The swans by Hope Mill bridge

I have been in taxi mode today having picked up Helena from the bus station this morning on her return from a weekend at the folk festival in Cheltenham. She had a a very good time. It has been raining all day, which is really depressing following the beautifully sunny day yesterday. I then offered to take her to her short teaching job after lunch up the valley, to save her from the rain and to make her 'holiday' week (from the school job as it is half-term) a little more pleasant.

After dropping her, I pulled up just up the narrow lane where it crosses over the River Frome as the rain had nearly ceased. One of the swans was standing on the grass which is their patch and where I think they are used to being fed by the passers-by. The first swan seemed quite at ease with me standing close by, and carried on dipping its head into the water's edge and preening its coat. But the second swan, which had been standing in the garden about twenty yards upstream, suddenly approached swiftly on the current and waddled out onto the grassy bank.

It looked up, shook its feathers, lifted its webbed foot for a couple of seconds and then put its head down and in this menacing way walked quickly towards me. I didn't hang around, as this has happened before, and they are quite unnerving. The rain had started again quite hard by this time, so I climbed back into the car and drove home to blip. Now I have to return to pick Helena up again after her two hour class and we can come back to tea and crumpets and a bit of 'Pointless', as usual.