WRITERS BEWARE OF THIS CHALLENGE!

It's coming to you from the safest part of Spain, not quite Covid free, but who knows? So get on with it and challenge yourself.

 

Attention all writers! Is the pandemic getting you down? Are you bored? Lack motivation? Need some writing ideas? We have the answer.

Writer´s Ink, a writer´s group in Alicante, Spain, has devised an exciting international competition to help us out of the doldrums. There is no entry fee and you do not have to leave the comfort and safety of your home. All it will cost you is your time, of which we seem to have plenty of right now.

The contest will run over three periods in the year and will consist of teams from three different Circles either locally or internationally. Writers will be given the ingredients of a story to be written in a particular genre. The individual writers from each circle will use their imagination and clever use of words to come up with the best two page story. The stories will be judged and winners selected by their own peers. Then each winning story will be sent to the main judge who will decide upon the Grand Winner. Judging will be based on creativity and imagination, the more bizarre the better.

Attempts to enlist Circles in France, Great Britain and Spain are ongoing. So far, comments from those who have replied include – intriguing, unique, sounds like fun.

The competition was not devised with Covid19 in mind. But it may well have been as the pandemic doesn’t hinder it in anyway. The two-meter personal spacing restrictions are not required as two -kilometres or more would be more likely. Wash your hands by all means but leave your mask off while you write away!

For more information about this entertaining competition, please contact Drummond Marvin, dmarvin@hotmail.co.uk

  

STILL THE QUEEN OF CRIME?

 Book Review

Title.             The Mysterious Affair at Styles

Author.          Agatha Christie 

Publisher.      By Agatha Christie Ltd/Planet Three Publishing, London

Published in 1920 and introduced a Belgian detective, Monsieur Hercule Poirot to the English ‘upper classes’. On screen many well known actors have portrayed the super sleuth, but there is one who sits over the heads of others. David Suchet, of course. So, the story is over one hundred years old and it is still being read.

Without wishing to state the obvious it is a master class in story telling, in character creation and for plot. It requires concentration as the characters are introduced to the reader. And of course

all the details as both Hastings and Poirot give the reader information.

It would be ridiculous for me to be other than complimentary as both Agatha Christie and her Belgian detective have been lauded by many. It is set before the end of The Great War in 1918 when some Belgian nationals were in England.

The plot is detailed and attention to it is paramount. There is no rush to reach a conclusion and in doing that the reader should enjoy the writing; the style of it and ‘wordage’.

It is narrated by Hastings who is convalescing after being invalided from the Front. He bumps into an old friend John Cavendish who lives with his mother at ‘Styles’. A country pile of Englishness. Having nothing better to do Hastings goes to stay with his friend, his recently married mother and her husband Alfred Inglethorp.

Basically, the woman of the dies unexpectedly and automatically the husband is suspected. But it is not as easy as that because there are other plots to become entangled with. Of course the writer wants her readers to, not necessarily to be fooled, but to work hard at solving the riddles she has created.

Then, if you haven't quite got it, there is a chapter at the end where Hastings voices his confusion and all is revealed to him by Monsieur Poirot. He has to be right.

For me Agatha Christie retains the crown of ‘Queen of the Plot’ and maybe still ‘The Queen of Crime!’

SPOOF VIDEO RIDICULING THE GROUSE SHOOTING INDUSTRY

 It's a wonderful idea by REVIVE who want to protect Scotland’s Grouse Moors and not destroy them.

28th October the campaigners launched a SPOOF video/film ridiculing the Grouse Shooting Industry. It's brilliant. Very much worth the watch.

They ask the question ‘ Find the case for driven Grouse shooting in Scotland’. (There's non of course).

https://raptorpersecutionscotland.wordpress.com/2020/10/28/campaigners-launch-spoof-dragons-den-film-ridiculing-grouse-shooting-industry/

The applicants failed to convince the MSP’s in this spoof scenario. What a shame. I wonder what the responses will be given their views will have already been trashed.

YEAR BIRD, REPTILE AND THREE TIGERS

That's not bad for a cool windy morning in and around the farming and marsh area close to El Hondo. We met in Gran Alicant around 8am at 17 degrees and and a strong northerly wind. We did our usual route as we felt we were still ‘between seasons’. The lagoons opposite Playa Las Brisas offered very little except Bryan spotted two Sandwich Terns - Charrán Patinegro The Salt Tower area showed us little close by. ‘The  Stones pull -off gave us a good number of Spoonbills - Espátula Común but distant, a very good number, as usual, of Great Crested Grebes - Sormrmujo Lavanco and again Large White Egrets - Garceta Grande.

We quickly moved onto El Pinet. Some of the fence has been replaced and work is ongoing. Sandwich Terns - again were seen. We were disappointed at first, and with water levels relatively high, muddy areas seemed few. In a corner close to the fence we got really lucky. A few feet of mud and several species were feeding vigorously. Little Stint - Correlomos Menudo , three Dunlins - Correlimos Común, a Ringed Plover - Chorlitejo Grande and two Shanks, a Redshank-  Archibebe Común and a Greenshank -Archibebe Claro. Then with this little group Bryan spotted a Grey Plover - Chorlito Gris.  A first for us this year and that shows our visitors from up-north are around. Great news! Meadow Pipits - Bisbita Común flew up and around in the gusting wind.

We now headed in land aiming to visit Santa Águada which we did. On way the flooded fields of last week contained non of the birds of last week and were in luxuriant growth. In the margins, Serín - Verdecillo , Greenfinch - Verderón Común White Wagtails -Lavandera Blanca and Meadow Pipits once more. We carried on and had great views of a circling male pale morph Booted Eagle - Agililla Calzado. It showed well. 

Then crossing the road our first snake of the year- a two foot plus Western Whip Snake we think. Only a quick look as it disappeared into the vegetation. Butterflies were mostly absent but there was the odd Small White and several Plain Tigers. I think we were lucky to see them in the windy conditions.

Once through the village non of the fields contained that much, but the protected area and pool gave us good views of one Water Pipit - Bisbita Alpino and eventually two Snipe - Agachadiza Común . Firstly obscured in the reeds and then in clear water. The water level here is only in pools and with no new water being pumped in, lets hope for rain. One Glossy Ibis - Morito Común flew over. Where are the others?

We did a second visit of the year to the wetlands near Urbanova and although there was water there it contained nothing that we could see. The shallower lagoons had become dry, but we won't give up on this area as we feel it could come good this winter. In the scrub areas there were thousands of Starlings swirling in the wind and mobbing the Olive Trees. Like any other murmuration it is a spectacle. The photos should prove they are visitors from up north Estornino Europea, but they could have Spotless mixed in (Estornino Negre).

The murmuration added to our pleasure and that little bit of mud at El Pinet really made our day. Now all we want is something really special. We will keep looking.

Book Review: Five Days in London, May 1940 by John Lukacs

Title.            Five Days in London

                    May 1940

Author.        John Lukacs 

It doesn't matter how you can come by a book, but this one was different and us different. We were in Salamanca for two days and found a second-hand book shop with an English section.  Within ten minutes we had bought six books at a ridiculous cost of 12€.

Michelle saw the book and handed it to me. I realized the significance of the title and read the two page preface. I was hooked and it felt so good in my hand.

John Lukacs was professor of history at Chesnut Hill College, Philadelphia and has been a European historian of many books including those on Adolf Hitler. I found these five days and his telling of it compelling, not only because I understand the importance of that time in our history, but because it is our history and in consequence of that, how we can lead our lives freely to this day.

I quote: “The days from May 24 to May 28, 1940, altered the course of the history of this century, as members of the British War Cabinet debated whether to negotiate with or continue the war against Hitler. The decisive importance of these five days is the focus of John Lukacs’s magisterial new book”.

Anyone considers that Sir Winston Churchill’s journey to become the Prime Minister of Britain to be easy and untroubled does need to read that period. He had made his views clear on Germany’s rise under Hitler where he was a lone voice standing against the appeasers and the elements of Fascism within Britain. 

Lukacs also investigated the mood of the British people, drawing on newspaper and Mass Observation reports that show how the citizenry, though only partly informed about the dangers that faced them, nevertheless began to support Churchill’s determination to stand fast.

I can liken his battle to succeed in his views as a war he had to win within the cabinet with the same determination he continually showed during World War Two.

It was not an easy read as there is so much detail with many footnotes. It is a complete view of what was going on not just in London, but also deals with Roosevelt’s determination not to become involved until he was sure that Churchill intended to fight on regardless. And then he loaned us 50 Battle Ships. The rest is history!

 

FLOODED FIELDS NO MORE

 On Sunday 18th October we decided to revisit two of the areas where we saw a multitude of birds only two days previously. We were lucky to ‘hit-it-just-right’ on that day because by Sunday the fields had no standing water and no birds. However we were lucky as nearby, Yellow Wagtails, were flitting around. The next day they could be further south.

Not a great photo as the sun was in the wrong place as was the twig!  A great bird to see.

Santa Águeda still contains water in the main pool, but there was no ‘in-flow’ on Sunday and, fortunately, in a muddy corner feeding busily was one Green Sandpiper that remained there to be photographed.

We will be checking all the areas again and I expect that more water will be on some fields at some time. There are fields where the growth is lush. Here's to another great visit.

FLOODED FIELDS MADE US SMILE

Friday 16th October

 We decided that we would stay local and do the usual sites. 31st August was the last time we had gone to El Hondon and when arriving there we quickly left due to mosquitos. This morning we had travelled our usual route and it was our last stop. It seems to be a destination for visitors to stroll around and not for ‘birders’. The vegetation restricts seeing what is out there and the water quality seems poor; it is cloudy. Fortunately, the journey was very productive. 

I will quickly dispense with stops on the way. The Lagunas opposite Playa Las Brisas did not offer much and we moved on. The Salt Tower and ‘the stones’ layby yielded at least 10 Great White Egrets - Garceta Grande a good number of Grey Herons - Garza Real and on the water, but distant, a large number of Great Crested Grebe - Somormujo Lavanco, which are usual to see, Cormorants - Cormorán Grande have returned in numbers.

No waders we could watch but there were some on the smaller pools which we could not stop for.  A Marsh Harrier  - Aguilucho Luganero flew over.

El Pinet was a disappointment. The protective fencing in the first lagoon was down and the wire netting rolled up. Possibly storm damage and needs work. At the beach 20 Grey Herons flew over, presumably on their way inland from the fish farms. A Linnet - Pardillo Común sang in a tree.

We now went inland and there we saw Magpies - Urraca   ,Common Kestrels - Cernejalo Común, Southern Grey Shrike - Alcaudón Real Meridional , both male and female Stonechats - Tarabilla Europea and not much else.

We knew that the end of the summer was just about over, but still Barn Swallows - Golondrina Común were passing through and what we want is rain. We had a little, but we knew we could rely, at some time, on a  flooded field or more accurately a field that was irrigated. That's when the trumps turned up!

A field, turning green, and very wet yielded numerous Yellow Wagtails  - Lavandera Boyera and the photos should show which variation? There were also 5 Wood Sandpipers - Andarrios Bastardo and that is a good result - let alone that fall of wagtails. In a corner of it one Green Sandpiper - Andarrios Grande. Add into this total Jackdaws - Grajilla, Glossy Ibis - Morito Común, Cattle Egrets - Garcilla Bueyera, and it was a wonderful sight. Bryan searched diligently for that one bird; a vagrant from afar! But without a result and strangely, not one Pipit! (Bisbita)

Santa Águeda looked different. It had been cleaned up. The scrub and scrapes had been sanitized and were wet. Maybe from the recent rain and maybe because it is being flooded. Maybe the answer is to leave it alone and let the Stints enjoy. The Tamarisk had been pruned back and everywhere had been tidied up. The main pool was having water flooded in and that is a good sign. A Kingfisher - Martin Pescador .called and flew and we counted five Blue Throats - Pechiazul around this pool. No Sandpipers or any Eagles around this part of the Marsh. I surmise that we have high hopes for Santa Águada in future.

On the way and between San Felipe and the turnoff to the information centre two more flooded fields. What a sight. Here we had Mediterranean Gulls - Gaviota Reidora with Black headed - Gaviota Cabecinegra and Glossy Ibis in many numbers, Jackdaws raucous as usual. It would have been great to see a different Gull from the normal. We did look. Now the important stuff with more Yellow Wagtails, obviously on their way south. What a result, flooded fields in two locations with other evidence of recent irrigation too. Just what we wanted.

Two Marsh Harriers - One a male and a male white morph Booted Eagle - Aguililla Calzada was our Raptor count for the day.