Vivid

I just had to photograph this fairly random hydrangea high above Benmore Gardens this afternoon - its vivid blue, interspersed with these bright yellow jobs that have somehow become entangled with it, positively called to me as I walked down the path. There's not so much colour in the gardens just now - the glory of the azaleas and rhododendrons is past, and the autumn colours aren't with us for a while, though it'll be interesting to see what the recent hot weather produces.

I was out with my pal, which meant we could spend more time than usual lurking in the bird/red squirrel viewing hide before we left. (Mr PB gets bored waiting for me). My pal is not only interested in birds, she is considerably more knowledgeable than I am - so I can tell you that I've seen my first closeup of a young woodpecker (the one with the red head) and my first ever nuthatch, which suddenly appeared just as we were discussing whether they were simply a figment of Di's imagination. We also saw a gaggle of tits of various hues, and two young squirrels chasing each other up and down a huge tree. A third squirrel thundered over the roof above our heads - it really sounded ridiculously loud when we saw what a tiny creature had been doing the scampering.

Extra photo is the pond in sunlight. I keep taking pictures of it, but hey - it's very picturesque.

So - a lovely afternoon. Good chat too!