Blue Bird

A pair of blue birds started a nest in the birdhouse that Sydney built last summer. I was waiting to see if any birds would decide to build their nest in the brand new house on the big Ponderosa Pine tree. And I was delighted when I saw blue birds coming and going from it.

First they entered and stayed awhile and then a couple of weeks ago there was a flurry of activity and some very faint peeping eminating from up there. Almost any time of day I could look out at the bird house and see the comings and goings of the parent birds. They worked tirelessly all day long finding insects for the now loud and clammering baby birds. I finally concluded that is why we can hear birds early in the morning as soon as there is a hint of light in the sky; they have to get busy and feed their hungry babies.

The days continued and the parent birds spent all of the daylight hours finding food for their offspring. I wanted to get a picture of the beautiful birds with the blue wings but whenever I came near the birdhouse they stayed away only to return when I moved away.

One day I noticed that there was no chirping and no activity at the house on the tree. I was suprised that the little birds had grown up and flown away so quickly and also disappointed that I never got a good picture of them. Then a couple of days later I was doing some trimming of a lilac bush at the bottom of the big pine tree when I noticed something on the ground face down. It was an adult blue bird with bright blue wings laying there cold and dead.

A sadness came over me as I removed the bird and prepared a proper burial spot for it. I thought of it's constant care and total dedication to it's babies. Nothing could deter it from it's duties, nothing except death; a death that might have been brought on by it's own exhaustion or deprivation. A creature like that deserves a proper burial, don't you think? So there it lays among the flowers in a small grave lined with flat rocks and cushioned with large lilac leaves from branches freshly trimmed.

Attacked by a Deer

It was December 27Th and a balmy 42 degrees outside, so I decided to walk down the hill about 1/4 of a mile and get the mail. Just as I reached the mailboxes I heard a noise behind me. It sort of sounded like a baby calf. To my surprise it was an almost full-grown deer! And it was standing about 10 feet away, looking at me. I remembered the deer Jack was telling us about, the one that followed him home a couple of weeks ago, so I figured it was the same one and that it was tame. I removed the mail from the box (a late Christmas card and the January Ensign) then walked over to the deer. It stood there while I petted it on the head, the ears and the back. I noticed, and felt, the stubby little beginnings of antlers on it's head.

Well, that's nice, I thought as I headed back up the hill toward home. I glanced back occasionally to see what the deer was doing and it was following me slowly. Each time I looked back it was a little bit closer and pretty soon it's head was right behind mine! Luckily I had the Ensign magazine and I used it to whack the deer on the nose. It backed off a little bit so I continued on. The next thing I knew something was touching my shoulders. I whirled around to see the deer reared up on it's hind legs, it's head now towering over me and it's hooves at eye level.

This scenario happened several times before I reached the house where I finally dared to turn my back on my attacker one last time and make a final dash for the front door.

Once inside, I grabbed the camera and some grapes from a bowl that was on the kitchen counter. Somehow I had to get a picture, so back outside I went. The deer had gone around to the back of the house by then. I walked up close and put the grapes on the snow covered ground. I felt a little safer when it's attention was turned to eating the grapes and was able to snap a few photos.

A Creature of the Night

I lock the kitties up in the barn every night because of the coyotes, killer owls, raccoons and other dangerous creatures of the night. Well, last night I went out to the barn just before I went to bed to turn off the fan that brings cool air in through the window. Suddenly, hearing something, Teddy jumped up on the kitty house to look out the window. I thought I heard a growling noise and wondered what Teddy could be growling at. But Teddy wasn't growling and neither was Buddy or Patsy. Again I heard the low, powerful growl and I could tell it was coming from outside the window in the dark night.

Yikes, I thought, my hair beginning to stand on end. I'm trapped in here surrounded by some unknown, very bold and probably dangerous animal. I have no telephone, no car, not even an axe or shovel. (the shovel was leaning against the wall of the barn, outside)

I made my way cautiously over to each window peering out for a glimpse of any movement or any ominous shadow. Not seeing anything, I grabbed a weapon, the broom. It was either that or the snow shovel. Slowly opening the door I looked out making sure that my escape route to the house was clear. While I was getting up my nerve to leave the safety of the barn the unthinkable happened. Teddy brushed past me and with one leap was gone into the dark.

Luckily the movement triggered the motion sensor lights at the top of the barn to come on and with super-human speed I was able to run after and catch brave (or should I say, stupid) Teddy and whisk him back to the safety of the barn. What was he thinking!

Back in the house, I still had an eerie feeling that something was outside lurking. I closed all the blinds and made doubly sure all doors were locked.

I remembered all the times, though the past six years, that I've gone out into the pitch black night searching for Teddy up and down the road and through trees and bushes. All I ever carried was a flashlight. I'll be taking my shotgun with me from now on if I have to venture outside at night.

The Kitty Trail

I went for a walk on the 'Kitty Trail' yesterday evening around sunset. It had been a hot day in a whole string of hot days and it was finally cool enough to be outside for any length of time. The 'Kitty Trail' is a little trail that goes up a little knoll in front of our house and then looks down the other side on the valley below. I gave it that name because I used to have kitties who would go on walks with me, and that's usually the way we went. Now days, I take the trail mostly by myself (lazy kitties). Anyway, last evening as I was walking to the top of the knoll I noticed small foot prints in the sandy soil. They were evenly spaced and about a foot and a half apart. Then I suddenly noticed that the tracks were spaced about four feet apart. I couldn't imagine how a small person, possibly an older child, could have such a long stride. Just at that moment I heard a very high pitched buzzing and noticed that my head was engulfed in a huge swarm of flying insects. They were buzzing in my ears and trying to go up my nose. I began swatting and as I ran I realized that my foot steps matched the tracks on the trail, the ones that were four feet apart.

What's Missing Now?

During the last few weeks a lot of items around the house have come up missing. First, it was the silver pie server, which has been gone for a couple of months. I like to make pies and I really miss that nice big shiny pie server that matches the beautiful silverware Roger's mother gave the family many years ago.

And I've noticed recently that I cannot find the Stake Telphone Directory. I use it sometimes when I do the Sunday bulletin.

One missing item that has gotten me into trouble is the family calendar which has everyone's birthday on it. I've had to mail a few "Sorry This is Late" cards.

I needed the latest Ensign Magazine last month to look up the Visiting Teaching message and not only was it gone, but all of the recent Ensigns had vanished.

Now the latest items, nowhere to be found, are two heat bags (the kind you warm up in the microwave and apply to sore muscles and other achey places) Oh, and I forgot to mention that we can't find Roger's hair brush.

I know it's normal to lose things once in a while that you eventually find, but these items are adding up and none of them are turning up!

Being a known sleepwalker, who tends to rearrange things at night, I have my suspicions as to who is responsible for the mysterious disappearances. Roger is just hoping that some day soon I'll find my little stash.

Little Prisoners

I stopped by PetSmart to pick up another kitty brush since the other one disappeared from the back porch. (very suspicious) I studied the wall of kitty brushes...all sizes, shapes, colors, and purposes. Finally selecting a medium sized pink one I headed for the cash register. Out of the corner of my eye I spotted a row of cages against the distant wall. I didn't intend to seek out the pets that day. I didn't even know PetSmart sold pets. And before I knew what happened I found myself headed for the cages and the little kitty cats each one contained.

Most of the prisoners were kittens, some half-grown, and some tiny, but all of them adorable. I could barely contain myself as I watched their furry little bodies, sleeping, trying to play in the cramped conditions or just sitting there looking at me through the bars.

I had only stood there for a few seconds when one little orange kitten got up from his bed, stood at the bars and looked at me right in the eyes as he cried. He reminded me of Zeke, a kitty I have at home. And it broke my heart to see him begging me to rescue him from that awful place. I already have four kitties at home, I couldn't possibly think of making it five!

As we stood there with our eyes locked, both of us close to tears, I knew it was truly a crime for little kittens to be locked up unable to run and play and with no one to love and pet them. So with a heavy heart, I told the little orange kitten I was sorry and left to go pay for the brush.

It's been a few days now but I still think about the little orange kitten, hoping he got adopted and wondering if I should go check.; )

Cherry Thief

In case you can't tell this is a picture of a little pile of pie cherry pits. What few cherries my tree did produce this year were taken down one by one and eaten in the same place at the foot of the tree by a red-breasted robin thief.

That Darn Cat!

Zeke had a problem and I knew it was really bugging him as I watched him scoot across the grass on his hind end. He was trying, without success, to scrape off a turd that was stuck in his fur underneath his tail. I knew he needed help taking care of the problem but I also knew it would mean trauma for both of us, so I decided to let him solve his own problem any way he could.

Later, I was walking through the garage when I noticed brown streaks across the hood of my car and a small clump of brown stuff on the windshield wiper. I was disgusted by the sight but I also had to admire his ingenuity; the wiper is a good tool for helping to dislodge something sticky.

Glancing around for the culprit, I noticed him scooting across the graveled driveway once again trying to rid himself of the sticky mass. That was it! That cat was going to have a bath. I filled the car wash bucket with warm water, donned my rubber gloves and went to work. I never knew it was possible for a cat to fight, yowl and purr at the same time. And when I was finished with him I took care of the car too.

I felt a sence of accomplishment later, having a clean cat and a sparkling clean car. But then, once again, I was walking through the garage and I noticed that a cat had thrown up on the hood of my freshly washed car! I guess the bath was more upsetting to Zeke than I thought. The moral to this story is to take care of problems when you first notice them, or they might come back to bite you.

Chasing Deer

I thought the deer had moved on up the mountain for the summer where the lush grasses and a veritable feast of wild flowers grow. But I was wrong. I looked out the window yesterday morning to admire my promising strawberry patch. What was once covered with blossoms and healthy dark green leaves, was now stripped and unrecognisable. Most of the blossoms were gone and just bare stems with no leaves attached to them were sticking up into the air.

How long I stood there staring in disbelief, I do not know. But finally it donned on me what had happened and who most certainly did it! My eyes then wandered to my prize Creeping Phlox with their bright colors of pink, purple. Once again I narrowed my eyes and gritted my teeth as I observed a scene of devastation.

So this afternoon I was ready when I glanced out of the window and saw a deer wandering by, grazing as it went. I grabbed my shotgun and ran for the door. Opening it quietly I slipped out and aimed above their heads and shot. I think the blast startled me more that it did the deer; one gave a little jump and the other got up from where it was planning to bed down for the night and then they both just stood and stared at me.

Okay, I thought, I'll just leave the gun and chase them by foot out of the country! Still recovering from a surgery a few weeks ago, it was harder than I thought. The steep climb made my heart pound like crazy as I gasped for breath. And gasping for breath then made my lungs burn like never before. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the back end of a deer disappear behind some bushes way up the hill. So after recovering somewhat I renewed my vow to chase them over the mountain.

Twenty minutes later I reached the top of the first hill and not hide nor hair of those deer was to be seen anywhere. With some satisfaction and sence of accomplishment I headed back home. But just in case they show up again, I have covered with wire mesh what pitifully remains of the strawberry patch and the phlox.

I Hate Laundromats

I've had to go to laundromats a few times in my life; like when we were on vacation, when the washer was broken or if I needed to wash something really big like a sleeping bag or a bedspread. Well, today I needed to give our summer bedspread it's annual cleaning and run it through a washer, but not OUR washer...it's a California King bedspread and it's way too big.

So I looked in the Yellow pages, found the nearest laundromat, loaded up the huge bedspread and headed to town. Several miles from home I remembered that I forgot to bring detergent...oh well, I thought, I'll get some at Safeway not far from the laundromat. Later, I struggled into the laundromat with my purse, the new bottle of Tide and the bedspread...so what if the bedspread was partially dragged across the parking lot...it's going to get washed...right?

The washers in the front of the facility were all so small...much smaller even than my washer at home. But on the back wall I saw the industrial washers, three of them. I stuffed the bedspread into one of the front loaders, poured an appropriate amount of liquid Tide into the receptacle on top and then checked for quarters. Not having the $3.50 required to start the machine, I grabbed my wallet and went over to the change machine. Luckily, it took $1,$5,$10 and $20 bills. I tried a ten dollar bill...it kept spitting it back out at me, so I tried another ten...same result. Reluctantly, I sent my twenty dollar bill into the machine. It was accepted at once and poured out 80 quarters!

With my pockets bulging, I headed back to the washers and began inserting quarters. I was only able to plunk in about four coins before the machine became plugged up...no more would go in and none were being returned.

So, out came the bedspread and into the next washer it went. Once again detergent was poured in and once again I attempted to insert the required $3.50, only to lose about $1 before realizing it too was out of order.

The third washer had a sign taped to it, "Out of Order", so I was at a dead end. I looked around for someone in charge, or even a number I could call for trouble, inquires, or lost money, but no such luck...I was the only one in the building. I gathered up my bedspread, purse, Tide and stalked out of the laundromat never to return. What am I ever going to do with $18 in quarters?!

Fertilizer

Every winter the deer hang around our yard eating anything and everything available...bushes, tree bark, leafy ground cover and grass. So it was no surprise to see piles of marble-sized deer droppings all over the front lawn this spring. If I left them where they lay I'd end up with spots of especially green grass, since they are a good fertilizer. So, a couple of weeks ago I went around to each pile and with a swift kick of the foot sent the little brown marbles flying. The lawn is looking pretty good now and almost ready to mow! I like free fertilizer.

A Dark Winter Night

Midnight is a pretty good time to visit the emergency room. It's a lot better than any day-time hour. There are fewer people milling about or seated in the foyer and the roads getting to the hospital are pretty clear too. So upon arrival, it was just a matter of a couple of minutes before I was ushered back to the inner workings of the emergency room.

The last time I was there was about a year ago...January or February. These things always happen to me in the winter time. Almost every surgery or major illness or hospitalization I've ever had has always happened in the winter. That might be one reason I dislike winter so much. Just the thought of that approaching season brings on a darkness and dread. Or could it be the darkness and dread that bring on the illnesses?...vicious circle.

Unlike my last visit to the ER, this time a problem was found, treated quickly, prescription given and I was on my way. But not before I once again had a little time to sit and listen to the sounds and horrors of the place.

First of all, there was an incessant beeping that went off every ten seconds. Between the beeps I heard what was going on in the room next to mine. "Okay sir, we're going to apply some Lydacream (a numbing agent)to the contusion and wait ten minutes." (I know about Lydacream because Roger uses it for dialysis. And I know that it takes at least an hour for it to numb an area. Ten minutes is no where near enough time!) After ten minutes of beeps and conversation from the nurses station across the hall, I was again alerted to the pending drama in the room next door. "Okay, sir...are you doing alright?" What I then heard was something I never hope to hear again...a grown man screaming in extreme agony and pain. It wasn't as loud as it could have been because he kept his mouth closed. But it was screaming and it went on for about a minute while the doctor did whatever he was doing.(maybe cleaning out a wound) "Okay, sir...we're finished messing with you now," were welcome words and but the screaming didn't entirely cease. It gradually tapered off and faded out with a series of whimpers.

Once again, I felt very fortunate to be walking down the hall headed for the double doors that led to the foyer and to home and to bed, where everyone belongs at 2:30 in the morning.

Warm Winds

Something wonderful happened this January. Instead of piles of snow and frigid temperatures, we are enjoying the effects of an "El Nino" - warm winds from the south. Yesterday the thermometer on the window read a glorious 52 degrees and it was sunny! My very being suddenly came alive and out of the gloomy funk that winter always puts me in. I began to fantasize that it truly was spring and all the possibilities that brings - working in the garden, taking hikes up the mountain, watering the lawn...I would liked to have mowed the lawn but it was still cropped short and brown. So I hooked up a hose and backed the car out of the garage and washed it. I wasn't the only one ecstatic about the weather. The entire time I was washing the car, Buddy, my 15 year-old kitty was running in and out of the garage with his tail straight up and waving and with a wild look in his eyes.

I know our fantasy will probably end, since it is only January. The coming storms and snow will bring us back to the harsh reality, but while it lasts we will soak in the sunshine and pretend that summer is here again, even for just a couple of days.

PS Update on my last blog when Buddy disappeared; he came back after about a week... and not one word about where he had been.

Letting Go

It's been a tough week for two reasons; the disappearance of our wonderful summer weather and the disappearance of our beloved cat named "Buddy." Both of these tragic events happened at about the same time causing a tear or two and a sense of great loss. I was there the night Buddy was born almost 15 years ago and if he had stayed around a couple more days we would have given him a birthday bash!

Just like Buddy the summer of 2009 is gone forever from this earth. I tried to hang on to it by covering precious geraniums with plastic. But the freezing temperatures left them brown and wilted. The garden which provided tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, squash, beans, peas, beets, lettuce, apples, peaches, cherries, plumbs and raspberries is gone too. All that remains are piles of dead vines and dirt.

Time is moving on and we have no choice but to go with it. I can only look forward to next year when our warm weather returns and I also look forward to the next life when we'll see our precious Buddy again.

Skeg?

A couple of weeks ago I tried out my new inflatable kayak on the Little Spokane River. It's a two-person kayak so I asked my sister, Gayla, to go with me. And I borrowed another one-person kayak from friends, so that Suzanne could go with as well.

With her set of oars, Suzanne manauvered her kayak with skill and sped down the river ahead of us most of the time. But for some reason Gayla and I could not get control of our kayak. It turned us around in circles during the whole journey. Nothing we did could divert it's determine course into bushes, fallen trees, sharp sticks, and sandbars. And the bushes we frequently became entangled in were full of aphids and spiders which we continually brushed from our hair and clothing.

We were exhausted from our four-hour trip down the river. And when we finally reach the exit point and were taking the kayaks out of the water and deflating them, I noticed that the one-person kayak had a little rudder, fin, or "skeg" on it's underside in the back, and that the two-person kayak DID NOT have one.

I have since bought a "skeg" that I can attach to my kayak and I hope to try it out soon. I may be going alone though... I doubt that Gayla will agree to another trip. If it works I'll be happy, if not I'm giving the kayak away. Any takers?

Zeke

A couple of weeks ago my sister Rosalin, who is also my neighbor, heard a cat screaming in the middle of the night. She said it sounded like it was being eaten alive...a sound that gave her a sick feeling. The next morning Zeke was nowhere to be found. I was saddened and depressed - positive that he had met a horrible death. But after two days Zeke reappeared...but not the Zeke we all know and love. Somehow his personality has changed. He is no longer the neighborhood bully and he no longer wants to prowl around outside all night long. He stays strictly inside the garage and will not go out. Even when the afternoon sun heats up the garage to a toasty 85 degrees, you can always find Zeke in there somewhere.

Yesterday I hauled the poor kitty outside onto the cool grass. He stayed there for a few minutes while I petted him, but when I went to inspect some flowers, he got up, looked nervously around him and made a mad dash for the garage.

It must have been a pretty traumatic experience in the woods that fateful night. And although Zeke doesn't have any physical injuries or scars, he does seem to have some emotional ones. It's been suggested that I take him to a cat psychologist...right.

The Year of the Sugar Ants

Every summer something decides to become the number one pest. Last year it was the wasps. They were everywhere...hovering around the flowers, making nests under the eaves of the house, trying to get water from hoses and grass. I suffered greatly from their angry stings.

Two years ago the number one pest was the frogs...croaking constantly, sticking to the windows with their suction cup feet and sometimes hopping right in through open doors.

This year is the year of the turkeys who make their rounds just about every morning, sitting on, breaking off and scratching up my petunias looking for bugs. Along with the turkey, this is the year of THE MOST PESKY OF ALL...the sugar ants, also known as piss ants.

First of all they figured out how to get into the humming bird feeder which is hanging by a wire from the eave of the house. And during ninety degree weather when our air conditioning stopped working, they were to blame. They had gotten into the inner workings of the heat pump, died there by the dozen and their little ant bodies piled up high enough to stop an electrical connection.

I've seen them all summer long marching in lines across the driveway, through the garden and along their own personal super highway...the hose.

Three mornings ago I was going to make waffles for breakfast, I opened my baking center cupboard where I keep baking supplies, mixer, blender, bread maker etc., and was horrified to see the whole inside crawling with sugar ants! They were scurrying around and up and down among the spices. They had found their way inside a bag of sugar...under the mixer, bread maker and toaster. I could see them scurrying up the walls of the cupboard and across the tops and bottoms of shelves...even under the shelf liner.

Needless to say, breakfast was late that morning as I vacuumed up, wiped down and cleaned like never before.

For the moment we are ant free, but you never know what they are planning, where they are heading or when they will next be discovered.

Gardens are great!

Zucchini

I can never get it right...I always end up with zucchini coming out of my ears in the summer. The first year I had a garden I didn't know any better and planted the whole packet of seeds. The huge plants took over almost the entire garden and demanded tons of water. The rate of grow was staggering...I could harvest at least a half a dozen zucchinis every day. We ate them, we gave them away we threw them out for the deer to eat and some just got left where they were. One time I didn't make it out to the garden for a about three days and when I did venture out there I came upon a zucchini that actually scared me and made me gasp it was so big. My first thought was that it was some sort of animal laying there.

Every year since then I have planted a few less zucchini seeds, but I still have tons of them. This year I planted two seeds and guess what...they are everywhere! I'm desparately looking for that zucchini relish recipe that my Mom used to use.

They're Bustin' Out!

The tiny occupants of the bird house I've been watching for most of the summer are ready to bust out! It took forever for the parent birds to build the nest in the first place; one of the birds was very fussy - I watched both of them spend their days hauling in sticks and fuzz, and occasionally I saw HER throw out some of the sticks and white fuzz that weren't to her satisfaction.

For weeks it seems like the pair was just using the house as their summer cottage but eventually I started hearing the tiniest peeping sound. And the parents began making frequent deliveries of worms and bugs. Each day the peeping became louder and more intense and the parents could barely keep up with the demand for food!.. more food!

Yesterday I started to see little heads and yellow beeks looking out of the round door of the house. I knew the time was nigh. And today I happened to be watching when one little curious head stretched out so far that the rest of the body came with it and the little bird found itself perched on the limb attached to the house. It teetered there for a few seconds before it lunged for safety and disappeared back into the round door.

I'm sure that it's just a matter of days or even hours before the baby wrens are out into the world hunting their own bugs and worms. Maybe they'll come back to visit the old homestead once in a while...maybe even spend the night?