Lots of rain last night and then this morning no wind, nothing at all.

So I went out with the camera to play.

Its amazing what you see when you upload the photos.  I never knew about this little chap (loving the hairy legs!)

The Bumble Bees were also making an effort on the last of the blue flowers (I think it is Aconitum napellus – holy cow, I’ve just found out it is the most poisonous plant in the garden).  The flowers had suffered in the recent storm but were still trying.  This poor Bumble Bee is, I think again, the Garden Bumblebee, Bombus hortorum.  Horrid mites on them all.

I used the Shetland Amenity Trust Shetland Bumble Bee Survey for identification.  If I am wrong, please tell me.  I hate having wrong information on t’net – my pet peeve.

And talking of pet peeves, here is one I prepared earlier.  I am forgiven, of course, for Loki biting her yesterday.  This is BeAnne’s birdwatching stance.  She understands sign language!

We were watching this little chap who was on very good form for weird and wonderful postures.  Someone ate all the pies!

Bless him, this is a favourite!

It was a good morning. I didn’t know that a blue bottle fly could look so beautiful.  What impressive colours.

Just in case you think my day was a complete waste, I did ride, lunge, school, work with and clean all the horses in the afternoon.

This morning BeAnne and Loki had a dust-up outside the chicken shed and BeAnne came off worst.  Naturally she is full of misery, resentment and feeling very sorry for herself.  Apparently, she may never walk again. We discovered a couple of small wounds which will be monitored carefully and I diagnose that her prognosis is good.

But resentment has good mileage if you are BeAnne.   She climbed under the desk when I mentioned going outside.

I eventually, after much cajoling, got her to go outside and then there was the sit down strike accompanied by “The Look”.

At that stage, I put her on a lead and I walked forwards, while she walked backwards.  Luckily for me she is a bear of very little brain and quickly forgot what it was she was hating.

And hopefully we are back to normal.

Meanwhile, I keep looking at The Fatties and wandering if they are looking slightly thinner.  Do you think so?  Perhaps?  A smidgeon?

Their eyes bore through me with an equine version of resentment and I feel awful.  I am not good at diets for myself or my animals.

But then I look at their field, and think that is not actually too bad.

There is resentment everywhere around me.  I think I might go into a decline now.

 

Yesterday was sunny so everyone was out of their fields as I wanted to work with them.  I left them around the outside of the house eating the long grass down.

All except three naughty little boys who snuck into the school to see what they could wreck.  They got two pooper-scoopers, some buckets, a rug, all the head collars and ropes, my jacket ……

So I shouted at them and they skipped outside, giggling.

They are like kids in the school corridor.

Incapable of walking nicely beside each other!

So we were all loafing on the grass in the sun –  this is a very rare picture of Loki and BeAnne together.

You can see how small The Minions are in comparison.  The ginger ninjas range from 13.1hh to 14hh (Kappi on the far left).

Do you think the little ones will be alright for winter?  Do I need to rug them, wash them, clip them (over my dead body) or hug them and have them in my house? (now we’re talking!)

A few views from my picnic blanket that I sat on to keep my bum dry.

This was one brave, or very stupid, bunny.

Loki never moved.

Iacs eating as nicely as he knows how!

My best view with my boy, Haakon.

Iacs for Daisy.  She misses him.  Who knows why.  Probably his silly frilly.

One Taktur nosey.

And one sweaty Kappi.

 

They are a lovely herd to sit and chat to.  I hope there are more days like this.

After the previous days of shite, today the sun shone and the wind gave up.  All was well with the world here in Shetland.

I called everyone up with the intention of riding, grooming and sorting back into fatties and non-fatties.

I rode Klaengur, Taktur and Haakon.  I free-reined Kappi and I brushed The Minions and put nappy rash cream on Storm’s green bottom (too much grass perhaps!)

The boys milled about outside the house.  You can tell that Klaengur is terrified of cars by the panicky way he is nodding off.

There was a specific bird singing away that I had spied on a previous visit to the compost heap.

So I decided to try and take some photos.

And then the helpers arrived.

For a cat that never moves in daylight hours, Wussums was very determined to help me.

As was BeAnne who was impossible.  Wherever I go, she follows.  I know and I can’t stop her or she becomes resentful.

But all credit to this little Goldcrest (Regulus regulus – btw the smallest bird in Europe) and his mate.  They just hopped through the trees and flew about beautifully singing their hearts out.

A bit of a little chub!  Ooof!

I never thought of myself as a twitcher but this has to be one of the sweetest little tweet-tweets I have seen.

(and no, neither Wussums or BeAnne put it off or got it – phew!)

Last night was “feisty”.  The rain poured in bucket loads, the wind howled and the roof leaked.

I worried about the horses all night and made deals with any deity listening for them all to be alive in the morning.  Phew!  They were and looked totally oblivious to what had gone on.  I know I should have kept Kappi and Klaengur on their diet, but I am not sorry I moved them and we will work extra-hard at the slimming thing once the weather has died down.

The burn flooded last night beyond all proportions.  It was the highest I have ever seen – a friend took this photo last night.

This photo was taken by my neighbour a few years back from the same place who said, at the time, it was the most she had seen the burn flood in her lifetime (she is 80+).

So we are slowly getting back to normal.  It will take a few days for everything to dry out, including the furniture where the roof leaked.

The fencing took a bit of a bashing but nothing has been flattened.

We will need to do some work here, I think.

Today, I am being a lazy cow and not going out.  The wind remains strong and it is cold. My bones ache. I can see the ponies from my windows and do a hoof-count from there.

I am not sorry I moved the horses last night.  I refuse to feel guilty that I did.  It was the right thing to do.