Weighed down

Was home with mum all day except for grocery shopping so had to go in the garden in the evening to snap *something*

Spotted this snail - at the time it was happily sliding down the branch with its shell on its back. I got one snap then I got closer to take a better image.

That's when its shell started sliding down - more and more. There seemed to be nothing the snail could do to halt the slide, (shame I wasnt in a position to take pictures while it was happening).

In about 10 seconds the snail went from happily moving along right side up to being totally twisted around the branch, shell upside down. Snails arent particularly expressive but this one's eyestalks radiated frustration if ever a snail has.

With the shell hanging upside down and its body kind of twisted, the poor snail was stuck for a bit.

So this is a snail right after an "oh sh*t" moment, bravely trying to pull onwards again, with gravity saying "sorry!"

Thanks for all your kind messages about my mother. She will never really get well again, but we can hope for good enough for as long as possible and make the most of it. We're already way beyond what the doctors expected 6 years ago - dont you love it when doctors are wrong in that way?

I am glad we did a lot of things together while we could. Glad I can get the flexibility to go see her even though we are 1000 miles away.. Glad I could do crazy things like flying her to Austria to see Barbara Streisand last summer (I had not much money at the time but I knew it was an old dream of hers and had always said to myself that should she ever come to europe I would take my mum no matter what. So I did).

Now go and spoil your parents this weekend, or the next, if you can. If they are surprised, say its because of a curious mind, her mum and a frustrated snail :D