CONKERING TED - PINKTOBER 17

Hello Lovely Blippers,

Mrs. HCB mentioned that she wanted to go and find some conkers just over the road from where they live, so once again, before she knew it, as she put her camera into the bag, I  jumped in too.

Off she went and I wondered why she was wandering around the tree, but I think it was to find a good way in, as it’s down in a little dip.  It was a very sorry sight, because horse chestnut trees in the UK have been stricken with a terrible disease where they get infected by the leaf miner moth, which makes the leaves turn brown early.  I remember hearing Mr. and Mrs. HCB saying in June that the leaves on these horse chestnut trees looked as if Autumn had come early.  

Being a very clever little bear, I Googled this and found that experts predict that two million horse chestnut trees will be lost in the next fifteen years,  and they are no longer being planted because they only survive three to five years before they are killed by the leaf-miner moth;  how sad.  

But back to our little adventure - when Mrs. HCB went to get her camera out of the bag, she realised I was in there, so said she would forgive me if I helped her collect some conkers.  We did collect a few, but there didn’t seem to be that many around, and of course, children don’t collect them these days as they used to when Mr. HCB was a boy or even when Mr. and Mrs. HCB’s two sons were younger.  I doubt if the children of today even know how to play “Conkers”, which is a great game and used to be played by both boys and girls in “the old days”.  It’s a shame that because of “Elf & Safety” regulations, the game is no longer allowed to be played in schools, in case someone gets hurt - what piffle - it’s the “E & S Police” gone mad, if you ask me!  Mr. HCB tells me that if you got hit by someone’s conker when you were playing, you were more careful the next time - and isn’t that how we all learn?

Anyway, I enjoyed our little adventure, which came to an abrupt end when it started raining again - so I was hastily shoved back into the bag as Mrs. HCB dodged the rain and almost ran home, so guess there won’t be any more exciting things to do today - but there’s always tomorrow.

Please join Mrs HCB during 
Breast Cancer Awareness Month
By clicking HERE
So that those who are not able to pay
Can have a free mammogram. 

“Your illness does not define you;
     your strength and courage does.”
Anon