Tuesday 6th June 2023

Dateline: Norfolk.

I woke at six, and looking out the window I saw endless cloud. And the thing about Swallowtail butterflies is they like sunshine. And light winds.

But the BBC suggested it should brighten up in the afternoon.

Here's hoping.

I have a shower and get dressed, then walk over to the garage to buy a huge coffee and a breakfast bap, d some stuff online before it was time to head to the meeting point, a supermarket car park a 20 minute drive away.

On the way, it began to drizzle, and in fact was very much like the last time I tried to snap the buggers.

We hung around until the other members of the tour came along, and then the two mini buses driven by the guides, and if anything they were even more downbeat about our chances than we were.

Sigh.

We said we would drive behind the buses, because if we struck out in the morning, we might leave for Kent early.

Gary and I were here because I got a surprise gift of two places from Jools, at short notice as they had spaces to fill, so Gary and I said we'd go.

And here we were, parked outside Strumpshaw Fen, gentle drizzle in the air and a temperature of just 13 degrees.

And there was a keen north easterly blowing.

Again.

We set off round the reserve, a walk of some 12,000 steps, to all the best sites for Swallowtails, and we saw none.

In fact we saw just one butterfly, a female Red Admiral sheltering in a bush, and an Azure Damselfly and that was pretty much all we had to show for a three ramble.

We saw several interesting plants, but that was it.

Back at the car park we decided to cut our losses, as the next site would be more exposed than this, so less chance of a butterfly.

That's life.

We bid them farewell, and we made our way back to the A47 then along to the top of the A11, and turned south.

We stopped at Thetford for lunch, but had light traffic pretty much the whole way, with Gary dropping me off home at five.

Just time to feed the fox and make a brew for when Jools came back, as we were off to the airport to stay at a hotel for the night, before our flight to Norway in the morning.

Jools had packed the cases, downloaded the documents, so all we had to do was load the cases into the car and drive.

We did go to the Water Sports centre for dinner, we had to eat, so had fish and chips whilst looking out over the harbour at the ferries coming and going.

This also meant that rush hour traffic would have died down, and we had a clear run up the M20 and along the M25 to the airport, arriving at the Premier Inn at half nine, just as darkness fell.

We checked in and that was it really, we were both pooped, and just wanted to get our heads down, as we were to be up at half four as our flight was half seven.

Monday 5th June 2023

And so, to Monday.

My back a little bit better, so slept a little better, even with Cleo nestling my legs.

However, this was the morning of the cat roundup. Jools was up and about and caged three of them in in various rooms of the house, we then put each in a box, so by quarter past six the deed was done.

Only for Poppy to somehow bust out of the box she was in, I heard the crack as the mesh door snapped shut, and together we caught her a second time.

Jools dropped them off at a new place in Hawkinge on her way to work, leaving me with an empty house in which to work the final day before yet another holiday.

And it was a holiday in Denmark, so not many people in, so I had no excuse not to do travel expenses.

Sigh.

I photographed reciepts, mailed them to my work account and assigned them to credit card bills.

Never as bad as you tell yourself it'll be.

And so it was done.

No e mails to answer. Hardly anyone to call.

Silence.

Lovely.

At one, I am done. I pack the case, though Jools will bring it tomorrow, I check my cameras, pack an overnight bag and wait for Gary to arrive. We are heading to East Anglia for a trip to see a rare butterfly, a Swallowtail, and meet a tour in the morning. To make it easier, we are driving up the day before.

I load my stuff in our old car, Gary turns the engine on, and off we go, driving north, steadily, as we have the rest of the day. The only problem would be getting across, or under the river, at Dartford.

We were held up for 20 minutes, but got through, back into the Essex sunshine, round to the M11 and north again.

Traffic was fairly light, and I had the odd experience of looking out the windows the whole way. I usually drive, so have a fine old time looking at churches and trains as we motor through Essex into Suffolk and finally into Norfolk.

We drive round Norwich to our motel next to a filling station, check in. Functional and clean.

A quick walk showed the village pub closed

The pub may have been closed, but even at half six, the village church was open, if a little dark inside. I apologied to Gary for the diversion to a church, which was never my intention, but I knew there was a fine font inside, so we went in.

I rushed round so not to delay us too much, so photographed the font frm all angles, and the geberal views of the church. This was a real bonus. I hhave only found churches open at such a time once before, in nearly Coltishall a decade previously. NFN.

so we walked back to the car, drove three minutes and found another. This one being open, if not very picturesque.

A slap up meal of nachos and a pint of hophead, and I was set for an early night and an early start in the morning.

Sunday 4th June 2023

Tonight I will be in Acle.

Tomorrow I will be in Heathrow.

Wednesday we will be in Oslo,

And on Thursday we will kip leaving Longyearbyen.

So it goes, so it goes.



I would like to say that my back was better on Sunday.

Would like to say, but it wasn't. And time is getting close to when I leave the house for the best part of 12 days.

So, hope it does improve.

Another slow start to the day with coffee, breakfast, coffee and then bacon butties meant that most of the morning was taken, leaving the only question of whether Jools would go swimming before or after lunch.

Before seemed to be the best choice, and I said I would drive her to the prom and collect her about half an hour later.

I'm not sure what the situation with the pollution in the harbour is, but there were plenty out and about, taking almost all the parking slots to suggest many were risking it. In fact I think the outfall is outside the harbour, so probably is clean enough.

I dropped her off, then zoomed to Military Road, parking on the other side to check the down for orchids and I hoped Small Blue butterflies.

Its still early, really, for COmmon Spotted, a few partially open spikes, and just a single Small Blue seen too.

In truth there wasn't much point in staying much longer as there was nothing much more to see, but my back suggested we get back to the car and ease up on the force of gravity.

So I did.

Back down to pick Jools up, then back home for a brew and lunch of Caprese and stale bread, which I then sleep off in bed through the rest of the afternoon.

And that was that, really.

I took some shots and a video in the garden, mainly of the sways of Ox-eye daisies that are beginning to open.

Supper of pan fried asparagus tips.

And that was Sunday.

Still felt like i had been run over by a bus.

Just sayin.....

For a Government that said it got all the big calls right on COVID, its sure going out of its way, using our taxplayer's money, to ensure we don't disproove that.

The Government set up an inquiry, gave it wide powers, appointed a judge to head it, then refused to provide documents requested, and is using both Judicial Review and the ECHR to try to stop those same documents being supplied.

And if they lose that, then are proposing to make them secret to can't be published to the public.

So much for open and honest Government, Mr Sunak.

And the greased pig that is Alexander Boris de Piffel Johnson, who is being provided with publically funded legal defence, then announced he would provide documents requested straight to the inquiry, drew the response from the Cabinet Office that unless he let them do the legalising, he would have to pay for his own defence.

How did a Government, Cabinet Office, set up its own inquiry, set terms of reference and judge to head it, get it so wrong?

As I have said before, these are not clever people, and putting policy statements into action is difficult, far too diifficult for former journalists and vulture capatalists to understand and carry out.

That the Government is using both JR, which it wants to limit everyone else's uses of, and revolk the ECHR and replace it with a UK bill of rights, seems what some are more equal than others, and when they decide its worth testing the legality, not when we want to do it.

That this is an inquir into how this Government reacted to COVID, one of the most predictable global emergencies that we were likely to encounter, and that members of the current Government were Minister through the pandemic. It seems focus is going to be on then then Chancellor's "eat out to help out" scheme, which several medial studies have shown were likely to ahve contributed to the second wave of infections and subsequent lockdown.

Sunak doesn't accept those findings: is he a scientists, does he challenge their findings? If so, how and why?

The eat out to help out was branded not by Government or Conservative party logos, but by the signature of the then Chancellor, now PM, Rishi Sunak.

What could he have to hide?

A break in service.

After tomorrow's post, there will probably be a break in posts for at least ten days, I expect "normal" service to resume on 16th June.

We are travelling.

By ship.

To the north.

There may be no interwebs on board, or low bandwidth.

See you on the other side.

Saturday 3rd June 2023

Cup Final Day.

And Word in the Park day.

For the third year, the podcast I subscribe to was hosting an event in Holland Park. I got my front row tickets months back, and had planned to meet up with friends I have made in the group.

And then I became away of the rail strike that was called for all days of the 3rd.

Just as I cpnvinced myself that no going was the sensible course of action, the producer, Magic Alex, messaged me to see if I was going and if so, would I mind taking some shots?

In no way swayed by the fact the lead singer of Altered Images, Clare Grogan, would be attending.

Oh no.

OK, I will go.

And then, my back went.

I would see how I felt on Saturday morning, but a route via Abbey Wood and the Elizabeth Line was worked out, it seemed it could be done, just relied on my back.

I got up Saturday, and the pain was less, so was looking good. But I would "road test" it round Tesco before deciding.

I was halfway round when the pain came back, the muscles tightened, so I shuffled back to the car to wait for Jools, plans in tatters.

I messaged Alex to let him know I wouldn't be going, then consoled myself with the thought I would sit on the sofa watching the cup final instead.

Most things have an upside.

However, it is many years since we had Cup Final Grandstand and Cup Final Question of Sport beofre live coverage of the teams travelling to Wembley via coach, inspecting the pitch, and before kick off, showing the "humourous" banners in the crowd.

At least the clouds cleared at last, and the sun shone, though it was still windy, maybe too windy for butterflies. But sunshine was good.

Instead, I would switch on coverage at five to three, watch the game listening to the radio, and switch off once the game had finished.

After lunch of leftovers and beer, I settled down for the game, Utd v Citeh, with Citeh going for the League and Cup double.

Not a bad game, all in all, Citeh eased to a 2-1 win, and as expected, I turned off the telly box. And that was that.

My back eased some during the day, thanks to applying pressure and ice packs to the affected area.

Maybe tomorrow would be better?

Friday 2nd June 2023

I woke up just before six and hoped my back would be better, but as usually happens, it hurt more after a session in the clinic the previous evening than the actual injury. I rolled over onto my back and I got a stabbing pain telling me exactly where I had injured it.

I climbed out of bed, knowing that I wouldn't be going far again today, and would also be relying on ice packs to soothe the pain.

Jools went to yoga, I did the bins, taking much longer to get up and down the drive.

And so to work, where I should be getting up every half hour to exercise my back, instead there was four hours of back to back meetings, so I sat, mostly in pain.

Not that I would be going for a walk later anyway, the wind still set from the north, and the cloud cover that has shrouded east Kent all week was due to continue at least until Saturday.

I went out later to take shots of something, anything.

Not much else to report, just hoping that tomorrow will bring normality, and a trip to London to take some exciting shots.