New Emergences

 Having had a lovely family Christmas with the three of us - stepfather, sister, and myself, with the new year it is always exciting to anticipate the blooming of the first "spring" flowers.

Only, it has already happened!

As well as the snowdrops I've shown you, I've found aconite already in the Friary Gardens, and also crocuses in the cemetery.

Crocuses! In December!

I wonder if the anticipated freezing snap we are about to have will slow things down a bit, after all it was a very mild festive season, but I'm just pleased to see the colour for now, as the days begin to lengthen.

I hope you all had a very happy Christmas!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 02.01.2025

Back Out on the Trails

 Running day today, a bitterly cold one and it is only going to get colder. 

The birds knew it was new year, you know. Since then, there is so much more song and noise in the dawn. I have local robins and blackbirds singing to greet me as I open the door in the morning. Birds are getting territorial, alarm calls chacking out from the blackbirds, and robins aggro-strutting in the old oak wood at the park.

On the water the mallard drakes are in full breeding colours, bottle green heads glowing in sunlight. Goosander are on the two lakes, the pieballed battleships of the duck world. 

On the ground, snowdrops and aconite are out in flower, cowslips too in the library gardens. It is my favourite few months of the year now, as the cemetery changes colour every month as I run through it. I'm loving running again, when my body will stand it.

I'm trying to rediscover the joy in moving through nature. 

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 15.01.24

A Soggy Start to 2024

 It was raining like mad last night, it is raining like anything today, so I've spent New Years Day on the sofa. 

In fact, we seem to have been enduring rain and stormy winds for the entire holiday season! There is so much flooding around here, with Sconce Park pastures and large chunks of Farndon village being below water. But I've still managed to get out running a few times, albeit going very slowly, and really enjoyed being out there, spotting the first signs of the colours of spring. 

In addition to snowdrops, we have the first flowering aconite, mahonia and most strangely, cowslips in bloom in the library gardens. 

I've enjoyed watching tweeping flocks of goldfinch working on teasel heads, long tailed tits flitting through willow trees by the lake and river, and on New Years Eve a huge buzzard sat on the ground in a paddock, staring intently at something under a battleship grey sky. 

There's a lot of world out there, and I intend to explore more of it than I have been doing. 

Si

All text and images copyright Cream Crackered Nature 01.01.24

Aconite is Out!

 Yes, it is my annual - "Oh look, aconite!" post, this one for 2023!

As ever, the first place they emerged was in Friary Gardens, the small park through the town centre overlooked by historic buildings and featuring the mightiest tree in the town, a huge london plane tree with a warty trunk like a huge elephant's foot. 

I'm trying to be more active now and get some more walking done, although a stomach upset this week has hindered things a little. I've been enjoying setting out, Radio 4 in my ear as I used to, and just seeing what is out there. 

I feel much better for it, although my ankle is grumbling a little tonight!

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 16.01.23

The Latest New Emergences

 Just took a wander around over the weekend, a casual, cup of tea kind of wandering here and there just enjoying the outside world. 

We have another pair of new emergences in Friary gardens - the first glory of the snows of the year, little blue spots against the bare earth, and the wonderfully witchy sounding, triffid looking green helleborine.

Nothing exciting, nothing I haven't seen before in exactly the same place. But I enjoy it every year, enjoy showing it to you every year. When I'm walking and seeing things, I don't tic. My tourette symptoms and ADHD symptoms are minimised when I'm in nature.

That's why I would prescribe it to everyone.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 08.02.22

White Flowers, Yellow Flowers, Purple Flowers

 Amidst all the strong wins blowing from Malik and Corrie, I managed to get one good walk in, and more bravely, a visit to an enclosed space for cricket practice. Yikes!

Me, and my rickety ankle, came through that ok, although I didn't bowl amazingly well and probably never will again. Bowling was preferable however to the insane physical jerks the coach was putting the younger players from the first team through. Us older ones were wise enough to stay out of that. 

Still, it helped with my Tourette tics, which have been occasionally rather wild the last few days. I need to burn a lot of energy up on the days when I can. 

As for the walking, just the usual bimble to the park, through the cemetery and around the lake. More flowers are out, the aconite forming familiar yellow carpets around the usual grave, and under the trees in Friary Gardens. The snowdrops have their allocated spots, the crocuses theirs. Everything comes back in the same place, year after year. 

Later on it will be the primroses by the ditch, and the long lines of daffodils along the path. And I have my place too, walking among it every late winter and spring. 

It brings about a sort of peace, this repetition.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 01.02.22

Frozen Waters

 In addition to yesterday's butterfly rescue, I got in a decent walk around the Balderton Blue Lake via the cemetery, a day to feel good, a bright late afternoon where the squirrels busied themselves with beech mast and black headed gulls got into murderous squabbles over discarded chips. 

Wildflowers. More are appearing with every passing day. Crocuses have now joined snowdrops and aconite in the cemetery, the latter growing in their one spot next to the same three gravestones. Yellow, white and splashes of purple are the colours of January. 

The Blue Lake has frozen in the cold nights. There's not much clear water and the goosander are gone. Gulls skate webbed footed atop the rafts of ice. The bushes and trees along the cycle path were being worked by long tailed tits, little pink snowballs on sticks. 

A day to just enjoy these very simple pleasures.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 18.01.22

Sunset Bandstand

 I've accumulated a fair bit of Christmas chub alas, and after barely remembering the taste of non-cream cheese of the low calorie variety, I've found myself eating far too many wedges of Port Salou and blocks of Red Leicester on rich tea biscuits, which are at least the least-fattening biscuits you can get. 

It's going to be a long, tedious and joyless route back to trimness.

Cricket nets are looming this weekend, which strikes me as being a little risky in the current climate, but it's not for that reason I shan't be going. It's my spasmy back, which I intend to rest for at least another week before trying it out with a spot of bowling.

The other big worry is my ankle, I haven't done anything to put any pressure on it in months.

So, after a week back at work in either stygian gloom or freezing conditions, there's not a massive amount to see. But now, ever so slightly, there is a little more daylight, a little more time, to see and do things. 

I can hardly wait for spring.

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 07.01.22

Do you want a Beautiful Spring Day?

 Because that's what we had on Monday, seemingly out of nowhere. The nicest day we've had in months, where I was able to go running 11.6km in only a long sleeved top, and the sun shone off the beautiful aconite and made it glow.

There was even a bumblebee buzzing past me over the cemetery crocuses, but rather strangely given the double finger temperatures there was still ice on Balderton Blue Lake, being stood on by some bored looking black headed gulls, some of whom are getting their black heads back.

Of course that was a precursot to me having a pain in the backside day today, where my bike had a puncture and the tyre burst, so tomorrow I will be riding my old bike, which my stepfather has fitted a huge retro horn to.

Lovely

Si

All text and images copyright CreamCrackeredNature 16.02.21