Father Time, Corvae

Father Time, made in class at Patched Pumpkin in the most wonderful red wool I have even stroked (repeatedly) LOL.
Details in felt blanket stitched. I really like him.

The weather has made the girls want to snuggle down and forget the outside.
These greyhounds do not do wet weather.
Surely that can’t be comfortable Precious? Then again this girl isn’t renown for her brains. She tried to walk on water on a walk and then as we saw her head go down, we realised she hadn’t got the instinct to swim so pulled her out. LOL Yep she really is the dimmest dog I have EVER encountered. She is so sweet though and loves curling up against anyone on the floor.

I made a soup out of all the veg left in the fridge.
The cider was ready to go into a barrel. On 12th Night some of it will make lamb’s wool (like a mulled cider with cream on top). Here’s a link which explains interesting Christmas customs.
The 1st pint goes to the King of the Orchard (best cropping tree) and you can drink the rest.

Ok back to finish our walk at Formby Point. We were at the car park. These are Hubby’s pics as my camera’s batteries had gone. Daughter borrowed it the day before for an art trip around Liverpool and took 300 odd pics but didn’t recharge it. Hmmm.
Magpie on a dune.

Beautiful silhouettes like I used on my crow quilt taken from C12th grafitti on a manuscript.
This quilt has snuggled each of us since being made. It was the 1st one I made from an idea in my head instead of a pattern.
I don’t wonder that the artist just had to paint what he was seeing outside when he should’ve been copying the religious text. The display was so beautiful.
They are such intelligent birds and will copy another bird’s habits if the technique is good e.g. gulls dropping winkle shells to get at the flesh.
Such strength
And grace.
I felt so priviledged to witness this bird so close.
The wing angles were so beautiful. The photo doesn’t capture the gloss and sheen of so many colours within the black feathers. Read “Rainbow Crow” for a Lenape story of how the crow became black.
Another magpie watched.
Rook came flying over.
Young rooks gather to gradually pair up at around 3-4 years old. Then they mate for life and have a territory of their own.
They have special places which groups go back to each year to raise their young together in rookeries. They look for a group of very high trees in a fertile landscape. In Winter you see their nests in clumps in these bare trees.
When rooks have selected a mate they parrellel fly each mimicing the other and showing off in what seem like crazy spiraling plummets pulling up at the very last minute.
They eventually get a territory of their own and don’t go in a mob to distract a resident pair of adults from food in that area.
They in their turn will breed. Like the shadow M Kate?
For now though this rook wanted to know about us.

What could we land bound humans tell this bird about whom so much is still unknown and about whom so much superstition hangs like a mist. I did the decent thing and checked my pockets for dog treats. 🙂


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