Goldfinches, meeting and mackerel.

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1. Goldfinches, painted like they're going to war, crowd the bird feeders.

2. We meet my cousin's partner for the first time, and it feels like she will fit right in.

3. I was pretty pleased to find the fishmonger selling whole smoked mackerel at the weekend. Now I strip off the oily skin, pick out the bones and break the meat into my pasta.

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