Common Blue

A clear start to a bright day. Basil and I headed for East Leake earlyish, to pass on the card with photos of last night's new citizen event. I am pleased to reassure readers that the autofocus was ON on this occasion.

Basil recognised where he was once we hit the car park and started barking furiously. He always does this when he gets to a place that he likes. And Meadow Park is perfect for dogs. They can run off the lead and meet lots of friends. It's perfect for sniffing.

I headed for the patch of thistle in the far corner where I'd seen a small tortoiseshell butterfly a couple of weeks ago. At first, there were no signs of action but then I spotted at least one pair of Common Blue butterflies. My most successful shot was the first one I took. This is a male resting on a thistle. Even using a 100-400mm lens, I've had to crop in quite close..

Back home to drive Len into Loughborough for his appointment with the Chinese doctor while I drove Murphy to the car wash. Aziz had urged me last night to get the van washed thoroughly. I hadn't realised quite how dirty it had got and that mould had begun to grow on the top rim.

The guys did a thorough job and Murphy looks spanking new again now. 

Thereafter to Granby Street to park and to go to Queen's Park once more. We'd only been there five minutes when Len rang to find out where we were. We met at the cafe for sandwiches in the sun. Today, I was more interested in taking photos of the people than the flowers.

I had hoped for a golden sunset but it wasn't to be. Heavy rain overnight had cleared the dust from the air. The particles create a haze which augments the glow. Besides, cloud crept over.