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Before my better half went to India, I loaned her one of my cameras. However more importantly, I gave her the largest of my memory cards. Thus yesterday when out trying to observe water voles, I did not even have a memory card in the camera with me. All my own fault, but it meant that I could not take any pictures.
With all the snow and rain over the last couple of months, the Derwent has been flowing high and swift. The holes in the bank that the Water Voles normally use are underwater and hence unused. As the voles are used to this they translocate themselves to other shelter. It was these winter holes that I was trying to locate. I had stumbled upon signs of Water Vole activity via the laying snow. Further while looking for the voles I spotted a reed that was defying the flow of the river. I realised that it was some mammal swimming with it grasped in its mouth, but I did not have a clear view of the Vole. For I knew that it would be a vole.
The location is a place on the bank that is difficult for humans to get to or even near, thus they are free from disturbance. Well I made the effort to get as close as I safely could and waited to observe any activity. I will not describe the waiting, but cold and wet will describe my state. While I was not able to get any pictures I did see the voles. Although I heard them more than saw them.
While I was sitting huddled in my cover, I had my attention grabbed by a sharp whistle call. It sounded like a bird. But my memory was telling me that it was not a bird. As I heard the call repeat, excitement filled me but I could not see what was making the call. I had to move if I wanted to see if I was correct, but I would have to move slowly and carefully. I did not want to disturb the Water Voles nor did I want to disturb the other Mammal that was calling from near by.
More by luck than judgement, the breeze was in my favour, if the Otter was where I thought it was, but it was sound that was my greatest enemy now. I had to crawl over rocks and mud to get to a point where I could see where the sound had been coming from. As it took time I really was just expecting to see nothing. Then I saw signs of an otter in the water. Just the head, and under it went. It was less than a second of sighting.
I assumed that it was the otter that had been calling that I had seen. I scanned carefully, dark brown fur against brown rocks makes spotting a shy and elusive creature difficult at the best of times, and I was not in a good position still. Further crawling, and I crested the small mound. I knew I was close as I could smell the Otter, but I just could not see it.
I waited quietly, and every movement I saw appeared to be a false signal. I was just about ready to give up, when from behind some mud covered rocks came three Otters. A mother and two well grown cubs, about eleven months old. It was for only 45-50 seconds that I was able to see them make their way back to the river and disappear into the flow, but I was the happiest mouse on the planet at that point.
Then today as I sat at the computer ready to write this posting, and booting up the computer, I saw a Polecat enter my back yard. As my long suffering reader knows my office (back bedroom) overlooks the yard. I really wanted to get a picture of it, but sitting on my desk was the memory card from the camera and the camera was down stairs.
However I was able to spend a reasonable amount of time observing this rapidly darting creature to see that it was not a pure Polecat but a Ferret polecat, one that has resulted from breeding a wild polecat with a domestic Ferret. Therefore, while there will be folks that will say that I have not really seen a Polecat, it shows that there are Polecats in the area.
Well I am pleased to have seen it anyway.
When just before the Copenhagen climate change conference began there was a media row regarding hacked emails from the University of East Anglia, my initial concern was actually it did sound as though data had been manipulated. However, as I have dug into this further, I could see that there was no altering of the data to get results that only supported climate change.
I was also concerned that mail and correspondence that I had had with this institution was part of what had been hacked. As I had given contact details for various people that I have garnered together over the years myself. I am careful about my data and I am especially careful of others details as often these people have trusted me not to share stuff like email addresses and telephone numbers. Fortunately in all the cases that I had shared details, I had express permission to do this. However I am annoyed that the “theft” had caused me worries and potentially jeopardised friendships and contact that have taken years to build up. Fortunately too none of my mails were published, probably as they were far to boring to be of interest.
While there were aspects of the internal emails that were revealing of the backstabbing within academia, for the most part the stolen data revealed nothing about climate change. It did however muddy the waters and create doubts about the validity of the science. But one aspect the situation did reveal is the one billion dollars US that the coal and oil industry spends each year, collectively, to cast doubt upon climate change. Now these are the same people that accuse us rational and reasonable folks of... Well it changes but often of trying to destroy the economy and western civilisation. Personally you only need to look at the oil companies, the mining companies and the bankers to see that they are already doing a bloody good job already.
There can be no argument that climate change is happening, where there is room for a rational debate is exactly when the harms as a result of our changing climate will happen. I have made no secret that I genuinely think that we are likely to see a rapacious and dramatic rise in sea levels in a few years, by the end of the decade at the latest. This has nothing to do with the so called end of the world in 2012, but is based upon the science. However, I know that there are plenty of people who don't believe that any of the worse effects will happen for decades.
The effect of this controversial was to get me to rethink and re-examine the science. I have always had an open mind regarding Man made Climate Change, and if the science showed that there was another credible reason why we are seeing the climatic and weather events that are effecting the planet, then I have always been willing to say that I was wrong. However imperfect the theory that human activity is causing climate change is, the scientific data is conclusive. While there may be some small effects from other factors that influence the climate, it is the impact of billions of tons of CO2 going into the atmosphere from ancient carbon that is resulting in the global temperature change.
Where there is room for disagreement is the timing of the effects of the changes to global climate and localised weather patterns.
Over the last decade there has not been the increase in the global average temperature that was expected. This is something that the so called sceptics point to to say that Climate change is not happening. However, it has increased in bands, just as the weather systems circle the globe. That is why in the Arctic average temperatures have risen by ten degrees or more. The same is happening in the Antarctic too.
A major part of this lack of temperature increase can be explained by the effects of clouds. We all know that clouds can help trap the heat in. But equally clouds can reflect the sunlight and solar radiation back out into space. Thus clouds can have a warming and cooling effect. Therefore the question was was there more water vapour in the atmosphere?
Normally about one thousandth of all the water on the planet is in the atmosphere. While that may not sound like a lot, you only have to think of the volume of water that are in all the oceans and seas and you realise just how much that represents. I then discover that measurements show that global climate change has increased this volume of water vapour by four percent. Therefore the heavy snow events that have hit America, in particular, are a direct result of climate change.
While it is true that it is normally impossible to say that any weather event is the result of our changing global climate, the evidence is actually here that this was as a direct result of climate change. The extra snow only happened because of the extra moisture in the atmosphere. In many ways we should all be grateful that it fell as snow and not as rain as the flooding and damage that would have caused if it had been rain would have been devastating.
While I am willing to accept that there can and will be disagreements over the timing of when events will occur as a result of Climate Change, the fact of Human induced climate change is here and real.
I am convinced that life is a series of song titles, the lyric that is buzzing around in my head is; “She's leaving on a jet plane...”
As yesterday I took my better half off to the Airport to wish her Bon Voyage as for the next month she is in India. I will have put up with being able to get in to the bathroom and cooking for one for over a month.
There was one aspect that struck me though, the most prominent food concession at Newcastle airport was, Greggs. Now for those that don't know, this is a bakers that has grown very large making and selling calorie rich Pies, Pasties and pastries. They dominate the North East High streets. Whenever someone tells me they are going on a diet I will often quip that I should sell my shares in Greggs then. If the Airport were really trying to promote the region, then having this food concession does not really help.
As we were there on time and there were no delays on the check in, we were able to go and have a relaxing cup of tea. Visiting one of the other concessions, Starbucks. While Greggs is not really the image of the North East that it is wise to promote, at least it is a local company. I would have thought that it was possible to find a local business that could have operated the coffee shop. And judging by the taste of the tea, and done it better.
When my better half went to catch her flight, we said our goodbyes, leaving not a dry eye in sight. I stood and watched as she disappeared into the throng of expectant travellers. My journey back home was via the metro, the light rail transit system in Newcastle. It has been a while since I have needed to use it and it remains very good. However catching the bus back to the village was more problematic as I had to wait and wait. There is only one direct bus and when one or more is cancelled it makes for a long wait. I eventually went for a coffee, a decent one in Newcastle city centre as I was so cold.
It is ironic that by the time I got home, my better half was well on her way to the change at Dubai. Well that's modern transport for you.
The Picture is my better half packing her case and covering the floor with the contents as she checks she has not forgotten anything.
Last month, officially, the recession ended in Britain. With less than a 0.01 percent growth in the economy. While there has been plenty of comment about how fragile this growth is, and that it will be a while before we really notice the improvement. Not least because of the level of government borrowing.
However, no one seems prepared to see, understand, or confront the very reason why the recession happened in the first place.
While it was the collapse of the banks that threw the worlds economies into recession, it was the bursting of the property bubble that triggered this. Therefore, while the banks still do need to be sorted out, it is the over inflated property values that no one is prepared to confront.
I realise that for the many people who have paid more than there home is worth, this will be hard to accept. But until property values regain a realistic value, it will be like an economic sword of Damocles hanging over all of us.
If it were not for the government deficit then this would be less important, as it would only really effect the people who had over paid for their homes. But because of the loans from the government made to the banks as well as buying out some of the banks, the state needs to conspire in the myth that housing is really worth the values that people paid. One of the aspects that caused the banks here so much difficulty and many of the banks losses was the collapse of commercial property values. They fell by eighty and ninety percent. While domestic property values fell by only fifteen percent during the recession. That means domestic property is fifty to sixty percent overvalued still.
The media and the government are celebrating that house prices appear to be going up again, and while having that appearance of ever rising house prices does make people feel richer, it is a dream that will turn out to be a nightmare of a further recession.
For the benefit of my overseas reader, here in Britain there is an investigation going on into the Iraq war. I tell folks this as I don't know if this is even being reported beyond our shores.
While Tony Blair has already been called as a witness, and the media made a big fuss of this here, there was nothing new that emerged. While in my dreams he would have turned up with a full written confession, already dressed in his prison clothes, that was just a dream. The other witnesses have not said anything really surprising, with the exception of some of the senior military staff, who were rather critical of the political planning.
However today, the former overseas development minister appeared. Clare Short won my admiration when she resigned because of the non existent planning for the aftermath of the war.
To go off on a slight tangent though, it is one of the problems with politics that no matter how much an individual disagrees with a policy, sometimes it is only by staying in post can you really influence anything. Thus, I was not surprised to hear that she, Clare Short, was against the war, even though she was in the government.
It is however her assertion that the former prime minister misled the cabinet and more importantly the house of commons, that is the real news.
I will not speculate about the real motives behind the war, but as the saying goes: “The road to Hell is paved with good intentions” The war had a dubious legal basis, and hundreds of thousands of people died. Has it made our planet safer? Not that I can see. Has it improved the lives of the Iraqis? Not that I can see.
The Iraq war distracted attention from Afghanistan where at least there could be a genuine case could be made for war there. But by fighting a (illegal?) war in Iraq there is now greater danger from international terrorism than before. Had the US and the UK concentrated on Afghanistan perhaps we would have now been safer and not mired in an unwinnable war.
No matter how careful we all are, we can all have mishaps. Don't worry dear reader, I have not injured myself. I always thought that if I did anything foolish it would be when outside somewhere, but no, it was a mistake in the kitchen that generated the mishap.
However, before I explain what happened, I need to tell my long suffering reader that my better half has just retaken an exam. It was rather heart warming that she choose to come here to study and do her revision as she felt there fewer distractions, and it was a calm relaxed atmosphere. I also think that keeping her supplied with tea and chocolate helped as well.
Therefore when she had resat the exam, she was doing it to made up the eight marks to get the highest grade, I decided to get something that she really liked to cook for her. So I took her to the fishmonger in Newcastle and suggested a couple of dishes she enjoy. The final dishes were Spaghetti alle Vongole and Chilli prawns. Both quick and easy to cook and as we were heading out the following day after the meal, I wanted to ensure that it was something she would love.
I was using razor clams for the Spaghetti dish and I checked they were all fresh and healthy. With everything else prepared, cooking was to be simplicity itself. As anyone who knows, shellfish don't take long to cook and if you over cook them they become rubbery. So I got the timing spot on and the Spaghetti alle Vongole was ready to serve. As the meat comes free from razor clams when cooked, the shells can be removed as you serve. However I also needed to put the griddle on to heat while we ate so I could cook the giant king prawns once the first course was done. While I would have preferred to serve both together, there is just no space to do this.
This lack of space is also why I put the empty pan back on the stove with the wooden spoons I had used to serve the dish with. But I had not turned the heat off of that ring.
As we were eating I could smell something charring and I did go and check the griddle in case it was that, but I thought it must be my imagination. I could not see a problem there. Then smoke started to fill the room, that is when I went back and noticed the pan that was cooking and charring the wooden spoons. Straight under the tap it went. It is a good job that I use decent pans otherwise I would have lost that one. I had however cremated two wooden spoons.
I do have smoke alarms fitted in the house, and until that point they had remained silent. I already had the situation under control when they activated. It took opening the doors and windows to clear the smoke to silence these. Well they were tested and work well, if ever there is a fire there is no danger of sleeping through that din.
It has taken many hours of soaking and scrubbing to fully clean the pan but that is no longer blacked and shines almost like new again.
The meal was a success and we went out and had a great evening in the pub we had had Sunday lunch at previously.
I am not sure what the moral of this tale is. But let it serve as a warning to keep me away from the kitchen, sometimes.
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