Saturday 1 June 2013

Z is cautiously optimistic

...which is silly of course, but the latest round of grass cutting seems to indicate that there might be an end in sight.  This is not because we've cut nearly all the grass but because we found a pheasant's nest and, not far away, a hen pheasant with ten chicks, and we've decided to leave most of the rest as cover for them, because there are magpies, crows and hawkish birds about (I'm a bit vague about details in that respect, even if I do know a hawk from a harnser) and they'll have 'em if they get the chance.  We've got four hen pheasants about, so if they all have a successful brood, the Sage will be in his element.  He adores baby birds and they respond remarkably well to him.

The baby blackbirds nesting in the eaves of Kenny's shed have fledged too and were following me about as I cut the grass, looking for insects.  We've agreed that Ben can't be allowed off the lead in the garden, we're not having birds scared by him.  He'll have to learn to leave them alone in the long run, but I don't feel quite up to the risk of it all yet.

Anyway, we're nearly on schedule for May's work - that is, another good go tomorrow and it'll be done, I hope, apart from taking down the summer house, which I always reckoned would wait for June, so only a slippage of a couple of days, the list having been labelled Spring 2013.   I've added a few more jobs - five, in fact, three of which are to be done this month.

Enough about that?  I agree. Erm, let's see - oh yes, I know.  I've been wondering, do people still bother with their reader statistics?  I get an email every week saying how many each day and that sort of thing, but it's usually pretty consistent and I don't take much notice.

In fact, when I do delve into the details, I find that the majority of you are regular visitors.  I always reckon this place is like a soap or daily serial.  Read it once or twice and it's pretty uninteresting, but keep going for a week or two and it grows on you, though you may not know why (I don't either).  Fairly consistently, about 65% of hits are from this country and another 25% from the US and Canada, but the rest are from all over.  Mostly Australia, New Zealand, Germany, France and Ireland, but the final few can be from anywhere.  In the last five days there was someone in Budapest and another in Brasilia, for example.  I had a visitor from Dubai a week or two back, though that might have been a friend who was there on business. Among French readers,  I have a fairly regular visitor from Paris, but I've never had a comment from that part of France - you're most welcome of course, I don't expect you to comment.  The German visitor is, I presume, Mago, because there's usually only one but it's a regular and there's no referring link (for those who don't know, that suggests you've got it bookmarked so come straight here).  Other friends click through from blog to blog, eg via Tim or Rog, and one-off visitors arriving hopefully in search of information type something about razor-blades or plastic bags in their search engine and find that I'm no help at all.

8 comments:

Roses said...

Sounds like you are on track.

Do you think the pheasant chicks will join in with your chooks this year?

Your wildlife always sounds so friendly!

xx

ElizT said...

Hello Z, I am one of the silents, coming through from Timbo's blog and feeling rather guilty about it. I have let my blogging slide but enjoy yours.Have fun at your party!

Z said...

Well, it would be lovely if the partridges nested in the kitchen garden, because they'd be safe there. Pheasants fly in there, but the babies can't fly and they won't be able to get in. And yes, the hen pheasants are tame enough to feed out of R's hand.

Eliz, you're very welcome whether you comment or not, and how nice of you to visit. Dinahmow is coming to the party, all the way from NZ...

janerowena said...

Being a relative newcomer to the area, I was looking for east anglian blogs, just hoping for more local info really. So through you I occasionally hop onto the bears' and rog's blogs. I can't remember exactly how I found you though. I got hooked on the stories about working in the veg shop, looking after the grandchildren, stories about your old house, school and courtship and selling rare china that I had never heard of!

Z said...

You don't get local info here either, Jane. But I've certainly found another friend, even if we haven't met yet.

Anonymous said...

Exactly - you are bookmarked!

luckyzmom said...

Your blog grew on me because your busy life is the kind I think I'd like to have again. Like ElizT "I have let my blogging slide but enjoy yours." Also, you are my only follower (probably because of the sliding thing.

I don't remember how I found you, but, I'm glad I did.

Z said...

You too, Mago!

I'd sometimes like to compromise on busyness, LZM, but I prefer too much to do rather than too little. And when you feel like blogging again, I'll be right there visiting you!