Takes my breath away

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joanlawson
joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
edited 8. Feb 2010, 03:56 in Community Chit-chat archive
Hi

I was talking about kingfishers today, as you do, and it seems that not many people have actually ever seen one, but I have.

I said that seeing a kingfisher is rather like seeing a shooting star: it is a rare and beautiful sight which is often over in a flash. When you see it, you can hardly believe it, and it takes your breath away for a few seconds. Then you want to see it again, but you know that you might have to wait for years. It might never happen again, for all you know. It felt the same when I saw dolphins swimming in the sea.

Sometimes it feels as though I am shown a tiny glimpse of true beauty, like a slice of paradise, and even if I never see it again, it will still take my breath away.

Joan
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Comments

  • annie_mial
    annie_mial Member Posts: 5,614
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Joan, we've several pairs of kingfishers here and I saw one last time I was out for a (relatively) long walk.

    I agree, it is something worth waiting for, although that time we were lucky, just in the right place at the right time.

    I used to take our dog along the same walk every morning and the day wasn't complete until I had seen 'my' kingfisher. This is one of the things I will be leaving behind when we go and it is something I will miss.

    Annie
  • minky67
    minky67 Member Posts: 2,328
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    we used to go fishing at a pond about 5 miles from us. They have a kingfisher there & we always saw it.
    The flash of blue as it swooped down to scoop up its fish & it never failed to catch one.Then once we watched it as it sat in the tree with its catch, wonderful. :D

    we also saw one in cornwall,otterham again at a fishing lake.
    I love nature & all its wonders. :D
    debs
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Annie

    That's it, isn't it :?: Being in the right place at the right time. Isn't it marvellous when you are :!:

    I hope you will see kingfishers again in your new home.
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  • annie_mial
    annie_mial Member Posts: 5,614
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Might see some seagulls, Joan!

    We'll be about half a mile from the sea.

    Annie
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Debs

    It is that irridescent blue which I remember too. You were lucky to see it so many times.
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  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    annie_mial wrote:
    Might see some seagulls, Joan!

    We'll be about half a mile from the sea.

    Annie

    Ah, the sea, Annie :!: Now there's another wonder of nature :!: I could watch the waves for ever. I envy you :!:
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  • minky67
    minky67 Member Posts: 2,328
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi, yes very luck. weve been down there since & its still there.
    must be the good supply of food keeping it there.
    Theres also a breeding pair of Buzzards & water voles too.
    Then another lake we go to has Grass snakes & my OH caught one in his net as it swam past him. I didnt stay put for long, i was off. Dont do snakes. :lol:
    debs
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Debs

    Water voles are an endangered species, I think, so it would be a rare sight.
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  • minky67
    minky67 Member Posts: 2,328
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    joanlawson wrote:
    Hi Debs

    Water voles are an endangered species, I think, so it would be a rare sight.
    Bit like me then :lol: I was brought up in the country so ive seen allsorts.
    When we were fishing one ran across my foot & plopped in the water right in front of me & swam away. :lol: Made me up i can tell you :roll: Dont expect that, might have been after me sarnies. :shock: :lol:
    debs
  • bertyboy
    bertyboy Member Posts: 1,860
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    i have a lovely photo of a kingfisher but dont know how to put it on for you can do the smilies but thats it xxx
    I know i am a lady ,all life is a journey xx MAY xx
  • mellman01
    mellman01 Member Posts: 5,306
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    I see them when I ma canoeing on the Thames, even had one sit 10 feet away in a tree while we were tied up fishing one day.
    I just love to see them they are so distinctive, you can't mistake a flash of neon blue skimming low over a calm misty river in high summer, beautiful to see. Never fails to captivate me. :mrgreen:
  • joyful164
    joyful164 Member Posts: 2,401
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Annie

    Do you want a live in cleaner to live by the sea with you.
    I can then paint waves in my spare time :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :lol::lol:

    Joan
    Yes, we saw a kingfisher last year when my Oh and I and our friends hired a barge for the day. It was lovely seeing this beautiful bird diving and weaving round the trees in front of us. Diving into the water.
    Joy
  • chile168
    chile168 Member Posts: 384
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Joan,

    I love kingfishers they are beautiful but haven't seen many in England. That I miss about Chile and was talking about it the other day funnily enough.

    I have recently seen two woodpeckers and it was amazing. Where I am I get Robins, Woodpeckers, Parakeets (soz if spelt wrong), squirrels, foxes, frogs, lizzards lol Im a MISS Doolittle. Most of neighbours have pythons which I do not like.

    Eve
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    bertyboy wrote:
    i have a lovely photo of a kingfisher but dont know how to put it on for you can do the smilies but thats it xxx

    Don't worry, Bertyboy, I will imagine it :!: The thought was there, anyway :D
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  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    mellman01 wrote:
    I see them when I ma canoeing on the Thames, even had one sit 10 feet away in a tree while we were tied up fishing one day.
    I just love to see them they are so distinctive, you can't mistake a flash of neon blue skimming low over a calm misty river in high summer, beautiful to see. Never fails to captivate me. :mrgreen:

    Hi Mell

    I am envious of you on two counts; firstly being able to canoe on the Thames, and secondly getting so close to a kingfisher.
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  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Joy

    I would like to be able to paint the sea. I find water a difficult thing to capture in paint. I'm glad you have seen kingfishers too.

    Hi Eve

    You must miss many things about Chile, a fascinating country. Pythons :?: :?: :shock: :shock: Strange neighbours you have :!:
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  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Another sight which took my breath away was seeing a tiny new-born elephant at Twycross Zoo in Leicestershire last summer. It was born at the zoo, and was only a month old when I saw it. It was suckling from its mother, something I have never seen an elephant do , and its trunk seemed to get in the way. Its mother seemed so huge beside it, and yet she was so gentle with her baby.

    While at the zoo, it began to rain quite heavily, just as I stood next to the gorilla enclosure. I smiled as I watched two gorillas pick up a sack and drape it over their heads for shelter. Then they sat there like two pensioners on a wet day trip to Blackpool :!: :lol::lol:
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  • joyful164
    joyful164 Member Posts: 2,401
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    joanlawson wrote:
    Hi Joy

    I would like to be able to paint the sea. I find water a difficult thing to capture in paint. I'm glad you have seen kingfishers too.

    Hi Eve

    You must miss many things about Chile, a fascinating country. Pythons :?: :?: :shock: :shock: Strange neighbours you have :!:

    I love painting the sea, calm, choppy and stormy. I just love the colours at night too, especially with a moon
    I love painting boats too.
    At the moment I have just about finished another bluebell wood.
    They seem to sell well somehow. This one is in oils. two were acrylics and the first one was watercolour which I found difficult.
    You can get textures better with oil and acrylic.
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi Joy

    Bluebell woods take my breath away too. There is a lovely one near to where I live, and I look forward to seeing it every year.

    I wish I could paint water as well as you, Joy.
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  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Bet that took the caterpillar's breath away :!: :shock:
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  • valval
    valval Member Posts: 14,911
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    went with my brother on a boat down / up the thames saw one and lots of other wild life was so nice to wake up and hear the birds
    val
  • joyful164
    joyful164 Member Posts: 2,401
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    I have just been looking at a picture of a Kingfisher in my books of birds and thought I might put one in one of my paintings. It would add a nice touch to another canal scene I am doing. I also want to do a pic of a red kite.

    I have so many different pics being done at the moment.
    Mind you. have lots of exhibitions coming up

    JOy
  • joanlawson
    joanlawson Member Posts: 8,681
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    delboy wrote:
    A Kingfisher on a canal would be like Gordon Brown entering Britain's Got Talent, extremely unlikely. :lol:

    There again artistic licence allows you do put whatever you want wherever you want. :wink:

    Hi Delboy

    Well, maybe Gordon Brown WILL enter Britain's got Talent then, although I can't for the life of me think what talent he has got :!: :roll:

    However, Joy is not just using artistic licence in her painting, because the only time I have seen a kingfisher was when I was walking beside a canal.
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  • joyful164
    joyful164 Member Posts: 2,401
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    delboy wrote:
    A Kingfisher on a canal would be like Gordon Brown entering Britain's Got Talent, extremely unlikely. :lol:

    There again artistic licence allows you do put whatever you want wherever you want. :wink:

    I don't know what you mean delboy?
    I'll have you know that I saw one when we were going along the canal near Rugby last year. Also saw one the year before when we were going along the opposite arm towards Welford Leicestershire/Northamptonshire border.

    Joy
  • jaspercat
    jaspercat Member Posts: 1,238
    edited 30. Nov -1, 00:00
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    Hi, when we lived in Wales our flat had a stream at the back and a little bridge, we went down one day and there was a kingfisher standing on the rail of the bridge, it stood there looking at us and didn't seem bothered by us at all, we were there several minutes, what a lovely bird love Jaspercatxx
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