Chimney Sweeps

Having taken on board the warning from Quilly and Silverdrake I got a local in to do the chimney today. What a racket!

By the time he flew out of the stove he was spotty young starling doing the sooty crashlanding into windows curtains and furniture... but I believe he was a snow white dove at the top of the chimney before he fell from grace, or the chimney top.

As you may gather I had bird down the chimney today. Much chaos and excitement trying to get the silly noisy bastard out of there squawk, scratch, scrabble flutter, squawk, shower of debris... I finally gave up trying to reach around the baffleplate into the chimney - like cray hole but warmer (the fire was long out, so not warm enough to be a problem) and was trying to work out if I could get a gaff or something down to what I was convinced was going to be a chimney-block dead bird, when it found its own out into the fireplace of the burner itself - fortunately the door was now open, and a manic, very scared and very pissed-off sooty starling was trying to find his way out of the house... I got him out of the door.

Anyway, the boys are home, full of flathead and chips.