All New

While settling in to the new year, I have also been rather busy settling into a new computer - two new computers to be exact. My old PC had been misbehaving for some time following a huge update from Microsoft which left several programs not working. So after Christmas, I decided to bite the bullet and have a nice new one. I originally opted for a shiny new Lenovo all-in-one computer and set about transferring all my bits and pieces from the old one - a job which took quite some time. It was at this point that the new PC started crashing and spontaneously rebooting itself for no reason.
So, after a very frustrating couple of weeks trying to fix the problem and getting absolutely nowhere with Lenovo's on-line 'Help and Assistance' (a complete misnomer), it went back to Argos and I am now sitting looking at a lovely new Acer computer with full HD screen and all the bells and whistles I could wish for.

So, it's now time to get back to normal and start posting a few pictures once more - and we start with a short walk this morning, around Straw's Bridge.
Everywhere is very wet following an extremely rainy few weeks, so you have to be particularly careful where you put your feet, but the sunshine was beautiful this morning. As we walked along the old Nutbrook Canal, the overhanging Hazel trees were dangling their catkins over the water, catching the light.

At 'Swan Lake', the bright sunshine was filtering through the dried seed heads of old Phragmites reeds, making them shine like silver.

Near by, the flooded pits which make up Pewit Carr, looked dramatic in the sun against a rather threatening sky which promises some snow later.

All the usual suspects were to be found around the lakes, including these three Mute Swans - complete with their fetching colour-coded leg rings.

One in particular, was very photogenic...

and was happy to have his picture taken. Mind you, if you looked as good as this, why not?

Time for one more snap of the silvery reeds before heading home for a hot coffee and to get warm again.