Saturday 29th January (All Things Bright and Beautiful)

Mr. Kite looked out of his bedroom window and was amazed by the spectacular sight of the crescent shaped moon shining brightly along side the planet Venus. This was a good start to the day and if Mr. Kite was a Druid he would have danced in delight. The street was quiet. A few cars passed and occasionally someone walked towards the corner shop. On a cold clear frosty morning a warm bed seemed a good spot but not for Mr. Kite; he was going to watch the birds.

On this chilly morning Mr. Kite had a small bowl of Dahl for breakfast. With a warm stomach he cycled along the river to toward the Quarry. The goosander, mallards, cormorants and black-headed gulls seemed to be enjoying the ice cold river. Birds were diving under the surface, others were happy just to swim along whilst others chose to land on the surface.

On the footpath Mr. Kite stopped to look at a pied wagtail. Now Mr. Kite's first interest was the word 'pied' because it means particoloured having sections or patches different colours and usually bright. This bird was black with bright white sections and patches. Secondly Mr. Kite was amazed by the white head of this bird that shone as bright as the morning star. If it was not so pied, black and white, Mr. Kite could have mistaken it for a white wagtail furthering the debate about Motacilla yarrell and Motacilla alba.

With only himself to debate the issue Mr. Kite cycled to Polemere nature reserve. The pool was covered in thin ice except for one small patch where the wigeon, mallard and teal congregated. In the still air and clear light Mr. Kite could see the delicate colours and patterned plumage of the ducks.

Mr. Kite has studied mathematics and specialised for a time in probability and statistics so he often thinks about chance and coincidence. Today as Mr. Kite approached a dwelling called The Curlews he noticed in the field opposite a solitary curlew feeding. Now thats what Mr. Kite calls coincidence, good luck, chance or even god moving in mysterious ways. Stopping his bicycle he looked at this lonely silent curlew. This large browny-gold and black wader was prodding the ground with it's long curved beak. This bird had found a watery hollow in the meadow that was not frozen and was probably enjoying the delights produced by Mother Earth.

Now Mr. Kite enjoys the sights the sounds and the smells of the Shropshire countryside. Today Mr. Kite had seen lots of memorable sights. The sound that Mr. Kite enjoyed today was the 'babbling brook' that he crossed using the ford. With the water level low Mr. Kite carefully rode the two metres to the other side and stopped to listen to the continuous sound of the brook. Why did Mr. Kite enjoy the sound? Because it was not too loud and it provided back-ground sounds to the birds calling in the nearby trees. Mr. Kite knew he was in the countryside and this leads onto the smells. Just after this was a hundred metre long pile of cow muck that smelled strong. Mr Kite is a positive person so he has to say that he has smelled better things.

After a day of enjoyment sensing Shropshire Mr. Kite has one more sensory experience to savour when he arrived home and that was his daily tipple. Todays tipple was Badger Fursty Ferret. This is a tawny amber ale with a sweet nutty palate and a hoppy aroma with hints of Seville oranges. Now Mr. Kite had air cooled this bottle outside the back door to perfection. Cheers from a bright and beautiful place.