Saturday 6 December 2014

Brightening the day.

Comments on my yesterday's post about how such posts brighten the day, leads me to think positively about just such an activity.   Every time I switch the news on on the television (once a day only - at the tea-time slot) it is always doom and gloom - either world affairs (which hardly bear thinking about) or home affairs (government) or murders and mayhem (so very depressing). Our local news is usually worse.  Almost always the headline is about a murder or a mugging or some poor soul who has gone missing - and the rest of the news is usually dominated by our local football teams - Newcastle, Sunderland, Middlesbrough and York (sorry Rachel, but I do find this boring); about Managers who come and go (I have never understood how a Manager can make a lot of difference = he isn't actually kicking the ball, is he?)

So this is really a plea in the run up to Christmas - shall we all make a gigantic effort to be upbeat on our blogs, to be cheerful and to look for the fun in life?   It is going to be hard, I know - but do let's try.

Here's a start.   There were thirteen hen pheasants eating around our bird table this morning.   Our black farm cat suddenly appeared and ran through the middle of them, pretending to ignore them all.   They rose as one bird and chased him off their patch - I have never seen him run so fast.   Pheasants 1, Blackie 0.




Afternoon - came back from the village coffee morning - lovely atmosphere, glorious log fire burning in the grate, delicious mince pies with brandy butter baked by K, who serves them every Christmas.   The farmer is out shooting, so decided to make mince pies for the freezer.   Just started when I happened to look out of the kitchen window - and look what was going past.   I was too late to capture the hounds, or the lovely Shetland Pony being led past - but here are some of the riders, the Huntsman, the chap who follows on the quad bike with fence posts to repair any fences they knock down - and a huge trail of hunt followers in their four tracks.   Watch out Mr. Fox!

17 comments:

Elizabeth said...

I'm with you on this one, Weaver!
There is little most of us can do about catastrophic world events - so better to volunteer a little of one's time and/or give some money to those most in need and then reflect how in one's own little patch there is much to record that is cheerful and interesting.
Blog world should be a respite from the constant drumbeat of doom.
Hope you have some good books to read in the run up to Christmas.
We are having a large opening-of- the- festive- season party today about 50 people - great fun - I just buy a few bottles of wine and make all sorts of dips -everyone brings something - I never know what.
One of the joys of living in the city - everyone can walk here. Many will just be from our building.
I love winter!

Gwil W said...

I'll aim to aim bright. Can't guarantee it though. I'm glad I'm not in the path of the latest typhoon. It sounds very threatening. More than 500,000 have left their homes was the last report.

Heather said...

I don't see the appeal for tension filled thrillers or horror films as there is enough of all of that in our news on a daily basis. I have been accused of being an ostrich but there is little I can do to improve things.
Poor Blackie, however, I'm glad he got his comeuppance.
Lovely pics of the hunt passing by. They make a wonderful sight, but run Foxy, run.

jinxxxygirl said...

Oh i do hope Mr.Fox is on the look out.

I DID have a lovely moment yesterday Weaver... I was grocery shopping at Walmart when i decided to breeze thru the Christmas area just seeing if they might have something i might like for my tree or such and one of my favorite Christmas carols was playing. ' Silver Bells' When my daughter was born oh so many years ago... 28 to be exact that song was filtered into the delivery room and the doctor and all the nurses sang along as she came into the world.

Then as other songs came on i couldn't help but notice how everyone i passed in the aisle was humming or singing along with whatever Christmas song was playing. It was nice to see others enjoying the music as much as i was.

How interesting to see the hunters and horses go by. I think i've only ever seen that in movies and such.... Thanks Weave. Hugs! deb

Joanne Noragon said...

I had a black cat once, beat into a three foot snow drift by half a dozen quail he was foolish enough to stalk up on.
I must tell you that stepping on my front porch and listening to my tree of birds brightens my day.

angryparsnip said...

I so enjoyed the photos today.
How exciting.
Do the cars just wait for them to pass ?
Don't like the idea of the fox being hunted but I love the look.
Did Tess bark when they rode by ?

cheers, parsnip

Gerry Snape said...

love positivity Pat!! lets keep it up !

Rachel Phillips said...

I am sitting here watching Man City v Everton as I read your post. I have to smile. I don't take football nearly so seriously as some might think, well not as seriously as Bill Shankly did anyway.

I think I am usually upbeat on my blog and even the comments are ok.


MorningAJ said...

I thought fox hunting was illegal now - or have the Tories ignored that as well? Sorry Weaver - showing me photos of people about to go out and murder an innocent animal isn't positive or upbeat.

Sue in Suffolk said...

I miss seeing the hunt since the land all around us changed hands no more horses- shame, and to everyone who lives in cities and thinks foxes are cute little bushytaled critters THEY ARE NOT, you just have to see the damage done to chickens if a fox gets to them AND yes fox hunting is banned and hunts follow a scent trail laid by someone on a quad.

Penny said...

Love the hunt photos, sorry but foxes are pretty wily things and dreadful if you have hens. I agree about all the dreadful stuff on our news. A lovely morning here in the south of Australia, we have had some summer rain at last, not much here but an over abundance of it on the east coast, droughts and flooding rains is a very good description of Australia.

Cro Magnon said...

I couldn't agree more about football managers. Sack the idiot who misses the goal, not the manager!

I have only hunted once (The Old Surrey and Burstow), but wasn't that interested; I'm not really a horsey person. I'd rather join your husband on the shoot.

John "By Stargoose And Hanglands" said...

Yesterday I took some children to the panto in our village hall. Enthusiastic if sometimes not entirely word-perfect actors, lots of colour, everybody singing and joining in, and laughing children. It won't get on the local news.

The Weaver of Grass said...

Thanks for the comments - most of them cheerful and upbeat. I do agree with AJ really to a large extent, although not sure if I would if a fox had got at my hens. However, round here they are far more interested in the rabbits and there are plenty of those to keep them going. The hunt now follows a trail laid by someone on a quad bike, as you say - so we do know when they are coming our way - the master rang us on Friday to tell us and the farmer was able to tell him to avoid our fields as there was a shoot on.

Cro Magnon said...

I wonder what AJ thinks about Foxes who go out to murder an innocent baby Lamb? Just asking!

thelma said...

The funny thing is Pat, we always watch Heartbeat, and Paul says we are not going to live up in that lawless 'Wild West'Yorkshire...

The Weaver of Grass said...

The trouble is Cro, that in the wild it is really dog eat dog and everything has to feed its young. The other trouble is that the fox has only one predator and that is man. I do think shooting might be better but we can't stop years of tradition overnight.