Scorper by Rob Magnuson Smith

Scorper by Rob Magnuson Smith
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Scorper, noun, a tool used to scoop out broad areas when engraving wood or metal.

I didn’t know that either until I read this strange book. I was attracted to it in Waterstones bookshop by the dust jacket, which contains an etching of a village I know well: Ditchling, located to the north of Brighton and the South Downs. And the first line of the book: “You are on your way to Ditchling”. What’s not to like I thought.

Scorper is an uncanny and sinister tale of an eccentric American visitor to this small Sussex village, searching for stories about his grandfather. A tale of twitching curtains, severed hands and peculiar sexual practices. A book about Eric Gill's artistic legacy, his despicable behaviour and enduring influence. Strangely comic, often sinister, often incomprehensible, but nevertheless compelling reading.

Is it a ghost story, is it Gothic? It is certainly dark and uncomfortable. I am edging towards awarding four stars....

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The Taxidermist's Daughter

The Taxidermist's Daughter by Kate Mosse
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The year is 1912. I wonder why Kate chose that year. It's of no consequence however apart from setting the scene for a Gothic style chiller. 50 pages in, I stifled a yawn. Where is this going? What do birds have to do with this, apart from the theme of taxidermy. 100 pages in my curiosity was aroused. By page 200 I was hooked. Well and truly hooked. The pace quickened. The atmosphere darkened. The characters took on different guises. The location was wild and dark and chilling. A mesmerising plot line full of evil deeds. A Sussex location steeped in folklore and mystery. A horrid event comes back from the past to haunt the present. I raced through the last 200 pages, breathless, intrigued, spellbound. Well done Kate Mosse. The Taxidermist's Daughter is another classic that deserves my recommendation.

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Riley - the cat who came to stay

For those of you who follow my blog (thank you) you will have read about our efforts to re-home a cat named Riley, who spent his days mooching around a Sussex village, abandoned, homeless, exposed to inclement weather, fed by a few - occasionally - but very much left to his own devices. My wife Ros and I first encountered Riley when we were holidaying in this remote village. He came to visit us frequently for food. We learned from various 'locals' of his predicament and made a promise that, if no-one would offer him a home - we would. And we did. 52 days ago to be exact. Before the weather here got really bad. Which it has. Occasional sub-zero temperatures already.

Introducing Riley at home has not been easy. We have two residents - Bertie, who is 14½ years old and Oliver who is 13½ years old. Our home is their castle. Intruders not allowed. So, here comes Riley...

And he has lived with us now for 52 days. And he has put on about 2 kilos because he eats like a horse and has bloomed into a very handsome lad, who has a wonderful temperament and tries so hard to avoid spats with Bertie, who as alpha male still treats Riley as an 'intruder'. Oliver, on the other hand, thinks Riley is 'OK' and will sit with him in front of the fire and even touch noses. Bertie's aggressive attitude has mellowed - somewhat - but I still need to keep a watch on him. But things are getting better. For those of you who know animals, as we do, constant love and affection will win through, eventually! Things have mellowed, 'spats' are now infrequent, tolerance is improving, albeit with a level of reluctance - (Bertie?!!) and Christmas is coming.

Riley is now a permanent member of our family. The 'harsh' coat he had when he came to us has blossomed into a soft, silky texture. He has filled out, not only in size but in spirit. He will chase Oliver in play and screech to a halt if he meets Bertie.  They will spit at each other and then slink away. And there is plenty of room to do that. It IS getting better.

Our reward, for Ros and me, is to see a cat who had been abandoned to wander around a village without knowing any real affection, to have captured our hearts. He has become a gentle giant in more ways than one and he is about to enjoy his first Christmas with folk who love him to bits. So, Bertie and Oliver - it's all about sharing, particularly when it comes to Christmas dinner!

Packed and Ready...

We are packed and ready to go tomorrow. A pleasant drive along the Sussex coast to Rye Harbour and 'Harbour Lights' cottage, our 'home' for the next five days. Plenty of R&R, birding, seafood, good wine, real ale, single malts, books, music, local pubs, beach-combing, antique shops, shoe shops (Ros only), book shops, Rye Harbour Nature Reserve, wellingtons, Tilley hats, Barbour coats, OS maps... and perhaps an umbrella!

Rutland Revisit

The Rutland Birdfair is over for another year. It was as good as ever, better even than last year. Unlike the journey from Sussex to Uppingham. There is no other choice than to follow the route M23 on to M25. There are then choices: M40, M1 or A1M. But the M25 is a nightmare. Slow moving or stationary four lanes of traffic. In places overhead gantry signs instruct to use the hard-shoulder as well, increasing the queue to five lanes...

The journey of little more than 150 miles took five hours. Google's estimation was 2 hours 45 minutes! It was a joy to leave the motorway system and drive country roads through Northamptonshire, Leicestershire and finally Rutland. On arriving at The Crown Inn we dumped our luggage and patronised the bar, consuming pints of Everard's award winning Tiger ale. 

The evening was pleasantly mild so we wandered off to the market square and managed to get a table at the brasserie Don Paddy's where the ale was good and the food was excellent. The cask marque awarded Timothy Taylor's Landlord ale is a terrific pint. A great atmosphere here with friendly staff serving really excellent food.

Wandering around the Birdfair is always enjoyable, often bumping into old friends and wildlife celebrities like Simon King, who had his own marquee:

Essential visits included the optics marquee, the art marquee, the clothing stands of Rohan and Country Innovation and the Shetland stand where I bagged a load of information on these sceptred isles, which I plan to visit before I conk out.

It was another enjoyable weekend and I hope to visit next year again for my 5th visit. Will definitely go by train though as we faced the same horrendous traffic on our return journey...

Picture Postcard "Harbour Lights"

September is a good month to visit Rye in Sussex. Particularly if you enjoy bird-watching. And I have just booked a holiday at this delightful cottage "Harbour Lights" for late September. The perfect time for Autumn arrivals of so many of our birds that overwinter here.

Harbour Lights is a small, modernised fisherman's cottage, a Grade II listed building dating from the late eighteenth century and situated in the fishing and yachting village of Rye Harbour. It is right on the harbour "front" which consists of half a dozen picturesque cottages and the William The Conqueror pub. It is a stone's throw from the tidal River Rother and the RNLI lifeboat station, and not far from the Rye Harbour Nature Reserve (of particular interest to me for the bird-watching opportunities). The sea is about half a mile away, approached on the Rye Harbour side by a gated road which prevents access by cars. Thus the beach (part shingle, part sand) does not get very crowded. Westward, extensive shingle, grazing land and marsh provide open country walking to Winchelsea. The sands at Camber are five miles away by road.

So, there we have it. Autumnal days strolling the beach, searching rock pools, bird-watching and generally chilling out with a few good books, good food, a wee dram or two and quiet nights....

 

Pottering around Sussex

To potter: to move about without hurrying, in a relaxed and pleasant way. Lovely verb. As we are not now travelling tomorrow to Copenhagen Ros and I will be pottering around Sussex. Tomorrow we will travel by train from Brighton to Rye in East Sussex. Rye, one of our favourite places to potter, the medieval gem of the Cinque Ports and one of the best preserved medieval towns in England.

I shall be having a potter around one of my favourite independent bookstores - the Martello Bookshop in the High Street and my favourite stockists of Barbour country wear: The Golden Fleece in Lion Street. Ros will be melting the plastic at the Edinburgh Wool Mill shop and we will enjoy a good ol' fish and chip lunch at Marino's Fish Bar, the best of its kind in Sussex, in my opinion. And I shall probably manage a pint or two of real English ale at The Queen's Head public house.

Sounds like a good potter to me....

Inclement Weather for Garden Birds

I worry about the fate of my garden birds during this period of inclement weather: gale-force winds and torrential rain that has seen many households in Sussex, Surrey and Kent without power since 24th December. Another section of my garden fence has been destroyed and feeders have been ripped from their locations in my garden trees.

I replaced everything this morning and topped up the feeders. The weather had subsided somewhat and to my relief my garden birds were back. Goldfinches, House Sparrows, Blue-tits, Starlings, Blackbirds, Dunnocks, a Robin, Jackdaws, Collared Doves, Woodpigeons and Feral Pigeons all availed themselves of the bounty of food available and the water in the two birdbaths. My garden might look a mess but at least the birds are surviving this dreadful weather, although some, I am sure, have perished.

Still have not seen any sight of the Blackcaps though. I keep hoping... 

The Stone Curlew on the South Downs

The largely nocturnal Stone Curlew is a bird that nests on open, bare, preferably stony ground or areas with vegetation height below 2cm. Arable land needs to have short or sparse vegetation before being accepted and is rarely suitable for nesting birds beyond May or June.

The Stone Curlew

In 1768 Gilbert White advised Thomas Pennant that in the breeding season 'I could shew you them almost any day; and any evening you may hear them round the village for they make a clamour which may be heard a mile'. In 1938 Walpole-Bond wrote that there were 'quite sixty pairs of Stone-curlews breeding in Sussex'.

Changes in agricultural practices that destroyed most of the semi-permanent grasslands and the arrival of Myxomatosis, that left vegetation ungrazed by rabbits, were almost certainly the principal reasons why, after a steady decline in the 1960s and 1970s, this fascinating bird ceased to breed in Sussex in the 1980s. Its return in 2007 and its continued breeding success in Sussex is therefore most welcome and is thanks to the enthusiastic support of the landowners and the stewardship of dedicated ornithologists. It is only with the co-operation of farmers and landowners that this highly specialised bird will thrive.

And these are the same farmers and landowners who do not support the badger cull....

The Birds of Sussex Book

This is the most detailed publication yet on the birdlife of Sussex. This once in a generation book by the Sussex Ornithological Society (SOS) describes the status and changing fortunes of all the wild birds of Sussex. Over two million bird records and four years of intensive Atlas survey work underpin this compelling book. Due out early 2014.

The Birds of Sussex is published by the SOS in partnership with the BTO and you can pre-order your copy here:  www.bto.org/sussex-birds 

The book is written by a team of the county's finest bird experts and edited by Adrian Thomas of the RSPB. For each of the 397 species on the Sussex list the book reveals:

• What birds are found where
• Why they are there
• 'Winners and losers' - those birds doing well and those in trouble
• What the threats and outlook are for each species

The book contains over 600 pages in full colour and stunning photographs of over 250 species, all taken in Sussex.

The pre-publication price is £20 for SOS members and £25 for non-members.

Green Hairstreak Butterfly Making a Recovery

The Green Hairstreak Butterfly Callophrys rubi appears to be making a recovery in the South Downs. In 2012 only 38 sightings were recorded across both East and West Sussex as the species suffered a huge drop in numbers due to the bad weather.

The Green Hairstreak Butterfly

But in May 2013, 63 of these bright green, iridescent butterflies were recorded near Storrington, West Sussex in just one day.

The site where the butterflies are thriving has recently been cleared of invasive scrub as part of a project to improve and increase chalk grassland across the South Downs National Park, which is vital to the survival of species such as the green hairstreak. Chalk grassland is an internationally important but endangered habitat often described as being as rich and diverse as tropical rainforest. But less than five percent of the National Park remains as chalk grassland.

The Campaign against Fracking

The battle for Balcombe in Sussex has become headline news. The company Cuadrilla has a licence from the government to "look for oil and gas by conventional means" in a piece of woodland called Lower Stumble near the village of Balcombe in Sussex. But the company has said that they would apply for licences to use the chemical fracturing technique if the rock 2,000ft below fails to deliver. And therein lies the rub.

The rhetoric surrounding the issue of fracking is considerable from both sides of the debate. One key concern is the link between fracking and the possible detrimental impact on drinking-water aquifers, the bodies of saturated rock through which water can move easily. Water bearing rocks are permeable. Consider that for a moment. Chemicals are used in the fracking process. Is there any wonder that people are concerned about the significant damage this might cause?

Here is an article from the well respected Washington Post about fracking in Pennsylvania:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/epa-official-links-fracking-and-drinking-water-issues-in-dimock-pa/2013/07/29/7d8b34b2-f8a1-11e2-afc1-c850c6ee5af8_story.html?Post+generic=%3Ftid%3Dsm_twitter_washingtonpost

And this from the BBC's political editor, Peter Henley:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-23492213

And take a look at this:

https://www.facebook.com/gaslandmovie

It all concerns me a great deal...