Friday 06 November
Today all eyes have been glued to the news coming from the US and waiting to see what has happened in the election. But this is a distraction from the craziness of life in the UK and across the world right now.
Anxiety is rising amongst the staff and generally across the country right now. I find some emotions to be a little extreme and wasteful but I truly do understand why people think and behave as they do. Trying to make sense of the pandemic and lockdown alongside a stressful job, family life and the onset of winter and a pretty unusual Christmas makes for a very unsettling time.
Back in the US it appears that Biden is knocking on the door of the White House. He is just a state or two away from securing the votes needed to get over the finishing line. That, in itself, provides optimism. And optimism has been in short supply of late.
The idea that Biden may become President in a country that I don’t live in is something that I can latch on to. I will take that shard of good news and hold on to it. Tight enough not to lose it. Nurture it as a little bit of positive.
Spoke with my sister and my dad this evening. He has been for a test on his oesophagus and his tumor is now mailgnant and he is finding it more tricky to swallow. It’s going to be a rocky road ahead, I feel, but we have a family full of love, which I can ultimately thank my mum and dad for. That love means that we will weather whatever is thrown at us.
My sister shared this wonderful mobile phone clip she took of a house fly (Musca domestica) grooming. They spend a lot of time doing this. Rubbing hands and legs together, sweeping their legs over their wings and eyes. They pick up so much chemical and physical ‘dirt’ as they go about their lives. They rely so much on their smell and sight that they must keep these receptors in top working order. So, it makes them one of the cleanest creatures on the planet. The flies olfactory receptors (smell sensors) are on its tiny antenna at the front of its head. Which is why it’s often seen rubbing it’s ‘hands’ together near these and over its head and eyes.
The Bald Birder 