#we are all avocet here thanks

[montereybayaquarium]

And now, a little sea-esta after our 40th fiesta🌊😴

[honeysuckletoast]

I finally finished writing the first chapter of the drabble Academy fic I've been dragging my feet on.

Miss Avocet's Academy for Ymbrynes.

(A/N I will eventually get these uploaded on AO3 and fanfic. Net. I also have each character's descriptions if anyone wants to see those! If you have any requests for future chapters, feel free to PM me

And thank you to @weirdddgirl for her help in giving me feedback and with the bio's for the characters)

**********************************************************

This is our newest ward, Miss Alma Bentham.” Miss Avocet presented the young girl proudly in the class room. Alma looked around at the other girls. There was around 5 of them that Alma could see, plus the other headmistress who wasn't present. She hadn't met miss Bunting yet, having arrived last night and missing breakfast with the others from sleeping in.

“I wish Jack and Myron were here…” the peregrine thought as she looked up at the black haired woman standing beside her. Neither Alma or Miss Avocet knew where they would be placed, but Miss Bobolink assured her they would be very close by.

“And Roisin, stay back a minute please dear.” Alma snapped back from her thoughts as the girls all started to pack up from their desks and shuffle out from the classroom discussing their plans for the free afternoon.

“I wonder which one’s Roisin” Alma murmured, eying a few of the younger girls who walked by. “They all look friendly…..at least all except that girl” she thought at the sight of a tiny girl with brown hair and gold rimmed glasses who was having her ear talked off by another girl who was practically bouncing as she walked off

“We could go down into the town and get croissants Alice!” The blonde haired girl shook the supposed Alice’s arm, getting a more than displeased look from the girl.

“Millie stop your gonna hurt her fragile bones” another girl teased as they all left, continuing their banter down the hall.

“Wait everyone's gone, where is Roisin-” Alma started until a sudden flash of green and white sped in front of her, nearly sliding into the wall from the force as she tried to stop herself.

“You wanted to see me miss? I'm so sorry I’m late getting back, Miss Bunting needed help carrying her old desk downstairs.”

Alma's forest green eyes widened at the huge figure as she steadied herself. Bright red hair cascaded down the woman's back, reaching past her cream colored blouse to her dark green skirt, even all kinked up in curls. The 10 year old girl felt herself start trembling as she grabbed Miss Avocet’s hand, shuffling behind her. “She's even taller than Miss Avocet.”

“Alma, this is Roisin Gannet. She's our oldest ward and she's very friendly. She's gonna take you around and introduce you to the other girls while I go to see where your brothers will be placed, right, Miss Gannet?” Miss Avocet asked sternly.

“yes Ma'am." the girl echoed as she bent down to be half her height, but yet was still taller than Alma. "Do women even get this tall? Or this freckled?" Alma thought as Miss Avocet took away her barrier and stepped away, transforming and flying out the window. Roe picked up her head mistress's clothing, folding them and laying them on top of a light green changing screen that sat in the corner of the room besides a skeleton that was standing posed like a flower girl, a withered bouquet of daisy's in the bony hands.

“Why do you guys have a skeleton? Is he…..you know real?” Alma asked roe amin a whisper as if the skeleton could hear her.

“Oh! That's mister tempus, he's our mascot of sorts." roe explained as she walked over “I dunno where miss bunting found him, but I think he is real.” Roe held up the skeletons wrist “do you want to come see?”

“No no thank you!” Alma gave a curt wave as she looked around the room to see if there were any more objects of interest. Besides a few hand drawn diagrams and a huge bookcase in the left corner, nothing else caught her eyes.

“Oh yer’ so tiny!” Alma jumped as Roisin was suddenly in front of her again, “sorry, forgot to actually introduce myself, “I'm Roisin, but you can call me Roe if it's easier. I'm 16 years old, and I'll be showing you round’ the academy!” Roe chipped then offered Alma her freckled hand. The Peregrine looked back at the window where Miss Avocet had left, but no bird remained in sight.

“Guess I don't have a choice.” She thought as she took the huge hand being offered to her. Roe smiled, holding the door open for her.

“Now, I know my accent is thick as fog, if ya need me to repeat myself, don't worry, just ask” Roe advised as she worked down the hall, shifting slightly as she looked out to the courtyard. “say, I noticed yer a bit frightened. Is it me causin’ ya the fright ?” She asked gently, bending down again to be Alma's height with a tiny smile. Alma blinked, looking at anything but the woman in front of her.

“I-i shouldn't lie, mama gets mad when we lie…..but maybe I need to do so she doesn't kill me?” Alma wondered silently as the hand that was holding her was placed on hsr shoulder. Alma tensed, then looked up to meet Roe's gaze

“Woah your eyes!” Alma forgot her terror for a moment as she stared at her baby blue eyes. The woman grinned “I know, they are a bit of an odd shade” she said. “And if you're scared of me, please don't be?” Roe said awkwardly. “I-i know I'm a bit tall and big” she shuffled “I know I scare the kids sometimes too. Just comes with being over 6 feet ya know?”

Alma shuffled her feet, nodding silently. "I probably made her feel horrible" Alma wondered as she looked input the window to the forest just beyond the gates.

“But I promise, I'll try to be the best sister and friend to ya. So if you need anything, just ask okay? Miss Avocet told me yer room is across from mine, so if ya need anything’, night or day, just come in okay? You might have to nudge my shoulder though” Roe explained, but looked away towards the window as she dabbed her eyes

“I didn't mean to make you cry!” Alma exclaimed and quickly hugged the gannet tight. Roisin couldn't help but laugh slightly as rubbed her eyes.

“It's not you love. I had a baby sister yer age.” She said gingerly, fiddling with her hair as she spoke “she's no longer with us, ya know? Just found out a month or two ago.” the gannet sighed. “She was the same height as ya, just as shy too, you just remind me of her a bit”

“oh….i’m so sorry” Alma squeezed her hug tighter. Roe smiled, bending down to hug her back.

“Thank you” She smiled “now let's go meet the other huh?” Ama nodded, finally feeling a bit more at ease as she took Roe's hand back.

Roisin took her down a long corridor to a set of French style doors. “Let's see ... .ah Millie and Alice! They are both around yer age.” She smiled and ushered the girl inside. Alma stepped in as roe shut the door, immediately being bombarded by a girl with bright blond waves and two mocha brown eyes.

“Hi Alma. My name is Millie! Millicent thrush! I'm 12 years old and I hope we can be friends! I love your hair, and your shoes! Do you like the color blue? It suits you! You can sit next to me in-

“Don't scare her off her first day Millie my goodness!” A strict voice came from the next girl sitting next to her. “You're gonna give her a stress induced heart attack!” She snapped as she closed her book. Alma stood up on her toes, reading the cover while Millie gave a half response to Alice.

“The Blue Fairy book”. Alma read aloud as Alice quickly grabbed the book off the table, holding it in her lap as she avoided Millie's smug gaze.

“Don't be like that Alice” Roe warned gently. “Millie is like a child, very easily excited by life’s little joys.”

“Maybe you should try it sometime Alice! It's so much better than gloom and doom!” Millie poked Alice's cheek lightly. The tiny girl huffed but sat up straighter when she realized it was her turn to introduce herself.

“Good day. I'm Alice Mariie Jones, or Alice Treecreeper. I'm 13 years old.” she said, moving to resume her reading. Alma looked up at Roisin who gave a soft sigh, turning towards the huge glass windows that lined the room. Soft green curtains covered each one to prevent most of the light from seeping in.

“Alice, you must open these while you're reading, you know what Miss said about your eyes becoming easily strained!” Roe said as she opened the curtains but continued speaking “Alice is a little…..introverted. she prefers her books to people” she said as she opened up the window, sticking wood inside the base to prop them open.

Alma nodded, taking a seat in the third arm chair in half circle.

“I love the book you're reading, Alice.” Alma tried to start a conversation. “My mama read it to me and my brothers.” Alma commented on the fairytale book, then turned and looked around the elaborate parlour, taking note of the multiple bookshelves stacked with books of all shapes and sizes. Neatly tucked into the walls. “You all have enough books to have a library!” She exclaimed

Millie rolled her eyes “reading is my least favorite thing, and that's all Alice does! She's the most boring roommate!” She lightly nudged Alice who didn't respond, simply turning her page with contained annoyance.

“wait until you see the real library. Miss Avocet believes strongly in reading” Alice commented as she pulled her tan shawl tighter to her shoulders. "So Alma, do you have a favorite book?” Alice asked curiously. “Millie doesn't know how to read, nor will she ever be able to learn how, it's nice that someone else enjoys it here”

“Do you see how she treats me?!” Millie flopped back on the fainting couch dramatically as Alma giggled, but then paused for a moment and thought “I don't think I have a favorite one. I like most everything I read” she finally gave an answer. Alice nodded, looking down at her book again

"what's your favorite book?” Alma asked back. Alice closed her book again, but didn't pause at all to think as she took her glasses off to clean them.

“Gray’s Anatomy.” She said automatically as Millie couldn't help but stifle a chuckle.

Alma tilted her head, her brows furrowing slightly as a quirked smile adorned her face. “isn't that an adult book?” she asked, remembering seeing Myron with a book similar to that name. Alma had barely taken a glance at it before her mother told him to stop reading it since it was for adults, and took it from him. “Wonder if she ever gave that back?” she thought as Alice nodded.

“Yes, it's a medical book. I like studying the human body and its capabilities, especially in a peculiar sense.” Alice shrugged “My parents never had children's books like this, they said it’s brain rot.” She held up the book. “but I really like fairy tales alot too,” she admitted sheepishly

“We all like different things” Alma smiled “I like fairy tales also. They are probably my favorite genre to read.” She said as Roe came back from opening the last window.

“We all like to cling to our fairy tales until the price in believing them becomes too high” Alice shrugged “then we are pulled back to reality.”

“Alice, she’s like 8 years old,” Millie teased as Alma's hand was taken up by roe to move on.

“Come see us if you have free time today! I can show you how to get to the candy store !” Millie bounced in her seat. “and I think I'm down the hall from you if you ever need anything!” She welcomed Alma, getting up and hugging the tiny girl. Alma broke into a smile “she's so bubbly”

“That stuff is bad for your teeth and you sleep like your dead Millicent” Alice flipped her page and continued reading “I'll be awake if you need anything ever though.” Alice called after Alma as the door clicked closed.

“We should keep moving, yes?” Roe asked, “Enid and Cathy are down in the garden.”

Alma nodded, following the tall girl outside into the vine entangled archway. Fresh honeysuckle had bloomed on nearly every square inch of the trellis that marked the entrance to the courtyard. Flowers of many different shades and sizes dappled the grounds underneath the towering willow and maple trees. A few wooden swings creaked in the light winds that brought light wisps of fresh rain on the horizon.

“who takes care of the gardens here?” Alma gasped as Roisin as she moved a few willow branches back to reveal two teenagers were seated on a conversation bench, chatting away underneath the dark clouds.

“Miss Avocet assigns us each a plot to take care of, well” the gannet paused “she might assign you to just help someone else sense all the beds are taken up.” roe answered as she ushered Alma underneath the branches. “It's a friendly competition. Every year whoever has the best bed at the end of harvest gets to pick a field trip!”

“And I seriously was thinking about giving in and backhanding this guy, because how rude to be so disrespectful to an miss Sandpiper!? she's so fragile as is and-

“Enid, Cathrine, say hello!” Roisin exclaimed loudly, catching both of them off guard as a warning to shut their mouths. Both of the girls quickly hushed, turning towards the taller woman.

“Oh my goodness….” The teenager to the right blinked, moving her long black braids to the side.“She's so tiny!”

“Alma, why don't you introduce yourself?” Roe nudged her forward. Alma looked up at her and then back at the two women.

“I guess the others were very kind” Alma stood up straighter and curtsied “I'm Alma, Alma Bentham”

“Oh love we aren't worth even a curtsy! Save that for the important people!” One of them laughed gently then continued “I'm Cathrine, Cathrine swallow, or glassbill.”

Alma felt her face flush “o-oh okay” she took Roe’s hand again. “Why do you have two last names? That's fancy” Alma asked.

“Well, I'm a swallow, but there is already a Miss Swallow. To avoid confusion, I picked a different name-”

“By slamming two of the weirdest words together-”

“Ah, yes, coming from the person who couldn't spell Swallow the other day I had to choose two words I was positive you could spell Enid.” Cathy teased. Alma couldn't help but giggle at the two.

“She has me there, I can't spell to save my life.” Enid laughed. “But hello, I'm Enid Finch. You might've met my Auntie, also miss Cora Finch While at the council,

“You have an aunt who's an ymbryne too!?” Alma gasped “Miss Bobolink told me that was impossible yesterday!”

“it's rare. Most of us don't have any ymbrynes or even other peculiars in our families. I just got….lucky. One in a million chance” she shifted, looking down at the floor as a less-than-well hidden frown appeared.

“So what's your bird Alma?” Cathrine quickly picked up the conversation before the young girl could ask anymore questions.

“A peregrine” Alma rocked on her heels. “Miss Bobolink told me birds of prey are rare” she recounted the woman from the council when they met last week.

“They are. Peregrine's are beautiful!” Roisin chimed in “I suppose that's where you got that feather clip on your hair huh?” she asked, her fingers lightly brushing the top of the feather

“That's from my old ymbryne miss Dottrel. She made it for me!” Alma unclipped it and held it up for Roisin.

“I didn't know you had an Ymbryne before this” roe took the clip and started to examine it.

Alma nodded as she rubbed her right eye “They told me I was too young to come to the academy. She took me in when I was really young and kept me until I just turned ten last week!”

“You must be very impressive then!” Cathy said as she stood up to stretch. “Miss Avocet doesn't usually take girls this young, it's amazing that at this age you were even able to transform!” Cathy added, “took me till I was 14 and I'm only 15 now!” she said as Enid stood up with her

“It is indeed impressive.” Enid chuckled softly. “Maybe if your skills are as good as your manners, you can teach the boy I encountered yesterday at Miss Loon's loop.” she muttered more to Cathrine as she suppressed a laugh.

“I suppose it's time we head in for supper, no?” Cathy asked as she moved the vines back. Enid got up with a nod.

“Yes, I'm surprised miss Avocet even let miss Bunting back in the kitchen to cook after last week” roe laughed. “Miss bunting nearly lit the kitchen on fire last week.” Roe told Alma who cupped a hand to her mouth.

“I didn't dear. She's still not allowed to cook for one reason or another.” Miss Avocet suddenly appeared from the side of the house with two young men in tow.

“Jack! Myron!” Alma grinned, running up and hugging Jack tight. Miss Avocet watched with a faint smile

“We have decided that your brothers will stay here so as to not break your family up. You all seem very close and I want you to grow up with them.” Miss Avocet explained. Alma nodded, hugging Myron who more readily accepted the hug than jack. Miss Avocet smiled, then looked over at the trio of teenagers.

“Enid why do you have that sour look on your face?” Miss Avocet asked “that's unbecoming of a young lady to stand there with your mouth agape” she chastised. Enid quickly shut her mouth but turned to Catherine and Roisin

“That's the boy! The boy from yesterday!” She hissed, holding Cathrine back so the others could walk ahead “that's who was rude to Miss Sandpiper!”

Jack turned, his eyes narrowing onto Enid as glared right back.

[battle-of-the-birds]

Alrighty and HERE ARE OUR CONTENDERS!!!

Tag for the polls: #bird battle

DISCLAIMER - I wrote the round one blurbs when I was very sick and half awake, so if you see any mistakes PLEASE TELL ME! Nicely, obviously, but I want to make sure they sound good for round 2. Thank you!

I know there’s a lot of them, but man there’s SO MANY GOOD BIRDS! There were a few times where people didn’t put what specific subspecies for some birds, so sometimes I’d have to choose one. I tried to choose one that represents that bird the best!

I don’t know when the polls will begin, I’m doing some research on the birds so that people can read about them before they vote.

If one of your favs didn’t make it in, don’t worry they’re a winner in my and your heart.

If you are wondering where the Pigeon (Rock Dove) is, THEY ARE THE FINAL CHAMPION! At the end of this bracket, the winner will face off against the mightily popular Rock Dove! Will they be able to beat such a tough challenger? We will see…

Also, a note on how I set this bracket up: I put all the birds in a numbered list and then used a number generator. I think the matchups we got were really interesting.

Full list under the cut

HARPY EAGLE

SUPERB BIRD OF PARADISE

VAMPIRE FINCH

RAINBOW LORIKEET

BALTIMORE ORIOLE

EURASIAN WREN

STELLER'S JAY

CALIFORNIA CONDOR

EURASIAN HOOPOE

BLACK CAPPED CHICKADEE

TAWNY FROGMOUTH

AMERICAN GOLDFINCH

ANDEAN COCK OF THE ROCK

MUTE SWAN

WESTERN SANDPIPER

STELLER'S SEA EAGLE

VIOLET BACKED STARLING

HOATZIN

HOUSE SPARROW

HERACLES

CANADIAN GOOSE

DODO

GREAT EARED NIGHTJAR

SANDHILL CRANE

PELAGORNIS

SUPERB FAIRY WREN

SOUTHERN CASSOWARY

AMERICAN ROBIN

GREATER ROADRUNNER

GREAT BLUE HERON

AMERICAN AVOCET

PASSENGER PIGEON

WALLCREEPER

GREAT TIT

MOA

EASTERN BLUEBIRD

AUSTRALIAN BUSHTURKEY

EMU

MALLARD DUCK

FLAME BOWERBIRD

MANDARIN DUCK

BELTED KINGFISHER

OILBIRD

FAIRY PENGUIN

LESSER FLAMINGO

AUSTRALIAN KESTREL

CARRION CROW

UMBRELLABIRD

LOGGERHEAD SHRIKE

PERUVIAN PELICAN

CALIFORNIA QUAIL

MACGREGORS BOWERBIRD

HARRIS HAWK

COMMON RAVEN

BEARDED VULTURE

PEREGRINE FALCON

ROSY LOVEBIRD

ROSEATTE SPOONBILL

LONG TAILED GRACKLE

AMERICAN WOODCOCK

KAKAPO

BLUE FOOTED BOOBY

RHEA

BEE HUMMINGBIRD

WHITE WAGTAIL

HUIA

SNAIL KITE

DOMESTIC CHICKEN

KIWI

MOURNING DOVE

ATLANTIC PUFFIN

CARDINAL

LYREBIRD

EUROPEAN ROBIN

BURROWING OWL

OSPREY

RED TAILED HAWK

BLEEDING HEART DOVE

BARN OWL

PEACOCK

SATIN BOWERBIRD

CAIQUE

RED WINGED BLACKBIRD

LONG TAILED TIT

HERRING GULL

GREEN HERON

CREAM COLORED WOODPECKER

AUSTRALIAN IBIS

TRISTAM'S STARLING

POTOO

WANDERING ALBATROSS

BLUE JAY

KEA

COMMON MYNA

RAINBOW TOUCAN

GREATER SAGE GROUSE

TURKEY VULTURE

TUFTED TITMOUSE

CRESTED AUKLET

EURASIAN MAGPIE

BUDGIE

SCREECH OWL

WIP-POOR-WILL

SECRETARY BIRD

AUSTRALIAN MAGPIE

CEDAR WAXWING

VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON

HERMIT THRUSH

COMMON SWIFT

WHITE BELLBIRD

BROWN SKUA

EUROPEAN DIPPER

[desertmountainapothecary]

Tidepools of La Jolla, California – Nursery of The Pacific Ocean Marine Life - Torrey Pines, California – San Diego Pacific Ocean Beach Adventure

To the north and east of the beach Los Peñasquitos Marsh Natural Preserve is one of the last remaining salt marsh areas and waterfowl refuges in southern California. The marsh, coves, and tidepools are rich in sea life: limpets, shore crabs and hermit crabs, mussels, barnacles, sea anemones, and many species of snails and cast-off shells.

This is the perfect place to watch the annual gray whale migration. All year round, you can see Seals, dolphins, porpoises, and sea lions in the ocean. About two hundred species of birds are protected at the reserve, including migratory ones.

Year round Resident shore birds include brown and American white pelicans, black-bellied and snowy plovers, American avocets, western sandpipers, willets, whimbrels, sanderlings, great egrets, and longbilled curlews. Occasionally, visitors may see gray foxes, bobcats, coyotes, and mule deer. Reptile residents include rattlesnakes and various other snakes and species of lizards, including the endangered horned lizard.

The Torrey Pines 2,000-acre reserve contains about 300 endangered and protected species of native plants. These vanishing habitats are home to sand verbena and beach primrose on the beach, as well as California sagebrush, California buckwheat, black sage, and coastal barrel cactus. On the cliffs other high elevations there are many chaparral plants, including chamise, manzanita, ceanothus, California scrub oak, toyon, and mountain mahogany. Many of these scrub plants in particular provide the refreshing herbal fragrance that mixes so incredibly with the ocean breeze.

Before this area was colonized by Spain, the Kumeyaay tribes migrated lived here, and migrated between here, the deserts, and the mountains throughout the seasons. The land was bountiful, and the Kumeyaay would have fished, hunted, collected crustaceans, and gathered seeds, fruit, roots, to create probably a very healthy and tasty diet. The Kumeyaay have left an indelible archaeological and cultural legacy here in San Diego county and they continue to be a strong tribal nation today both here and south of the border in Baja Norte state.

The water is usually so clean and clear here, and because of the lack of shoreline development, and the underwater marine reserve, this constantly ranks as one of the 3 cleanest beaches in SoCal. This is a wonderful rare instance of extremely valuable real estate, both being a wildlife refuge and habitat, and a beautiful escape from civilization for people to enjoy for the most part in harmony.

It’s been an incredible day on the coast here in Torrey Pines and La Jolla, and I’m so glad that we were able to explore my favorite beach together. You can enjoy my series: Torrey Pines – La Jolla, California – San Diego Pacific Ocean Beach Adventure, full length, 3 glorious days on the North County coast, and experience all of the different moods and landscapes from the ever-changing interplay between the coastal inversion and sunlight.

Full Length Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLyySza85jA

Thank you so much for joining me for this adventure in my favorite beach town on the west coast, the gem of the San Diego coastline, La Jolla, California. It means the world to me to be able to share my treasured slice of heaven in the summer heat with you, and thank you so much for watching, upvoting, commenting, and subscribing.

All the best,

William Z. Brennan & Desert Mountain Apothecary

Please Enjoy Anza Borrego Desert Wildflower Superbloom – We had the most incredible wildflower superbloom in the California Desert this past year, join me from the beginning of the cold winter through the waves of dazzling blooms to the hot end of the season.

Web: https://desertmountainapothecary.com/

Medium: https://desertmountainapothecary.medium.com/

Mastodon: https://mindly.social/@DesertMountainApothecary

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Tumblr: https://www.tumblr.com/desertmountainapothecary

Please Enjoy More Videos!

Supreme Superbloom! Anza Borrego Desert Spring Wildflowers! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGDPHEmN3v8

Grateful Desert Ocotillos - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bstybc3XcAk

Coyote Canyon Offroad Adventure! - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQYPvqj2ouU

Julian & Santa Ysabel, CA Epic San Diego Backcountry Road Trip- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2Z_o0S4Hpg

Bellport in Spring - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_J9hzsFhS-k

Santa Ysabel Preserve – Backcountry Hiking - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XLrSJMLXUw

[dansnaturepictures]

22nd January 2023 post 1 of 3: Lymington (The wildlife) 

We came back here today and saw three species it’s a good place to see for the first time this year; a dinky Ringed Plover on an island in a frozen Normandy lagoon, imposing Spoonbill distant in the estuary and a fine view of a smart Spotted Redshank. All very welcome additions to my year list and ones I admire to take my year list to 127, pipping last year by two to already mean I’ve seen more birds after one month of a year than ever this year which I am thrilled to achieve. It has been a whirlwind of a month already and an amazing birdwatching one with so much seen. Having seen Greenshank and Common Redshank standout birds today also earlier in the walk at the point where we saw the Spotted Redshank by the bridge we had the amazing moment of seeing Spotted Redshank, Redshank and Greenshank all wading near to each other. One of those birding moments out when things align perfectly to create a textbook in the mudflats to compare the features of the three waders which was really interesting and brilliant to see. It was quite interesting also that in 2018 the same day we went to see Hawfinches at Mercer Way (which we did yesterday) I got Greenshank and Spotted Redshank as year ticks here and saw the two side by side at this point by the bridge. I took the sixth picture in this photoset of the Greenshank earlier in the walk and final two pictures in this set of the Spotted Redshank.

There were strong connected moments to nature this afternoon seeing Avocets seeking new sanctuary on bits of land out to sea with their usual Normandy lagoon haunt frozen always elegant birds to see I enjoyed seeing one flying today which is always great too, immersive sights and sounds of Brent Geese especially flying over birds I love, the stunning sound and sight of Mute Swans flying ahead and magical sounds from Curlews’ wings as some flew over. There was also an astonishing moment as a Curlew flew into an area the other side of the sea wall to the path further up and as we walked by it stayed put surprisingly, meaning we uncharacteristically for this species got some sensational intimate views of the bird. What a special species to observe so closely, I took the second and third pictures in this photoset of this bird. Other highlights today were Goldeneye out to sea, Little Egrets including close views of one which I took the seventh picture in this photoset of and one flying by a pipe where another emerged from near and chased it which was great and Little Grebes including four at once near each other on Eight Acre pond where there were a few so this was great. I am thankful to a kind couple we got speaking to as the gentlemen walked back towards us after walking on after the conversation to show us the Spoonbills and ensured we’d noticed the Curlew too.

It was also fantastic to see and get to photograph a Kingfisher on the icy moat like channel around Normandy lagoon, it was atmospheric to see this bird probably the one that was our first of the year here three weeks ago today to the back drop of the frost and ice of the lagoon behind, and I cherished some powerful and cracking views of this colourful bird. Obviously these were the star of our Winnall Moors visit yesterday and with this being somewhere we’ve seen them so much over the years and this year already I had a funny feeling it might be in the script for me to see and photograph a Kingfisher again this weekend. I took the first, fourth and fifth pictures in this photoset of it. It is always an honour to see them so this was a big moment and I possibly saw another flying over the sea. 

Charmingly on the way in and out where we had seen Roe Deers three weeks ago on New Year’s Day and before we saw Roe Deers in fields, eight of them which is more than I’ve seen at once before I believe. In flower gorse especially to the backdrop of ice was a nice floral sight today I took the eighth picture in this photoset of some gorse with cleavers seen nicely in the lane.

Wildlife Sightings Summary for Lymington: My first Ringed Plover, Spoonbill and Spotted Redshank of the year, Kingfisher, Great Crested Grebes seen nicely, Shelduck nicely seen flying over, Brent Geese, Little Egret, Canada Geese seen nicely, Mute Swan, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Wigeon, Shoveler on Eight Acre pond which we’d not seen before possibly driven there by the freezing of the lagoon water which I could say about Redshank on that pond too, Gadwall, Goldeneye, Little Grebe, Cormorant, Grey Heron, Black-headed Gull, Curlew, Lapwing, Avocet, Oystercatcher, Redshank, Greenshank, Dunlin, probable Turnstone, Stonechat seen really well, Pied Wagtail seen well, Greenfinch seen nicely in the lane at the start, Robin and Roe Deer.

My next two posts are about the landscape at Lymington and bits at home and on journeys today.

[jjackrabbitt]

Miss Peregrines Museum of Wonders, Introduction:

This was going to be my usual 3 chapter length review, but it got long so you get just the introduction.

I swear, every time I think it’s gonna be the last book, Riggs comes up with an other one. This is far from a complaint, I want every little bit of anything I can get from these books. But this has happened three times now :/

Y’all are right. The little motifs in this book are fuckin ugly. Miss Peregrine would be much classier than this.

Also why’d they change her handwriting? We already have examples of her writing and uh. It’s not that.

Okay I swear that this whole thing is not going to be negative, we are going to have some fun here, but. I did the math and Alma is at least 58. What’s this bullshit with her picture showing her as 25-30 (?) years old.

Can we please please please have publications of Miss P’s other books next?? 🥺 I’ll never threaten to hit Riggs with a metal folding chair again 🥺

Okay back to complaining. Miss P would never have her silhouette done like that. She is a gentlewoman >:/

Today on Peculiars Are Jews: the book starts by informing the reader that they are being hunted and warning about how the Normal People will try to hurt you if they find out you’re different

Ooo faulty time loops 👀 what does that entail and how can I get in one?

Yet again, Peculiars Are Jews: “there was a time when all we had to worry about was being burned at the stake. It was a simpler world then.”

I would like to remind everyone that I am Jewish so I do get to make my fucked up little Jokes

Lovin’ these pink pages, they’re very fun

Hey so with the mention of the peculiar world spanning..well. The world. Do y’all think that other parts of the world (i.e. not europe or america) would rely so heavily on ymbrynnes? I genuinely want to know what other peculiar societies look like. We know that when Myron and Jack were building the Panloopticon they went outside of Europe and America and got loop dna from some pretty surprising places, so we know there are other loops and European peculiars have/had enough connection that the boys were capable of going there on friendly terms and gathering their samples. So there at very least was some connection to other places. That might have deteriorated with the introduction of hollows and wights roamin’ around and scaring everyone into staying in their loops. And we know that Noor was in fact born in Bombay and her parents were killed by a hollow, so we know that the wights reach extended outside of Europe/America. They had to get there somehow and it seems like it would be pretty hard to transport hollows by plane, so I’d guess they did a little loop hopping to get to baby Noor. Which would require a loop to be somewhere near Noor in the first place. Idk I just want to see places outside of Europe/America and know what the peculiar situation with them is.

This is probably the only book that’s like “Thank G-d no one believes in magic anymore”

Alsooo. Some of my opinions have changed since last time I shared my thoughts with you all and I am kinda critical of the ymbrynnes now. Not in a wight kinda way, because fuck those guys. And obviously this is fiction and also I’m not involved in any sort of peculiar society, so I can’t say what’s best, but who could, really?

That being said, Alma points out that many peculiars never meet an ymbrynne. And excuse me if this is wrong, but aren’t demi-ymbrynnes a little more common than full ymbrynnes? And I don’t believe this is ever directly addressed, but in the first three books there’s no mention of demi-ymbrynnes and it’s said that Miss Avocet’s Ymbrynne Academy trains ymbrynnes, specifically. Not demi-ymbrynnes. So uh. Would it not make more sense for the Ymbrynne Academy to train both demi-ymbrynnes and ymbrynnes and use the ymbrynnes to look for peculiar people and help relocate them and start loops and then leave demi-ymbrynnes in charge of running them? Not saying that full ymbrynnes wouldn’t be involved in running loops at all, but if they’re the ones who can find people and turn into birds and start loops and are more rare, why have them be focused on running one loop at a time? If anyone disagrees with this I would very much like to hear about it

Aaaand again with Peculiars Are Jews: “This is the book for them: the young [Jew] (or the old one) who’s never had the benefit of [a Rabbi’s/Jewish community’s] guidance; who is lonely and filled with questions.”

I know only one other Jewish person in this fandom so I’m pretty sure that most of the rest of you don’t get it when I say Peculiars Are Jews but I am right. It’s about the hidden culture! The questions! The alienation! The secret wonder! Randomly seeing an other person somewhere and just Knowing that they’re one of you! The Rituals! And yeah that does sound a lot like queerness too and Peculiars very much are queers. But they are also Jews and no one else is gonna talk about it.

Oooo fuck, the rest of the last paragraph for the introduction 😔 peculiars are queers and they are Jews and they are neurodivergent.

[kyeomunism]

The Phoenix Ymbryne ||  Millard Nullings

Pairing: Millard Nullings x Fem!Reader

Devil’s Acre Era (includes events in TDODA)

Word Count: 2.3k words

Summary: You are a peculiar who can take the form of a Phoenix. Wights were a constant threat until an invisible boy takes you to your new home. Getting to know him made you realize your purpose and the worth of all you’ve been through.

A/n: this fic includes South-East Asian references and i wrote it in a way you’ll learn easily. so whatever your race is, step inside Y/n’s boots and enjoy this adventure fluff. 

︵‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・༺❀༻・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ︵‿︵‿︵

1900, Manila

The gust of wind rustling the forest almost silenced your pounding heart, but not quite. You transformed into a blazing bird and shoot through the bright sky, searching the brown earthen hues below. Your bird form made you an easy target, knowing that the wights after you have hunting guns; but your bird form also allowed you to scan the forest with your peculiar intuition. You could detect souls and sense their objectives. As you fly towards the outskirts of the woods, you located the two wights running away.

Suddenly, you felt another soul wandering through the thickets. A lone, pure heart, a good aura that you wouldn’t expect right after getting chased by blank-eyed monsters. Driven by curiosity, you roamed above the trees where you felt the presence. It was a floating map. You perched on a branch and watched the huge map turn, as if being held by a person. You looked from another angle at it revealed a floating suit and trousers. Carefully eyeing the subject and its pavement shoes leaving a calculated trail, there was only one word you can fathom: peculiar.

It had been over half a century since you’ve seen another peculiar, and it fascinated you how you couldn’t actually see this one. You continued watching the invisible who seem to be looking for something; a landmark? a person? a girl who can turn into a two-feet-tall fiery bird? If it was the latter, you knew you couldn’t easily trust someone, even if your intuition screamed this person’s good intentions.

You flew towards your house by the river, and judging by the angle of the floating clothes below, you knew you’ve been spotted. The moment you reached your home, you transformed back to your sixteen year-old body and slipped in a floor length skirt, a white sleeved shirt made from pineapple fabrics, and a scarf around your neck. You prepared hot chocolate in case that invisible peculiar pays a visit.

It only took a few minutes until you heard a knock on your door. Reluctantly, you opened it to reveal the same floating clothes that seemed to belong to the western world.

"Who are you?"

"Millard Nullings, at your service." A voice of a teenage boy spoke up. You moved aside to allow him enter your home, saying your name as you lead him to the drawing room. At first, you thought it was going to be painfully awkward, but it immediately changed into a pleasant, curious atmosphere when his body headed straight towards the ancient maps on your walls, as if being pulled by a magnet.

"Thank you, this place is incredibly interesting. For the longest time I thought these maps were never to be found again," Millard said as he took the hot chocolate from your hand while staring at the walls.

"These are from my old ymbryne. She was a real treasure," you said, standing beside him. "It shows hundreds of ancient loops across Asia. I wouldn't have found my current home without these maps. Oh, and Millard... may I ask how did you get here?"

"The wights after you were caught a while ago. This loop is marked empty in A Map of Days, so catching two of Caul's followers in here is intriguing. It wasn't long until I found the entrance after leapfrogging through a parallel loop nearby."

Brushing off more questions in your head, you offered him a seat and took sips of hot chocolate.

"Perplexus wasn't wrong when he marked this loop empty," you said. Millard's head most likely whipped up at the mention of the famous cartographer.

You smiled at this and continued. "When my old loop was raided, my ymbryne suggested this small loop. It was an empty peculiar menagerie. I suspect a dozen peculiar animals used to live here with all the traces I've found. But for over fifty years, I haven't seen any peculiarity in this area." You turn your head towards the window. "Past those Cacao trees is the membrane of the loop. A small provincial village with normal people, normal chickens, and a normal carabao. So seeing you here feels more surreal than it sounds," you admitted.

"What about your bird?" he asked, "that tall phoenix flying around the woods?"

A twinge of realization came over you and you sigh, reluctant to admit your peculiarity.

"That was me," you say finally.

"What! You can turn into a phoenix? You're an ymbryne?" Millard's voice was a mix of astonishment and confusion.

"How else did you think I manage to revive this loop?" You smiled.

"I just thought ymbrynes' bird forms are supposed to be inconspicuous. But you were...incredibly remarkable."

Your cheeks heated up at the comment and you divert your gaze with a soft chuckle.

"That baffled me as well, that's why I only transform in important situations. Locals believed me to be a magical bird, thus driving many hunters' attention. My bird form is known as Adarna. Similar to a phoenix, but distinct in certain features."

"Adarna? I've never heard of that kind of bird before."

"It is a famous folklore bird in the Philippines. There are stories about it, even in the Tales of the Peculiar." You stood and picked up an old children's book on the bookshelf across the room. You handed it to Millard, which you assume, made him smile.

"This is an ancient version indeed. I annotate many of the Tales but I've never seen this before. Would you mind letting me borrow this?" You couldn't bring yourself to say no to him, so you insisted he could keep it. Stating that you didn't need a copy, having memorized it for the longest time.

After minutes of discussion, you noticed how he got so excited in the topic of maps, history and his friends. It felt like you were listening to a teacher who loved his work, and you weren't complaining as you found this adorable. You were both having good laughs with Millard's stories, until he finally said, "I trust you expect a reassurance that the wights wouldn't trouble you anymore, but we can't be certain."

Your eyebrows furrowed at this, "what are you planning?"

"To take you to Devil's Acre."

You were surprised and slightly taken aback. He must've seen the faraway look on your face so he continues, "Y/n, you don't have to go now. I can just leave you a detailed map to help you reach the panloopticon anytime."

You paced around the drawing room. "So you're letting me go there alone?"

“If that's what you like, yes. I don't want to rush you into leaving your home, but I’ll feel much better if you let me take you there myself." His British drawl made your throat dry, you could only nod.

"I'll take my time to think about it, but as soon as the wights come near this area, I'll head to your loop for safety." You decided it's only smart to stay home until real danger emerge, despite how much you'd like to go with Millard. "Why don't you stay here for a while?"

"That can be a problem. You see, my ymbryne left me with strict rules..."

"You weren't supposed to be here, aren't you?"

You both just laughed at this.

A while later, a loud commotion started in the other side of the loop membrane. Villagers were screaming and animals were flocking away.

"Was that a regular noise within your loop?"

"For fifty years of living this exact same day over and over again, I can assure you that was most unnatural." You got up and pocketed an old but sharp dagger as Millard packed the maps and the book you gave him.

"Those are certainly Wights looking for their other comrades. We ought to flee this place now," he said.

You both slipped through the backdoor towards the river, careful not to trip into the mud. When you reach the bamboo raft, he held your hand and made sure you wouldn't lose balance. This gesture, however, made you lose your composure instead.

"You seem nervous, is it the raft? Should I let you cross the river first?"

"No, no, it's safe," you said as you both stood on the either side of the raft, trying not to slip as you crossed the river holding tall pieces of bamboo to keep yourselves steady. "I guess I just feel sad that I'm leaving home for good," you say. It was true, but you couldn't bring yourself to admit that he made you flustered.

"I understand that this loop may close permanently as you leave," he said, "but in the Devil's Acre, you may train with other ymbrynes ang get the chance to create new loops, have wards of your own—"

"Train with other ymbrynes?" You exclaimed as the raft reached the other side of the river.

"Yes, they're rather lovely. Miss Avocet and all the other ymbrynes would love to guide you. I also believe my friends will celebrate your company. Horace will cook feast, Olive and Claire will surely entertain you, oh," he said, clearly excited, "the celebration will never be enough!"

"Are you kidding me?" You laughed soundlessly as you headed towards the forest. "Your presence alone is more than enough."

He did not reply anything for a moment and you bit your lip. Millard lead the way to another loop that was connected to the panloopticon. It was a silent but surprisingly comfortable walk. He told you to watch your steps in some parts of the forest and you give every useful information you had about your homeland.

"There it is, come here, y/n." He spotted the portal door propped amongst the old trenches of the place that was once bloodstained by war.

Shivers crawled down your spine as you paced forward. Millard noticed your uneasy expression and ran circles on your knuckles. "You can tell me if you don't want to come," he whispered gently, "we'll figure out another way if you're ever uncomfortable."

"Thank you, but I really want to go with you. I want to meet your family and read your books." A smile painted its way on your face just thinking about it.

Without another question, he lead you through the door while gripping your hand. You held your breath and let him guide your steps. His fingers traced your forehead and you opened your eyes.

═ ∘◦ ❉ ◦∘ ═

1886, London

"Where are we?" You stare at the plain, unfamiliar bedroom infront of you.

"The third floor of panloopticon," Millard said with a relieved sigh. "We just crossed half the world in a matter of seconds, I trust the kitchen will have something to ease our loop-lag."

Without even thinking about it, you pulled him in a hug. He caught his breath and wrapped his arms around you as you feel tears streaming down your face. You missed your country but don't regret being with this boy at all. "Thank you," you managed to whisper.

It had been less than a week since you first arrived. Millard's friends were the kindest people you have ever met. The first time you saw Miss Peregrine, she was furious at Millard for running off without permission, but her mood changed when she met you and realized you were an ymbryne too. You were immediately recruited in Miss Avocet's academy and made friends with many other people in the Acre. You get along very well with Miss Wren who was interested in your peculiarity and the fact that you lived in a menagerie loop in Asia.

Desolations came and you stayed in the Ditch House with Millard reading books for you. While it was raining blood, bones and ashes outside, you were having the time of your life with your new family.

You stayed in the Academy while the rest of Miss Peregrine's wards take on their adventure to France, giving all your best wishes for Millard.

You fought in the battle of the Devil's Acre and tended to the injured with the other ymbrynes-in-training. When you heard the news that Caul was defeated, you were elated and incredibly happy.

You were one of the ninety-five peculiars who broke loop-bound in Jacob's house. You could finally go anywhere you like without the fear of aging forward rapidly, and Millard promised many trips with you, you could only shut him up with a peck on the cheek.

═ ∘◦ ❉ ◦∘ ═

1940, Cairnholm

So many good things happened to you that week, but nothing could beat the joy you felt when you found out that the ymbrynes-in-training are to live with Miss Cuckoo, and Miss Peregrine and her wards in Cairnholm.

You stare at the dog roses in Fiona's garden, you were filled with mixed emotions and wanted a quiet time. All of them are celebrating inside the house; all except Millard, who was wearing a velvet smoking jacket for the occasion.

"It's beautiful here," you said while watching his clothes head your way, "you must be happy that you're home."

"You are my home," he said sincerely, now standing in front of you.

You couldn't grab any witty reply, in fact, you couldn't find any words at all. You knew you were blushing ferociously by now.    

"Mind if I talk to you about something that's been bothering me for a while?" He broke the silence and you nod at him.

"With everything we went through these past weeks, I found myself hoping to stay alive."

You stifled a laugh. "Isn't that a good thing? Wishing you'd survive?"

"That's the point, I wanted to stay alive, not just because we ought to take surviving as a priority, but because I can't get you out of my mind."

Your face went blank. "What do you mean, Millard?"

"I wish it was a choice, but it wasn't. I fell in love with you, Y/n. I'd love you for as long as time."

"And we have time," you reassured him, "I love you too," and with that, he kissed you.

Both smiling into the kiss, you leaned against each other, swaying in the breeze of the garden and basking in each other's presence forevermore.

[the-fiction-witch]

Miss Y/l/N P2

REAL LIFE

COUPLE TBS X READER

RATING SMUT

REQUESTED:

Part 2 please this is amazing OwO

I smiled as I stood getting dressed after my bath getting a nice shirt on and making sure I looked nice the curtians where closed nextdoor clearly she's keeping me in suspense so I grabbed my phone and ran downstairs

"Where are you off to?" My mother asked

"Hu? Ohh just uhh out" I told her

"Where Thomas?" She warns

"Just popping nextdoor" I admit

"I thought Emily was away this week?" She asks

"Yeah she is I uhh I'm just uhh y/n- I mean miss y/l/n asked me to... help her fix her... Dishwasher" I said trying to make up an excuse

"Alright" she shrugs accepting it

"Great, Don't know when I'll be home, bye" I told her as I ran out the door shutting it behind me going down the path to nextdoor knocking on the door and waiting a little overexcited

"Evening Thomas" y/n smiled as she opened the door in a tight red dress leaving almost nothing to my imagination her ever curve revealed to me and it was obvious from the tightness of her dress that she didn't have anything under it "you look very handsome Tonight" she smiled as she let me in

"You look beautiful" I told her as I shut the door "I missed you" I told her grabbing her waist as I learnt against the closed door pulling her close and kissing her gorgeous lips

"I missed you too Thomas" she smiled as she pulled away holding my hand and taking me up to her bedroom we sat on her bed for a while, the sweet tunes playing from her record player, the sweet candle light flicking softly, she laid in my arms as our slow and sensual kisses continued to drive me insane till I pulled back getting my breath back

"What's wrong?" She asks

"Nothing y/n, you just...take my breath away when you kiss me" I told her making her giggle

"Your sweet Thomas" she smiled "so?" She smiled

"So?" I smirked

"Shall we have our usual Friday night?" She smirked running her seductive fingers down my chest I couldn't help biting my lip as her hand continued down meeting the hard buldge in my pants and gently palming

"Actually... I wanted to talk to you about that" I told her taking her hand in mine giving it a kiss "I thought Tonight we might do something else?" I suggest

"Like what?" She asked

"Look y/n, that first night together it was amazing, my dream come true... But I thought maybe it's was time to go a little further then just our hands?" I suggest

"Oh what sort of thing did you have in mind then Thomas?" She asks moving to sit on my legs and I pulled her to kiss me kissing her hard before pulling back gently biting on her lip as I pulled away nuzzling my face against her own kissing up her shoulder and neck

"I want to go inside you y/n" I whispered in her ear she looked shocked but excited as I kissed her lips and learnt against her pillows "please... I'm begging you y/n"

"Hummm... I'll think about it" she smiled kissing my exposed neck leaving hikis in little places knowone will see

"Please, it's all I've ever wanted" I groaned "oohh y/n!" I laughed "that one hurt"

"Aww I'll kiss it better" she says giving each hiki a kiss "Thomas can I ask you something?"

"Of course y/n"

"How long have you liked me?"

"You really wanna know?" I asked and she nods sitting up again and moving forward so she was sat on my crotch moving her hips against my own it felt so good I never wanted her to stop "you remember when I was little and I used to... Peak under your skirt?"

"I remember, you where a very naughty little boy always looking under my dresses" she giggled getting faster

"Ooh god!! Y/n slow down I'll-" I began and she did as is asked slowing down a little "even back then I had a crush on you, i remember coming over in the summer all the time" I smirked

"I assumed it was because we had a pool" she giggled

"No .. because I wanted to see you in a bikini" I told her "how long had you liked me back?"

"Well I couldn't deny it was very nice watching you mature into a handsome young man" she smiled "but a while" she smiled giving my lips a kiss and undoing my pants for me-

I smirked as I turned over giving the beautiful form beside me a cuddle "UUmmm good morning Thomas" she yawns

"Good morning y/n" I smirked kissing her desperate to repeat last night

"You should get home, your mum will be worried"

"She might but a little longer baby... Please" I begged between kisses

"Alright, a little longer" she smiled turning to cuddle me and play with my hair "how about we go jump in the shower" she suggested

"No, I don't wanna be away from you for a second" I whispered pulling her closer

"You could always share with me" she smiled

"I could" I smirked "y/n... Can I ask you something?"

"Of course" she smiled

"What ever did happen to your husband? To Emily's dad?" I asked

"Mr Avocet wasn't Emily's father, he was just a guy I knew who could get me out the situation I was in, I never really liked him I just kinda lived with it, but I devoiced him we just didn't go' she explained

"What situation?' I asked

"How old do you think I am Thomas?" She asks

"I uhh... I don't know guess I never really thought about it" I shrug

"I was sixteen when I got pregnant with Emily, you do the Thomas" she explained

"You where sixteen when you had Emily?' I asked and she nods "Hu... Your not as much older then me then I thought"

"So what did happen to Emily's dad?" I asked

"I don't know, I never saw him again, I didn't even know his name" she explained

"I wouldn't run off on you' I told her giving her a kiss

"What's that meant to mean?" She laughs

"Y/n... I know it sounds crazy, and it's kinda werid as I am the same age as your daughter but... I really really like you, I've had a crush on you for as long as I can remember and I would have you as my girlfriend if you'd let me" I explained

"That's sweet Thomas, but what would people think?" She laughs

"Who cares what they think, I like you and I wanna be with you" I told her "do you wanna be with me?"

"Of course I do" she smiled hugging me tightly "now some along mr you need a shower" she smiled getting up and slipping her dressing gown on to hide her naked body

"Okay" I smiled getting up and giving her a cuddle and some kisses...

I smiled as I woke up grabbing my phone from my table

Y/n y/l/n <3 :

Morning Thomas, need a ride to class today?

I smiled happily texting her back that I did and sending a million little kisses before I got up starting to get dressed making sure to do it by my window so she could look and so I could too as she sorted her dress for work I couldn't stop looking at her so I sent a message

Thomas -

Can't I see that one a little closer?

Y/n y/l/n <3:

Later xx

And she blew me a little kiss thought the window but I begged her pulling the face I know she can't say no too and she pulled her dress down flashing me her purple bra it looked amazing but I continued to bed so she smiled disappearing from the window a moment and I for a message a picture of her dress pushed down to her waist exposing all of her purple bra her breasts almost jumping out I smirked moving away too looking at the picture as I gently jerked my cock desperate for an orgasum even after our visit last night I went over with the excuse of visiting Emily for a movie but I snuck away when she fell asleep over to y/ns room where she was waiting for me in her little black lingerie she knows I can't resist I smirked getting close but-

"Thomas come on we'll be late!" Emily yelled as she began running up my stairs so I did my pants up and finished getting ready luckily Emily had kinda backed off a bit pretty much everytime I see her I remind her that time in the car was just a one time thing and I had even managed to set her up with my friend jack which I think was good I can only imagine the conversation if I had told her the truth

'yeah Emily I've never been into you, the only reason I made out with you was I was super horny and I was imagining you where your mother, who by the way I'm also dating so... I'm kinda your mum's boyfriend now'

Yeah I imagine shed probably murder me she smiled as she got to my door I smiled to going down with my stuff having to use my bag to hide my hard on as Emily got in the car and I got in the front next to y/n,

"Morning Thomas" she smiled

"Morning y/n" I smiled we began to drive off and I couldn't help looking at her in that little dress knowing what was underneath if I had the courage I would have my hand in her thigh and plaid with her while she drives but I know Emily would see us I made sure to move my hips a little as I sat there trying to distract her and it often worked I often readjusted my jeans making sure she saw my problem I know she saw my hard on and she often bit her lip looking at me and I often smirked when I caught her till we got to where Emily needed to be dropped off as she was off campus today somewhere else

"Thanks mum" she says "bye Thomas"

"Bye Emily" I waved

"Pick you up later Hun" y/n smiled before driving off

"I see you looking baby" I smirked gently grinding my hips a little as she looked at my hard on "wanna see me so badly you just gotta ask"

"You shouldn't look at me like that with Emily around Thomas she might get jealous" she smirked as she changed gear resting her hand on my buldge as she was done rubbing on me with her soft hand

"Uuhh!! Baby.... Please I couldn't help it, you look so good, I'm struggling to contain myself even with Emily around" I begged

"You know what I'd be doing to you if she wasn't" she smirked

"UUmmm course I know baby, what you where doing to me last night" I smirked "well she's not here now"

"Yes but I can't be late for work"

"Please... I didn't get off this morning Emily came to get me before I got chance to cum"

"Later" she giggled squeezing her hand

"Uuuhhh!!! Please please y/n I'm desperate" I begged her

"Later, Emily's at jacks so you can come home with me" she smiled moving her hand back to driving I couldn't stop myself looking at her I undid my jeans starting to jerk off again trying my best to make sure knowone outside the car would see me but y/n could see me as I got closer moaning and groaning for her and I knew she was desperate to as she watched me

"Can you really resist me baby?' I smirked and next thing I knew she pulled into some supermarket car park close by undoing her seatbelt and kissing me hard I kissed her back trying to make out with her as I moved my hand quicker but she pulled back giving my lips a little kiss and replacing my hand with her own and sucking"uhhhhh!!! Oh my god! Fuck y/n, harder please baby I need you so bad" I moaned.

I sat on the chair at the dinning table a little awkward we had done our best to keep it a secret but that didn't go to well I don't know exactly how they found out but they did so I sat at the table with y/n beside me, and Emily and my parents on the other side.

[kevinjarrett]

Well, damn. So happy with how this build turned out. I’m blown away.😍 Before I go any further I want to thank everyone for all the advice and guidance on this project and in general. I appreciate you!👊 Anyway, I took my just-finished DBR Axis TT Pro Titanium out for a two-hour shakedown ride today. I’ve never even sat on a titanium bike before and if I’m being honest, I wasn’t sure the upgrade from the carbon fiber WCF Vertex would be worth it. Holy crap. The answer is HELL FUCKING YES.🔥 It’s hard to describe the ride but I’ll try. It’s smooth but stiff and crazy responsive. I wasn’t hammering by any stretch of the imagination but I could just throw it into and around corners and it just went exactly where I pointed it. I swear it climbs like an e-bike (lol, as if!). Seated or standing, it just moves the hell out. Unreal. Amazingly, I somehow nailed the setup too. The XT M738 drivetrain shifts effortlessly. The cockpit is dialed (tbh it was before with the Vertex). Braking is phenomenal. I even like the teeny-tiny Avocet Air O2 Ti saddle, which I thought I’d hate. Nope. That shit is perfect too. 💯 You may be familiar with the term car enthusiasts use to describe what gains they get after they install performance mods on a car. It’s called the “ass dyno”. We don’t put bikes on dynamometers but there is an equivalent concept, where you can just FEEL the difference made by an upgrade, call it the “ass meter”🤣 and in this case, my “ass meter” says this Axis TT Ti frame has turned out to be a massive upgrade indeed.😎 The bike is NOT perfect. See the photos. There are some nice digs and dings in the frame and the decals are beat up (I can neither confirm nor deny that new graphics are on the way over here from Gil at @retrodecals🤣). It will never be perfect but it already is EXCELLENT, and I am looking forward to enjoying it for a long, long time. Ride ‘em, don’t hide ‘em, I say.😁 Next up: taking it to Allaire State Park and see how it performs there.💪🏼 Thanks for coming to my Ted Talk.🤣 (at The EHT Nature Reserve) https://www.instagram.com/p/CXAFmSps852/?utm_medium=tumblr

[loadevolution254]

Avondale Caravan Manual

Looking for the handbook for your 2004 Avondale caravan?

Watch as caravan expert John Wickersham looks round a 1997 Avondale Avocet – what do you think? Watch as caravan expert John Wickersham looks round a 1997 Avondale Avocet – what do you. Avondale Coachcraft started producing their high-spec caravans way back in 1970 with the Avondale Mayfly being the first model ever produced. Avondale Caravans include the Leda, Perle, Sport, Landrager, Dart, Rialto, Argente, and Bianco ranges. EBay offers some of the first Avondale models, such as the Avondale Perle caravan and the Avondale.

You’re in luck because you get download it here instantly…

We just ask for a small £10 donation to help support the time and running costs of this website.

Please note that you will receive a DIGITAL COPY of the handbook, not an original printed copy in the mail.

There will be no refunds given so please ensure you are aware of what you are buying. Thank you.

The manual covers all 2004 models including:

1999 Avondale Landranger 5500 Manual - Avondale Caravans ...

2004 Dart 380-2

2004 Dart 510-5 L&S

2004 Dart 556-6

2004 Bianco 54

2004 Bianco 55

2004 Argente 390-2

2004 Argente 460-2

2004 Argente 530-5

2004 Argente 550-4 S&L

2004 Argente 555-4

2004 Argente 640-6

2004 Argente 642-4

2004 Argente 650-6

2004 Avocet DW

2004 Eagle L&S

2004 Osprey L&S

2004 Land-Ranger 6400 ES

The handbook has the following contents (copied from the contents page of the handbook):

The Towing Code

Preparing for the Road

On the Road

Arrival at Site

Connection of Services

Fitted Equipment

Care of Your Caravan

Maintenance

Wiring Diagrams

Lighting

Specifications

Safety

Security

General Information

Servicing

Index

Welcome to Caravan Archives.

CaravanArchives.com is an active project to digitally compile information and documentation for touring caravans, especially those that were manufactured by companies that are no longer in business.

Our online library contains hundreds of brochures, handbooks and instruction manuals on all of the popular touring caravan brand names.

Where possible, we have documentation from as early as the 1970s right up until the present year.

So, if you have bought a caravan and it doesn’t have the handbook or any operation instructions we might be able to help.

As you might appreciate, this is a mammoth project requires a huge amount of time and considerable funds to continue to run and grow. But your contributions and donations help to make our job of creating a useful archive so much easier.

Got a handbook we don’t have that you’d be willing to contribute? Click here to let us know.

Caravan Handbooks

In an effort to create a one-stop source for caravan owners who are looking for otherwise unavailable information and instruction about their caravans we are working on creating the Internet’s largest single digital caravan handbook library.

Our library currently contains more than 100 digital owner’s manuals for the mainstream caravan manufacturers past and present.

To compliment our handbook owner’s manual collection, we also have a HUGE library of instruction manuals, installation instructions and usage guides for all the appliances, features and facilities inside of your caravan.

This includes but is not limited to; ovens & cookers, fridges, cassette toilets, heating & water systems, alarm systems, electrical and gas systems.

We constantly adding to our extensive library and welcome contribution from our users. So if you have something you can add please use the Submit Content page.

Caravan Brochures & Tech Specs

See Full List On Avondalecaravans.com

We have also collated an extensive archive of the original advertising material for caravans dating as far back as 1970 in some cases.

This archive includes touring caravan brochures, technical specifications and in some cases the original price list.

These documents are incredibly useful if you have acquired a pre-owned caravan and need more information on things such as; weights & dimensions, fitted appliances (makes and models) and sleeping arrangements.

We once again would welcome any contributions to our brochure directory if you have something that we are lacking in. Please use the Submit Content page to send it in to us.

Support The Archive

Caravan Archives is 100% financially self-supported.

Web hosting, support and maintenance is expensive.

Not to mention the countless hours our team dedicates to the project to ensure accurate and complete information is supplied at all times.

In order to help support to the ongoing running costs of the Archive we ask for a donation of £10 when you download a handbook. This contribution enables us to continue to grow our archive and serve our users in the best way possible.

Note that we are not “selling” the handbooks. We do not hold the Copyright for these files and so we accept only donations for the storing, handling and delivery of the files to your email inbox.

Much of our content has been sourced by purchasing documentation on auction sites like eBay. No expense is spared to secure certain hard to find manuals.

Our team have also traveled far and wide across the country visiting our accommodating friends at caravan dealerships who have helped tremendously in our pursuit of sourcing particular handbooks. We would like to extend our thanks to these dealerships.

Educational Material

In further efforts to financially support the Archive, our team have produced a wealth of educational material.

This educational material helps caravanners new and experienced alike to learn more about owning a caravan, upkeep and other important things.

In particular, we recommend investing in our Caravan Damp Test Video Course which we have paired with our Ultimate Caravan & Motorhome Winterisation Guide (Ebook) as a free bonus.

In the short and to the point video course you will learn; what equipment you need to perform a damp test, how to spot the early signs of damp and how to perform the actual test itself.

The Winterisation Guide will walk you through the process of preparing your caravan for winter storage.

The guide is carefully laid out in a logical, easy to follow step-by-step procedure. Click here to purchase a copy now.

All proceeds from the sale of the educational material is invested back into the Archive.

You can find all of our Education Material here.

[michaelandy101-blog]

How to Succeed in Account-Based Advertising

New Post has been published on http://tiptopreview.com/how-to-succeed-in-account-based-advertising/

How to Succeed in Account-Based Advertising

Right now, Account-based Marketing (ABM) is the hottest B2B ticket in town — with 87% of marketers stating that it delivers better ROI than other marketing activities.

While for many people it may be a relatively new strategy, it has in fact been around for many years in different guises. In fact, you might’ve already heard the term as Key Account Management, Key Account Marketing, or Client-centric Marketing.

The objective of ABM is, quite simply, to treat one account as a market of one, i.e. to focus all your energy (and resources) on engaging, winning, and maintaining one named account.

Expanding on this, ABM has four underlying principles:

Client centricity and insight

Partnership between sales and marketing

Focus on reputation, relationships and, ultimately, revenue

Tailored programs and campaigns

Simple right? Well, the reality is that to justify this level of effort and resources the prize must be sufficiently large enough to warrant this expenditure. ABM therefore is best suited to complex, high ‘ticket price’ solutions with longer life-cycle sales, and where typically multiple stakeholders are involved.

Strategic ABM (one-to-one) and one-to-few (clusters of 15-20 accounts with shared commonality, i.e. vertical, industry, pain, challenge, etc.) have defined ABM for the last few years.

But there is a new ABM kid on the block who is shaking things up: one-to-many ABM.

The Rise of the ABM Tech Stack

One of the key reasons why ABM has become so popular and now forms a key part of any B2B marketing and sales playbook is the use of technology to automate and target those accounts (and individuals) you are looking to influence and convert.

The rise of one-to-many ABM programs targeting hundreds (and even thousands) of accounts has been largely possible due to the technological and data advances that are now available to B2B marketers.

Quite simply, one-to-many ABM would not have been possible several years ago.

Bev Burgess, one of the world’s leading ABM authorities, recently stated “One-to-many ABM now allows companies to have an ‘Always-on’ strategy to those accounts that are of interest to you'”.

What is Account-based Advertising?

The analogy most commonly used to describe the difference between ABM and Inbound Marketing is fishing with spears vs. fishing with nets. As the image below shows, ABM is the inverse of Inbound Marketing:

    Image Source

Account selection is the starting point. As such, being able, from the outset, to target named accounts and the relevant Decision Making Unit (DMU) within the account is the foundation of any successful Account-based Marketing program.

And this is where Account-based Advertising comes in. Account-based Advertising allows you to hyper-target and hyper-personalize digital marketing campaigns to these named accounts.

Simply put, account-based advertising means your digital advertising campaigns are highly focused and centered on only those accounts you wish to engage, penetrate, and win.

Account-based advertising allows you:

Amplify your digital advertising campaigns to increase the chances of winning a deal. Expanding your retargeting from the original website visitor to the wider DMU will increase your chances significantly.

We’re familiar with the large number of target account contacts involved in a decision making process (6-10 according to Gartner). Digital advertising allows you to reach and influence this wider important group.

Focus your marketing spend and drive higher ROI of your digital advertising budget by targeting those accounts that display intent signals.

How to be Successful with Account-based Advertising

Let’s take a look at what makes up a successful account-based advertising campaign.

1. Consider your account-based advertising options.

There are many digital advertising options available (and the number is growing). There are a large number of digital advertising partners and ABM platforms that can provide access to these channel tactics.

Ensure you carefully choose your tactics and channels, based on your marketing budget, messaging, and audience.

A) Programmatic Advertising

Many of us are familiar with this form of advertising. These advertisements are generated via cookie-based targeting and the advertisements appear natively in-channel, delivering a far more natural impact. The ads are served up on websites and apps through online platforms such as Google, Avocet, or AdRoll publication networks.

A subset of Programmatic Advertising allows you to target the actual device that conducted the search, as well. This is a step forward from traditional IP-based targeting, particularly in light of the explosion in remote working in the last few months which will undoubtedly continue for some time.

B) LinkedIn Paid Advertising

LinkedIn has become a major player in the digital advertising arena. They offer a (growing) number of formats and options for you to target the Accounts and/or Persona of interest to you:

Advertising options such as Sponsored Content allow you to deliver content to the LinkedIn feed of members beyond those who are following you or your company — which enables you to target specific prospects within target Accounts. The important benefit is specific content can be delivered at-scale.

Additionally, LinkedIn paid advertising allows you to test different ad units depending on the campaign objectives, which stage of the funnel to which you’re looking to promote, and the scale of the tactic/channel.

C) Content Syndication

This is a common awareness stage tactic you might use for one-to-many ABM to promote your content across a wide B2B content syndication network of websites, blogs, social media, etc. (To learn more about how to syndicate your content, take a look at Content Syndication: What It Is & How to Do It Successfully).

D) Retargeting

We’re all familiar with retargeting, although we may not know it. Did you ever notice that ads appear related to your recent searches when you’re reading your favorite blog content or perusing Facebook? This is thanks to retargeting.

Retargeting is a feature that lets you customize your display ads campaign for people who have previously visited your site, and tailor your ads (using dynamic retargeting) to these visitors when they browse the web and use social media apps.

The key here is not to tire your audience with the same ads but to constantly refresh and always be relevant to your audience.

2. Keep your audience and persona top-of-mind when personalizing content.

Data-backed buyer persona research is the foundation of any ABM campaign and this is certainly true with any digital advertising campaign that accompanies it.

Personalization is key. Desk research and in-depth insight reports will shine a light on the account and the industry to which it belongs. Further research into the DMU and named individuals within the account will inform your messaging and digital advertising strategy.

Keeping your audience in-mind will ensure your content resonates.

Remember that your message will be read by human beings who are facing specific challenges, so make it a priority to understand their pain points and challenges.

Always ensure that your message is empathetic, builds rapport, and focuses on how you can help solve their challenges — rather than how great your business is.

Putting your personas at the heart of your campaign strategy will help you see success with your Account-based advertising campaign. Always review which of your previous campaigns have resonated strongly with your audience — what content formats and language do they respond to best?

3. Make your messages as relevant as possible to your target audience.

With an ABM one-to-one campaign, you should research the target company in detail to make sure your messaging is as relevant as possible, speaking to both the challenges of the persona and the organization at-large. With a one-to-few program, you might customize the message by industry vertical or sales challenge.

Even at the one-to-many level, consider how you can add light-touch personalization and keep it relevant. Review whether the advertising tactic/channel you choose enables you to add some helpful personalization tokens, including first name, last name, company name, job title, and industry.

As a general rule, it’s best not to get too carried away with the number of CTAs you use. Rather than presenting users with a short message and five CTAs, start by compelling them to take the most important action first (such as downloading an ebook) and then stagger the additional options using the sequence to ensure there’s enough context around each offer. The ‘ask’ should be crystal clear!

4. Consider your searcher’s intent and use the right keywords to match it.

Intent data can provide valuable insights to help you ensure that you target only those Accounts that are in an active buyer’s journey. The image below illustrates the process to narrow down an initial ‘in-house’ Target Account list by a) looking at your first party data — who is engaged with your brand? and b) using intent data to see which Accounts are in an active buyer journey.

This intersection of first and third-party data is the sweet spot and where your Account-based Advertising can be deployed at will.

Equally, when it comes to the topics and messaging you’ll be sharing, intent data can ensure they will resonate with your intended audience. What keywords are they trending around and does your messaging answer the questions they’re actively trying to solve?

Image Source

Work any relevant keywords into your sequence … without going overboard with buzzwords, of course!

Even though your audience may be trending around multiple topics, it’s best to keep your messaging focused on just one topic to avoid confusion. This ad format works especially well when you have multiple assets around a single topic — for instance, an ebook, video, and blog article. This enables users who aren’t ready to convert yet to explore some of your other content and increases your brand awareness within the audience.

Top tip: If you only want users to take a single action, then consider using LinkedIn InMail messaging or a Sponsored update, instead.

It’s All In Your Hands

Account-based Marketing is clearly here to stay, and more and more organizations will adopt or expand their existing ABM programs.

Data and technology now open up a myriad of opportunities to B2B marketers to deliver a hyper-personalized experience that will only increase as new ways are discovered to seek out and target the accounts you wish to win or grow. Account-based advertising will be a thrilling area to watch over the coming months and years.

Source link

[hochspringer-blog]

4th week exercise

STEP 1: Create graphs of your variables one at a time (univariate graphs).

Examine both their center and spread.

STEP 2: Create a graph showing the association between your explanatory and response variables (bivariate graph).

Your output should be interpretable (i.e. organized and labeled).

For your convinience find the Code I used here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1HhH60e3SfD5CmfgZGQZLfylL3nO7VURw/view?usp=sharing

Together with the output here:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1K2HeFRvfKU-G_eBgAHE54oRXWn-f5tre/view?usp=sharing

Oh boy. First of all I have to say I am sorry. This weekend the SAS Online Server has been down. https://odamid.oda.sas.com/SASODAControlCenter/

HTTP Status 404 - Not Found

As I write this it is switching to:

Service Unavailable

The server is temporarily unable to service your request due to maintenance downtime or capacity problems. Please try again later.

Apache/2.4.6 (CentOS) Server at odamid.oda.sas.com Port 443

First I tried to solve it with Python, but this did not work after 3 weeks of SAS in just a couple of hours. I downloaded and installed the SAS University Edition. In the end it worked but not with the coding from the examples, since GPLOT and GCHART are not within the licensee. You will therefore find a different code statement in my code.

Good examples of the new syntax could be found here.

http://support.sas.com/resources/papers/proceedings10/154-2010.pdf

Paper 154-2010 // Using PROC SGPLOT for Quick High-Quality Graphs // Susan J. Slaughter, Avocet Solutions, Davis, CA /// Lora D. Delwiche, University of California, Davis, CA

Step 1)

First have a look at the three variables:

Incomeperperson  "The average income per person per year in US$" lifeexpectancy "The average number of years a newborn child would live" alcconsumption "The average Alcohol consumption per adult (age 15+) per year in liters";

Incomeperperson

Summary:

190 out of the 213 had reported the income per person per year in US$ .

The mean is 8740.97$.

The standard deviation is 14263$.

The median is 2553.50$.

As you can see it in the graph it is heavily centered at the low income category.

lifeexpectancy

Summary:

191 out of the 213 had reported the average number of years a newborn child would live .

The mean is 69.75

The standard deviation is 9.70

The median is 73.1 

The mode is 72.97

We see two peaks. A small one at arround 57 and the other at arround 75.

alcconsumption

Summary:

187 out of the 213 had reported the average number of years a newborn child would live .

The mean is 6.689

The standard deviation is  4.899

The median is 5.920000

We see two peaks. A small one at arround 57 and the other at arround 75.

Step 2)

Here are my association between my explanatory and response variables (bivariate graph).

1) Association between Life Expectancy and Alchol Consumption

2) Association between Life Expectancy and Income

3) Association between Alchol Consumption and Income

Summary:

Two of the three bivariate graphs 1) and 3) show not association.

Within the 2) bivariate graph I can see an association between Life Expectancy and Income. If the Life Expectancy of a new born is above 70, we have a big increase in the average anual income in US$. I would suggest drawing a line as follow.

If you do not want to open the link of the files at the top. Please find for your convinience a screenshot of the code I wrote.

Thank you very much for the effort to review my work. I hope it was somewhat clear. And I applogize again, that I had to use the University Edition due to Server downtime.

Best Regards

Hochspringer

[dansnaturepictures]

Rutland Water Blog 4: 21/08/2021: Egleton Nature Reserve-Blog 2 of 2: Sedge Warbler, Hobby, grebes and more and summary thoughts on the trip 

Then we looked in on a hide close to the reedbeds where another bright blue Migrant Hawker this weekend danced along.

Then we were astounded as two Sedge Warblers, possibly young, were around right in front of the hide. We saw them in reeds and picking on the muddy floor to an incredible detail being right in front of us, seeing their warm and sweet colours and wonderfully striking eye striped markings. It was sensational and I was utterly mesmerised to be in their presence and get to see them so well. They were amazing photo opportunities and it went down as the maybe runaway unexpected wow moment of the trip. I am used to seeing this favourite bird of mine close up when at Rutland Water but that’s as they feature heavily in the brilliant BTO ringing demonstration which we enjoy a lot every year and is such a key part of why they are one of my favourites. So to see them more wildly very close up was a special nod to one of my favourite bits of the Bird Fair. What a year I have had for them. What a bird. What a moment a real standout moment in my entire time watching this species over the years. I got the first picture in this photoset among others tweeted on Dans_Pictures of one of these. A Reed Warbler was around and a Cetti’s Warbler calling in front of the hide too which was nice. 

I liked seeing some hides and bits of the reserve that in the busyness of Bird Fair when we do come up perhaps we’d never been to before and taking a look into the open main bit of Rutland Water at part of the South arm and it looked gorgeous as did so much of the water, wooded and rural landscape again today. I took the second and third pictures in this photoset of this area where dozens of Tufted Ducks rafting stood out too probably the most Tufted Ducks we’ve ever seen at once before another key moment with a diving duck today. 

After a lovely cup of tea at the visitor centre and a refreshing lunch at the car where we saw the lovely white-lipped snail in the fourth picture in this photoset looking nice and yellow we explored the maybe more familiar place to us overall hides south of the visitor centre. In what can be a memorable part of time away in Britain especially in the summer the heavens opened for most of this saunter around most of the rest of the hides. But this did not dampen our enthusiasm as we saw yet more amazing wildlife.

Slick Osprey as shown again in the sixth picture I took today in this photoset and gigantic Great White Egret wrote this weekend’s name in my personal wildlife history books somewhat. We just saw them so many more times in an already very packed day and weekend for them. With Great White Egrets nearly everywhere we turned we got a very intimate view of one flying towards us making out its immense scale in one of the hides which was great. And we saw an Osprey sat in a bare tree as the photo shows in the water at lots of the hides as we really made the most of seeing this iconic species so dear to us at a place we hold dear. It’s so lovely to see both these species in such high numbers here in varying ways. The Ospreys obviously boasts of the inspirational project of bringing these endearing and spectacular raptors back to their rightful habitat and the immense hard work of so many wonderful people to make it happen. And the Great White Egrets speak of this species’ ever more successful imitation of the Little Egret’s invasion possibly fuelled by global warming and bird’s ranges heading north this area is now so strong for both. It’s interesting there has been much debate about whether Grey Herons can continue to do well with the egret species thriving and more of these types of birds to arrive in bigger numbers going forward it seems. But nature is so beautifully balanced and I’ve seen both egret species and the Grey Heron in great harmony this weekend.

At the panoramic 360 degree hide one of my favourites here and the next along I took the seventh and eighth pictures in this photose of landscapes from here and fifth of a view from an earlier hide it was great to see a fairly big group of Little Grebes. On this lagoon we saw many Little Grebes and Great Crested too one pair with an adorable humbug chick on one of the adult’s backs which was amazing to see. A Green Sandpiper arriving was great to see again here too as were more Mute Swan families. And seeing a fancy falcon the Hobby glide over another astonishing raptor like the Spotted Redshank and flycatcher summed up what I meant about the quite random nature of birds I was seeing today and it was a very welcome sighting a very pleasant fifth time seeing a Hobby this year. I have to say though yesterday when I was marveling at the many dragonflies this strong site for them has to offer as I mentioned in yesterday’s posts I did say I was surprised we had not seen hobbies here more the dragonflies their main prey and one was reported at Lyndon. So it was great to get almost another thing I sort of predicted this year in seeing this one dash over the hide.

Some of the last hides we visited which we haven’t for years or might not have before overlooked the entire area of the Lyndon nature reserve we were at yesterday as the tenth picture in this photoset shows with the fifth taken of a hide before with the settlement nestled in on the hill above it. This was fascinating seeing it and prominent trees as shown in the picture I have enjoyed for so long at Lyndon from this unique angle. And it of course gave us some very valuable chances to see the Ospreys in their Manton bay manor with three visible the same birds from yesterday which it was exceptional to see again. A Great White Egret stood tall in the corner of water on our side and that as some of the final moments may just have summed up the trip.

Wildlife Sightings Summary: My first Yellow-legged Gull of the year, seven of my favourite birds the Osprey, Great White Egret, Little Egret, Great Crested Grebe, Pochard, Sedge Warbler and Green Woodpecker, one of my favourite butterflies the Small Tortoiseshell, Mallard, Tufted Duck, Gadwall, a quite early Wigeon, Teal, Shoveler, Moorhen, Coot, Canada Goose, Greylag Goose, Egyptian Goose, Mute Swan, Little Grebe, Cormorant, Grey Heron, Spotted Redshank, Greenshank, Ruff, Lapwing, Avocet, Ringed Plover, Dunlin, Green Sandpiper, Snipe, Common Tern, Black-headed Gull, Great Black-backed Gull, Hobby, Swift, Sand Martin, Reed Warbler, Goldfinch, Blue Tit, Chiffchaff, Spotted Flycatcher, Woodpigeon, Raven I have seen a lot of them this year here which I’ve not seen before here, Gatekeeper, a possible hairstreak butterfly early on flitting around trees, Common Darter, Migrant Hawker, Common Blue Damselfly, Rabbit, white-lipped snail, other snails and black slugs about a lot in the run up to hides in the rain, crane fly, spiders, wasp, newt and I heard a Cetti’s Warbler. Well that brings to an end as anticipated one of my best times this year. There was no Bird Fair but as I said yesterday it was a true bird fest with I had to count as I recorded seeing so many 53 species seen. I saw so many birds, butterflies, dragonflies, damselflies, mammals, flowers and other insects and so well seeing some extremely important species for my year. It was such fun in a really beautiful area too and a great time to relax and reflect on our return to this precious area for us. I felt very safe with the use of my face mask and lots of chances for hand sanitation at the hotel and reserves and with how much we truly packed in especially all the walking between hides both days I felt that sweet sensation of feeling so positively tired at the end of the day after a journey home when the sun emerged with some glorious bright scenes and orangey ones too as the sun set a bit seen from the car a quite enjoyable journey. The time at Rutland Water was like a tapestry of gleeful moments woven from our experiences of the wildlife watching side of Bird Fairs of past including regularly in them and new memories alike. What a time away. Thanks for your appreciation of all my posts about it.

My first post about the time at Egleton today is this one:��https://dansnaturepictures.tumblr.com/post/660261401265405952/rutland-water-third-blog-210821-egleton-nature

[timespassiontrails]

Birds in my backyard……and elsewhere.

Recently, I had the honour and good fortune to participate in a “Wildlife and Bird Photography Expedition”, known as Times Passion Trail.  This was organised by the popular English daily newspaper, The Times of India.  This was from February 18th to February 24th 2018.  The expedition was across five dream destinations for wild life and birding enthusiasts;

Thol lake Bird Sanctuary

Little Rann of Kutch

Nalsarovar

Velavadar blackbuck sanctuary and

Gir lion sanctuary

Day 1: The Flag-off by the Honorable Chief Minister of Gujarat

The participants were addressed by the Honourable chief minister of Gujarat, Shri. Vijay Rupani.

The great thing about this expedition was that, it had the guidance of an “Experience Architect”, Shri. Sanat Shodhan, one of the most acclaimed wild-life photographers of India. He was with us throughout the expedition, giving us his invaluable advise on improving the quality of our photography, sharing his experiences about his encounters with the wildlife in different parts of the world.

Visit to Thol Bird Santuary

Our expedition was flagged off by the Hon ‘ble Chief Minister Shri. Vijay Rupani.

Our first stop was Thol lake, near Thol village in Kadi in Mehsana District.  It was constructed as an irrigation tank in 1912 by the Gayakwad regime.  This is a freshwater lake, which was declared the Thol Bird Sanctuary in 1988.  It is a habitat to 150 species of resident and migratory birds, more than half of which are water birds.

We climbed over a small ridge.  When we descended,  the beautiful vista of the lake lay before us. It was almost 4 o’clock in the afternoon when we arrived.   All of us spread out around the edge of this lake and started clicking away to glory. There were innumerable birds of various species swimming, wading, and diving in the lake; all feeding harmoniously as there was plenty of food for everyone! We could see various types of ducks, pintails, pond herons, Grey herons, stilts, Eurasian Spoonbills, Common cranes, Pelicans, Greylag geese, Common coots, Cormorants, Darter birds, Northern shovelers, Pied kingfishers, Ibises……. the list seemed to be endless.

 It was quite hot and humid around the lake. My glasses were constantly getting clouded by the water vapour rising up from the lake,  but I was too engrossed in my work to bother about such discomforts!   All the birds had some unique features; the cormorants and darters drying their wings; the still, stealthy walk of the pond herons; the way the Green bee-eaters return to the same perch repeatedly after a sally, etc.  Of particular interest was the way the Pied kingfishers hover high above the lake and dive very suddenly to catch the hapless fish!

As dusk approached and the sun was getting ready to call it a day, we were treated to a sight very unique to Thol…. innumerable flocks of birds returning in waves from their daily forages elsewhere…. like beautiful garlands in the pretty pink sky! It was a sight to behold!

And we too called it a day; a very happy, satisfied bunch of newly formed friends.

Day 2: Little Rann of Kutchchh,

Popularly known as LRK.

The second day began very early.  We left Ahmedabad downtown, around 5.30 am in our cavalcade of Innovas.  We had our packed breakfast on our way, so that we could reach as early as possible.  We reached our resort at Bajana at about 8 am, grabbed a quick cup of tea and were on our way to LRK.

We couldn’t travel in our Innovas here.  We clambered into off-roader Safaris.  The Little Rann of Kutchchh is famous as the world’s last refuge of the Indian Wild Ass (Equs hemionus khur), and has been declared as The Indian Wild Ass Sanctuary.  When I saw the the landscape, I realised why our normal vehicles would have been unsuitable here.  It is very barren, dry and harsh like a desert, but in reality, it is a salt marsh.  So, it is dry, hot and brown for most of the part, with very sparse, thorny vegetation, primarily Acacia, ; dotted with some small lakes.  Many resident and migratory water birds visit these water bodies.  Besides the wild ass, the Indian wolf, desert fox, striped hyenas and nilgai are also found here.

Our guide Munnabhai showed us the cumin fields on our way to LRK. This region is famous for cumin cultivation.

After entering the Sanctuary, we came across a water body and saw many water birds like egrets, greylag geese, herons, pelicans, pied kingfisher as well as the common cranes.

Our first exposure to raptors was when we saw what I believed to be a juvenile tawny eagle perched on a stone hidden in the grass. Moving on, we came across an Imperial eagle, majestically perched atop a thorny tree.

However, we were all impatient for the first sight of the wild ass by then.  Traversing over the large expanse of dry and dusty desert, we could even see mirages as it was approaching noon and the sun was beating down.

And then….we saw them…the wild ass. They were mostly in groups.  We kept our distance and didn’t go too close as they are a nervous, skittish breed, which starts bounding away at the first sight of danger.  Though they were bigger and stronger than the normal ass, they didn’t seem stronger than mules.

We saw some nilgais in the distance.  The local guides are very protective of the wild life, and are very careful. They don’t take the vehicles too close to the animals and caution the visitors not to make any noise.

We then drove to a water body which was larger than the previous one. We were thrilled to have our first sighting of the flamingos, lesser as well as greater.  We also saw large flocks of pelicans, egrets, pied avocets as well as common cranes.

By now we were starting to feel the pangs of hunger, so we returned to Bajana for lunch and a little rest. It was anyway too hot for the wildlife as well to venture out.

This Royal Forest resort was tastefully decorated with ethnic, antique, wooden handicrafts at the reception as well as the cottages.

In the afternoon, we took a different route.  We saw some more groups of wild asses, greylag geese, common cranes, greylag geese etc.  We caught sight of a short-eared owl, which was completely camouflaged in the brown earth and dry vegetation.  Then the guide showed us something very interesting…an abandoned den of a wolf.

We were told by our guides about a thicket,  where we could possibility of witnessing a hyena coming out.   As dusk was gathering, we went to this thicket.  We waited in complete silence, all 25 of us, for a glimpse of the hyena.  Can you imagine a group of 25 people waiting in complete silence, for almost half an hour? That is what wildlife photography teaches you – PATIENCE!   We finally got a glimpse, but it was too fleeting and by then, it was too dark to take a photograph.

By the time we started back, it was completely dark.  We saw a few Montague’s harriers roosting on open ground in our headlights!

My most rewarding sight was the view of the star-studded sky, which we rarely get to see in the city!

Day 3: Nal Sarovar

I had already been to Nal Sarovar about three years ago.  The earlier trip, spread over two sessions at Nal Sarovar and Vadla dam, fetched me wonderful pictures of several dozens of birds, almost 80% of which were lifers!  However, I was equally excited to visit the place once again.

Nal Sarovar bird sanctuary consists of a beautiful lake and ambient marshes, dotted with several small islands, called by the locals as “Tapu”.  It is frequented by various migratory birds in winter and spring.  It is the largest bird sanctuary in Gujarat, and one of the largest in India. It was declared as a bird sanctuary in April 1969.  Nal Sarovar has also been declared as  Ramsar Site on  September 24, 2012.

It is a very unique sanctuary.  The water in the lake is, on an average, four feet deep.  It is very still and clear…you can easily see the vegetation under the surface.  One can go in small boats seating 4-8 birders, which the local boatmen navigate with a bamboo pole, gliding silently between the marshes, facilitating observation of birds at leisure.  These boatmen are well informed about the birds, having been doing this job of steering boats, while doubling as guides, for a number of years.  You would think that as the lake is only four feet deep, a tall person could easily wade through it!  But this is not feasible, as he would get entangled in the submerged vegetation!

We reached Nal Sarovar well before sunrise, thanks to our early departure at 5 am from Bajana near LRK.  In fact, we were already in our boats and gently gliding in the waters, by the time the sun made an appearance.  What a beautiful sunrise it was!  The calm and still waters, gentle breeze, birds sailing around waiting for the sunlight to overcome the darkness and getting the first bites of their breakfast!  Beautiful and Serene…..!

The first birds we spotted were Eurasian coots in very large numbers. The coots have a very curious way of suddenly scooting over the water surface, half flying and half running.   It looks very hilarious.  The Gulls floating and taking off into the orange morning sky made a very pretty picture.  We noted several birds like purple swamphens, black-winged stilts, the ruddy shelduck, which were always seen in pairs; the noisy red-wattled lapwings, black-tailed godwits, common redshanks, red-naped, glossy and black-headed ibis, open-billed as well as painted storks, the phaesant-tailed jacanas…….the list seems endless!  Incidentally, the Phaesant-tailed jacana was without its famous long curved tail.  Our Boatman-cum-guide told us that the long tail appears only in the summer months… possibly their breeding season.

The flamingos and pelicans were also present, which we didn’t see in very large numbers.

The surprise treat of the morning was the “breakfast-on-boats”, thoughtfully arranged by our youthful, energetic, imaginative and caring organisers; Harshit Sharma and Manoj Joshi. We had Bataka-Poha (a local savory dish made from flattened rice and potatoes) and hot tea, right in the beautiful lake amidst those birds!

We visited a couple of islands too and witnessed a variety of wagtails, babblers, prinia, white-cheeked bulbuls, warblers, and rosy starlings.

When we came back to the shore, we were treated with hot “gota” Bhajjiyas (Chick-pea-fenugreek-green chilli dumplings) and tea.  Bird-watching and walking on the islands, does make you hungry!

On our way back, I was thrilled to find some  beautiful purple sunbirds hopping around merrily on the flowers of the bottle-brush tree near the Nal Sarovar cafeteria.

And then, it was time for us to bid good-bye to this paradise on water and begin our drive to Bhavnagar.

That evening our young organisers arranged for the projection of pictures clicked by the participants.   Our Guru Sanat ji gracefully and gently guided all of us on how our pictures could be better and more effective.  He gave us valuable advise us about the composition, lighting, aperture, shutter speed, ISO selection and all the dos and don’ts of wildlife photography.  He offered very valuable tips about our attire, while going on wildlife expeditions.

Day 4: Velavadar Blackbuck National park.

The next morning we drove to Velavadar national park.  This national park is located in the Saurashtra region of Gujarat, about 42 KM from the district headquarter city of Bhavnagar. It originally belonged to the Maharaja of the erstwhile princely state of Bhavnagar. He used to hunt the blackbucks with his famous hunting cheetahs.

This wild life sanctuary covers an area of approx. 34 sq. km. It is mostly flat and covered with different types of dry grasses dotted with sparse thorny acacia trees or scrubs.  The sanctuary is dotted with a few water bodies. So the first impression it gives, is that of vast expanses of brown and beige.

The predominant population is that of the blackbucks! The other fauna includes the neel gai, the Indian wolf, hyenas, foxes, jackals, wild boars and jungle cats.  Among birds,  sandgrouse, larks, harriers, kestrels, drongos, hoopoes etc. are seen here along with water birds like spoonbills, painted storks, egrets and common cranes etc.

Once again, we drove along the dirt tracks under the guidance of the sanctuary guides.   The dry grass lands stretching out on both the sides.  The grass appeared to be of uniform height and colour.

The first sighting of the blackbuck was very exciting, particularly the male of the species.  It has a lovely, rich, dark brown coat along the back, sides, and the outsides of the legs.  It looks almost black, hence the name.   The underparts and insides of the legs are all white. The most interesting are the distinct white circles around the dark eyes, which gives a feeling that they were wearing some white-rimmed spectacles.  They have a white goatee as well!  The long ringed horns, give it a majestic and graceful look.   They graze peacefully in small groups or large herds.  If they sense danger, they bolt away really fast.  It is a beautiful sight to see them spring up and be airborne for the better part of several seconds, while crossing the mud tracks.

We saw quite a few nil gais, also called as blue bulls.  The word nil gai literally means blue cows. It is an antelope just like a blackbuck, even though they look totally different.  The males are distinctively bluish-grey, with short horns, while the females are a lighter, indistinct blue.

In the afternoon, we had a simple but sumptuous lunch, prepared by the locals.

Before the lunch, we had a very fruitful, interactive session with Mr. Mohan Ram Legha, IFS, the Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bhavnagar Division, and Mr. Mahesh Trivedi the Asstt. Conservator of Forests.  Mr Mohan Ram  gave us enlightening information about the measures taken to protect the animals as well as the grasslands; we were really impressed!  Utmost care is taken to see that the water supply is adequate for the fauna.  If the natural supply is depleted, it is re-charged by water-tankers.  For most part of the year, the grass is dry.  To prevent forest fires, large swathes of grass between the two plots are cut down.

Wildlife conservation in Gujarat, is safe in such good hands!

The blackbucks are very delicate.  If they are captured, they go into shock (like a cardiac arrest), which they can’t survive!  The blackbucks are protected not only by the forest authorities but also by the local people. If the wild animals occasionally destroy the standing crops belonging to the local farmers outside the sanctuary, they  refuse any compensation, leave alone asking for it!

In the later half of the day, we went near a waterbody and saw some spoonbills, painted storks, common kestrels, hoopoes etc.  As dusk was falling, we saw a couple of wolves in the distance, which were probably very young cubs.

All in all, it was a great day, well spent!

Day 5 & 6: Sasan Gir.

We left in the morning around 7.30 am after a buffet-breakfast.  We took a break in the outskirts of Amreli and munched on the famous Bhavnagari Ganthia (Light crisp fries made of chick-pea flour with local condiments), with three different types of chutneys and piping hot tea. We arrived at the resort around lunch.  Our stay was arranged in a beautiful resort “Woods at Sasan”, which was built in a mango orchard.  The décor was unique, the architecture and layout was stupendous, and hospitality was superb. The touch of rustic ambiance was complemented by use of coir-ropes winding around steel structural columns.

We started for the afternoon safari around 3.00 pm. The Gir Forest national Park and Wildlife Santuary, was originally in the territory ruled by the Nawabs of Junagadh.  They used to invite the British Sahibs, to hunt the lions.  More than a hundred years ago, during one such expedition, Nawab Mohammed Rasool Khan ji II, realised that there were hardly any lions left for his guests! He decided to declare Gir Forest as a protected area.  His son, Mahabat banned all kinds of hunting in Gir Forest.  The Government of India established this as a Asiatic Lion Sanctuary in 1965.

This region is the sole home for Asiatic Lion (Panthera leo persica) in the wilderness. The ecosystem of Gir is protected as a result of persistent efforts of the forest department Government of Gujarat, to ensure education and inculcation of pride in the local folklore.  Their efforts have borne fruits, which was obvious from the passion and pride in the locals to preserve the ecosystem and ensure safety to the fauna.  The activists, NGOs and the Wild life enthusiasts have also played their role. We saw te local guides halting the safaris to pick up trash from the tracks, thrown by some of our previous tourists. What a commitment to the environment by these guys, whom we consider uneducated!

During monsoon, which coincides with the mating season of the lions, the sanctuary is closed to the public and visitors. When we asked our guide about the livelihood during the monsoon months, he replied the youngsters went to neighbouring towns to find work, but majority just stayed put in their villages. They don’t have any income.  The local folks are totally dependent on the tourists, guiding them thru’ this glorious forest and proudly demonstrating the wild-life.

The Gir sanctuary is very green as compared to the other places we had visited earlier this week. It is a deciduous forest, dotted with small lakes. Water tanks have been built in several places for the lions and the other wildlife to quench their thirst. The lions hunt during the night and rest during the day. They prefer to walk on the dirt tracks, to avoid making a noise walking on the dry leaves of the forest, as the prey would hear them easily and be warned of the imminent danger. We could see their pugmarks on the track.  Of course, they were brought to our notice by the guides.

The ‘flame-of-the-forest’ tree (also called as Palash in Hindi), were in full bloom, adding to the beauty of the forest.  We could see parrots, the oriental white eye and sunbirds among the blooms.

I was lucky to see so many birds- three species of owls, black redstart, peafowls, common buzzard, sand grouse etc.

We saw a good many “sambars” and the spotted deer or chitals.

Primarily, we had come here to see the majestic Asiatic lion! And, see him we did! In the first safari, we saw only one lioness, who was resting lazily in a clearing. But we went on two more safaris the next day, the early morning one at 6 am, and again at 3.30 pm.  We learnt quite a bit from our guides.  The male lion is basically a loner, and generally hunts on his own.  The lioness is the one, who looks after the cubs and hunts to feed the entire pride. The lions have their own territories, where they are the kings.  A rival lion attacks the male cub to decrease competition, leaving the female cub unharmed!

In the morning safari, we saw a pride of lionesses and their cubs. But we waited….

And there came the one we were eagerly waiting for – the lion king! He came walking majestically through the trees, crossed the dirt track in front of our vehicles to go towards the water tank and have his fill.  His whole bearing was regal, totally nonchalant and not at all bothered about the attention he was getting! And we, the mere humans were clicking away happily! Our day was made!!

Day 7: Way back

We started our journey back…. with heavy hearts, bidding adieu to each other, reminiscing the pleasant memories of the past one week.

While we were passing thru’ Junagadh, we saw these stupendous structures!  We never knew that such wonderful architecture existed in the town of Junagadh!

Apparently, the Nawab of Junagadh, Mahabat Khan created these wonderful structures as the Makbaras!

My take-away from this expedition:

I am more of a passionate birder than a photographer.  In fact, this was my first brush with wildlife photography as opposed to bird photography.  This expedition was a godsend for me, as an introduction to wildlife.  It was such a great mix of different eco-systems: wetland sanctuaries, Rann or salt desert, grasslands and deciduous forests etc. We got to see a wide variety of birds and animals.

Having Sanat sir on board was an unforgettable gift. I won’t be able to forget his energy and enthusiasm, which could put youngsters to shame. His vast experience of wildlife photography, all over the world, was shared by him for our benefit. He was open with his praise, at the same time he didn’t hesitate to tell us, where we went wrong. A very great teacher and motivator indeed! Thank you Sanat sir!

All the arrangements made by the Times of India team, were impeccable.

And above all, thank you dear friends for being a part of this beautiful experience……  I learnt a lot from all of you! I am sure our friendship will continue……

Thank you, Times Passion Trail, for igniting the love of ‘wildlife’ photography in me!

by Aditi Deshpande

[trash-monkey]

The Special Doctor

Chapter 2

"This place is very beautiful." I said once I glance around after I come through the whole before the boy tugged on my sleeve again, we walked pass some kids playing or doing some chores.

"You're going to have to pull your shoes off before we go inside." I nod and pull them off before pulling a clean pair out of my satchel, Millard then lead me inside and to a door that you can clearly see that it's Miss Peregrine office. Millard knocked on the door and waited until she spoke before walking in. Miss Peregrine smiled when she saw Millard and me, she quickly thanked the young boy before sending him off and offered me a sit.

"Hello Mr. Edward, I'm Miss Peregrine and welcome to my home for peculiar children. " She said once I sit down and I quickly thanked her for having me.

"Miss Avocet has informed me that you don't stay in a loop very long." I nod.

"That's correct, I love traveling and that allows me to farther my knowledge on my studies." I don't blame her for being protective of her wards since they're basically her children and she don't want my knowledge of the outside world to contaminate them, I have seen what happens to them once they stay out there to long.

"Your studies?" She rises an eyebrow.

"Yes, Anatomy, Physiology, and Medicine which helps me control and use my peculiarity more affective. It also why I have agree to Miss Avocet request of coming here, she said that something happened to one of your wards?" She frowns as sadness fills her, she slowly nods.

"If you can share some information of what happened I can tell you right now if I can truly do something to help." I can tell she's reluctant to say anything.

"Miss Peregrine I'm a doctor for peculiar children, I have been for many years, I have studied with my heart on my sleeve in doctoring and trust Miss Avocet decision of sending me here, she knew I can help." Finally her will breaks down so I sit there and listen as she speaks of a boy called Viktor Bruntely.

⏳⏰⌛

I follow Miss Peregrine up the stairs and onto the second floor of the Manor to a door at the end of the hall. She gentle open the door and allow me in before shuting the door. The room itself is plain but what caught my attention is the boy laying on the bed that sits in the middle of the room.

"This is Victor." The boy in question has no eyes meaning he had a run in with a Hollowgasts. I sighed in sadness that this happen to the poor boy. I take off my satchel and coat before putting them aside, I lift my suitcase onto the night stand and open it to see different sizes and shapes of medicines all organized, I grab the right papers I need.

"Here, fill everything you can out." I said as I hand her some papers to fill out before pulling out a empty folder and some notebook paper with a clipboard to take some notes.

"If he's going to become my patient I need to know everything about him." I asked her some questions about when this happened, where, when did she finds him, if he was with anyone at the time it happened, and more writing every I can down.

"I apologize if I'm asking to many questions Miss Peregrine but I need all the information I can get." I push my large round glasses up the bridge of my nose.

"It's ok my dear and I understand." She smiled before rubbing Victor's cheek after she hand me the papers agains, I stick them into the folder that I label his name on.

"Do you wish to stay?" I asked as I rolled my sleeves to my elbows, she nods.

"Then I need some soap, a towel, and a pan of water." She quickly goes to get what I need.

"Hello Victor my name is Edward and I'm here to help you. Don't be alarm with what I'm about to do and don't worry Miss Peregrine will be here for you." She comes back in with everything I need, I quickly wash my hand with the soap and dried them.

_______________________________________________

[spikewriter]

Oh, @alexa-santi-author …

And now, a little sea-esta after our 40th fiesta🌊😴