Walter and Nell

There is something very benign about ducks. I think they are very similar to dolphins and beavers in that respect as they always seem to be cheerful and smiley.
I drove up to a charming house in the back and beyond behind Abergele and met a nice couple from the South East who had "retired" in the middle of nowhere. Mrs Baxter had no previous experience at poultry keeping before they came and had, like myself, learnt on the "hoof" as it were. As soon as I saw her runner ducks for sale I knew I wanted to keep them all!as they seem to be natural comics and show offs.
She was full of enthusiasm for the breeding of her own ducks and hens I got quite caught up in the excitement of it all, so bought a breeding pair of ducks instead of two females.
So Walter and Nell are now the latest additions to the menagerie. They tottered around their new compound as if on tip toe, much to the shock of the chickens who having never seen a duck before, legged it to the farthest corner of the enclosure and stayed there in a tight ball of nervous feathers. Drakes do not quack (something new I have learnt today), but they do "murmur" to themselves constantly. Nell on the other hand has never stopped quacking, albeit very quietly!! They are very cute,! I can see myself buying and breeding quite a few more.

Duck house

Got a good deal on a small duckhouse from the agricultural warehouse in Abergele, now I have just got to find some sort of bath for the girls to bathe in.

Chris has just has just completed his last day in Preston and feels a bit nervous about starting in Bangor on Monday. We are celebrating tonight by going to some sort of talk at Bodrhddan Hall, just down the road with Janet (I think it's something to do with puddings!?) The Hall is quite sweet and I know they do civil partnerships there, so a look round will be useful!

The Falling Man

Last night a documentary repeat was shown on channel 4. 9/11 The Falling Man, was the story behind one of the most shocking and provocative news photographs of recent years; a shot of one of the "jumpers" from the World Trade Centre disaster. The photograph caught the man (later incorrectly identified as Norberto Hernandez a chef at the Windows of the World), falling passively head first to his death and when the image was published in many American newspapers on September 12th, there was a sudden angry backlash about it. Thousands of people complained it was voyeuristic and exploitative, and it was effective blacklisted and omitted from publications about 9/11 thereafter in a strange action of self censorship by the media who preferred to print photos of acts of heroism and sacrifice.
The filmmaker Henry Singer, postulated that America could not cope with the notion of suicide connected with 9/11, and argued that although over 200 jumped to their deaths from the upper floors of the buildings, most members of the public were not aware that this actually occurred. Singer told of the coroner's department statements that stated non of the dead actually jumped from the building preferring to say that they fell (
Personally I think that was an effort to be kind to the relatives rather than being symptomatic of a nation's inability to cope with the truth) Singer's arguments were interesting and persuasive and I did find myself thinking , why didn't the media see the jumpers as heroic in their own way. Particularly moving, was the comment by a bereaved husband who stated that his wife's leap from one of the upper windows as the best choice she had made saying that leaping into the cool air must have felt like flying. It gave him obvious comfort.
The documentary left more questions than answers, and one phrase did chill me to the bone as Singer described the jumpers' last moments,
he said that "they embarked on that last, lonely ten second journey" .
Very sad.

Ducks,sprouts and weightwatchers

It has been a beautiful day, sunny,warm and clear. I have rearranged the hen houses, so that they are all in a rough quadrangle, and I must admit I did find it fascinating that the older hens all "stormed" the black hookers hen house (centre of the photo), and trashed the place, dragging the straw to the door and kicking it all over the compound. The hooker's hen house had been on the other side of the enclosure and had been previously left untouched. Funny how they act isn't it.Egg production is reducing drastically, which is directly related to the shortening of the days and the molting of the hens! After I had delivered the eggs, I went to Abergele to collect more chicken feed and saw a duck house, which was reduced in price, I almost bought it there and then. especially as I also noticed an advertisement from a local farm (Llanfairtalhaiarn which is in the back and beyond), selling ducks! Anyhow the upshot of the story is that I am picking up our latest animals ( two Indian runner ducks) on Saturday morning! What fun.!!

The first crop of sprouts have been picked today also, and pretty nice they tasted too! No saturated fats there either which was good as I was happy to realise that I lost another couple of pounds in the weightwatcher weigh in!

The blog finger gets it

Ned came round today to check out the black hookers (he hadn't seen them) but I know he has a soft spot for the dogs, especially George, who has won the hearts of most who have met him. As he was petting the dogs I warned him that the fighting between the teenagers is all about food and jealously, and without thinking he pulled George onto his knee for a cuddle as William was desperately trying to get his attention. This time George started the fight and as usual would not let go as we tried to prize them apart! In the melee my index finger got bitten by one or both of the little buggers. ............ I am typing this VERY,VERY S-L-O-W-L-E-Y

Theatre Clwyd goes GAY?

" This film is based on real events! " proclaim the written introductions of many "true life" movies, and Amnesia; the James Brighton enigma is no different. The story itself is fascinating-. In 1998, in the early morning hours after Montreal’s massive Black & Blue circuit party benders, a man awoke in an alley, in the buff, with no memory of who he was or where he came from. He knew only one thing: that he was gay. Eventually, after a long media campaign, family members from the southern U.S. would identify him accurately. Amnesia tells fictional events that could have led to this weird event, and it would have made a more interesting film under a different director and certainly with a more charismatic leading man. However, the film did have something interesting to say about how many gay men and women totally reinvent themselves when they come out , and how they create "urban families" where support and acceptance can be sought in safety away from often painful "pre-gay" lives.

The gay film festival was awash with gay locals................NOT!..... a few lipstick lesbians sat defiantly on the back row and as usual the grey hairs were dotted around in their sensible coats....humm very off the wall!

Help

Still smarting form my girly inability to negotiate the painting ladders and one hours sleep after a bloody awful shift on ITU last night ( Three admissions in three quarters of an hour!) it was nice to wake up to my brother Andrew (right) painting the high bits of the cottage wall and Steve (left) cementing the broken front garden wall. I was also glad to have a collection of eggs and vegetables available to give them both a gift after their work.

18 days off from work!! I am so excited , as I know the allotment can finally be finished to my satisfaction. It is a lovely sunny day today, so I will cut blog short to take William for his walk.
(The rose is the "ice cream" variety and has just bloomed in the front garden)

Good News, William's Bollocks and the gay film festival

On night shift again tonight and am prepared for an altercation if I am moved for the third shift running! After that I have 18 days off until my next shift as I have swapped some nights to help out with a colleague's family needs. I will almost forget how to do an arterial blood gas when I get back to work! Wonderful!

Ann the secretary of the Parish council called in today and told me the fight over the field almost seems to be resolved. Apparently the Church of Wales DOES own the land but they are happy for the Parish Council to get the rent for it! I can hopefully sign next week and finally have the land to myself!

William seems to have recovered from his operation and doesn't "fiddle" with with his sutures too much (George being smaller gets his nose under there more frequently) We have not had any big fights since "the op", but I am not sure if it is the lack of testosterone that is the reason rather than our acquired ability to preempt any triggers to conflict. I find the tv programme The Dog Whisperer very interesting and some of what the presenter Cesar Millan sounds like sound common sense. He advocates exercise, discipline and affection ( in that order) to keep the pack happy, and stresses that the human has to be the pack leader at all times. Which is not at all easy!

Theatre Clwyd is showing some films from the London Gay and Lesbian Film festival ! (albeit ONLY two films! .....can two films be actually called a festival??) Anyhow tomorrow we are off to see Amnesia: The James Brighton Enigma (2005)