Isn't life grand ?

Seven o'clock on a March Monday morning. It's blustery but bright. The swans are returning and heading North. We watch three groups fly low across the estuary towards their summer feeding grounds further up the coast. They're close enough for us to see the orange on their beaks. Two of the groups have twelve birds, the third ten. Their wings make that other worldly whoop whoop sound as they pass over us. How beautiful and stately they look.

In the far distance we see the farmers wife out walking the dogs. Moments later 'Puppy' appears. She's found an old potato that has become her pride and enjoy. She's keen to show it to us.

Soon afterwards elder sister and black spaniel arrive. Black spaniel trips over his feet and goes head over heels.

All three dogs then go round in circles chasing  each other . Some time later the farmers wife shows up. She's been calling for the dogs to join her but they've all gone down with a case of selective deafness.  Thankfully, she doesn't raise the question of the World cup. Nor do we.

Puppy, oblivious to human concerns, continues to proudly display the potato she's found. Isn't life grand ?

The university gardeners have been busy. The flower boxes outside the administration buildings are planted out and looking very festive and spring like in time for Easter.

Taking the leaves off strawberries :https://x.com/Rainmaker1973/status/2033166324374110239

The cost of building an Iranian drone :https://www.phenomenalworld.org/analysis/cost-of-a-shahed/

Water and sanitation in the third world. More involving than the title would suggest :https://substack.com/home/post/p-188824185

A walk in the wind :https://sketchplanations.substack.com/p/uitwaaien

The stomach as the second mind :https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/1119811

Is this a great place to live ... or not ? :https://www.codastory.com/disinformation/the-influencer-bubble-can-content-creators-continue-to-airbrush-the-gulf/

Guitar :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzjeU7pvINI