Ark's Ark » Norwich http://www.arksark.org/blog Massively Multiplayer Online Gaming, Current Affairs, and Random Stuff! Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:10:32 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 In Which I Get Some Feathery New Neighbourshttp://www.arksark.org/blog/5278/in-which-i-get-some-feathery-new-neighbours/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/5278/in-which-i-get-some-feathery-new-neighbours/#comments Wed, 06 Apr 2011 15:59:16 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=5278 I’m really excited. I’ve been living here three years, and for the first time, it looks like I have some birds nesting in the nesting box at the bottom of my garden. I only have one decent tree, and it is the same one I had the flock of Bohemian Waxwings in in January.

I think it’s a pair of blue tits. They spent a few days in March clearing out what was probably a bit of a mess in [...]

In Which I Get Some Feathery New Neighbours is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/5278/in-which-i-get-some-feathery-new-neighbours/feed/ 2 A Strange Flockhttp://www.arksark.org/blog/4382/a-strange-flock/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/4382/a-strange-flock/#comments Sat, 11 Dec 2010 09:20:05 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=4382 I had some interesting visitors in my back garden for a little while this morning.

I have no idea what these birds are. They were around the size of a starling. Notably, many of them seemed to have a head-crest.

You can click the picture for a rather larger version. As usual, my cheap camera utterly failed to get a decent picture.

Update: After a little research, it looks as if they were Bohemian Waxwings, not commonly found in [...]

A Strange Flock is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/4382/a-strange-flock/feed/ 1 In which I go Christmas shopping and meet Santa!http://www.arksark.org/blog/179/in-which-i-go-christmas-shopping-and-meet-santa/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/179/in-which-i-go-christmas-shopping-and-meet-santa/#comments Wed, 01 Dec 2010 19:30:33 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/2007/12/19/in-which-i-go-christmas-shopping-and-meet-santa/ Originally posted December 19th, 2007.

So, I head into Norwich to do some Christmas shopping, and who should I meet?

It’s Santa! Not just any Santa, but Playmobil’s Santa! Doesn’t he look cheery as he shills for some other Santa’s grotto? To be honest, I think he looks a bit uncomfortable, but I suppose he has to pay for all those holidays in Tahiti somehow. Luckily I met him again after his shift.

There now, he’s much happier! [...]

In which I go Christmas shopping and meet Santa! is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/179/in-which-i-go-christmas-shopping-and-meet-santa/feed/ 1 Spider Babys.http://www.arksark.org/blog/3339/spider-babys/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/3339/spider-babys/#comments Sat, 22 May 2010 13:10:38 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=3339 Araneus diadematus, the European garden spider, has been busy in my garden. I spotted this group of bouncing babies having fun on my wheeliebin and thought I’d share!

The focus isn’t perfect, but I think it’s the best my little camera is going to manage as close as I had to get. These spiderlings are little more than a millimetre across each. Click the picture to get a larger version.

Araneus diadematus - Baby European Garden Spiders

I hope [...]

Spider Babys. is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/3339/spider-babys/feed/ 0 The British Big Freeze of 2010http://www.arksark.org/blog/1679/the-british-big-freeze-of-2010/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/1679/the-british-big-freeze-of-2010/#comments Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:29:02 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=1679 Via Twitter from Ysharros. It really IS cold. This is a NASA satellite image from today.

The British Big Freeze 2010

Truly epic.

The British Big Freeze of 2010 is a post from: Ark's Ark

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The British Big Freeze of 2010 is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/1679/the-british-big-freeze-of-2010/feed/ 0 In which it is still very cold.http://www.arksark.org/blog/1670/in-which-it-is-still-very-cold/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/1670/in-which-it-is-still-very-cold/#comments Thu, 07 Jan 2010 00:35:32 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=1670 It’s the nothingness. The whiteness. The endless…ness. Stretching on beyond the human imagination. Desolation of the soul! OH MY GOD!!!!

The Mighty Boosh – Tundra Rap

And that was pretty much the story of my walk into town today. Except with less dancing, and more nervous shuffling over icy surfaces.

In which it is still very cold. is a post from: Ark's Ark

Related posts: Fairytale, The Winner of Eurovision 2009! Baby, it’s cold outside.

In which it is still very cold. is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/1670/in-which-it-is-still-very-cold/feed/ 5 In which I walk past Norwich Cathedralhttp://www.arksark.org/blog/1114/in-which-i-walk-past-norwich-cathedral/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/1114/in-which-i-walk-past-norwich-cathedral/#comments Sun, 24 May 2009 21:17:21 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=1114 I’m on a work placement at the moment, and every day I walk there and back past one of Norwich’s fine pair of cathedrals.

Our Catholic Cathedral, The Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist was built quite recently by English standards, only being finished in 1910. At that point it was simply an extremely grand parish church, but in 1976 it became the base for a new diocese, the Diocese of East Anglia.

It is a rather grand [...]

In which I walk past Norwich Cathedral is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/1114/in-which-i-walk-past-norwich-cathedral/feed/ 0 In which I go to Wembleyhttp://www.arksark.org/blog/194/in-which-i-go-to-wembley/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/194/in-which-i-go-to-wembley/#comments Sun, 04 May 2008 18:53:09 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/?p=194 So, this blog has gone a little quiet for a month or so. What have I been up to?

The chief suspect is Pirates of the Burning Sea. I got quite heavily into it, running the forum for my Nation, and currently chairing the Council of guilds. My addiction seems to be waning though, so we might see a bit more posting here in the future.

Far more importantly, I was lucky enough to get the chance to do a [...]

In which I go to Wembley is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/194/in-which-i-go-to-wembley/feed/ 0 In which I finally become free of Magdalen Close.http://www.arksark.org/blog/189/in-which-i-finally-become-free-of-magdalen-close/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/189/in-which-i-finally-become-free-of-magdalen-close/#comments Mon, 14 Jan 2008 12:49:27 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/2008/01/14/in-which-i-finally-become-free-of-magdalen-close/ I just handed back the keys to my old flat to the council. After a week of cleaning up the detritus of 5 years of not being terribly tidy, I am overjoyed to see the back of it.

In the time I lived there I had to cope with crack-dealers and prostitutes using my stairwell as a meeting point, and constant screaming and yelling outside my flat. There were mysterious fires, including arson attempts on the chap who lived in [...]

In which I finally become free of Magdalen Close. is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/189/in-which-i-finally-become-free-of-magdalen-close/feed/ 0 In which I survive an oil rig explosion, and all I get is this lousy haddock goujon.http://www.arksark.org/blog/176/in-which-i-survive-an-oil-rig-explosion-and-all-i-get-is-this-lousy-haddock-goujon/ http://www.arksark.org/blog/176/in-which-i-survive-an-oil-rig-explosion-and-all-i-get-is-this-lousy-haddock-goujon/#comments Tue, 18 Dec 2007 16:24:19 +0000 Arkenor http://www.arksark.org/blog/2007/12/18/in-which-i-survive-an-oil-rig-explosion-and-all-i-get-is-this-lousy-haddock-goujon/ I have returned from my oil rig adventures. In truth, it took place at a Holiday Inn near Norwich airport. I have little to say about it, as sadly they were most keen on confidentiality, so I wasn’t able to take any pictures, and I had best not name the companies involved either. It felt like I was pretty much the only person there taking the damn thing seriously, apart from the organisers. My fellow evacuees were mostly random lads [...]

In which I survive an oil rig explosion, and all I get is this lousy haddock goujon. is a post from: Ark's Ark

]]> http://www.arksark.org/blog/176/in-which-i-survive-an-oil-rig-explosion-and-all-i-get-is-this-lousy-haddock-goujon/feed/ 0