Building a new home

We reckon this is the same pair of grebes that had a nest too close to the shore. Two attempts to hatch a brood seem to have been unsuccessful. They are now trying to build a nest more or less out in the open water. Safer from some predators, I guess, but still vulnerable, e.g. to the small tidal range that we do get in the bay here. The best protection seems to be camouflage, and there aren't going to be reeds growing around this nest any time soon. I guess some pairs of birds just aren't as successful at home-building as others....

It's surprising how even the simplest little walk around here always yields some interesting photographs, even if we don't stop at Regatta. We were just whiling the time away whilst our washing was in the machine, and getting some fresh (and sunny) air. It is one of the small annoyances of living here that we have to use shared laundry facilities. Anyway, we wandered around via a mobbed Sibelius Monument and past a busy Regatta. All very pleasant and a good interlude from reading and writing. I spotted a few new flowers out - aliums and rhododendrons (see extras).

We enjoyed a glass or two of some excellent wine in the evening with our dinner, which is why I didn't get around to blipping last night. That and the fact that I was dead tired having had a bad night on Wednesday. All this light is a bit of a trial when you want to get to sleep sometimes.