Life Changes

Those who know me reasonably well will tell you three key things about me.

1. I read books (When I first met my friend Jan it was outside the Royal Albert Hall, her husband Tony said oh you'll recognise Pete, he'll be the tall chap with his head in a book - whoops!)
2. I like Holidays. Or as Diane would say "ANOTHER HOLIDAY!!"
3. I like birds.

Lets forget number 1 since I've had my head in a book for as long as I can remember.

Up until 1996 I didn't do holidays. I would just waste my annual leave entitlement drifting about at home. Anyway at some point towards the back end of '96 maybe early '97 I read an article about Hay-On-Wye at the fact that it had 30+ second hand bookshops. Now I ought to point out I seldom buy secondhand books but for some reason I was intrigued. I contacted the tourist information office for a list of B&B's and selected the Old Black Lion in Hay (may I say this is HIGHLY recommended especially now they have a single en suite room as well as one with a private bathroom). Anyway I really enjoyed myself so thought what the hell and had a long weekend in the Cottswold and as I've always like Norfolk since a child had a long weekend there staying at Briarfields Titchwell.

Over the years I've revisited Hay and Titchwell (and the hotels many times - one of the staff at Briarfields recongises my voice on the phone!!) . And as those who know me well will tell you I spend my annual leave allowance on as many holidays as I can.

Now it s a curiosity that Titchwell is home to one of the RSPB's most famous reserves. During a trip there in 1999 fellow guests asked me what I had seen and were surprised that I wasn't there for the birds. During a long weekend in March 2000 I took an old pair of bins with me but it was cold and grey and this was a boring hobby.

We scroll on to April 19th 2002 and I was made redundant. I was out of work for 7 months and during that time something happened. I suppose it was Bill Oddie's fault I saw Bill Oddie goes live at Wicken Fen I had some time and so took the same old bins and started wandering around Hatfield Forest and down Rye Meads. And gradually something happened, I got really excited at finding a Common Whitethroat, my first ever Blackcap and ooh a Green Woodpecker. I learnt the difference between a Common and Green Sandpiper (I had never heard of a Sandpiper a few months earlier). Upon getting back in work the first thing I did was buy a decent pair of bins and a small scope I was hooked.

Scroll forward to April 19th 2003 I was sitting in a hide at Lackford Lakes. There wasn't much about but I was quite content, I glanced at my watch to see if it was time to eat my packed lunch and noticed the date. Then it struck me that if a year earlier you had told me I'd be sat over a scope looking at ducks and gulls I'd have keeled over laughing.

Its funny isn't it how our lives change and I suppose how often what you think will be for the worse works out for the better.