Weekend Life...

So somewhere between missing the fab fuzzy four (Kyoko, Lil'bit, Wiki and Qanuk -- for those of you new to life at the Raccios) and freaking out about the start of school, I've made a wee bit of time on the weekends to explore the local villages. Generally this means (a) shopping (b) sampling a world of new ales at local pubs (c) shopping and (d) village "fairs" (which usually includes shopping!). Local fairs can range from tiny village "fetes" to gypsy horse trades to giant agriculture fairs. Here are a few pics from some of the events that filled my weekends over the past 6 weeks:

The local village "fete" in Kingham (Below). Seemed mostly geared to kids (judging by Humpty Dumpty and the Maypole). This was pretty much the BIG event for my village for the ENTIRE summer... even the local pub closed early so that the staff could attend:

Here I'm handling a Greater European Owl (at ~5 lbs, this bird is bigger than the Great Horned Owls we have in North America!) at the Ibstock County Fair (I actually drove the 2 hours to come here for the British Ferret Club show/display, but forgot to take pics!)

Birds of Prey and falconry displays are common at most of the larger summer fairs, such as the Oxfordshire Craft festival at Blenheim Palace (I never actually managed to get into the Palace or Gardens!).



An English Polecat at the Oxfordshire Craft Festival(#1 Below)- the wild relatives of the domestic ferret. This big boy was rescued when his momma was spooked by the household dog and dropped her baby whilst (yes - we say "whilst" rather than "while" in the UK!) moving him to another den. She didn't come back for her little one, so the landowner called the National Ferret Welfare Society (NFWS) and now this fuzzy lives with his new human dad in the presence of domesticated ferrets and makes regular appearances at P.R. showings like this one at the Oxfordshire Craft Festival at Blenheim Palace. Just prior to the races, an NFWS representative presents and educational session on ferrets, with a little help from one of the racing ferret, Smokey(#2 below)!

At the races! On your mark, get set, GO!

"Smokey" ferret gets distracted in the "Trap" leaving just enough time for "Franky" ferret to emerge victorious. Good thing I placed my bets on the green tube!