Each week I’ll try and post quick links to things that I’ve seen, read, inspired me or just sparked my interest in the previous week, with a little background and my thoughts and other things that I’ve been up to in the previous week. Mostly gardening, cooking and environmental stuff but not always.

---

The Week In Wildlife – In Pictures

---

I’m a little bit lost for words over the brexit vote at the moment, although you’d be hard pushed to escape the news about it and the speculation about what happens next. It is clear to me however that this is a mistake for the UK, which might rapidly just become England and Wales if Scotland and Northern Ireland choose an alternative route, and that those in charge of the Leave campaign have probably been at the least economical with the truth. One thing is for certain however, we will now end up with a new MP voted for by 150,000 Conservative party members. Obviously in relation to work, I have concerns, as do others about key environmental aspects (UK’s out vote is a ‘red alert’ for the environment) (EU out vote puts UK commitment to Paris climate agreement in doubt) (How can we make Brexit work for the Environment).

I don’t want to harp on about this, but I am glad to see that there at least some who don’t intend to take this lying down.

---

This weeks news has pretty much all been referendum, and I didn’t want to end this quick links with the entry above, so here’s something about smart insects to end on rather than dumb UK voters.

---

 

Each week I’ll try and post quick links to things that I’ve seen, read, inspired me or just sparked my interest in the previous week, with a little background and my thoughts and other things that I’ve been up to in the previous week. Mostly gardening, cooking and environmental stuff but not always.

---

Ace & The Desert Dog

National Geographic story about the above video here.

---

It tickles me slightly that the new Independence Day movie goes on general release in the UK on the same day as the EU Referendum, someone must have a sense of humour.

---

I somehow doubt that they’ll ever build a new nuclear reactor at Hinkley Point, or at least not one that involves EDF.

---

Although I agree with the comments made by scientists in this report, I’m afraid that things are probably a lot worse, and that the opportunity to really make a difference is past.

---

I said on this blog before that there are many politicians (including a few that I’ve had the misfortune to have to work with) who are in it for personal benefit.

Jo Cox, was one of the exceptions, someone who was truly a public servant, this messed up world, feels like a poorer place now.

---

The Week In Wildlife – In Pictures

---

 

Each week I’ll try and post quick links to things that I’ve seen, read or just sparked my interest in the previous week, with a little background and my thoughts and other things that I’ve been up to in the previous week. Mostly gardening, cooking and environmental stuff but not always.

---

A look inside a Bumblebee nest with Dave Goulson:

---

I’m a fan of chickens and dream of having some of my own one day, so I was interested to read what Bill Gates (of Microsoft fame) is up to. You can read about it here, and (if you follow the instructions), he’ll donate a flock of chickens to someone that needs them.

---

Currently Reading (travelling a lot on buses this week has got my list back down):

• Neil Gaimen – The View From the Cheap Seats [Amazon UK US CA]
• Roger Deakin – Waterlog [Amazon UK US CA] – (Rereading)

---

The Week In Wildlife – In Pictures

---

This Grist article got me thinking about neighborliness, as well as local distinctiveness. I think I’ve been lucky with having mostly good neighbours where I’ve lived. Some better than others, but compared to stories I’ve been told or read, all generally far better than some. Of course it’s a two-way street, and being neighbourly means just that. You have to be neighbourly.

Local distinctiveness is something else, but in a way related to some of the sentiment in the article. I think the “progress” that I see means that a lot of things that make an area distinct from somewhere else are fast disappearing and we are ending up with cloned areas, where if you were dropped into them blindfolded it would be difficult to tell one from another. I’ve been doing a lot of travelling on buses this week, and therefore had a lot of time to look out of the window and watch the world go by. I’ve seen things that have stood out as being different, but in most cases these are all in areas that have been around for a long time, and not those that are newly built. I feel like perhaps these should be captured for posterity or at least memory. The local newspaper often has a section in it which looks back on old photographs and events that happened in the area many years ago. I wonder if in another 50 years there will be the same amount of material as the tendency is for these to be captured digitally and although (at least in theory these are easier to preserve), are they also more likely to be lost? Accidentally deleted, or destroyed when a hard drive fails? I don’t know, but a physical thing, a “printed” photograph say, feels more permanent somehow.

---

I’ve also really been enjoying walking about the local area this last week, the street trees have reached their peak, and people’s gardens are starting to display their summer finery.

Each week I’ll try and post quick links to things that I’ve seen, read or just sparked my interest in the previous week, with a little background and my thoughts and other things that I’ve been up to in the previous week. Mostly gardening, cooking and environmental stuff but not always.

---

Every once in a while YouTube turns up a real gem on it’s homepage when I go there. This is one of those gems. Please note that the way the chainsaw is used from around the 3 min mark is extremely dangerous. I used to do a lot of chainsaw work and this is something that I wouldn’t recommend unless you really know what you’re doing and are experienced with a saw.

---

This article from High Country News, goes back three years and looks at the work of a group of scientists trying to understand what causes trees to die. An interesting read, although on the long side for the internet, it was originally published in the journal.

---

The weather has been a little crazy in the last week or so. Despite having hot and sunny weather only a week ago, this week it has moved to being more overcast with rain at times. The forecast is for it to be sunny again by the weekend, with hot weather to come from the south. Whilst I can easily adapt, although I’ve been trying to tough it out and keep my shorts on rather than resort to long trousers again, other species find it less easy. As our climate continues to change this is likely to  to be a recurring theme, and many more species including us humans will struggle to cope.

---

I seem to have a few books on the go this week, not quite sure how it happened but there are 5 of them:

• Neil Gaimen The View From the Cheap Seats [Amazon UK US CA]
• Jon Katz – Running to the Mountain [Amazon UK US CA]
• Charles Stross – The Rhesus Chart [Amazon UK US CA] (finished)
• Peter James – Love You Dead [Amazon UK US CA] (finished yesterday)
• Lucy Jones – Foxes Unearthed [Amazon UK US CA]

I can obviously only read one at a time but I’m enjoying them all, and I think it’s a pretty interesting summary of my tastes when it comes to books. Everything from natural history through crime and into science fiction. I expect at least a few of these will run into next week.

---

The Week In Wildlife – In Pictures

---

Someone recently asked me about installing water butts (rain barrels), unfortunately I can’t remember who it was and whether it was online or “in real life”, anyway I came across this video the other day which gives a good “How-To”. Unfortunately I can’t embed it because the author has disabled that function on YouTube, nevertheless it’s a good video, if you’re the person who asked me this is for you.