Walk with the Warden - Saturday 19th October 2024

 

This Saturday i`ll be doing the monthly Walk with the Warden at WWT Llanelli again.

The walk is more of a relaxed amble, taking in what`s around us, and not a "power-walk"! If any ramblers are planning on coming, please be aware of this.

At the moment it looks like some early rain / drizzle, but (hopefully) clearing up in time for the walk, which will start around 11.30am. However, please come prepared for the weather, AND with appropriate footwear, as we could be on some muddy paths.

Look forward to seeing you there.

At the WWT desk

 

Good to be at WWT this afternoon, doing a bit of covering at the Information Desk for a few hours, and chatting with a number of visitors along the way. 

As many of you might have gathered by now, WWT Llanelli is one of my happy-places, and after 19 years as a volunteer I still find it a place of refuge in this busy and often troubled world. I`m normally out on the Reserve, but this afternoon I was happy to help with the all-important contact with visitors.

This week hasn`t been easy, with the welfare and then the loss of our tortoiseshell Toffee taking over from most everything else, it`s been a bit difficult to get through. Whether i`m volunteering or even have some time to myself there, WWT Llanelli has been a place to unwind and de-stress. 

I`d just like to thank all the staff and other volunteers there for making it a happy place for both myself and the visitors that come through the Centre doors. It`s good for the mental health, and I feel privileged to be able to visit there both as a member, and continue to help as a volunteer whenever I can.

Northern lights

 

Last night, the Northern Lights (Aurora) were visible almost all over the world thanks to some recent solar flare activity hitting the Earth.

I needed to get away from street lights, so went to Penclawdd to face north across the Loughor river, and saw the reds and greens of the aurora. The photos I took, at slightly different `wide` angles, and different positions, showed up the mixture of colours and activity in the sky. I opted to use my wide 10-20mm Sigma to get in a lot of the more or less clear sky.

By tonight, there is a large mix of photos taken both across the country, and indeed the world. Some fantastic shots from the aurora in Norway in particular.

Hoping that last night wasn`t the last time for the year, as as I type (Friday evening), the alert level is down to yellow, and the sky quite cloudy. Happy I saw things last night though.

Toffee Myners

 Yesterday a little furry light went out when our beloved Toffee passed away. She had suffered significant trauma with a fractured tail, pelvic injuries, a loss to her nervous system in the pelvis and abdomen. How this was done we will never know, but the vet said it was consistent with a "pull injury", likely that she got her tail jammed somewhere.

We had only adopted her this year, but she was an extremely affectionate little tortoiseshell cat, quite vocal, but fitted in so well with the family.

She will be deeply missed by everyone, and i`m feeling that emptiness of her loss already.

Until we meet ........

The Hoopoe in Swansea

 I`ve never been one for rushing to see a rare bird, often descended upon a large groups of twitchers, (not me), which often leads to some kind of general melee. So I decided not to go to see the Hoopoe that had arrived along the Swansea Bay, but at the same time feeling it was a chance to see a bird i`d never seen before - let alone photographed. So I left it a number of days.

Yesterday I took the plunge and decided to go have a look as it was still around, and hoping any crowds would have thinned out. The forecast wasn`t good to start with, but it broke into a lovely day, and it didn`t take long for us to locate where the Hoopoe was.

What a fantastic bird! It was literally a few metres from us, at times too close to focus. Very confiding, and it was a "lifer" as they call it - when you`ve seen one for the very first time.

We had a good couple of hours with it before it eventually flew off over the beach, and around to the Gardens somewhere. By this time i`d taken hundreds of photos, so now begins the long process of wading through them. Should keep me quiet well into the autumn! 

I won`t be joining any realms of twitchers, but the handful of us that were there first thing were respectful and quiet. The Hoopoe was back and forth really very close, so all in all a great experience.

Don Powell Band video shoot - 30th September 2024

 

Just got back today from attending another video shoot with The Don Powell Band in the Midlands. (Note: I wasn`t doing the video shoot! A company from Kidderminster were doing it for the band. I was there as part of the crowd!)

Last year, the band were shooting a video for their then upcoming release "I am the Beat" cover, and for the first time it was one that fans could be part of the video. There was no hesitation grabbing the chance to be there again this year when the news got out.

We travelled up late morning to Kidderminster, and after later checking in to our overnight hotel, checked out the venue for the evening`s gig.

Once the doors opened, Don was already available to chat with fans, sign autographs and the like, and spent well over an hour before heading to the dressing rooms. It was a chance for us to bump into old friends, and the atmosphere was building evening more, with Slade and Don Powell Band music over the PA at a suitable volume!

For the video shoot, Don used the full chrome kit of one of his old mates, the late Cozy Powell, as the video shoot was for the future release of one of Cozy Powell`s old hits.

The band came on stage to a great reception, and as this was a video shoot to the already-recorded track, video was shot four or five times, with the camera guys covering various angles. (Working with a hand-held gimble for something like this is something i`ve always wanted to do). A "click track" counted in the group each time.

With the full kit mic`d up for live drumming on top of the backing track for the video, the drums just sounded like thunder. Fantastic.

The video shoot went well, and there were some "crowd shots" too, so don`t know whether we`ll be somewhere in the final cut!

Don spent so much time before and after the shoot signing autographs, chatting with people, posing for photos (sorry, i`m not posting one of me!), and just being an all `round nice guy.

I took a couple of things to be signed, including this CD booklet for the 1976 album Nobody`s Fools, and nothing was too much trouble for him.

This year, everyone that attended (and it was strictly limited tickets) received a free, signed copy of the new CD, which is embargoed until official release date.

Before we left Don was still in demand, but found time for everyone, including us. A quick chat and thankyous all `round, and a final chance to have a couple of photos with him. A real gentleman.

It was a great night, and look forward to seeing the final version of the video when the single is released.