Swans A-Swimming

The Wye is frozen solid, right the way across, from the Warren down to the bridge.
Just below the bridge, all the swans that usually spread out upstream among the fields around Hay are huddled together in the remaining open water around the canoe landing stage. There must be about fifty of them. Even there, the stones under the water are sheathed in thick ice.
A couple of days ago, I was passing the flower shop on Lion Street when a wren flew out from among the Christmas wreaths on display. It hopped around on the pipes on the wall beside La Maison and then flew across to the windowsills above Phil the Fruit's shop.
In the garden of the Children's Bookshop, on the Clifford side of town, many different birds have been seen around the bird feeders. When I was visiting, several redstarts were perched in the hawthorn bushes (we had to look them up in the bird book), and a sparrowhawk flew down and grabbed one of the small birds as the whole flock of them took flight. Within moments, all the other little birds were back at the feeders as if nothing had happened.
Back in town, the recycling and trade waste vans managed to get round on Wednesday, followed by the black bag van on Thursday, so town was all clear of rubbish for Christmas. The men from the Council really have been working hard to keep the streets clear and safe. However, both public toilet blocks are frozen up - and so are the toilets at the Cinema!