lie on his cool mat!.

So it's looking like a thumbs up for the camera, will try it on the wildlife tomorrow.

What is the camera you ask.

What a gorrp , its a Nikon Coolpix P900.

This is a better way to shoot wildlife don't you think instead of with a gun, how can you justify that as sport!!.

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Mummy Mummy what's a lesbian,

'Ask your father, She knows'!

Mummy Mummy, I don't wanna visit grandma!,

Shut up and keep digging!.

My mother-in -law paid me a compliment the other day, 

She said I was a perfect idiot!

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Bank Holiday weekend.26-28.5.17.

Over the Bank Holiday weekend, we went to Reddish Vale as its a bit quieter and the car parking isn't as bad as Etherow Park, which also had a motor bike Do on!

No problem with motorbikes as I used to be a motorcyclist in my younger days!.

Its so quite at Reddish Vale even with the trains passing on the viaduct now and then.

Plenty of wildlife here, more than Etherow which seems to be hurt by its own popularity, plus it seems to have a better budget and the friends of Reddish Vale seem very good at keeping the place nicely maintained!.

The start of the Butterfly Garden.

In the information Centre

The Baby Blue Tits were all doing well and flexing their wings and it was understood that it wouldn't be long before they were off and in fact I learned from friends Mary & Peter that they had visited the next day and they were all gone!.

Outside the Centre there was a a group of horse riders, I found out on chatting to one of them they weren't from the riding centre there, but had ridden over from somewhere else for the ride.

Beautiful creatures aren't they.

This one was called 'Dumplin' the horse not the Lady I hasten to add!.

I like a good hat as you know, even this horse had one on, stops the fly going down their ears I was told!, would have loved a ride on one, will have to check if the riding centre there do pony trekking.

 

The swan that was attacked by the dog a couple of weeks ago seems to be alright and settled down again, but still wary of people and who can blame them, there are some wicked people about as we in Manchester know all too well!

Now the baby Grebes are growing up fast and diving for food themselves, the parents were doing their mating dance which is beautiful to see but hard to get a photo right, this is the best I could get for you!.

So we could be in for a second brood soon.

I needed that he's saying isn't he

I've told you our Freddie push off!

Asleep!.

Tiring this fishing for one's self.

Woodie.

On the Sunday we went to John Lewis and bought a new camera, but looking back on some of these pictures I wonder why?, still we will have to see as this new one has a 83x Zoom whereas the one that took these pictures is only 50x zoom, will have to get out the tripod for this one, its a lot heavier and trying to keep it still at that zoom will be difficult.

Still as I said we will have to wait and see, its had some good reviews in the forums on the internet!. 

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Why do they lock petrol station toilets? 

Are they afraid someone will clean them!.

Why is a carrot more orange than an orange?.

Why is lemon juice mostly artificial ingredients, but dish washing liquid contains real lemons?.

Peter went to a seafood disco last night and managed to pull a mussel!.

Did you hear of the newbie who went ice fishing and caught fifty pounds of ice and his wife drown trying to cook it!.

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Amelia Rose update, 23.5.2017.

In case you thought I'd not done much on my present build of Narrow Boat 'Amelia Rose' here is an update.

This is what it should look like when finished if you've forgot.

Looking drab at the moment hey.

Cut out the windows this week.

Used a strip of wood to make sure all the windows were at the same level.

And the other side showing the front windows as well.

Looking a bit more like it now.

The hatch cover is finished with a bit of canal art!.

Sister Barbara in OZ couldn't believe it when she heard I'd had a water meter fitted in Manchester 'The Rainy City'.

This was my back garden view the last week. 

This is the view today.

You wouldn't believe the difference in my water bill!, so my hose pipe has gone and replaced by the two water butts so my plants won't suffer!.

This week my mate Dave at the lake got his in-law who is a Eddie Stobart driver to contact the driver of the Volvo driver of 'Velda' at the Depot near Dagenham to send me these pictures!.

 

Still would like to spot it myself but this is a good start, so thanks to Dave and the Driver!.

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Doctor, Doctor, I need something to keep my hair in.

'Here's a shoe box'.

Doctor, Doctor, my baby is the image of his father.

'Never mind as long as he's healthy'.

Did you hear of the Dentist who found a cavity so deep in his patients tooth, he sent the guy to a chiropodist!.

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Reddish Vale, 21.5.2017

This weekend at Reddish Vale was a nice sunny day and as John and family were away I was able to spend a bit more time there.

The Blue Tit eggs I mentioned in the last post had hatched out and out of the nine eggs I counted the last time, today I counted eight babies though with them moving about all the time and the parents in and out feeding them and trampling all over them it was difficult to number them.

Outside we found the box with the camera in and there was one of the parents returning.

Makes you wonder how they fit into the hole in the nest box, but if its too big it means something else can get into the babies or eggs doesn't it!.

The Heron mentioned previously was still there.

Gives you some idea how big they are against this Mallard.

Beautiful birds but in flight they look a bit like a pterodactyl!.

Visions of Rachel Welch in the film 2,000 BC! when one of the girls was carried off by one.

A female Chaffinch rooting around for bugs.

The baby Coots are doing well on the small lake.

The Coots are not as daft as other birds, chasing them off when they are breeding again, they keep the youngsters with them so they can help feed the next brood!.

The Muscovy ducks are sitting on eggs as well.

At Etherow the baby Canadian Geese are still dong well 

With the heavy rain after a quite dry spell had brought down another large tree on the road up to the farm.

As you can see it fell right across the road, the middle has been cut out to open the road but when the rest will be cleared is anyone's guess in this economic climate!.

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You know there is a problem with the education system when you realize that out of the three R's, only one begins with an R!. 

A doctor who went on a ski trip and got lost on the slopes,

He stamped out HELP in the snow, but no one could read his writing!.

Patient to doctor, if  I've only got two weeks to live.

I'll take the last week in July and the first week in August!.

Sign over a display of Pine panels.

Knotty but Nice!.

If a pig loses its voice is it Disgruntled?.

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