Tuesday 11 December 2012

Pour encourager les autres


I know, I know, Strictly Come Birdwatching has gripped the nation like a fever and in the street very little conversation may be heard that's not about the death throes of my list. The social media too are buzzing with support for me as I hunt down the last species which stand between me and a thousand birds this year. My friends and family in particular have been clamouring.

Kerrie opted for excitement and encouragement.

Trine too opted for encouragement, though with a tiny touch of stick to her carrot.

Rebecca's tactic, last week, was decidedly more stick and less carrot.

As for CJV, well his approach was more Death Star.

My mother, never one to mince her words, she went for succinct.

And my niece Emma, most helpfully of all, she drew me a lion.

All your support and encouragement, from all over the world this strange year, has been most, most meaningful.


Dans ce pays-ci, il est bon de tuer un amiral de temps en temps pour encourager les autres.

Voltaire
Candide

(No admirals were harmed in the making of this blog post.)

2 comments:

  1. I say you have to stop at 999. It just wouldn't be right to "complete" any list. It would the most poetic way to segue into 2013.

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  2. I'm sure that if you tot up all your travels in the Neotropics this year Rich you've seen well over 1,000! In cold Norfolk I shall keep trying for more birds. There's a ring-necked duck (for at least her fourth winter) somewhere in the Yare, there's one of your wigeon this side of Norwich, there was a greater scaup at Cley this evening (would you believe I've seen lesser in the UK this year but not greater?) and there are one or two twite around the coast. I'll stop wherever I get to by the year's end. And then in 2013 I'll be (at least) in India, Burma, Romania, Greenland, Spitsbergen and Ecuador...

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