Blogging Revolution

Blogging. Everyone's doing it. Not that I was at all original when I started a couple of years ago, far from it. I was years behind the trend, as I am with everything else from technology to haircuts. In fact, blogging is so passe these days that some bloggers have come full circle and stopped blogging. Some cite the pressure of continuing to remain fresh, some just can't be bothered any more. Some just run out of anything to say, although naturally I struggle to understand that particular reason.

As I say, I don't claim to have my finger on the pulse of the blogospehere, but I think I have detected a new trend in blogging, that of the multi-author blog. They seem to be cropping up a lot lately, or perhaps I have only just spotted them. Chief among them is of course 10,000 birds, but a number of others have been creeping out. I recently discovered this one, Birdingblogs.com, which hosts the ten best bird bloggers, though for obvious reasons that can't be quite true, can it?

Anyhow, whether you like the format or not, the welcome news is the return of Tom Mckinney. The name may or may not be familiar to you. He had a blog called Skills Bills, and gave it up, though I don't recall the reason. In summary it was pretty funny, featured appallingly bad language, and many people were sad when he stopped writing it. Despite the copious swearing, this new multi-author blog has let him in, uncensored, and his latest piece about a Pied-billed Grebe that is (allegedly, don't know, not seen it) in a Country Park near Rochdale is well worth a read. Never met the guy, wouldn't recognise him if I saw him, but his feelings on dogs and dog-walkers make him all right in my book.

I'm afraid the blogging revolution hasn't made it as far as Wanstead, though I do plan to subject treat you to a superb* phone-made video of some Egyptian Geese when I work out how to do it. Dedicated patch-worker and local birder that I undoubtedly am, I have as usual been sticking close to home. So once again I am able to feature the very best in boring birds from north-east London. Condensed, the Egyptian Geese were are as good as it got this week, and there were loads and loads of Goldcrests. There you go, patch report done.


I also took a little trip to Thordon Country Park, there to give Essex County Council two whole pounds for about thirty seconds-worth of forty unidentifiable Redpoll sp flying about, which was about as excellent as it sounds, and then sat in a hide at Warley Place EWT and watched common birds feeding, which was much better than it sounds. A superb little reserve, or at least the part I visited was. I had the hide - a modified shed - entirely to myself, and enjoyed my best ever views of Nuthatch and Coal Tit. I'm not a big fan of hides, I get bored, I like to be moving about, but sometimes I brave it and invariably enjoy myself a great deal. I think having the hide to yourself is probably key. No loud talking, shuffling about, creaking, or dropping stuff. And no dumb questions. Who exactly would I ask?




* might in reality be really really crappy