Sunday, July 12, 2020
The young doves are now nearly as big as the parent who keeps on coming back to the nest and feeding them. I thought they would fly last week, but here they still are--sometimes flapping like mad, exercising those flight muscles, but mostly just still hanging out. I wish sometimes that they had more distinctive individual features, or that I could band them, or something. It would be most interesting to know if it is the same parents coming back to use the nest every time, or if some of the... Sign in to see full entry.
Saturday, July 11, 2020
Happy Saturday!
It started cool this morning, and is quickly warming with no forecast of cloud or storm to cool the afternoon. I am glad to wake early: morning is when I get things done. I went out to survey the garden, and took the camera with me. Things are blooming and a few fruits have appeared on the tomato plants, and peas on the pea-ramid that was left behind the wysteria that I bought last summer, that didn't do so well. So I was delighted to discover amid the pea vines--fresh new wysteria leaves! And... Sign in to see full entry.
Friday, July 10, 2020
First Harvest
Yesterday I plucked some beets out of the garden, cleaned all the dirt off, and cut the roots from the greens. The roots ranged from very small to what a small beet looks like at the grocery store. I have not used them yet, but will probably toss them into soup or stir fry. I cooked and ate the greens last night. The start was a couple of pieces of meaty, thick-cut bacon. Onions and garlic went into the fat, then the chopped greens and the crumbled bacon and a splash of rice-vinegar. Cooked down... Sign in to see full entry.
Wednesday, July 8, 2020
What, Wednesday already?
Dovelings are flapping and settling and flapping some more... Parents still drop by to feed, but flight into the world is imminent... It has been exactly a month since they were but little white eggs, which puts them right on schedule. I got out in the cool of the morning to water herbs and plant up a hanging basket with what I hope will grow into a new lettuce garden. The sun is beating down now in the back yard, which puts other gardening on hold. You know how digging into corners of the house... Sign in to see full entry.
Tuesday, July 7, 2020
Starting Tuesday... .again.
A cool morning... and 90s expected this afternoon. Thunderstorms--maybe--will cool that right down. But they are not in the forecast. Could be a downstairs day, where the temps are 10-15 degrees cooler on hot days. The young doves are flapping their wings... The eggs were laid June 8, so they'll fly in the next day or two or maybe three. There is a parent there now, feeding the big littles, and it's quite a crowd in the nest! Today I will finish reading/polishing Charlie's Guardian of Taihar. It... Sign in to see full entry.
Monday, July 6, 2020
Here comes The Week!
Last night, after several nights of not sleeping well, I took a sleep aid, and slept through to 9:30 only having to turn on the light again and read a while, only once. So far, it's a good morning, not yet hot--We expect 90s today--and feeling well rested, there is not that Monday morning stupor and meh... Also, Charlie grocery shopped for me yesterday, so there are many easy choices for making a breakfast that does not rely on high carbs. My weight is actually down a few lbs from last week,... Sign in to see full entry.
Friday, July 3, 2020
Afternoon darkness
It has been a hot week, and today was predicted to be the same, but while I was having a little nap, the clouds moved in and the temperature dropped maybe 10 degrees or more. Then the rain came with a few flashes of lightning and rolls of thunder, and the wind that blows plants off their stands. And then, a return of sun in time for a 'golden hour.' Beautiful! Now a cool evening is coming on... I expect there will be some fireworks tonight. There were a few noise-makers during the day. So I am... Sign in to see full entry.
Thursday, July 2, 2020
Committing to Life
I woke this morning feeling even more intensely than usual, my mortality. I am 67, have diabetes and symptoms of psoriatic arthritis, and used to experience asthma symptoms and chronic bronchitis. I have learned to do end-runs around chest colds, to avoid those things. I have a real dread of dying of suffocation. I lost a mother, a grandmother, and the little dog who was my best friend, all before I was 6, and in each case, without warning and without closure. Then, for the rest of my childhood... Sign in to see full entry.
Wednesday, July 1, 2020
I think it's Wednesday...
Some mornings start with a groggy stumble about the house on the way to the comfy chair from which I use the laptop, can see the tv, and when the deck door is open, see what the doves are up to. This morning was the other kind... A particular bird-song drew me from bed to deck to see if I could spot the source of the sort of 'cheep-cheep-trillllll' I was hearing. It went on a while, but I never did see it. But I did notice some of the plants were limp, so I went in to fill a couple of 2-litre... Sign in to see full entry.
Tuesday, June 30, 2020
Cool and quiet... so far!
The day is sunny but more cloudy and a little cooler than the forecasts I have read. There is a light breeze, and I have bent back the reed-wall that I shifted when the storm winds were strong, to break the force of it a bit on the doves. Embers has been wanting to be outside a lot since summer turned real. And she sometimes goes out of the yard, something I wish to discourage. I need to get her a new collar with a bell so she is easier to locate, or failing that, easier for someone else to call... Sign in to see full entry.