Indian Summer Weekend

Those who thought summer was a distant memory was in for a very pleasant surprise this weekend. After weeks of spontaneous cloud bursts, chilly northerly winds and cold weather, the sun decided to come out and play.  For us, there can be no better way to spend an Indian summer weekend than to check out whether the rutting season was on at Bradgate Park.

And we were not the only one thinking about it. The main car-park was full and we’d to use the overflow. I think this was the first time we parked here. I guess a lot of people were making the most of this last reminder of summer.

I also blamed Autumnwatch.  There were a lot more people with cameras and binoculars about, presumably checking things out. I’m glad people are out and about, connecting with nature and hopefully care about the environment around them. The only problem is that some people forgot that these animals are wild and they should be treated with respect.

We were greeted by a  group of young stags having a siesta under the shade. I guess this meant that the rutting season hasn’t started yet. But signs of the pre-rut was around us. I spotted fresh rubs and scrapes on the ground. And once a while, we could hear the bellows deep from the forest.

As we continued walking,  we spotted a few red deer stags running across the field. They looked like they were chasing each other, and the way they were strutting were quite aggressive. I spotted one of the stags antlers were covered with leaves and moss. He must have been scraping the ground. Hmm…I think the hormones were beginning to kick in.

As we continued walking,  I spotted something which shaped like an egg on a stick under some trees. It was very striking and somehow no one noticed it. Not me…Look at the size of this young shaggy parasol mushroom (Macrolepiota rhacodes). Isn’t it beautiful?

We also checked out the ruins to Bradgate House which was opened to visitors. We have been to the park countless times but the ruins were always closed. This house was the birthplace of Lady Jane Grey (1536/1537 – 12 February 1554), later Queen of England, ruling for a mere 9 days before being overthrown by Mary I.

Thomas Grey began building Bradgate House in the late fifteenth century and was one of the first unfortified great houses in England. Now in ruins although the chapel was still intact.  We had a lovely walkabout among the ruins in the lovely sunshine in search of the resident peacock. We could often hear her cries from inside the grounds from our previous visits. Now it was opened, she went AWOL!!!

On Saturday, we did a pit stop at Brandon Marsh. At the overflow car-park, we were greeted by a pair of Great Spotted Woodpeckers at their favourite perch. After a brief pose, they flew after each other, calling noisily.

We walked towards the Baldwin Hide and stopped here and there when we spotted more fungi. Some have bloated because of the rain and some have suddenly sprouted. We have been taking more fungi shots recently.  Over the past few months, the reserve seemed to be going through a dormant period in relation to the unexpected visitor. Although lots of little mixed flocks could be seen flying/heard all over the reserve.

 

 

I always enjoyed coming to work in the morning. Before I enter the building, I’m always greeted by a flock of long-tailed tits who were feeding from the trees that lined the road outside the library. It was wonderful watching these fluffy cuties before I start the day. I’m now on the lookout for the colourful goldfinches. I’ve spotted them outside my window.

Now, back to work. The refurnished  and refurbished Floor 5 was finally opened without much aplomb. My colleague and I ran up the 5 floors cos I wanted to find out where did they shelve my Sivanandan collection. I couldn’t find it!!!:-(

I mentioned it to SH and he went up to enquire. He told me that there the collection was going to be housed in 2 rows of shelving. 2 rows??? 8k books can’t fit in just 2 rows!!! I guess we will just have to wait and see. Apart from that, Floor 5 looked amazing and spacious. But why only 2 catalogue terminals in an area that housed the biggest subject areas???

I also did my first ‘Check it out’ library session with the new students. At first, there were only 6 students and it gradually grew and grew into 12!!! It was such a large group and they had difficulty hearing me and I can’t shout cos it’s a library…

They were such an enthusiastic group with loads of questions. They were mostly excited with the Short Loan Collection but not the fines imposed. If you don’t return these books the next day before 10am, the fine was £1 an hour. So they have been warned. Then I brought them to the Teaching Grid where another colleague will explain to them about other exciting things about the library :-).

I planned to take the day off on Wednesday. But only took half a day cos Babe was unwell. I walked to the surgery for my doctor’s appointment. I need a letter explaining my health conditions for my trip back to Malaysia. Then made another appointment with the nurse for another vaccine jab.

I took the bus to work and since there was plenty of time, I made a pit stop at Primark. I tried and picked a long green skirt and a checked top but had to put it down cos the queue to the till was snaking all over the place. Yikes…where do these people come from?

I got a Coventry tea-towel as a momento for Farrah who was leaving the UK for good. Her visa was not extended and she has to return back to India. I’m going to miss her very bubbly personality and a very good badminton partner.

At the bus-stop, while we were queuing, a homeless guy harassed each one of us for money. He was shaking like crazy saying that he was soo hungry and hadn’t eaten for days. Each of us said no but at the end of the queue were 2 young girls. He was acting aggressively at them and we could see how scared they were. Luckily, one of the male passengers told him to p--- off. And he did.

Shouldn’t there be someone policing these places? This guy will find someone else to harass and they might just gave in. And it’s not a good image for the City of Coventry. I’d to take the bus home too and thankfully, it was a smooth journey.

I think I’m coming down with a cold. My colleagues called it Freshers’ Flu. New students coming from around the world bringing with them all sorts of viruses. A lot of the staff were dropping like flies and I think I might join them too. Boo …Hoo