Hats and Rats

One of each.

First, the hat. Finished!



Nice to do, probably more in my future.

Then the rat. You will be relieved to learn, no photo. I was dealing with laundry yesterday, went dashing in to the porch to check the tumble dryer, and nearly fell over one very dead rat on the floor. Yes, you guessed it, one of my little darlings had left me a present. Probably Neelix, who despite the lack of fangs, can still hunt when the mood strikes.

I don't like rats particularly, but this one was actually quite....pretty? Silvery grey back, very white belly, not too scaly a tail. When I had a moment, I checked in our guide to British mammals, and wondered if it was in fact rattus rattus instead of norvegicus. So when the DSM got home, I sent him out to the dustbin, where the corpse had come to rest,with torch and tape measure. I do like to encourage his spirit of scientific inquiry. No definitive answer was forthcoming.

Anyway, I googled this morning, and seemingly, rattus rattus is practically non-existent in the UK - so must have been a youngish, not too raddled norvegicus. I'd just as soon not have any more for further investigation!

It was wildlife day chez nous yesterday. I had been standing at the bedroom window in the morning when a swooping bird caught my eye, of a raptorish nature, possibly. I was puzzled by the very pale colour, though. Anyway, a friend dropped in for coffee later, and she suddenly spotted something too, so I left her keeping a beady eye on its movements while I got the binoculars. The light was very poor, and it was partly obscured by the trees, so not easy. Kestrel would have been the most likely, as they are pretty common and I have seen them in the fields down the valley, but I actually lean towards it being a sparrowhawk. I have seen those as well, and I think both the jiz and the behaviour were more like. The earlier colour was a trick of the light.

Today, I have been living in a small swarm of long tailed tits, one of my favourite birds, that often flock up around the house in winter. What would be nice is if this could be a goldcrest year - fingers crossed!

OK, so back to fibre. I don't have a decent project on the go as yet, and probably won't until I have finished pratting around with these dam' art yarns. Which I will photograph if I get anything half-way decent. So - back to the saltmines. I have the second audio version of the "Stormbreaker" series to finish whilst I do so, so that's ok, then.