Royalty week at Costain

Last week was royalty week at Costain (where I work).
Prince Andrew (think Fergie or Prince Charles' little
brother) toured the facility and met with our project
leaders.  I had the priviledge of seeing him from a
distance of about 15 feet as he stood and talked with
my boss.  This makes up for the Queen not meeting me
at the airport.

This weekend is the kayak symposium in Holyhead,
Wales.  I hope to come back home with a boat.  You can
never have enough boats.

I hope this finds all well where you are.  More
later...........

DWR

Wood Ducks

When I first spotted the wood ducks from my flat's
window, mama duck was leading her seven ducklings past
a storm sewer grating in the parking lot below.  I
think this was the first time I had seen ducks in the
parking lot, but there are plenty in the general area,
so it did not come as too big of a surprise. Instead
of passing it by and going on her way though, mama
duck circled back around the drain.  She seemed to
take a lot of interest in the drain, and I began to
suspect that there were once more than seven ducklings
following her along.

As she continued to circle, I went to get my hat and
coat.  When I glanced back down, there were only five
ducklings to be seen.  I wasn't sure where the drain
went or whether or not I could lift the grating, but I
thought I would at least have a look.  By the time I
arrived, mama duck had stopped circling the drain.
She stood to one side of it looking down through the
grating with the rest of her brood safely behind her.

As I approached, she started telling me that she was
not happy with my presence.  The ducklings didn't seem
to care either way.  I knelt down beside the drain and
looked between the thick bars.  There were five little
ones swimming in a pool of water about two feet in
diameter and about eighteen inches below the grate.
At least they could be reached if I could get the
cover off.  It was about this time that mama duck
started to hiss at me.  I assumed this was not her way
of encouraging me, but as she still kept a respectable
three foot gap between us, I assumed I was safe for
the moment.

The grate grudgingly allowed itself to be removed.  I
reached down and fished each of the five out and
presented them to mama duck who was now standing right
beside the open hole supervising me and inspecting the
rescuees.  Once the last of the ducklings was safe
behind her, she took one more look into the drain,
then turned and led the group to a row of nearby
bushes.  I walked down to the local pub for a pint of
Hookers Ale and some hot fish and chips before
performing my weekly grocery shopping.

I hope this finds all well where you are.

DWR

I miss the weather in the south

Just a quick note from the UK.  Part of this weekend
was spent in the Lake District doing some hiking.
Between 1015 and 1615 on Saturday, it went from bright
sunlight to rain to sleet to snow and back.  It was
warm enough at one point to need only a long sleeve
shirt and cold enough at the top to need everything in
the pack to stay comfortable.  The scenery reminds me
of our western states when you get above the tree
line, complete with scree slopes.  The mountain tops
are still covered in snow and will likely stay that
way another couple of weeks.

Today was spent walking around Wilmslow doing the
weekly stuff.  I will try to get to Scotland again
next weekend.

I have been watching the Masters this week.  It airs
from 1930 to midnight here.  Having been born in the
SE, I love our weather, especially the hotter parts of
the year.  I will miss that this year.

I hope this finds all well on your end.  More
later.......

DWR

No Wales this time

Last week at this time I had imagined that I would be
regaling you with tales of my Wales paddling exploits
today.  That was not to be the case as circumstances
dictated that I would not make it to Wales this
weekend.  I will instead be attending a kayak festival
at Nigel Dennis' shop in early May.  I have from now
until then to decide which of his boats to buy.  Life
is full of difficult decisions.

Yesterday was spent in Ironbridge, England.  I was not
familiar with the name until yesterday, but I have
been enlightened as a result of my visit.  Ironbridge
is where the Industrial Revolution started.  It is
also the home of the first iron bridge ever built, a
bridge that is still in use today (to draw tourists).
Tourism is the major industry of this town and it is
an enjoyable place to spend the day.  We took in two
museums (Museum of Iron and Museum of the Gorge), two
historical homes of the iron barons (the Darby
Houses), and the Blists Hill Victorian Town.  It
turned out to be a good trip.  The museums and homes
could be thoroughly explored in just under an hour
apiece.  There are plenty of good lunch spots and
public transportation to get you around the gorge.
The natives have put together a "Passport" to all the
attractions and transporation services for a
reasonable price.  The village itself is also an
attraction.

Today, I awoke to a couple of inches of snow on the
ground.  I threw on my running shoes and got my run in
before the snow had a chance to melt.  The village is
a pretty place and even prettier when dressed in
white. I walked up to one of my favorite local pubs
(The Coach and Four) for Sunday Carvery and a pint of
Hyde's Bitter (I had Jeckyll's Bitter last time and
felt that I should try some bitter from the dark
side.).  Just behind the pub is a grocery store, so I
stopped there for this week's groceries and then
walked home.  I tell you all of this boring stuff
because I did all of this without getting into a car.
I really like that about this place.

I hope this finds all well on your end.  I will be off
to the Lake District next weekend for some hiking and
I will try (again) to go to Scotland the following
weekend.  More later..............

DWR

In Memoriam: The Sam Finney pub has closed.  This was
one of Chris Johnson's favorites.  My sympathies go
out to you Chris, I had an extra pint today at the
Coach and Four on your behalf.

So much for Scotland...

Well, so much for Scotland. The forecast was for 80
mph winds and snow. As much as I love nasty weather
to walk or even paddle in, I do not like to drive in
it. So, I became wildly domesticated over the last
four days. I have cleaned, shopped, read, and walked
around the little village I live in enjoying the very
unsettled weather. There have been periods of sun,
blizzard, sleet, and rain. The only accumulation was
Sunday morning for a couple of hours. All the rest of
the snow melted as it hit the ground.

It has been snowing on and off all day today. I
walked down the street through the falling snow to a
local pub that has a glass roof over a portion of the
building and ate lunch watching it snow. I then
walked back to my home away from home through the
falling snow. However, there is no snow on the ground
except on the distant hill tops that I can see from my
3rd floor bay window.

As for Scotland, I will try again in the not too
distant future. I hope this finds all well on your
end. More later...................

DWR