This week brought a new fitness challenge – one focused on distance. I’ve entered the competition as part of a team at work and we get points for every kilometre we walk or cycle. That, and my 6 in 6 challenge, has definitely helped with some ‘acts of wildness’ this week as it’s forced me outside, come rain or shine!
Monday 1st February 2021
I fancied something a little different today so I switched off from work at the end of the day by listening to a National Geographic podcast about the US’s captive tigers. I – like most of the Netflix population! – ended up watching Tiger King just before the first lockdown and was utterly horrified by what I saw. Thankfully, the podcast notes that the Big Cat Public Safety Act has got a lot of bipartisan support so hopefully cub handling in the US will soon be a thing of the past.
It made me think about some of the places I’ve been to in the past, though. I definitely had the opportunity to hold a koala bear, a snake and a baby crocodile when I went to a zoo in Australia years ago. Is that really so much different?
Tuesday 2nd February 2021
I was really contemplating changing my walking route today. I thought it was starting to get too repetitive. But I decided to go ahead so that I wouldn’t take too long on my lunch break and, let’s just say, it definitely taught me quite a lesson! It was surprisingly mild outside (I was very overdressed) and the first thing I noticed were the beautiful snowdrops. Definitely a sign that better times are coming.
As I moved past one patch of snowdrops, I was absolutely delighted to spot 3 roe deer in a field across the main road – what a treat! I also saw lots of robins, long-tailed tits, great tits, skylarks, pheasants and, though I’m not 100% sure, I think I saw another goldcrest too (they’re difficult to identify from below!) Don’t reckon I should take this walk for granted again anytime soon!
Wednesday 3rd February 2021
I’d like to introduce you to the world of bird sounds today. I’ve been getting a lot better at working out which birds are around from their calls when I’m out walking. Don’t get me wrong, I’m definitely not an expert but I can definitely identify more birds this way than I could a year ago! One of my favourites is the green woodpecker’s call. I hear it surprisingly frequently in the countryside around Shipston (I heard one today!) and it really does have an unexpected call.
My partner kindly got me a CD of bird sounds for Christmas (I am that cool) and I decided to swot up on a few other bird calls this evening so I can test myself when I’m next out – I listened to a grey heron (I did not know they sounded like that), great tit, goldfinch, great spotted woodpecker and goldcrest.
Thursday 4th February 2021
I got an email today from the Wildlife Trusts and it included some information about an online event the charity ran in mid-January. The event focused on sugar beet and neonicotinoid thiamethoxam pesticides. I’d heard there had been some controversy around this but I didn’t know much about the issue so I decided to watch a recording of the event during my lunch break and after work. It was actually quite interesting. I didn’t realise we even grew sugar beet and I also didn’t appreciate 1) how destructive greenflies are to the crop and 2) how toxic the proposed pesticides are to insects in general, including bees.
Friday 5th February 2021
It was really quite hard to fit something wild into the day today – it was just one of those busy days at work. That said, when I had a moment to breathe, I tried to be mindful by taking note of some of the little things – like the spring bulbs that have shot out of the soil in the garden or the kestrel that I saw while I stared out of the window on a break. I did manage to squeeze in a daily walk as well so I tried hard to bring my mind back to my surroundings when it began to wander off. At the start, it was wandering constantly but by the end, my mind was clearer, the tension had gone and it was much easier to stay focused.
Saturday 6th February 2021
It was time for a big walk. I’ve been pretty good at getting my steps in, but I haven’t had a long walk since the Christmas break so my partner and I set off early into the fog. We stuck to the roads because it’s just too muddy in the fields and headed up to one of the surrounding villages. Then we circled back and headed into Shipston to pick up some fish and chips for lunch. It was 10 miles overall and the fish and chips were definitely appreciated at the end! But a more significant highlight of the walk was seeing a brambling – not sure I’ve ever seen this bird before.
Sunday 7th February 2021
It’s been a bit of a slow art week, but I finally got my watercolours out this afternoon. I’ve seen so many great tits on my daily walks and I’ve never painted one before. This beautiful bird was definitely long overdue. So, to end the week, I spent a couple of hours splashing yellows, blues, greens and blacks onto some rough watercolour paper.
Before I finish, I also just wanted to share something really lovely that happened this week. Someone who I knew from secondary school contacted me on social media to ask if my hyacinth pencil drawing (from Week 3) was for sale. This is the first time this has happened to me and I was just over the moon! Thank you for reading 😊
Ramblings of a (very!) amateur artist 