| Author | Content |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
06:25 PM Post #6309704
| Nothing else to say really except well done! You did the book proud and created an article just as beautiful! |
carrielamont
Milton, MA
(Zone 6a)
March 23, 2009
06:28 PM Post #6309724
| Thank you, Ben, I appreciate it. You're the only commenter I'm aware of who is from England - oh, one was from Ireland! But thanks very much.
(I know they're quite different, but they're closer than you and I are now.)
This message was edited Mar 23, 2009 6:29 PM |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
07:00 PM Post #6309839
| Hey there Carrie,
A pleasure. I was born in Denver by lived in England for a long time. 
I feel blessed to have had my own resident robin in my English garden. They are a joy with such personality. |
carrielamont
Milton, MA
(Zone 6a)
March 23, 2009
07:23 PM Post #6309943
| My DD, who knows EVERYTHING now that she is 18, was proofing the article for me a few days ago and stopped at the picture of the robin and said "Mom, that's NOT a robin." I had the last laugh on that one. |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
08:09 PM Post #6310106
| Yep... a robin indeed. There is typically only one male in a garden for they are very territorial. They watch intently as you dig in the soil for they know when you dig, there are worms to be had. As depicted in the book and the film, they are very personable and will "talk" with you and visit. They are a joy. |
carrielamont
Milton, MA
(Zone 6a)
March 23, 2009
08:25 PM Post #6310162
| (Sigh.) We don't have those here. "Th' friendliest curiousiest birds alive," isn't that what Ben Weatherstaff calls them? |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
08:39 PM Post #6310228
| Yes... indeed. They are extremely clever.
If you fancy something a bit magical, take a trip to a British abbey or something with huge grounds with huge trees in the late winter (February roughly). Listen for a bird song so sweet and beautiful in the air. That is the robin. Seek him out and then talk to him. He will talk back and play and perform for you. It will be one of the most magical experiences you will ever have as a gardener. I promise. |
carrielamont
Milton, MA
(Zone 6a)
March 23, 2009
08:46 PM Post #6310253
| Um, first I'd have to get to London - do-able. Stay in London, then in a village near said abbey, travel back and forth and around in U.K. - prohibitive. DH has airline benefits, not car hire and Trust Houses. (Ha ha ha, you see, I was in the U.K. as a young teen, picked up all the lingo. Do they still have Trust Houses? It was, I guess, a chain of hotels but not like a chain. We went and found my mother's roots in some Welsh village with an unpronounceable name!) |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
09:33 PM Post #6310519
| Okay... get yourself to London. Check.
Head on over to London Marylebone station and that will take you to Warwick. The trip is roughly an hour and a half and the trains to and from are frequent. You can then visit Warwick Castle.
Or -- you can head on over to King Henry's old gaff Hampton Court Palace via Waterloo station.
Alternatively, get on the tube and head to Highgate cemetary. I realize this is an odd recommendation but trust me. The statuary is magnificent and ancient and there are plenty of old, tall trees. I have visited with the resident robins there before.
Many a possibility lay before you.
The best yet I would imagine would be to get to know some of the Brits on this site and find out about garden tours. I guarantee each garden will have their own resident robin.
Getting up north is also not that difficult by rail. You could head to the dales and get a feel for the lands described in the book.
|
carrielamont
Milton, MA
(Zone 6a)
March 23, 2009
09:55 PM Post #6310632
| Yes, boss. |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
10:13 PM Post #6310725
| Sorry...I got a bit carried away there didn't I. I just get so excited talking about England and want to convince everyone to go. |
carrielamont
Milton, MA
(Zone 6a)
March 23, 2009
10:16 PM Post #6310739
| Not at all; I'd love to go back! (Everyone sounds like they're in a Monty Python skit!) |
BennysPlace
Castle Rock, CO
(Zone 5a)
March 23, 2009
10:23 PM Post #6310780
| Laughing... and laughing some more. You know... they DO! I never noticed that before but you are right. Lovely Jubbly. |
