Has anybody seen my time? I've lost it.

Utterly amazing how fast this past month has gone, and the other hundreds preceding it! I woke up one morning this month - my birthday actually, and thought I was drowning! I was in fact, in dander and fur! Gawd...breathing is definitely all it's cracked up to be. But , I never used to have allergies, and frankly, Scarlet, I don't really give a damn. I 'm not gettin' rid of the feline,and I ain't takin any steroids or whatever it is one takes. ( I may consider buying stocks in Kleenex).
So I was going to write about that particular incident in greater detail, but then the rest of the day intruded...and took all those thoughts away with it. Then I was going to write about a trip I took to the beautiful Haliburton Highlands, in eastern Ontario. It was a business trip, but I took my time getting there, and it appeared to be "Turtles trying to cross busy highway to get the other side day" and I nearly got myself splattered across the county road trying to save this not so little dude. There are only 3 kinds of turtles in our area - snapping, mud, or painted. I think this is a female mud turtle. I think female...who else would face speeding metal and steel and whining rubber to drop a few dozen eggs in a safe place? I actually stopped and darted out in to the middle of the highway on 3 separate occaisions that lazy afternoon! These turtles were hell bent to accomplish their mission, and I, apparently had become their designated life saver! Karma points! Woo hoo!
That being said, the road was winding and taking me through places I've never even heard of, but should, to wit -Cheerful Lane!!
Maybe that's where all the turtles were headed! If so, I wanna go there too! Imagine living on Cheerful Lane! Are you allowed to feel sad on Cheerful Lane? Not for long I bet! Some little bluebird would likely come and sit on your shoulder...and fly away just before you got ready to smack him for being so bright and cheery!
Just down the road, there was another lane called "Cope Drive"...so I did just that. I coped with the death wish turtles to the best of my ability, and tried to be cheerful while I drove! I must say, that sights like this barn, deep in the ancient remnants of the Laurentian mountains, made it easy to cope.
A village near Wilno, Ontario is the first Polish settlement in North America, and one of the groups of people from that area are the Kashubs. They are master artisans and crafters and as you can see, their barns are particularly cheerful!
This drive was taking me forever -mainly because I had turned it in to a mini I need a holiday day. Stopping wherever and whenever I felt like it. Thinking thoughts that middle aged women sometimes think about, while gazing at spectacular scenery like this...The little red arrow points to the Great Blue Heron I interupted when I stopped just to breathe in the fresh hilly air and listen to the babble of the brook. Stopped because there's so many things to think about, and really, so little time. We just don't know when our time will be up. So it's important to take time in as many chunks as we can possibly grab. And it's important to let friends and family, family especially, know that time is a gift not to be wasted. Ah-choo! Kleenex please!

Hawkalert!

I think someone should invent a webcam that's about the size of a pea, that one could wear like an earring or hair bauble or something equally charming. And then when you happen to be out and about, and you don't have a ten pound camera just handily hanging around your neck, but you DO have your point and shoot digital dead battery carrier on hand...you could actually take a picture of something you see that's awesome!
Like the Sharp Shinned Hawk in the garden, who nabbed one of the crows from a previous blog, and took off into parts unknown to savour some crow pie for lunch!
Or, the Sharp Shinned Hawk in the garden , who nabbed a goldfinch under the feeder , and took off into other parts, still unknown, to enjoy some finch fingers.
Or, the Sharp Shinned Hawk in the neighbour's garden (finally!) who nabbed the little chipmunk, and flew off into totally unknown parts for some finch and chips.
I have not one photo to prove any of the above, but I will tell you this...I am getting new batteries for the camera, and I am keeping it in my pocket always!

There's something you should know.

I feel like I haven't been completely open with you, dear reader..and it's not because I don't want to be, but because when I sit down to write a little ditty, I get really focused and forget to tell you other stuff. Stuff like, uh, like, this is essentially a bird and nature blog. Aaannnddd...we have two cats.
Incredibly wonderful, funny, furry, affectionate, cats...Dawson and Tess. Since the kids moved out, they have become the welcome home committee, when's dinner greeters, can we go out 'n play guys, and time to cuddle furballs that make this house a home. They're rescued barn cats from Killaloe, and if you google Killaloe, you'll know exactly what that means!
Just thought I should get that out there, in case at some point it became an issue. One never knows where issues will come from, or when they will arise...so I'm being proactive.
They wear bells most of the time...Tess especially. Because she is a hunter. She's also very bright and has learned that when I go out and yell "NO! DROP IT" it's in her best interests to do so. Chippie runs free, and she is treated lovingly in return. As for Dawson...well, he's not wearing a black and white tuxedo, but a shaggy, orange long-haired coat, and I have actually seen a mouse run right in front of his nose...and he just looked at it and asked,"What's yer name thingee? Wanna snuggle?"
They are great pets. And now you know.

Mary's View: Dragonflies

Mary's View: Dragonflies

Up close and personal with some amazing photos that make the common uncommonly beautiful.

Lots to Crow About

Lots of people don't like crows. Matter of fact, lots of people hate crows. They're loud, bumptious (love that word!), cantankerous, ornery, ill-mannered flockers! Not unlike a bunch of teenagers hanging out at the mall. (Not yours or mine, of course). But... I happen to think they're pretty cool. I know, I know - the CAWCawCawCAW-ing at 5 am on a Saturday morning doesn't win them many friends and it likely influences a lot of others that the crows should be watching out for over at the local dump.
But I once had the honour of trying to nurse a wounded crow back to health - after he'd been winged by an errant bit of buckshot at the dump - and my opinion of, and respect for, crows changed almost instantly! For starters, up close and personal, they're stunning! Irridescent green, bronze, black, and midnight blue blend to create a cloak of darkness, but when captured in sunlight, they positively glimmer. Another thing? Very,very smart! We kept Boris our wounded winger in a reasonably large cage, suitable for a mid-sized dog. He had that latch to freedom figured out within an hour! Little peck here, a pull there, and bingo! I'm outta here! Since the experience with that handsome fellow, I've watched crows a lot more closely. We have three at present who like to lurk around the feeders in our yard. Little feeders meant to hold peanuts for little nuthatches, and suetcakes for downy wee woodpeckers. But do the tricky trio think they're too big for the feeders? Absolutely not, sunflower seed! A few days ago, I watched in wonder as one stood on a fence post, close to the metal tube peanut holder. He hitched his leg up and caught the feeder with his claw, drew it over to his beak, and then proceeded to chow down 'til that tube was totalled and the nuts were gone. Now that 's something to crow about!