Wednesday 15 October 2008

Too many eggs

Another view taken on our walk at Wallington. My local newspaper tells me that 20,000 grey squirrels have been culled in Northumberland this year in order to save the native red. We didn't see any leaping about at Wallington but then there were so many people and dogs walking that any self-respecting squirrel would be miles away. The greys, brought here in Victorian times, weigh three times as much as the red and eat three times as much. They also carry a disease that is lethal to reds, but there is hope that some of the native species have deloped an immunity.

I hope to have the cover art for FAR AFTER GOLD in about ten days, and then I can display it here and other places. Such excitement! Also I've finished off my attempt at a novella for the UNDONE series. That 13,000 words went off today.
Now I must concentrate on Daisy's story, which seems to have lost the plot around chapter 8, and read through Warden's Bride. (second edition with older heroine.) Sometimes I wonder if I'm trying to juggle too many eggs at one time...
All this sitting at a computer leads to wide hips and general unfitness in my case, so I am making a special effort to walk up the hill to Prudhoe every day. If not every day, then several times a week. It is too easy to look out of the window, see the rain and decide to stay indoors. Lately when I walk up the hill, I've had to stop more than once to ease the ache in my chest. So yesterday and today off I went. Monday I did a mile on the stationary bike - that has to count for something!

3 comments:

Linda Banche said...

Hi Jen,

Love your blog.

I don't know if the red squirrels we have here in North America are the same ones you have, but I know the reds are mean and chase the native gray squirrels, the ones you have too many of. If your reds are our reds, I would have thought they would have eaten all the grays by now.

Jen Black said...

Our reds are only a third of the size of the imported greys, so the greys are the bulllies here! I think they've got to go, otherwise our cute little native reds will vanish for ever
Lovely to see you here, Linda!
Jen

Anonymous said...

well i love squirrels though

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