Owls.

Some more pictures from Green Man Day. Each year I head straight to the owl display. They are such magnificent birds who sit there totally unconcerned by the crowds around.

This owl was trying to get a little shut eye.

A Little Owl- the people running this stand rescue and rehabilitate owls. Little Owls are often road casualties as they swoop low over roadside verges. I rescued one once. It was lying in the road with a wing sticking up. My first thought was that it was yet another pheasant squashed on the road but then I realised it was too small. I drove back and saw these 2 big eyes looking at me. I threw my jumper over it and drove back down to the vets in Barnstaple and rang the night bell. I assumed that even though vets charge (loads) for their services they would be able to pass it on to the RSPCA if it needed treatment. By this time the bundled up owl was moving and later when I enquired I was told it had made a full recovery and been released where I found it.

Barn owls are so beautiful, we have some down in our valley and occasionally catch a glimpse of one. We hear them hooting all the time, well in the evenings I mean.

A Lammer Falcon, which I managed to catch in mid feather shake.

There were 6 birds on display and were proving popular with children and photographers.

So now it is the start of the 6 week holiday. I've decided that so as not to fritter my time away I'll do something of note each day. I do have so much to do but it would be easy to let one day slide into another just relaxing. Yesterday of course was Green Man Day. Today I've gone through all my school folders discarding papers and filling in tracking sheets. Oh the government loves tracking sheets, then they can say we are not teaching the children enough ! I had a rough night as my arm is getting worse, thank goodness I'm going to the physio tomorrow. In the afternoon I'll be driving Peter down to Exeter for the treatment on his joints. I'm so upset at the service provided by the NHS. 5 months ago when it all flared up, (after a previous undiagnosed spell in hospital) on 3 visits to the GPs he suggested that he had the symptoms of p-arthritis and each time he was told categorically it was gout. The delay has meant that he has had other joints affected and possibly damaged and there are now issues at work as well. Even now when he finally had a MRI scan the treatment he will be given is a system changing drug, metatraxate, which will have to be taken long term and can damage liver and kidneys. What makes me really upset is that there is a much better type of drug which is given in the first instance in all other countries and is also given in this country but only after metatraxate has been shown to be ineffective. We'll do everything we can to see if he can have the other treatment but the consultants are bound by government guidelines. This is all making me feel a bit down even though I know there are plenty of other people with much greater problems. I'll be cheerier tomorrow. One more bit of glum news, Romas' band tour is not going ahead after all. He was so excited to be going on tour but that is the way of the music business and with the current recession I'm not surprised. To add to the household joy, Linas is coming back tonight for about a week. He is a very noticable presence in the house with his loud music, mess, strong views and and slowing down the internet with his downloads. He is used to 20 gig? but here we only have 1/4, just on the limit for broadband. Oh and it has poured with rain for most of the day.