I went along today to a writing workshop at the Hermitage of Braid (a lovely area in Edinburgh, which I've blogged about several times). The workshop is part of a project, run by the City of Edinburgh Countryside Rangers, to create poems that will be incorporated into the Walled Garden which is being renovated. Foolishly I forgot to take my camera (though thankfully I didn't forget pen and paper!) and so I don't have any photos of this lovely garden project. I'll blog about it in the future, though. The workshop was lead by Edinburgh poet Helen Boden who managed to pack loads into the two hour session and got us all writing really good pieces! I was pleased with what I wrote, but I was even more pleased to catch a glimpse of a nuthatch on the bird feeder outside the Visitor Centre. The nuthatch is a bird that is slowly colonising Scotland from England and though I've seen them in the Scottish Borders I'd never seen them in Edinburgh (though I'd heard they were in the Hermitage) until today! The bird was hanging upside down on a bird feeder, which it apparently visits every day. As I said, I didn't have my camera....
A couple of publishing updates, Dr Hurley's Snake Oil Cure have published a second poem of mine, Corstorphine Sycamore. They published my poem Family Tree back in May.
I've also had a wee piece published on the wonderful Fortunates website, you can read it here. (And just spend some time exploring that website, it really is a delightful concept!).
Nuthatches are such handsome little birds. They are the only bird that will walk headfirst down a tree.
ReplyDeleteI don't get to see them much in the summer, but once in a while a pair will fly in to check out the feeder tree.
ReplyDeleteThey are sweet little birds.
Hi Juliet,
ReplyDeleteSounds like a fun day out at the writing workshop. Also enjoy hearing about the birds in your part of the world.
Happy Wednesday
Hugs
Carolyn
We are fortunate to have them requent the feeder. Off in a tree they sometimes mew like a little kitten - that is how I can tell they are around.
ReplyDeleteLiked the wee piece about the billboards!
I've seen nuthatches in a couple of locations about the country but never in Edinburgh - glad to know they're there. They're a great wee (weeish)bird and so different from anything else we have.
ReplyDeleteYour short piece at Fortunates is wonderful...so much thoughtfulness and imagery packed into such a small space. Congratulations on your other publications.
ReplyDelete