Saturday 23rd April 2022

William Shakespeare's birthday.

St George's Day.

The weekend.

Sometimes, you lay in bed and you look ar the light coming in, and you wonder how late it really is. Its never as late as you think it is.

Normally.

And then Saturday, when I lay in bed and wondered. Turned out it was twenty past seven.

And we had to go shopping. Then orchid chasing.

So, I got up, fed the cats and got dressed. Upstairs, Jools went for a shower, so I thought it best if I just went to Tesco before a sip of coffee had been drunk.

So I did.

Tesco is still well stocked, until you look at fresh fruit, where a year or two ago there would be racks of fresh strawberries, this week there was hardly any, and what there was had short life. So sort that two of the berries I put in our fruity breakfast were already off. On top of that, a fairly small week's shop with no vegetables, or booze still came to over £80.

Not good.

But we had enough for a week, so that's all that mattered. Back home to unpack, have breakfast of fruit and yogurt and a coffee, before we rounded up my cameras and we headed out into orchid country.

Our target was Yocklett's again, because I knew so many orchids would be out, Fly especially. And with the Easter rush over with, no restrictions on roads now being closed, only the two mile line line of trucks heading into Dover. The madness continues.

We turn off and head up Stone Street, then down the narrow lane, then the narrower one to the small parking bay, reverse in and the peace of the countryside overwhelms us. Birds are singing, the sunlight falls through the canopy above, and all around there are flowers either in bloom or close to it.

We walk up the lower path leading tot he meadow. In the glade, bluebells and Early Purples are backlit, to create a magical scene.

Not many butterflies about, but then it was cool. On the otherside we found several Fly in flower, though ones furthest away from the path, of course, I will snap those if I can't find better lit ones elsewhere, but I do have my ring flash just in case.

Over the road and up the slope, Greater Butterfly, more and more Lady Orchids and Herb Parismark our way to the upper meadow.

I sit down for a few minutes, and see something beside me, a small Fly Orchid spike with two partially fased flowers. Still worth a few snaps of anyone's camera.

Further on, a flash of blues flutters by, I thought it a Common Blue, so vivid was the wing colour, but once it lands I saw it was a fresh Holly Blue, so I take a few shots.

Down to the bottom of the reserve where more and more Lady Orchids were close to opening, and a couple even in flower, or partially. I take more shots.

And that is that, so we walk back over the Gogway, along the bottom path, pausing for more Fly pictures, and finally back to the car.

I take us home, across country, through Stelling, past Park Gate where there was already people looking for flowers. Too early for me as yet, so we make it to the Elham Valley road, turn north towards Barham and the A2 to home.

Back at midday, all tasks completed, so I could "enjoy" an afternoon's football. First on radio then watching the Bentford v Spurs game. Norwich, 5 points from safety, just had to win. Had to.

They lost 3-0.

To Newcastle.

Sigh.

I almost gove up on football for the day, but then there is Brentford v Spurs, which was a good game, but ended 0-0, with Brentford doing all the things well that Norwich do so badly: not making mistakes, pressing, passing.

We listen to Craig and then go to bed once darkness had fallen