Saturday 10 April 2010

Birthday owl!



I'm the Birthday Girl today!!!

I've got a whole pile of birthday cards,texts,emails and phone calls. I feel thoroughly spoilt and loved.So all those people that know me via here, thank you for all your lovely messages, however I got them.

My friends have came up to stay with me from Oxford. And so far I haven't been allowed to make a drink or any food today as Wendy is looking after me completely. And they took me out for lunch... yummy food and a glass of wine in the middle of the day,just the stuff of afternoons naps!

I took them to Bakewell, home of the famous tart, however the original pudding as it is known in Bakewell bears no resemblance to the cake with almond paste with icing on the top that we think of as bakewell tarts.

It's a beautiful place with a wide shallow river running through the town. So loads of people were out and about on the best day of the year so far... blue skies, warm enough for t shirts if you were a macho bloke. The ducks, cygnets and Canada geese were having an absolute feast of bread and chips being fed to them by almost everyone on the river bank.

The water is so clear in the river that you could see the many beautiful rainbow trout waiting for the bread to drop under the surface for them to nibble up.

There was an amazing sight of five owls at the end of the walk. Very weird and a bit incongruous, just like coming across the Chinese students at the end of Lud's Church last week. That wasn't the right place to see tourists and the river bank wasn't a place to see captive owls!

So the pictures are, obviously, of one of the owls, and me with Trix at my feet, this morning having a coffee before I went out with my friends, leaving Trix to sulk at being left in!

Now both friends are napping, hang on I'm the one who had the wine here!And the evening will be spent glugging back a couple of bottles of champers and some lovely food to nibble on as the mood takes us.

19 comments:

Helen said...

Dear Mandy,
Please add my name to the long list of happy birthday wishers! Your blog is a favorite ~ as are you! Here's to another wonderful year ..
CHEERS!

Rosaria Williams said...

I'm here! Bringing you lots of love and fresh air and promises of Spring. Oh, and abundance of good cheer! Yeah!
Life gets better and better!

angela recada said...

Happy, happy birthday, dear Mandy! At first I wasn't certain what kind of tart you were referring to.
:0)
Then, upon reading further, I realized it was a delicious pastry, and not a strumpet.

Wishing you many, many more happy birthdays!
xo

Ronjazz said...

Happy day, honey. I may not always comment, but I follow you constantly. Imagine a big ole birthday hug from across the water!

Zan said...

Oh Happy Birthday Mandy! =)
You look absolutely stunning by the way!
Hope your head wont be too sore in the morning! lol

xx

Lori ann said...

What a lovely birthday Mandy! enjoy everybit of it as i'm sure you will. In fact i think you'll be having your champers and food right about now!
Cheers!

I LOVE the owl,how cool too see it so close, it's beautiful.

janis said...

Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear sweet talented, amazingly awesome, wonderful Blogging buddy Manday!
Happy Birthday to YOU!!!!
(enjoy my singing I hope! teehee!)

Von said...

HBD2U! Hope it's been a great one.
Love Bakewell, visited often when lived in Derbyshire.Owls huh?Good omen.

Anonymous said...

You look beautiful birthday girl!!!

Mel said...

Happy happy birthday to you!!!

(((((((( the byrdie )))))))))))

Ohhhhh....I wanna owl! :-)

Spadoman said...

Happiest of birthdays to you Ms. Firebyrd.
Hope the time change allows this to reach you on your special day.
By the looks of it, you are hardly 39!
Enjoy your day today, and everyday.
Not sure what to make of owls. I hardly ever see one at a time let alone a bunch. (is there even a word for a bunch of owls, like flock of geese or covey of quail?)
I am a macho bloke today. I will ride my Triumph on the highways and byways of rural Wisconsin. It's sunny, but a bit chilly, but i don't care!

Peace.

Lyn said...

So today is the big day is it? Well judging by that photo of you with the lovely smile and glowing complexion, I would say you look marvellous! I hope you embrace this milestone and enjoy the excuse to be pampered and appreciagted. Happy birthday my friend! Enjoy ... and cheers! *gulp*

Lia said...

Happy belated wishes for you and the coming year my dear.

That's a lovely photo of you.

much much love to you for the coming year.
Lia
xx

Paula said...

Finally online again :-)) You look awesome. Glad you feel spoiled. Hoep that the new years shines in all the colors of the rainbow. Mill of hugs

Miss Robyn said...

what a beautiful photo of you & Trix..
agree about captive owls.. I felt the same when I saw a sad, sad kookaburra in San Diego Zoo.. they are meant to be soaring!

nitebyrd said...

You may be older but you're definitely better! Hope you had a wonderful birthday. Owls! How amazing is that!?!

Anonymous said...

Hope you had a good day.
You're looking great.
Chris F.

karen said...

I seem to say happy birthday in every blog comment - so here's another one, just to go with your theme of a multi-day! You look happy, and absolutely great :)

Sorrow said...

Oh I like the longer hair!, Very soft and sexy looking!
Happy Birthday dearest Byrd!
I am so glad to read that the Byrds are still flocking t you..
( little knowing laugh)
Sorry to read in the previous post that you had hurt yourself! How does one hurt there back making soup? franticly stirring the pot?
Sending you healing thoughts!
and ((((((loads of hugs))))))))