Thursday, August 20, 2009

Summer is Leaving

The Sweet Autumn Clematis is blooming. There will be Fall Trails to wander down and sweet sheep faces will greet us at the South Carolina State Fair.

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Morning Fledglings

This morning I took a cup of hot tea out on the deck to sit awhile in the nice breeze and noticed not a wildbird or squirrel was moving about. My thots were there must be a Hawk in the area.

Four Hummingbirds were sparring over the feeder on the kitchen window. Their teenie poops land on the squirrel house sitting on the deck railing below the feeder. Interesting...never seen that before!

From the trees on the next street over I could hear two baby Hawks screaming and hiss-growling to be fed. It was uncomfortable to hear them sound so distressed. After awhile their cries started moving from tree to tree when here they came gliding silently right above me over the house.

One landed in a tall pine tree in the backyard neighbors yard. He was a huge fluffy adult-size juvenile with little control over his floppy wings. He sat there and continued to scream. His nestmate answered each time and came soaring over the house and landed on top of the Red-headed Woodpecker's tree. A few years ago the wind blew the top out of the tree and it gave the young hawk a nice flat ledge to sit and rest on. The Red-headed Woodpeckers sat in nearby trees bobbing their heads and growling. They have babies in a hole in that tree.

Both young hawks continued to scream and hiss-growl. Not in unison, but back and forth, maybe a way to keep track of one another. I understand the parents continue to feed them for many more weeks after they fledge, but they never appeared.

The young Hawks made their way clumsily from tree to tree and finally soared soundlessly away.

Monday, August 17, 2009

My Very Orange Day

This actually happened to me today and I sent this Email to my neighbor. Her husband Floyd was mowing and when he's finished he puts the mower in the barn.

Libby, You won't guess what I did.

After I visited with you I came home & dabbled on the computer for awhile and decided I needed to shut it off and do something to move around. So I decided to get the trash together and take it out to the dumpster.

Over the weekend I cleaned out one of the lower cupboards & found a 3# can of Fiber Therapy. It's Wal-mart's store brand for Metamusil. I had bought orange flavor..it was powder. It was FULL. It had sat in that cupboard for several years, so I had set it by the trashcan to be thrown out.

When I was getting the trash together I had a brilliant idea. Dump the powder down the sink, because it would make the trash bag heavy, right? then I ran the trash out to the dumpster & waved Hi to you.

When I came back inside I ran alot of water in that kitchen sink & tried to run the disposal. Nothing. That Fiber Therapy had set up and wasn't going anywhere. It had become a 3# ORANGE BLOB.

I had to scoop that slimy clumpy stuff...three pounds worth...and all that orange water out of that sink & disposal and into my bucket. My hands turned orange. I kept scooping forever...it was like scooping out a slimy lumpy Halloween Pumpkin. I got the giggles like we got in church when we were girls and the adults were frowning. My hands are orange and I have a Dentist appointment at 10:15 in the morning. This can't be happening. The kitchen smells...orange.

I now have a five gallon bucket FULL of orange fibertherapy & water sitting in the kitchen sink. I HAVE to get rid of it before Larry wakes up for the midnight shift.

I am waiting till almost dark to run out in the backyard and dump it. Floyd is back there mowing. I'm waiting for the barndoors to shut. Whew. Ok, I start downstairs to do the deed and FALL on my BUTT and SLIDE down the stairs. It happened in a Flash reminding me of a Bobsled. I thot of you. I was so stunned. I was carrying a half empty cup of celestial seasoning lukewarm tea & it went everywhere & on me. I am ok. Just some rugburn on the left little foot. I was amazed at how it knocked me senseless...i sat there for awhile & finally got up. It is almost dark out, I gotta hurry.

Oh no, the phone rings. It is my brother calling to say he just got a call & is going to be a great-grandpa. We hang up. Now it is REALLY dark outside. As I head to the backdoor with the five gallon bucketfull of orange my thots were...oh please don't let the handle break. Ok, now I'm outside & hurrah...the barndoors are shut.

I sneak around by the big shed and dump the bucket & there on the ground is a five gallon-size lump...on the ground. I'm Horrified. Good Grief. So I run for the garden hose, but now my thots are...Oh, where is that Mr. Hiss the Gray Rat Snake Constrictor who is nocturnal and hunts at night? I first saw him by the deck & that is where the water faucet handle is. I got the water on & hosed that LUMP for awhile, but it's not going anywhere. If you see squirrels or birds tomorrow with orange faces you will know a nice morning snack greeted them to the new day.
P.S. I will sneak out early in the morning & maneuver it into a bag.

Whew. I'm getting too old for this. -Lynn