Just a quick fill-in.. It was the official opening of Hastings Pier on Saturday, and in the evening we went to a Shanty Singing session. Been very busy with WI things, garden full of baby birds, and off to the Chelsea Flower Show tomorrow….
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| A grey day for the official opening of the Pier |
Saturday saw the official opening of Hastings Pier. I have written just a couple of weeks ago about how lovely it is, so won’t go into it again here. As community shareholders we got tickets for the first part of the day, the official opening. Oh joy, it was a wet, cold day. However, together with half of Hastings, we went down there.
Had coffee with friends Shirley and Brian, then joined the throng to hear the speakers. Nothing to say about that, but it is an excellent thing to have helped, even only a tiny bit, to get the Pier reborn.
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| Wet…. |
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| Nice flags though |
I liked this picture Philosopher took of our esteemed MP, Amber Rudd, looking totally fed up, despite her speech about being so thrilled about the whole business. Since she became Environment whatnot minister she has become very stony faced, and shows even less interest in Hastings and its concerns than she did before. Battleaxe was standing next to our previous MP, Michael Foster (Labour) and chatted to him briefly. What a nice man he is, and by all accounts he was an excellent MP.
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| Amber – not looking happy to be in Hastings…. |
These posters on the Pier railings caught my attention, remembering the famous bands that played there in the past.
We didn’t stay on the Pier very long – despite everyone appearing to get stuck into the festivities – and we didn’t go to the Madness gig in the evening. I gather that it was an absolute blast. You could hear it all over the town, even up here in Clive Vale.
Instead, we went to a Shanty singing session to celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the Fishermen’s Museum down by the net huts in the Old Town. (It’s in the former Fishermen’s Church. A lovely little place full of interesting things, staffed by nice people and free to get in – Battleaxe recommends). Our friend Tom Kelly is in the RX Shantymen who were doing the singing. They are really excellent, and the Museum was a great setting for them to do their thing, despite the fact that the enormous old fishing boat that lives in the main room somewhat obscured the view… There are four of them, but this not-good photo only shows three.
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| Three out of four RX Shantymen |
Changing the subject altogether, our garden is absolutely seething with starlings at the moment. We get lots normally, but now all the babies have fledged, there are at least 30 or 40 squawking round the bird feeders – and I am not exaggerating. We get this every year, but this year there are more than ever. Although the babies are perfectly capable of feeding themselves they still expect their poor parents to do the hard work and feed them.
I thought starlings were supposed to be in decline?
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| Waiting for food in the hedge |
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| On the feeders |
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| In the bird bath |
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