To reminisce or not to reminisce?

Of the few blogs I read, a few have started to go back in time. Some of them are just random, others are triggered more by current events - a gem of a Red-throated Pipit on Scilly earlier this month caused Gavin H over at NQS to recall his first ever RT Pipit back on the Scillies in about 1885. Sorry, I mean 1985 of course. 

Which brings me neatly to my point. Is reminiscing purely the realm of old codgers reliving their glory days because, and to be frank, they have passed. For example were Gavin to be lucky enough to find a Red-throated Pipit in Dorset tomorrow, would it generate in him the same amount of excitement that it did back then? Maybe it would generate more simply due to being wholly unexpected! It might all be too much!

The chances of me finding anything rare are remote, I don't stray sufficiently off patch to coastal locations. That is not to say that Wanstead cannot generate a rarity or two, as Rustic Bunting and various other unexpected birds are testament to, but Porth Killier it is not. However If we aim at the next level down, things that are good in a London context, I can attest that finding a quality local bird remains very exciting indeed - it would have been very interesting, perhaps even downright worrying, to have measured my blood pressure when the Stone Curlew flew up ahead of me back in March 2013. I can still remember it as clearly as if it were yesterday, that is what these moments mean.

And I think that is the key to it really. If for you it retains a freshness that will never fade, brings a smile to your face each and every time, then it is surely worth writing about. It likely won't mean a thing to anybody reading it, why would it, but if it it's that exciting for you then it is also likely that it will translate well into a jaunt down memory lane. Reminisce away I say.

Which is also why rather more dry nuggets like the fact that on this day exactly ten years ago I saw a Brown Shrike on a misty Staines Moor don't work as well and you won't find me writing about it or posting photos or anything like that.