Dampness is the order of the day. Gone is the warm sunshine of yesterday, when I took a stroll through Lawns Wood. Getting out and about means you sometimes encounter unusual sights, and yesterday was no exception.

Firstly I came across a fashion shoot in progress. You don't see that in Swindon very often. Young ladies in the latest summer styles waited patiently as the photographers and commercial directors relayed endless instructions on poise, expression, movement, and what to do about idiots grinning on the sidelines.

Okay, I get the hint. A bit later I was heading back toward the stone arches that open onto Swindon streets. Walking up the cobbled path of what was once the tradesmen's entrance of Goddard Manor, I passed a woman with two dogs. That, I have to say, isn't unusual at Lawns. it's a popular place to walk dogs.

One of the two dogs looked at me as it trotted by. There was a strange glint in its eye. That dog was out for mischief. having stared back at the dog, it chose not to bother me, but turned instead on its companion, a rather suprised larger dog, and an outbreak of growling ensued.

"Stop it, Dracula!" The owner shouted, hauling hard on the lead. "Stop it!"

Dracula? Incredible. What a name for a dog. So if anyone wants to know the whereabouts of the worlds most famous vampire, he's curerently walking incognito in the form of a naughty mongrel owned by Mrs Smith of Acacia Avenue, Swindon.

I wasn't harmed in the writing of this blog entry. Must have used too much garlic in my dinner.

Iconic Rescue

In the news today I saw a piece about a photograph showing a hair raising escape of a woman from a first floor flat as the furniture store underneath her home is set alight by rioters. The woman walked away unscathed, apparently, in no small measure due to the policeman who caught her.

The photographer has been put forward as a recipient of a Pulitzer Prize for the dramatic photograph. It is a very extraordinary moment captured by camera, but a part of me can't help being more impressed with the recuers than the photographer. After all, the woman who shot the picture risked her life for that very purpose. How was that going to help those in danger?

Survival Of The Nerdiest

Also in the news today is the revelation that a gang of hackers are planning to destroy Facebook, that ubiquitous social networking site that surrounds us all and binds the universe together. To be honest I find it hard to care. Facebook might keep people communicating, but let's be honest, what's the point of several hundred 'friends' you've never met and don't actually know you?

As for the hackers, it's not for any great moral crusade as they claim. They're just doing it for the buzz. I suspect if it wasn't for their skill in hacking these people would be just a bunch of useless wasters anyway. I mean, if they were worth anything, why aren't they a success in life rather than the anonymous vacuum of the internet? It is in fact an illustration of specialisation and habitat colonisation that we find in biology. A minor species has found a niche they can thrive in.

Keeps them off the street I suppose. But evolution requires that thriving creatures become prey for others. That's what happens when you flaunt destructive behaviour and shout about it.