Not such an ugly duckling

When you really look at a cygnet that's in the process of changing its plumage, it's a very attractive bird. This is one of last year's babies, well on the way to becoming a beautiful pen; I decided to post her on the strength of her looks, but my second choice was this contortionist attending to her personal grooming.

There was a lot of preening going on along the Avon today, unsurprisingly when you look at the state of the water, which is still in flood, and really is this brown from all the churned-up debris. The water level in Stratford was even higher today than it was at the weekend, but further down the river at Bidford it has dropped a couple of feet, and as tomorrow is predicted to be fine I hope that we may be through the worst of the current flood.

As we were driving back home, Chris Thile came up on R's iPod, prompting us to decide that he's probably our absolutely favourite musician of the moment. If you get the chance to see him live (solo or with Punch Brothers) you really shouldn't miss the opportunity; for now I hope you might enjoy this as much as I just did.