The sky in the morning was bright with the rising sun and the few clouds in the sky were lighted up, but the side that I could see slowly turned orange, then red. Later in the day it rained. The old country saying "Red Sky in the Morning; Good Shepherds Warning" or in other words, it is going to rain. I remember reading that the clouds turn red because the sunlight goes through air with much moisture in it which blocks the blue end of the light spectrum, leaving the red light to shine through. Wet air, it seems means rain later.

The other day I saw a squirrel hit by a car. I went to see if the creature was dead and as I got near it struggled to it's feet and staggered to the side of the road where it found an acorn and proceeded to eat it. 

A few days later one of our cats was not so lucky. Our beloved cat Sox was knock down by a car outside of our house and killed outright. The driver didn't stop. She was basically a house cat, choosing to be where ever I was, cuddling up to me on the settee, while Richard was out, or I was in bed reading a book. She was great company. In the mornings when Richard got up to make the tea, she would race up the stairs, jump onto the bed and trill away making a noise that sounded just like 'hello'. If I was working in the garden she ran off at a speed but always came back to make sure that I was still there. When I went for a walk across the field she would accompany me, bounding away in front and then waiting for me to catch up, and then running on again, tail in the air. If I walked along the footpath that leads to the river, when it was particularly muddy she would walk along the top rail of the fence to stop her legs getting wet. When the horses were in the field next door she would sit very still in front of Rajah while he sniffed her, she would then rub herself against his legs. On one occasion she was chasing his tail as it swished backwards and forwards, she then took a flying leap at the tail and swinging on it. The horse didn't seem to mind, just watching her in mild amusement until she jumped back onto the ground.

On one occasion she had caught a mouse (a rare event in Sox's life for her to catch anything). This was ceremoniously brought back to us in the garden. She put it on the ground and sat down. The mouse was still alive and after a few seconds sat up on it's hind legs, this was not in the game plan and Sox looked very surprised and took a small jump backwards. The mouse, feeling bold, then took a small jump forwards and again stood on it's back legs to which Sox jumped back somewhat alarmed. At this point Richard caught the mouse before it suffered any harm and took it to a hedge bottom where there was much long grass and let it go.

Yes, she was quite a character.

The animals  that I have seen dead on the side of our roads over the Christmas period has been quite appalling. Just along our lane there was a young deer, two squirrels and a pheasant. Further afield I saw a badger, two foxes and several other birds.

We frequently see deer in our headlights when driving home in the dark, especially if it is late at night. If a deer is seen in the headlights crossing the road in front of the car, we always slow right down as there are usually more following. The Roe Deer females tend to go around in a group following the dominant female. Muntjack are smaller than the Roe Deer, and there are increasingly more of them around, are always in family groups headed by the Stag. They are rarely seen in Spring and Summer as being so small they blend into the undergrowth. They are more visible in Winter and could be encountered crossing the road. This is when I have seen them and I have seen them grazing in the fields.

Take care and a happy new year to you all..