Celtic Knotwork

This lovely example of celtic knotwork is on a gravestone in an old graveyard within the Glentanar estate. There are some beautiful walks around there, and it is also where I shot the 'not bee'. I have other shots from there that I may publish later, although the herons still elude me.

The graveyard is set around an old, old church, and the dappled effect of the light through the trees on the stones enhanced the ancient appearance. This stone was more in the full shade of the church. You can wander around the woods and feel like modern life is so far away - sometimes it is a pull to go back to it.

Not a bee

Despite how it looks, and also how it was flying when I saw it, this is not a bee.

It's a hoverfly, and I was drawn to it by how unusual I thought it looked. I had never seen one before, and I thought it was a bee, but the eyes weren't quite right.

I posted it on a forum and should thank my pals from the JREF forum for helping me to identify it.

It is standing on something I actually see quite a lot - good scottish thistle.

Puffin around

I saw this little guy at the end of a long summer day of taking photos, and the light was getting really poor.
He was positioned right in the deepest of the shadows created by the cliffs, and trying to get pictures was actually getting quite dangerous. I assume he's a guy - you really need to see a pair together to know them apart as the female is a little bit smaller. You can see it was the height of summer because of the glorious colour of the beak - they pale and go grey by winter. Apparently they shed part of the beak, and I meant to go back to see if I could find a piece, but we have had unusually windy weather since then, making it unwise to wander round those particular clifftops.


I was overjoyed to see him. I think he's the first live puffin I have ever seen, and the colours are incredible. It almost seems that they have to be in make-up for the markings to be so perfect. The rest of the sightings that day had been seals, gulls, cormorants and razorbills, so the splash of colour was a welcome sight.

Please - use your brains!

I was going to post a photograph today, but got distracted by this story, which I just had to share:

http://www.courier-journal.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20051009/NEWS01/510090392

1 - Know your rights. No-one has the authority to strip search you in the back of your place of employment, commit lewd acts on you, or invite others to do so. Don't let anyone try.

2 - Know your mind. No matter if it is a person in a position of authority who asks you to do something, take a second to think about it. If it isn't right, DON'T DO IT. It's really quite simple.

3 - Own your actions. If you are dumb enough to get taken in by a hoaxer who persuades you to do all manner of disgraceful things, take responsibility for your actions. It is not the responsibility of your employers to tell you in advance not to be such an asshole.