Incompetence

I cannot believe what I have just done - hit a button and lost all my very long text. Can't even blame Blip - I hit the browse button looking for a link. Grrrr.
Did however spot someone even more incompetent than me today posting a comment they couldn't get the Upload button to work. Shook my head but luckily resisted commenting they needed to click on the button. Then opened my beekeeping journal to add a Blip, hit the Upload button and nothing happened! Six tries - nothing. Log out and Log in - nothing. Close browser and reopen - nothing. All other functions worked, just upload didn't react even though I posted an entry to the journal yesterday. My incompetence level remains unchallenged.

My joy of the day came out of an unhappy incident. On Thursday Angie noticed one of our large chickens didn't come home. On friday while chatting with Farmer Franz in the yard saw a big bird of prey swoop over the horse fields where the chickens often roam. We all shouted and the bird perched on a tree where I was able to take a photo at a long distance. Couldn't identify it but on Saturday saw Bliper Nogbad had posted a harrier and as he is a RSPB member asked for his help. He replied later "Buzzard" but in the meantime had found on Wiki a link to a wonderful pdf document produced by a professional bird ringer in Spain. Found his email and sent a help message. He responded very quickly with "Common Buzzard". Then by chance spotted a wonderful photo of a bird of prey which had just been posted on the Blip browse page. Had a look and it was from Azlee in Arizona and left a message, again getting a quick response.

Isn't it simply wonderful how one can jump from Bavaria, to the Kent marshes, to the European desert like area of Spain and the city of Zaragoza (with a wonderfully interesting history) and end up in northern Arizona with it's dry summers and snow rich winters with mountains that make the Alps tiny. Not just looking at pictures but also having contact with real people, all helping each other out and corresponding on friendly, respectful terms even though we no doubt all have different backgrounds and interests. Why can't it be like that all of the time!

Thanks Nigel for your help and especially Javier for the reply and above all the wonderfully detailed and well presented information which you make available to us all. The chickens weren't too happy with the result and we have to hope enough survive until Easter to provide us with our eggs, by which time the kites will be back from their holiday in the south and can protect the girls from buzzard, harrier et al.

OK now to Blip - Angie out for ride and at long last able to post an animal photo with the sun shining. I did on attempt #1 try to explain the POI in Dennenberg in the background but will now simply say the farm on the left of the hamlet has a very big (for these parts) organic milk herd.

Today was friend Michi's birthday ( he was in Blip on 14th) so we phoned him at midday and agreed Angie would pop over in the afternoon and collect my portion of birthday cake. The 200km trip was worthwhile - thank you Michi & Christa, it tasted great as dessert this evening. Angie enjoyed the break too.

Right - the nights get shorter tomorrow and soon we will have so much sunlight that the new Blip whiteness will no longer be an issue..... and pigs will fly like harriers and Javier will have to get himself much stronger nets....