I'd like to have posted this earlier, but on Tuesday my body was frazzled and
yesterday I was out of action at the hospital - finally having all drains and
stents removed so I really feel like a major step towards full recovery now.
Anyway, here in Whetstone Leics. the temps on Monday and Tuesday were - quite
frankly - ridiculous. Both day and night. Monday topped out at around 38°C,
and Tuesday was over 39°C, whilst the night time temps on both nights never
dropped below 22°C with temps at dusk hovering around 30°C. Unbearable. I ran
the garden trap on Monday night, the fourth consecutive night of recording,
but couldn't bear another effort on Tuesday. I'll wait a few days now to catch
up on some sleep and brace myself for another rise in temps later in the week
(albeit not so dramatic).
The Monday night catch was an excellent 735 of 127sp. which I think is the
highest species total for the garden and possibly the highest catch total,
certainly from one trap. Have to be honest, I used to keep tabs on that kind
of things but I've completely lost track.
Absolute highlights over the hot period were two garden macro ticks - one
expected, one not. Ironically, the expected one was new to me and until
recently was considered a rare migrant, but is clearly now a rapidly expanding
resident.
Dewick's Plusia - a British Tick that I expected to turn up before long
Lesser-spotted Pinion - never on the garden list radar
I ran the garden trap around the weekend last week, before the temps dropped a
little for a few nights to give a bit of respite. Reasonably busy catches,
including a few beetles and bugs which are likely to start ramping up in the
trap over the next month.
By far the main highlight was a new species - not just for the garden but one
I've not seen anywhere previously, though it has colonised the county recently
and I have tried for it at a couple of sites ....
Obscure Wainscot
Best of the beetles was this longhorn, albeit an agg. only ....
Leiopus nebulosus agg.
And amongst the bugs were these ....
Stenotus binotatus
Miridius quadrivirgatus
With the ridiculous forecast temps heading this way in the 'red zone', the trap is back out again for the next few nights. It'll probably be easier to watch it rather than trying to get some sleep with the night temps predcited!
Well, I'm here and alive enough to post - always a good thing I reckon. My
surgery did go ahead on Weds 15th June, though I knew nothing of it until
being brought out of sedation and off of a ventilator on 16th morning which
probably helped with managing the pain a bit. I spent the first day in
intensive care, just about getting over the anaesthetic whilst developing a
morphine addiction. On Friday I got moved to a general ward, and spent the
next three days gradually becoming more self-dependent and mobile. Much to my
surprise and relief, on Monday 20th they muted that perhaps I could go home
early (fully expected a 10 - 14day stay) as long as I came back in for a
couple of check ups on the Weds and Friday - I didn't hesitate in imploring
them to make it happen. I hate hospitals at the best of times, but being in
there once you are actually mobile and looking after yourself is absolutely
the most soul-destroying and mind-numbing thing imaginable. So on Monday night
I was home and happy.
Tuesday 21st June was a nice warm sunny day so I was pleased to be able to
intersperse sleeping, relaxing and generally lounging about with forays into
the garden for fresh air and to watch a few insects on the border flowers. It
dawned on me that with the sun shining, and with it requiring virtually zero
effort, I could dangle a couple of lures. So I tried both VES and FOR with
success, one Orange-tailed Clearwing to the VES lure and x3 Red-tipped
Clearwings to the FOR lure. I wasn't up to fannying about with a camera though
so only managed a couple of crappy phone shots ....
Orange-tailed Clearwing
Red-tipped Clearwing
I think the adrenaline of seeing clearwing and the euphoria at being home overtook
common sense, and I put the moth trap on for the night. Surgery and being in
hospital screws up your sleep pattern for ages so getting up early to empty it
wasn't a problem, though it was a bit more physical effort than was perhaps
good for me. Nothing exciting in there, but it was looking sunny again so out
went the LUN lure despite it being perhaps a bit early for the target. By
08:30 there were x2 Lunar Hornet Moths in the trap. All the more excellent as
with the pre-surgery records of Currant and Red-belted, all x5 clearwing
species that I recorded here last year have come again - no flash in the pan
luck involved, all clearly present within close enough proximity to come to
the lures reasonably soon after deployment.
Lunar Hornet Moth
Again, the moth trap went out and again with some effort I got it done early
in the morning. This time though there was excitement, a new for garden macro
and a decent migrant that warranted a quick snap with the camera ....
Scarlet Tiger
An expected addition to the garden list with recent expansion in VC55 range,
shame it was a bit tatty.
Bordered Straw - second garden record after one in 2006
The moth trap went out again on Thursday 23rd June, back to standard fare and
by now I was thinking that I'd perhaps overdone it, so the trap got put away
as the weather faded a bit anyway.
A week or so after surgery, things can go two ways. You either feel like
you're getting somewhere and feeling a bit stronger each day, or you start to
slide and feel a bit crapper. Over the weekend I felt a bit lethargic and
lacking energy, and on Monday I was in incredible pain in my left kidney. Back
to the hospital to be checked, and I ended up being re-admitted with bloods
showing infection markers. A subsequent CT scan showed a build up of likely
infected fluid stuck in a pocket somewhere in my pelvis, which would require
draining under a radiologically guided procedure. By then I'd had a couple of
doses of IV antibiotics and was feeling fine again, but the NHS system
conspired against me and despite my protestations and moaning I ended up being
stuck back in there until the Friday evening whilst they tried to work out
if/how/when this would be done. I was absolutely exasperated; every day I was
nil by mouth from midnight to c4pm just in-case they managed to fit me into
someone's schedule, whilst being sedentary and having bugger all to do. On the
Friday I made it clear I'd had enough and I was seriously on the page of
walking out and self-discharging, luckily they'd already come to the
conclusion and seen sense that they were better off bending their own rules
and essentially discharged me without discharging me, so that I could go back
for the procedure at an appointed time as a day case.
Back home for another week, gradually building myself up again after going
backwards in hospital. Yesterday I went in for a CT Guided Drain procedure -
and by christ it was the most painful experience of my life, local anaesthetic
only works so deep, and to avoid any remaining organs or major blood vessels
they went in the most direct route - basically they skewered my backside and
it fucking hurt! Anyway, it's done now and I can get back on with recovering
(although the drain will of course have to some back out, which will also be
uncomfortable but a lot quicker!). I'm actually feeling a lot perkier now and
I'm okay with basic pain relief. I've got a long way to go with recovery but
feel like I'm on the right path now.
Having major surgery, losing body parts and being in pain or uncomfortable etc
is of course worth it if it means I'm still here for the foreseeable, watching
the kids grow up (metaphorically, they've already grown up physically), being
here for and with Nichola and contributing to society. The surgeon told me
last week that the histology on the stuff they removed has clear margins -
that should mean I am cancer-free and there will be no further treatment. I'd
really like to hear that again with Nichola by my side at a formal
post-surgery consultation in due course.
The trap will be back out tonight, I've missed some of the best mothing
weather for ages and feel like I need to get back on track. I'm also able to
sit at the desktop PC for a while now - hence posting.
I realise that a lot of this post is a bit self-centered and unlikely to be of
any interest to anyone, but as I'm sure I've said before I write this blog for
me first and foremost.
In other news, apparently a large number of MPs in the lying bastard party
with no integrity and morals have realised that their leader really is a lying
bastard with the integrity and morals of a pile of bat guano. Who knew!
I really like this new track from Simple Minds ....
