First walk on riverbank for a while today - beautifully sunny and very peaceful.  There were sandmartins the size of your thumb swooping down like little bats.  It was magical to watch - such small creatures but such speed - they almost seem to pause before selecting an insect from the surface of the water and then zzzzzzzzzzzip -  gone.  The grass is so long you can sit down in it and it acts like a hide - I was closer to swifts than I've ever been before - they remind me of the Bluebird or Mallard as they scream past eyes seemingly closed in bliss.

The Mystery of the Disappearing Seed.

Went to get some bird seed to make some fat balls (Yes I HAVE heard all the jokes..) from the seed feed bin. Removed the carefully engineered mdf top and a FAT little woodmouse very briefly looked up and carried on feasting on it's ill gotten gains - Incensed(as this is not the first time we have had residents in the feed bin) I encouraged it to leave by banging said bin loudly and tipping it in on its side - Whereupon the cheeky little beggar climbed back up into the feed bin, gave me a look which plainly said - "For heaven's sake woman - Can you not see I'm busy?" and carried on eating...

Anyway - on to eating for us human types - Am planning a Chicken & Jersey Royal chowder type thing with yesterdays leftovers and will frugally use chooky carcass to make stock for mushy risotto tomorrow but would much rather be outside in the glorious afternoon... am also experimenting with bread (ooeer Missus) I've added rather more water than usual (450ml to 500g flour) in the vague hope that it'll become a big holey Italian type loafy......

Update:-  Dough seemed really loose but by chucking an amount of flour at it and kneading for 5 mins or so it seems to have gained some structure