Sometimes there is rain.

Fat Horse No. 17

It’s the year of the horse and I’ve always been a horse girl at heart, so I’m finally taking advantage of the excuse to fill the world with fat little horses! These felted friends are about the size (and shape!) of an apple, and if you happen to have any apples to share I’m sure they’d help you out! On the other end of the spectrum from the luxuriously long mane and tail, I wanted to try a classically decorated Percheron with the tied up bob tail.

I suppose I'm asking if I'm getting a false idea of how much wildlife there is in Sweden or if varmland is an outlier with a particular abundance.

I'm from the UK (Wales) and I live in one of the best parts of Wales for wildlife, but it's still very very nature depleted. But you'd really think it wasn't as bad as it is based on the little patch where I live (hence the question about Varmland).

Thank you! That's a really thoughtful question, and I think the honest answer is "yes and no".

Värmland is certainly a very good place for wildlife. We have vast forests, many lakes and wetlands, a relatively low human population density, and large areas where you can spend hours without meeting another person. Around where I live it's not unusual to see roe deer, red squirrels, foxes, badgers, beavers and a huge variety of birds. Pine martens, moose and weasels are around too, although they're more elusive. Wolves, lynx and otters still exist here, but seeing them is rare.

That said, I don't think Värmland is necessarily an extreme outlier. Much of Sweden, especially outside the major cities and particularly further north, still offers excellent opportunities to experience wildlife. Sweden is a large country with a relatively small population, and much of that population is concentrated in urban areas.

However, I don't want to paint an overly romantic picture. Sweden is often perceived internationally as a country with pristine nature and strong conservation policies, but the reality is more complicated. We have experienced extensive forestry practices that have transformed large areas of forest, and several species have declined as a result. Moose numbers, for example, are considerably lower than they once were. There is also significant political and public hostility towards large predators in some parts of the country, which has contributed to declining populations of wolves, lynx and bears. In my view, Sweden was once more ambitious when it came to nature conservation than it is today.

So, if my photos give the impression that Sweden is an untouched wilderness full of wildlife, that wouldn't be entirely true. On the other hand, if you're patient, willing to get up early, and know where to look, there is still an incredible amount of wildlife to experience here. I certainly don't have to travel far to find it.

And perhaps that's the important part: every wildlife photographer shows a somewhat curated reality. I spend a lot of time outdoors, often returning to the same places over and over again. The wildlife is absolutely real, but so are the hours and days spent waiting for those moments to happen.

and better

The Ottolenghi - it is vital that you use 1g of this very expensive ingredient. It comes from a 500g bag with a one-week shelf life.

The time machine - 15-minute recipe! First, leave to marinate overnight...

The dishwasher - one-pot recipe! Now decant your ingredients and wipe out your pot. And again. And again. And again.

The optimist - cook the onions until caramelised (2 minutes).

The kindergarten teacher - get one nommable little tree of broccoli and bosh that into boiling water. Delish!

The brand names only - ingredients: Ritz crackers, Philadelphia cheese, Cool Whip, orange Jell-o...

The 1950s palate - use one (1) clove of garlic and a small pinch of chili flakes (omit if preferred).

Sade also wrote a song for her son, which is absolutely worth a listen if you want to Cry A Lot

Reblog to light a beacon, together we can get word to Rohan

Over fifty years of data show a peak in PFAS (also known as "forever chemicals") content in seabird eggs in the 90s, followed by a decrease as regulations went into effect. The most recent findings show a 70% decrease of most common PFAS.

We are making genuine progress! Producers are dramatically altering how much they use PFAS and how much gets released in effluent, but also there's a lot better understanding of how to remove PFAS from the environment!