At first I think that it’s an alarmed cat that’s got stuck in an ivy-covered ash alongside the beck but it’s a grey squirrel chippering away and there must be a second squirrel over to the left of it somewhere because I can hear an occasional soft grunt from that direction.
I didn’t intend taking my camera but thought it would be wise to put it in my pocket, just in case, but the misty morning light and the twigs festooned with lichens were just too tempting and I took eighty-five in total. That would have run to three slide films in the old days and I would never have been so snap happy.
What to get your dog for Christmas? The cocker spaniel walking down the causey stone path towards us couldn’t have been more pleased with its new tennis ball but in contrast one of the terriers belonging to a neighbour of ours will not go out on a walk in his new Christmas dog’s jumper. He’s a terrier with good taste.
