It was a lovely bright morning for a drive to Warwick. Unfortunately, it was a dark, cold afternoon for arriving back in Stratford, and shortly after I arrived in Holy Trinity churchyard I got the full weather trifecta, when it also started raining. I stuck it out under the yew trees for a few minutes, but this was one of the last shots I took before the rain turned into a teeming downpour, and when people began scuttling past me with water streaming off their outerwear, I lost my nerve and bolted for the car. I was parked no more than three hundred metres away, but the coat I was wearing had no hood, and by the time I reached safety my hair was plastered to my head and water was running down my face. I could really do with some waterproof feathers.
I talked a while back about the origins of the name Magpie, but recently I saw this Substack post by weird medieval guys, who not only confirms my information, but adds the extra titbit that because of its reputation for eating anything it comes across, the bird’s Latin name, pica, is now used to describe the human eating disorder of consuming substances such as earth or coal that aren’t actually food. In my experience Magpies are no more indiscriminate than any other bird that has to take the chances it’s offered if it’s going to survive – but not every reputation is fairly earned. Anyway, I heartily recommend that WMG Substack, which you can be sure I’ve bookmarked, against the day when I might have the opportunity to use some of these folk names. I’ll try to stick to the less offensive ones.
R: L2, C2, D1.
