Asian Rosy Finches

Beautiful springlike weather this morning in Hakodate. I popped out to the local park near my flat to see if the Crossbills were still there. No Crossbills but lots of Redpoll, Hawfinch and these Rosy Finch. About 10 of them. I've never seen then so close to home and unlike the other Rosy Finches in the countryside these urbane ones didn't mind being photographed.





There have been lots of this species this winter. Kind of a large chunky linnet on steroids type bird.





I probably won't be able to photograph them again for another 3 or 4 years so forgive the deluge.



Here are a few of the other birds from today. Unlike the above photos all (except the Kite) were taken with the smaller 70-300 lens. It's a cross section of the commoner species around............Dusky Thrush, Hawfinch, Daurian Redstart, Spot Billed Duck and Black Kite.








I watched 'Beowulf' last night. The first ever English novel. Even though it's about Scandinavians. Ray Winstone was the eponymous hero and spoke in a kind of cockney accent trying to be posh type voice. I kept expecting him to kill Grendel with a pool ball stuffed in a sock (actually the way he killed him was only slightly less subtle). At least Winstone's voice sounded more or less normal. Why do American movie makers make historical movies and tell the actors to use cod Ye olde Englishe/Oirish accents? All those rolled 'rrrrrrrs' got on my nerves. Kind of spoiled it a bit. Though of course the movie was pretty preposterous anyway. At least we get to see Angelina Jolies tits. Except we don't as it's actually animated. Plus she has some kind of tentacle thing going on.

I have 'Into the Wild', 'AVP 2' and 'Sweeney Todd' to keep me occupied over the next few days.

Our fridge is on its' last legs so we bought a new one. I have to wait at home on my day off for them to deliver it. The old fridge is humming away in the kitchen like a F1 car revving up. God knows what we'll discover behind it when the delivery oyajis take the old one away tomorrow. Maybe the spare carkeys (which I mislaid recently)?

I'm planning to get up at 4.45am to watch Liverpool v Inter Milan. I'm stupid like that.