Get out when you can

It seems that this is more time for sitting in the house watching the television where it's nice and warm. But take my advice and get out there - into the countryside and take your cameras! There truly are some beautiful colours to capture. In addition a lot of animals are buzzing about, as they get ready for the winter. I know every spare minute seems to be taken up with work, kids or Christmas shopping, but read my post about stress in the t-yourself blog. You really need to keep yourself under control, or you'll be no help to anybody, especially yourself.

You could start yourself a new hobby! Get yourself a sketch pad and some coloured pencils and start drawing some of those photos. Come Christmas time, you'll not be the one it's impossible to buy for! You'll have paints, pads and art books cascading around your house. One word or caution; I do believe anyone can learn to draw, but like anything else it takes practice and you have to find your favourite type of art. It can be extremely diverting and will give you much needed 'me time'

More Rambling

A university lecturer had once commented that my work was not scientific enough and that I ought to consider journalism. I had the time and the inclination to write about the kestrel. It is a favourite creature of mine – its adaptability and skills second to no other creature. So I set to work without any real clue where I was going, other than I really wanted the piece published in a favourite magazine; the Northumbrian. Unfortunately the periodical already had someone to cover birds, so my kestrel piece was not to see the light of publication just yet. The editor did show an interest in my planned hedgehog piece and it was to be my first published piece of work. But the kestrel still holds a special place in my heart. Although I am not aware of the kestrel being a bird of good omen, it is to me. When I see that hovering shape I can’t help but smile inside. This fascination almost ended in disaster when I was driving the head ranger’s van to the Cash and Carry. There was a kestrel hovering behind a hedge at head height and it took my attention from what I was doing at the time; driving. This is just one of the dangers of a fascination with wildlife.

Forgot to mention

I jumped straight from college to working at a country park. They did overlap be about a year. It was ideal really because I could work the times when college was on holiday. There were certainly some adventures to be had....

 

 The course was more like an adventure working holiday than a college course. Each day I was there I asked myself the question whether I was really on a college course. We did various subjects like fence building, tractor and quad driving (personal favourites), dry stone-walling and many others. We also did several wildlife studies, often involving wading about in the river. It was a fantastic experience and I would recommend it to anyone interested in the countryside.

While still at college – towards the end of the first year, there was an advertisement for a seasonal countryside officer at a Northumberland woodland park. It would fit in perfectly: I would be working there while the college was on holiday and I could get some valuable experience. So off went the application form, with little hope of success on my part. Then the letter arrived inviting me to an interview; I was ecstatic and extremely nervous. It seemed like a good idea to visit the park so that I would know more about it for the interview. As I walked around, the beauty of it took my breath away; the ancient trees, the birds singing and a woodpecker drumming just the other side of the slow-moving river. I absolutely had to have this job – it was ideal.

So came the day of the interview, and I found myself in my smartest clothes, feeling vaguely nauseous and shaky. To be honest I remember very little about the interview; I don’t remember the questions or my answers to them. I left, feeling I had done my best and could do no more. The clock reached five-thirty and I convinced myself that I had failed, as there had been no phone call. The next morning, having convinced myself I didn’t want the job anyway, I received a call from the manager offering me the position.

After an interminable wait for the criminal background check to be carried out, I started my first day of work as a park ranger, or information assistant to give it the correct title. This involved the removing of weeds from the edges of the car park in the pouring rain. Eventually the park manager told me to come back into the building as the weather worsened.

The following Sunday began with feeding the Highland Cattle and filling the bird and squirrel feeders. This is what I had set out for. It was a beautiful day and it was too early for most visitors. It was just us, the squirrels and the birds – Heaven.

What a day

Binkin heck! What a day - I forgot how cold it gets here in the winter. I can't believe I used to work outside in it. It was this time of year that I saw something that I will never forget. We had Highland cattle at the park and they had to be fed every morning, to keep them happy with people as much as anything. Anyway, I had prepared the food and walked around the visitor centre, which was still closed. There was a small birch just in front of me and in the branches about 10 waxwings. Those that know their birds will know how special that is and those that don't will just have to trust me, the only thing that comes close is your first glance of a kingfisher!

 



As you can see they are absolutely beautiful and fabulously exotic. Shame nobody believed that I saw them, But I know I did and that's the important thing. Loving nature isn't about impressing friends and colleagues, it's a feeling of joy at the life all around you - don't you think?

Wildfowl and Misadventure

One warm summer’s day I decided to have a seat on the grass in one of the outdoor pens, with my back against the low wall. The sun was shining warmly down, and I was waiting for the hose to fill the small depression. The sharp winged teal in the pen took the opportunity to use me as a shade and a resting place. Four of them climbed in behind my back, against the wall. While one brave little soul decided I looked like a comfortable seat and climbed onto my legs, looked me in the eye, rested its head on its back and went to sleep. Just my luck; as I was sitting there improving duck to human relations the boss walked around with an entourage in tow. I didn’t even try to explain – I think the visitors were too engrossed by my small charges to conclude that I was being lazy.

I did have the occasional misadventure however; like the time I nearly blew up the Hawaiian Geese. There were only about 500 of them in the wild at the time. While washing out their living quarters I accidentally splashed a heat lamp that exploded, showering them with glass. A very swift grab for the birds and their transference to another pen fortunately avoided any injury, but that did take me some time to live down

Things progressed naturally from there – I started joining in with the feeding of the birds and some of the on-site maintenance. One day it just occurred to me that this could be the job for me. I’ve always loved wildlife and the countryside – what could be more natural? Of course I got the usual lectures about jobs like this: there’s too much competition and it’s impossible to get into. Well, paying no heed to the naysayers, I enrolled myself on a National Diploma course in Countryside Management at Northumberland College.