Hunting the Worm

Wednesday 13th March 2002, West Yorkshire

A blackbird picks over the wood chippings at the edge of the garden path until another male moves him on.

I also spend much of the day hunting for a worm. Through a bit of detective work I discover that it is a version of the Badtrans virus that has wriggled out of my e-mail preview pane and infected my machine. Once I know its name it's a simple matter to remove it. earthworm

My special thanks to our local online supermarket Tesco.com who spotted and identified the virus in an e-mail that the worm generated on my machine.

In British folklore the hero often has to struggle to defeat a worm that is terrorising a village. The worm in this case was a dragon or large serpent.

The idea that by knowing your enemy's name you can defeat its evil magical powers also crops up in folklore and fairy tale, notably in the tale of Rumplestiltskin.

Richard Bell,
wildlife illustrator
E-mail; 'richard@willowisland.co.uk'

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