MsCellany

Notes to self

diary ⸱ Gita Bapat

Five

9th September 2026 Tonight, across two scrutiny committees, I broke my question duck. (What does that even mean?) break one’s duck /breɪk wʌnz dʌk/ verb phr. 1. Cricket. To score one’s first run after a period of scoring none. 2. Of a councillor: to ask, at long last,

9 Sep 2026

Places ⸱ Gita Bapat

Not quite the bare necessities

Sculthorpe 5 · IX · 2026 The Meadows Farm Shop 5th September 2026 Strawberries, highland cattle greetings cards, an emergency galvanised bucket for sunflowers. Find them here.

5 Sep 2026

Blogpost ⸱ Gita Bapat

20 years on

Gita Bapat Wednesday 2nd September 2026 Did he know that I was there by his bedside? They say that your hearing is the last sense to go so I kept talking, just in case, but he didn’t answer and then, when we’d all stepped out, deliberating whether to

2 Sep 2026

Places ⸱ Gita Bapat

The Poppy Line at Weybourne

Weybourne 31 · VIII · 2026 Weybourne 31st August 2026 We'd been hearing about the little train that runs from Holt to Sheringham for a while, and today was a chance to hop on board. The railway has been celebrating a Festival of Rails programme of summer events this week,

31 Aug 2026

Nature ⸱ Gita Bapat

A seasonal tide

Field Notes No. 08 Moon jelly 29th June 2026 At a glance SpeciesMoon Jellyfish Latin nameAurelia aurita FamilyUlmaridae SizeDiameter 5–40cm HabitatCoastal waters worldwide; the most common jellyfish in UK seas Key facts * Recognisable by four horseshoe-shaped gonads visible through the translucent bell * Its sting is too weak to

29 Aug 2026

Thornham

THORNHAM 27 · VIII · 2026 Thornham 27th August 2026 Thornham has become one of my very favourite Norfolk places and I visit whenever I can. It needs a dedicated post for the light, the air, the usual wonderfully bleak isolation that pulls me back summer, or winter. So here is a

Berry walk

Field Notes No. 07 Hawthorn, Dog rose, Elderberry, Bryony, Hops 26th August 2026 The end of summer is showing Nature's full abundance just in our local walk this morning. There are so many berries around that I wonder whether walkers are leaving them for the wild creatures who

The landing place at the homestead on the other side of the river

BURNHAM OVERY STAITHE 25 · VIII · 2026 Burnham Overy Staithe 25th August 2026 I'm making the most of this little staycation. Memories of the recent heatwaves are fading and at this time of year who knows how many gloriously sunny, warm days we have left? Not usually keen on

Side eye at Sheringham

Field Notes No. 07 Lesser Black-Backed Gull 23rd August 2026 At a glance SpeciesLesser Black-Backed Gull Latin nameLarus fuscus FamilyLaridae Size52–64cm, wingspan 135–150cm HabitatCoasts, estuaries, farmland, increasingly urban rooftops Key facts * Dark grey to black back distinguishes it from the paler Herring Gull * Yellow legs are

A little trip to Sheringham

SHERINGHAM 23 · VIII · 2026 Sheringham 23rd August 2026 A little trip to Sheringham Everyone had told us that we should go to Sheringham. It has a little train, apparently, but we didn't go on that. A walk for Fergus in Pretty Corner Woods, which apparently include the highest

Picking our own sunflowers

Saturday 22 August 2026 An enterprising 15-year old started up a summer holiday venture in our village. In a field that usually contains very friendly pigs, he planted some sunflower seeds and advertised the PYO on the village FB page. We went along this afternoon and picked our own.