Not A Feather Out Of Place

 

This tom was strutting his stuff back and forth along my newly mown path.  I'm sure there was a hen nearby - maybe watching in the tall grass.  Tom seemed happy to have a 'carpeted' place where his object of affection could properly see him dance in all of his magnificence. Turkeys eat ticks.   Ticks aren't a major food source for them but if a turkey finds one it will be ingested.  I'm building quite the collection of frozen ticks.  Wonder if there is a turkey feeder I could fill w/ ticks?

I asked Google the geographical area where Black Racer snakes live (I don't think they got all of the worms in RFK Jr's brain).  Google AI came back stating they can't be found in my town.   I've never told AI where I live nor said they could use my location.  Later I googled an old friend's name.   Google AI suggested I had misspelled the name since there were no celebrities w/ that exact name.  It then gave me a list of famous people w/ similar names.  Curious I looked up my own name which I share w/ a once famous TV character.  Up came my blog on the first page (usually it's at least 7 pages in since my blog isn't exactly popular and the TV character was.)    I'm concerned Google AI is making assumptions about me and I wonder with whom it is sharing that info.

Tick count 6.

Flowers for the Cemetery

 A good start to the day - saw a couple of bobolinks on the constitutional.  I've been watching for their return to the Northwoods.  Took off early for Churchville to pick up groceries.  It's an hour back and forth so got into the audio book I've started.  When I first got there I picked up a latte to get me going and the last thing was stopping by Taco Johns which thankfully offers a full menu whenever they are open.  I'll heat up my #8 later for lunch.  Took the pretty backway through the hills.  Still got home in time for one of my favorite movies Tora, Tora, Tora.  

Mowed the lawn yesterday.  Today I did the back trails.  I was able to cross on Bifrost this year so also mowed the back 80.  The back area has soil over sand/gravel.  A remnant from when the creek was bigger or wider or had a different channel.  The grass doesn't grow as lush back there.  Just higher up the ridge though the grass is thick and plentiful.  Interesting how topography changes things.

Picked up the flowers from the cemetery tonight just before sunset (when the cemetery closes).  I checked to see what the statue of an angus bull (it marks a gravesite) was wearing this year.  Last year it was Mardi Gras beads - this year a colorful lei.  I have to pass a gravestone engraved w/ "It's daylight in the swamps".  An old logger's call to say it's time to wake up - always gives me a smile when I go by.  My parents and grandparents would use the term to get us to wake up too.

Took a sunset ride on Jormungandr w/ Whip.  Afterward  I came inside and started working on the computer while Whip stayed outside listening to the noises.  Soon she came around the corner of the livingroom o let me know she was back inside.  I got up to shut the door but it was already shut.  Pretty cool if she did that on purpose.

Tick count 8.

Flowers for the Cemetery

Despite Memorial Day being called 'the unofficial start of summer' and weathermen stating "the first of June is the meteorological start of summer" I figure I still have almost a month to get all of my spring-time tasks finished until summer actually arrives.   Mowed the lawn for the first time this year.  Hated to cut all of those violets so I left a strip of them untouched in the back. When they stop blooming there will be flowers elsewhere in the lawn.   Also swung Svaldilfari out of the way of a turtle using a pathway to get to the next pond.  The herbs are out on the deck near the back door.  I took time off to check on the flowers in the cemetery.  Gave them a little drink of water to bide them over into tomorrow.  

I'm back to thinking I'm a heavy sleeper since Whip threw up on the bed's comforter sometime in the night.  I didn't discover it until this morning.  On the good side, I planned on washing that comforter anyway before I packed it away until cold weather returns.

Tick count 6.

Flowers for the cemetery

Memorial Day:  I keep my grandparents tradition of putting flowers on the cemetery graves.  About 7 a.m. I loaded up the car w/ flower pots.  Checked the forecast before leaving the house - drizzle expected by 8 a.m. but short lived.    Brought along something I could use to water the plants.  My grandfather had shown me where the spigots for water are located at the cemetery.  They are in the older portion  - useful when people put out real flowers. Usually there are a few people setting out decorations but this morning it was just a song sparrow and me.   The forecasted drizzle had begun early so maybe people were waiting for it to end.   While I worked the drizzle turned into a sprinkle and by the time the last flowers were placed to my satisfaction it had become a light rain. No need to add more water to the plants.  I drove to the cafe in town to treat myself to breakfast.  It was busy but I found a back booth where I could observe everyone but not be easily seen myself.  I didn't look like a drowned rat but I was pretty damp.  Plus I have a round black & blue mark on my chin.  I've been practicing stories in my head to explain colorful ways I might have received the bruise but so far no one has asked.

Baneberry blossoms

 

Excerpts from the Sheriff's Report:

1:11 a.m. - Officer reports a house structure fully engulfed in fire.  There's a propane tank near house.  Fire department responded, fire is under control, nobody is at home.  Deputy found occupant of residence at the bar.  He is on his way.

6:57 a.m. - Officer saw a juvenile walking to Walmart and made contact with the parent.  There is a recent history of juvenile sneaking out.  Parent stated juvenile should not be at Walmart but waiting for the bus.  Juvenile stated they were going to Walmart for a notebook.  Parent stated they have those at home and juvenile has no money to buy one.  Officer escorted juvenile back home.

8:36 a.m. - Caller reporting he lost a pair of metal-cutting shears.

8:42 a.m. - Call from bank reporting a customer that recently passed away had approximately $2,000 in her account.  The bank located multiple withdrawals that happened in the next county that have depleted her account.  Information passed on to neighboring county.

8:53 a.m. - Postmaster says that someone has been coming into the post office lobby that's open 24 hours and leaving trash and food mess.  There were also droplets of blood and strange written notes. Note found appears to be a shopping list: hammer, tool belt, head lamp, ammo box, first aid kit, hunting knife, hatchet, etc.   There are no cameras in the lobby or on the outside of the building.  Believes someone is staying in the post office overnight.  Extra patrol planned.  Next Day 12:23 a.m. - Deputy at post office found someone sleeping in the lobby.  Gave a male a ride to Northwoods Motel.  Male was warned he can't stay or live at the post office.

9:51 a.m. - Walk-in to Law Enforcement Center reporting a vehicle parked on the north side of the river.  There was a man fishing there on Monday and Tuesday.  Wednesday there were fishing poles and a white bucket.  Caller hasn't seen male since, provided a license plate number.  Officer in contact with someone at his residence.  They haven't seen him in a couple days.  Person of interest called police department.  He is fine.

10:19 a.m. - Elderly couple had a flat tire.  Deputy changed the tire.

11:20 a.m. - Caller reports they are having issues with their father again.  The father has a life lease to live at the location but the land is in reporting party's name.  Father is out plowing and discing a field that caller rented to another person.  Deputy in contact with complainant who has no paperwork to determine what the father has access to.

1:05 p.m. - Caller reporting people are outside their residence trying to take them to prison.  Deputy walked around his residence, didn't see any signs anyone had been there.

4:52 p.m. - Caller reports they do not want to be where they are.  They don't like it there.  Deputy made contact with staff at facility letting them know of the resident's comment.

5:09 p.m. - Female was trying to go to a residence for babysitting.  Went to wrong house.  She was turning around and homeowners pulled in and blocked her in.  Home owners thought she was hiding behind the garage.  Cameras show she was there less than a minute.  No violations.

6:15 p.m. - Gas drive-off at station.  Occupants described as elderly females.  Clerk thinks it was a mistake.  Deputy called and left a voice mail and followed up at their address.  Officer will deliver cash to gas station so elderly female doesn't have to drive there.

8:31 p.m. - Canadian National called and stated there are black cows out on the tracks.  Another train is coming through in an hour.  Cow owner notified.

Water Scavenger Beetles

My clothesline has four strands.  One broke late in autumn and I hadn't replaced it because in winter iI can't use the line anyway:  clothes won't get sufficiently dry in a day when the temp falls below 17 degrees, I can't make it over the drifts to get to the clothesline, and long things like sheets or towels drag onto the snow underneath the line.  This spring another line broke.  Time to restring the entire line.  Took the new wire out to the line.  On one end did a double half hitch then at the other end a taut line hitch so it could be tightened - or at least that was my idea.  Before taking down the two remaining strands, I hung a load of laundry on the strands I had just put up.  Best to give them a test.  If I had made a mistake I could figure out something different.  A moderately breezy day so should give them a good workout.   When I got home after volunteering at the library, I was gratified to see my lines were still holding up and the knots didn't appear to be unraveling.  I checked why the original strands had failed.  They consist of a plastic sheath over wire.  Appears that the back and forth flapping of clothes were enough to wear through the plastic and eventually the wires.  Not much I can do to keep that from happening again.  Only question now is do I take down the remaining two original strands or wait until they fail?  Oh yeah, turns out the elements have broken enough of my clothes pins that I'm beginning to run low.  Need to pick up some of those too.

Tick count 1.

Ruby Throated Hummingbird (female)

Public Broadcasting System in my state airs a show a couple of times a week called 'University Place'.  It is lectures presented by professors/specialists on varied subjects.  I was making breakfast when a professor of history started a talk about the Burnham Telescope which is on display at the university.  He started by talking about the era of refracting telescopes.  The Burnham is a six inch example made in the 1870's and bought by an amateur astronomer named Sherburne Burnham.  He set out in his spare time to document double stars (stars that look like a single one but are really a pair of stars orbiting a central gravitational point).   He built a name for himself in astronomical circles by finding 400 previously unknown doubles.   Burnham and his telescope eventually made it to the university.  Burnham left but the telescope stayed  until it went on an expedition  to look for Vulcan. Things were getting interesting.  I remembered the story of the planet Vulcan (it predates Star Trek by many decades).  Astronomers knew that the planet Mercury's orbit precessed a tiny portion and assumed this was the effect of an unknown planet orbiting even closer to the sun.  (Actually, Mercury's orbit precession was later explained by Einstein's General Theory of Relativity.)  A French astronomer even claimed to have observed the planet.  The Burnham telescope was portable and taken by one of the university's professors to view a full eclipse occurring in the South Pacific to see the planet Vulcan. No one observed a planet and the professor wrote a paper disproving it's existence.   After that the telescope was used by university students and had other 'adventures' before ending up on display.   So glad modern technology means I can now watch a lecture while eating an omelet instead of in a lecture hall in a hard seat w/ a tablet arm.  

Tick count is 4.  

Starling

 

After moving the other geraniums out onto the deck, I'd found one potted geranium I'd forgotten.  Picked up some alyssum on my errands today to fill out that pot.  While I worked on that at the potting bench, Whip was poking around outside.  I finished, gave the pot a splash of water, and set it inside w/ the Memorial Day flowers and  the herbs.  Tonight will be cold (though not freezing)  and maybe better not to shock the new plants more than necessary.  When I walked outside, Whip was just on the other side of Sleipnir eating something.  This wasn't good.  I called her over to me and she brought along a piece of something that had been long dead.  I told her to leave it and we walked back to the house.  It became obvious once in a more confined space that she must have also rolled in the dead whatever 'cause she stunk.  I gave her a sponge bath in the laundry room, dried her off, and we went back outside for our nightly constitutional.  She knows the drill for the constitutionals so kept to the business at hand and didn't venture back to the carcass.  Once we were back inside I was again made aware that, while the bath I gave her  had removed particles, the odor still remained.   Back into the laundry room where she got a good sudsy going over, a rinse, and a towel off.  The scent of decayed flesh may still exist but all I can smell now is the doggy soap I used.  Close enough.

My Lawn

More storms will be coming through tonight.  Must be getting close 'cause Whip keeps woofing - like she's hearing the far off thunder.  Last night's storms completely filled the rain barrel.  I turned off the diverter and put a lid on the bin.  Didn't need to water the plants today since Mother Nature did that adequately overnight.  I've also turned off the heat in all of the buildings.  No more temps below freezing so figure I'd tough it out until warmer weather comes in.   Can always use the fireplace to heat the house and I haven't taken the electric blanket nor quilts off the bed yet.    

Happened to be outside this afternoon as the Waste Management truck went past my place.  They wrote everyone around here announcing they wouldn't be picking up in our area anymore.  A week or so later reversed that decision with an e-mail saying if customers wanted to stay w/ the company to let them know.   I don't know how many stayed and how many, like me, found a different provider.  Interesting that after all of the fuss, they still  drive right past my place.

Boxelder Samaras

 Another day when I didn't get as much done as I'd hoped.  All of the overwintered plants are moved from Sleipnir to the deck.  I realized I'd forgotten one pot as I started putting away things on the flower benches.  Will probably set it out in front of Sleipnir but it only has one geranium and needs something extra added - will pick up alyssum from one of the local greenhouses.  The large garbage bin I'd moved into Sleipnir in the fall  and filled w/ water had worked well for watering all winter long.  I used up the last of it in my potting/repotting activities this month.  Today moved it to the edge of my deck and reattached the rain gutter diverter.  Coming storms should fill up the container w/ water off the roof and I can water the plants on the deck using it.  The Memorial Day flowers and the herbs are still in Sleipnir.  Forecast is for a couple of nights next week with night time temps in the high 30's.  Not close enough to freezing to worry about the flowers out on the deck but maybe a bit too cold for my herbs and I mollycoddle the flowers that will be put on the gravesites until after their debut.

Haven't mowed the lawn yet.  It's beautiful w/ a carpet of light blue violets, enough dandelions to keep any early pollinators happy, and dotted w/ white wild strawberry blossoms.  Saturday morning I listen to Garden Talk on NPR and the people calling in are desperate to remove various non-grass encroachments to their sterile green lawns.  They don't know what they are missing.

Tick count 6.

 

Indigo Bunting

Didn't get as much done as I planned but at least have a good start on spring activities.  The weather has swung back to warm and there isn't any below freezing temps forecast for at least the next 10 days.  Finished planting everything but my wellie boots.  I may look around for other shoes (or something) to plant w/ impatiens this year.  

The lilacs had been setting on buds during this week's freezes.  The buds were so small I wasn't sure if they had frozen and would crumble if touched.   With the rain last night and sunshine today the buds are exploding in size so there will be sweet smelling flower clusters soon.   I grabbed my "Keep Off.  Pesticides Applied" signs and pounded them in on either side of the original lilacs out by the road.  Last year they worked well - hopefully they will have the same effect this year.

Noticed some yellow rocket coming up at the edge of my lawn.  The gravel that was put down when Mjolnir was built was full of yellow rocket seed and there have been a few plants that have popped up ever since.  If it's blooming by my driveway, I assumed it would also be blooming in the far hay field.  Every year I go out and pull the stuff out.  Whip and I jumped in Jormungandr and went out to see.   I slowly drove the perimeter of that field but only found a few stalks on the NW section.  Pulled those and threw them in the truck bed.  Either my vigilant picking every year has practically eradicated the stuff or it's still a little early in it's blooming cycle.  Probably the latter.  Whip and I will need to check back there periodically for the rest of the spring.  Tonight's tick check count was six.

Baltimore Oriole (female)

Had the follow up w/ the cardiologist to see a) how I was tolerating the new medication she had put me on, b) if it had taken care of my a-fib, and c) next steps.  I was tolerating the medication well, it had not done the trick, so she scheduled me for a conversion.   Since the grocery store is just down the street from the clinic I stopped afterward to pick up provisions.  I should have done it last week but for various reasons just never felt in the mood.  My early morning appointment meant I hadn't eaten breakfast.  I picked up more than I needed.  Breakfasts will be a feast for the rest of the week.

We can have freezing temps up until Memorial Day.  My cardiologist said for Mother's Day her husband and daughter had taken her to a greenhouse to pick out plants.  She hadn't realized it would frost that night and was now worried some of her new plants won't make it.   I can't  want until Memorial Day for all of my springtime activities so I'm dong those things which won't care if it frosts - put out the garden poles my sister painted and moved around deck furniture.  It was so inviting that I sat out there, read the paper, and threw a treat for Whip into the tall grass occasionally.  (Looks like I'd better mow soon.)

Whip started barking after sunset.  I could just make out deer grazing in the meadow.  Too dark to see if there were any fawns yet.  Watched something low and sleek walk past the stockade fence and jump in through the gate.  Again too dark to see for sure what it was but suspect it's one of my neighbor's cats.  If they want to hunt here for mice, I'm all for it.  Whip is still barking - rabbits cleaning up under the birdfeeders?

Wild Strawberry blossoms

I was researching something and came across National Anita Day.  It's a celebration on May 13th of all of the contributions people w/ the name of 'Anita' have made.  I sent off an e-card to Neighbor Anita hoping she had a grand day.  Wondered if there were other celebratory days for names like this one. As a sampling I checked my sibling's names.   National Philip Day is August 24th.  National Connie Day (there is no day for 'Constance') is February 27th.  National Susan Day is February 24th.  National Russell Day is July 23rd.  There is no National Brent Day - closest I could find was a Say Hi To Brett Day.  No National Douglas Day though there is a National Douglass Day on February 14 in honor of Frederick Douglass.  I noticed that my parents must have given us names they liked rather than have all of our names rhyme, start w/ the same letter, or be specific to a nationality.   Philip originates in the Greek and means 'lover of horses'.  Constance is Latin for 'constancy'.  Susan is Hebrew and means 'lily'.    Russell is an Anglo-Norman nickname meaning 'red hair'.  Brent is from the Celtic meaning "flame"/"fire" (though Brent says it means 'goose').  Douglas is from the Scotch word for 'Dark River'.   Meanwhile my oft-used pseudonym of 'Electra' also has no national day.  The name comes from the Trojan War saga where Electra is the daughter of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra and ...- but that's a different story.

Pussytoes

Friend Nancy picked me up around 7:30 a.m. and we stopped off in the village for breakfast at the cafe.  Then it was off to Winter Greenhouse.  Nancy had geraniums to pick up for her family's cemetery plots, some vegetable plants her husband likes to grow, petunias & alyssum for hanging pots, and various other plants.  We had a good time looking around.  Somehow I managed not to pick up another daylily though it was a struggle.  Today my mission was herbs.  Herbs look really cute all bunched together in a pot but they don't grow well that way.  Chives makes everything smell like onion.   Basil wants it warmer than everyone else.  Mint takes over the whole pot.   I'll plant each herb separately in it's own pot so they can do their own thing.   I'm looking forward to fresh basil and thyme in my omelets, crisp lettuce to add to sandwiches, and refreshing mint in my water this summer.