brief bird bulletin

I've been scattering sunflower seed on the ground,

hoping for a return of the mourning doves.

I haven't seen them yet.

Happily, I love cardinals, too.

~~~~~

back to normal

Again with the snow.

I don't know why the snowplow goes back and forth in front of my driveway,

over and over again.

It's a small road.

Even though there is a little intersection with another small road,

it seems like once or twice in each direction would do the job.

But the driver drops the plow with a sound like cannonfire

then scrapes loudly forward

- I can't think of an adequately loud grinding sound to compare this to -

for 15 seconds or so,

then lifts the plow and reverses a bit,

then drops the plow (BOOM!) and scrapes loudly forward again.

Over and over and over.

This morning I stopped counting at 16, but it continued on.

And this morning, as usual, it began at about 330AM.

This has been "normal" lately, including several times in the past week.

I am happy that the road is being plowed, but I wish I understood the method.

In general, I believe that when people understand what is being done and why,

there is a much better chance that everyone involved will be happy.

That's why I consider environmental education and forest management outreach programs two of the most useful jobs I've done so far.

So, if any of my readers drives a snowplow on back roads in a tiny rural town,

please talk to me in the comments.

I'd really love to be able to embrace these 330AM wake-up calls.

imagine big yawn inserted here

~~~~~

sunny sunday

In recent weeks, there have been woodpeckers visiting my suet feeder every day,

even while snow is falling.

Downy woodpeckers and hairy woodpeckers.

Unlike some birds, they never seem to squabble, but nicely take turns.

Males and females of both varieties visit.

I wonder if there will be nests nearby, and perhaps baby birds this year?

This morning, there was also a rare visit from four mourning doves.

They searched the snow under the seed feeder, but I don't know if they found much before flying high into a tree.

I would have liked to toss sunflower seed onto the ground for them, but opening a window would have scared them away, possibly for a long time.

Even from forty feet away and high in a tree, this one seems to be keeping a close eye on me as I take pictures from inside the porch. 

I'll toss some seed on the snow after evening chores tonight, and hope it isn't all eaten up by mice before morning. Maybe the doves will be back tomorrow.

It is a gorgeous day. Not snowing - really, not snowing - and the sky is blue with fluffy clouds. Unlike recent days, the the temperature has slowly climbed above freezing and it's not windy. It's quite pleasant and a bit melty out there.

So why am I indoors in the middle of the day? you might ask.

It has a lot to do with the two cats currently anchoring my legs,

but it probably has even more to do with me feeling lazy and slow.

Of course I have a long list of things to do apart from daily chores, including many little things that weren't done because of all the recent snowy days. But instead of trying to get a lot done, I just feeling like staying put. At least for a little while.

I hope you are having a pleasant day wherever you are,

 whether you are full of energy and embracing the day with gusto,

or whether you are having a cozy recharge like me.

~~~~~

nearly wordless thursday

 the daily snow

 tiny Iris in the wild

Piper going down to check the mail

somewhat surreal

~~~~~

someone else's snow

from a photograph (with permission)

by Bill Robertson, Westmorland, England

~~~~~