Yesterday turned out to be a beautiful spring day -- bright blue sky, lots of sun, cool but not cold. Olga and I took a long walk around the Heath.
These two old oaks stand within an enclosure on Sandy Heath. A nearby sign explains that they're the only trees that predate the sand quarrying that took place on that site beginning in the 1860s. I'm not sure how we know that -- they don't look much different from the other trees on Sandy Heath -- but I'm no expert.
Remember how I said the coltsfoot seemed more sparse this year? Well, we went back to check it out and there's more of it blooming now. While Olga contentedly soaked up the sun and gnawed on her tennis ball, I went to sit on a nearby bench...
...and found what I'm pretty sure is a crack or meth pipe lying nearby. This is a first for me. I don't recall ever finding drug paraphernalia in all the years I've been going to the Heath. (Well, except for little plastic drug bags, but they're harmless enough.) I'm sure I just don't notice a lot of stuff like this. Needless to say, I did not touch it.
On Hampstead Heath Extension, the snake's head fritillaries are blooming. Dave and I have planted these a couple of times in our garden, and ideally they should come up year after year -- but the squirrels love them and always manage to demolish the bulbs. We don't seem to have any this year. I wonder how the ones on the Heath manage to hang on?
This morning it's windy and gray -- probably a prelude to our colder weather, which arrives today. White cherry petals from the neighbor's tree are fluttering into our garden like snow.
Crack is cheap and it seems the pipes to smoke it in are too. With a dog, the ageing process we see in humans is compressed to a shorter time. I don't think we have snake's head plants here. Maybe I just haven't seen them.
ReplyDeleteYou'd think a crack pipe would be something a person would want to hold onto -- but I suppose if they're on crack, responsibility is not a high priority.
DeleteWe have two of our four "kids" getting older and having a little more difficulty moving about. It hurts to see them like that, but, then, that's the way life works, I guess. You take care of them and they take care of you.
ReplyDeleteIt's all part of being in a pack!
DeleteI always enjoy looking at your photos. It is hard to see our pets age as it seems to happen so quickly. I see the same thing with my dog, who will be 10 next September. I cannot imagine my life without him. It is great to have a companion to walk with every morning.
ReplyDeleteOlga and Murphy are about the same age -- Olga may be slightly older. We're not sure, but we think she's about 11.
DeleteLove the Olga sploot in the grass. She's a work of art no matter what she's doing. :)
ReplyDeleteI agree!
DeleteSweet Olga! It's funny how dogs' aging is so much more apparent than cats'. Of course, cats basically lie about all the time anyway after they've passed the kitten stage.
ReplyDeleteI do wonder how they know the age of those trees. Very curious.
Linda Sue posted a squirrel picture today too. They are quite busy all over the world right now, aren't they?
Yeah, cats are so sedentary most of the time. The only way to tell they're getting older is that they tend to gain weight. I guess the squirrels are waking up and getting ready to breed!
DeleteThese photos are all so beautiful... except for the crack pipe. I've never come across one of those. Sad to see. That second shot of Olga is hilarious. The cool grass must have felt good on her parts. Those oaks are magnificent.
ReplyDeleteShe always lies like that, with her belly flat on the ground. It's such a funny pose.
DeleteYour title caught my attention. I wondered what was coming in this post.
ReplyDeleteI delivered just what I promised!
DeleteReally beautiful photos of your walk at the heath. What a lovely day before the cold spell.
ReplyDeleteIt was a really nice day. I'm loving the bright spring sun.
DeleteIt's been mostly overcast and windy and cool the last few days here. and Minnie doesn't even try and chase squirrels now. this is a really nice set of photos.
ReplyDeleteOlga still tries, but with more barking and less running!
DeleteThese are all such great photos (except for the crack pipe and that's just because of the subject). I love those trees, they look like something out of a fairy tale. Like I might see Little Red Riding Hood emerge at any moment. And that flower in the last photo is so pretty.
ReplyDeleteSandy Heath is my favorite part of Hampstead Heath, and all the twisty trees are part of the reason!
DeleteWhy would you touch that crack pipe when you have your own custom made Moroccan crack pipe? It wouldn't make sense.
ReplyDeleteIt's a HASH pipe, thank you very much. Keep your drugs straight.
DeleteWhen I am high I do not know what I am saying dude.
DeleteOlga's markings are so artsy! Squirrels do look like they were made from the same pattern however we can tell ours apart from one another, mostly because of their different personalities. Same with the raccoons. I know who they all are, but Dennis can not see the differences. Easy if you really look. I would have taken the pipe and made something of it. Maybe a light post for small creatures or plastic orphans.
ReplyDeleteI could mail you the crack pipe! Do you suppose that's against the law? LOL
DeleteIt's a beautiful day in the neighborhood. Dogs kill me when they lay on their stomachs like that, it doesn't look comfortable, but clearly it is or they wouldn't do it.
ReplyDeleteSome breeds seem more likely to lie in that position than others -- staffies often do, apparently. Something about the way their hips are built.
DeleteA friend lived over on a dead end side street, the very last house. She nearly had a heart attack when she went out with her twins so they could play in the pool...and discovered a crack pipe laying in her yard. Her own yard!
ReplyDeleteYikes! That's scary. It really makes you wonder what goes on out there in the world.
DeleteTree age can be measured mathematically or by counting the growth rings. These trees are not that old and can be measured easily.
ReplyDeleteAs for fritilleries. They are grown in southern states Down Under and are notoriously difficult to breed and grow.
I must have a look and see how busy squirrels are south of the equator these days.
Alphie
Well, yeah, but don't you have to cut the tree down to count the rings? I don't know how they can age trees that are still standing.
DeleteInteresting that you even have fritillaries down there. Seems like it would be awfully hot in Australia! I guess that's what makes them difficult? Here they're usually easy, but not for us.
Your math parent/s would have known how to do this...
DeleteParts of Australia ARE hot but not all of it. Tasmania is our coolest state and the people I know who grow them, live there.
Alphie
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DeleteOlga is looking good! How old is she now?
ReplyDeleteWe got her in January 2013 and she was three, or so the rescue agency told us. So she must be 11, if their age estimate was right at the time.
DeleteBrazen squirrels have big balls.
ReplyDeleteLove,
Janie