Wednesday, June 30, 2010

The third egg arrived

When I looked at the nest through the balcony door I saw Mom sitting on the nest. I waited a few hours and finally started to water the flower baskets. It did not seem to bother Mom when I watered the other 3 baskets so I thought I'd sneak by her and water her basket from the rear avoiding the nest. After a few moments she flew off and I was so sorry I bothered her but I snuck in and took a picture of the nest now with 3 eggs.

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In no time at al Momma was back on the nest. I think tomorrow morning I'll wait until she leaves the nest and then water the basket and maybe take another picture if there is another egg. Today I monitored the nest and found Mom gone a few times. I guess she is not really bothered by me as long as I stay a distance away. Being able to watch that nest is probably a once in a lifetime experience for me.
I weeded our bean patch this afternoon. We can surely grow weeds better than any vegetable ☺ We finally have some Lilies in bloom.

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We got the tubers last year for our 50th wedding anniversary and they came back with a vengeance. I am so pleased. Thanks Nicki ☺ That was a gift that keeps on giving.
It was a medium-rare day again. Some clouds and some sun and thankfully no rain. Cliff is still getting strawberries and we had some with whipped cream twice today. So much for a diet .....
Stay tuned for more bird stories.

Good night everybody....

Tuesday, June 29, 2010

Egg No 2

When I looked in the nest last night there was only the one egg but this morning I saw 2. It looks like Momma lays her eggs at night.

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This afternoon I checked from behind our patio door and saw Mom or Dad sitting in the nest.

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It's pretty hard to see so I circled the nest in red. I took the picture without a flash because I did not want to scare the bird. It was pretty windy and the basket was swinging in the wind. After a little while the nest was empty again and I figured there would be another egg but that was not the case. Now I hope I will see No. 3 tomorrow morning.
I researched Juncos on the internet and found out that they are monogamous.  They can have 2 broods per season but rarely use the same nest twice.
Years ago we had on Oregon Junco that saw its reflection in anything it could and pecked at it. I had to clean several spots on our windows quite often. It never happened again though. 
This morning I finally cleaned out our storage/cold room. It was so full I could hardly take a step without tripping over something. It is a good feeling to get that done. Then I made lunch and afterwards did a bit of ironing, which is really rare for me. Normally I say if I cannot wash and wear something I don't want it. 
That was my day and I hope yours was good too.
Good night everybody ☺

Monday, June 28, 2010

I'm so glad

that I did not chase the mommy away for good. Here is proof

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I looked this morning and saw the egg. I made sure Mom or Dad were not around and took a quick  picture. I did not see either parent today. I wonder if Mom lays all the eggs before she starts sitting on them. Apparently they usually have 4 - 6 eggs sometimes twice a year. I will be looking forward to monitoring the process.
It was a cloudy morning and after I hung some sheets on the line it did not take long and I had to haul them back inside to dry in the dryer. It had started to rain. In the afternoon we had a little bit of sunshine and hopefully there will be more tomorrow.

Good night everybody ☺

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Sunday, June 27, 2010

A bird story

When I watered the flower baskets on our balcony yesterday morning I heard a little noise behind me. At first I thought it was the basket moving but then it sounded like it came from behind me so I turned around and a little bird (I think it was a Junco) sat on the balcony railing with what I think was some deer hair in it's beak. I could tell it was terribly mad at me chirping and running towards me and then back a few times. Finally it dropped the hair and flew into a bush on the ground still chirping like it was really upset. I was wondering what the heck was wrong with that bird.
Later on Cliff worked on lowering the baskets so they would get more sun and I noticed that 2 of the flower plants were a little far apart and I wanted to correct that. When I started to move the dirt I noticed  the nicest little bowl shaped nest all padded with hair and other soft material. Then I understood the little bird. It was protecting it's territory and I was the intruder. I was so sorry I did not catch on earlier when it tried to chase me away. I left the nest alone and really hope it will come back. It would be so nice to watch some babies grow up. There were no eggs yet and I doubt we will see any because I had my fingers in there before I knew it was there.
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We had our Sunday get-together this afternoon and also had an uninvited guest outside. He may be uninvited but always welcome.
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I just wish he would leave our flowers alone. I know that is too much to ask, so the only flowers we have are in the garden and on the balcony.
We had a great day even though it was cloudy most of it.
Good night everybody ☺

Friday, June 25, 2010

Another great summer day

We have had quite a few nice days in a row. It sure is a relief from the dreary days we had to contend with.
While visiting a friend down the road from us we watched the Alpacas across the street. They are a real nosy bunch and all came to the fence to look at us in return. We had a little baby with us and so did the Alpacas. It is the cutest little animal, rolling in the dirt and then shaking and getting rid of all the dust.
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I was in Duncan today and am happy to say that 3 times I parked perfectly. WOW that was a first since we have the new car. One thing I really like about it is the air-conditioning.  But there are not many other things I like about the new Accord. In order to see reasonably well, not perfectly by all means, I have to pump the driver's seat to it's highest setting which in turn does not let me see the dash instruments properly. I think that having the seat so high is what let me park better. I still wish I would be driving the old 1987 Accord. Why oh why did we sell it!!!! But then I have to think of the good things like air-conditioning. I suppose sooner or later I will get used to the new beast.

Later on Cliff and I drove to Mill Bay to drop a prescription off and get some beer for our get-together on Sunday afternoon. When we came back it was time to make some tacos for our supper which is only a small meal for us and after that it was News time.

Good night everybody ☺

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Tuesday, June 22, 2010

Summer has arrived

and with it STRAWBERRIES ☺ Above photo is of our first batch. I cut them up, added a minute amount of sugar and topped them with whipped cream. They tasted divine ☺ 2 days later the second batch arrived and we just had some without sugar and also with whipped cream. Our patch is particularly good this year and I think it is due to the good care Cliff took of the bed last fall. He dug the whole thing up and renewed the soil and fed it before planting only the best of the new plants that had started. Our raspberry hedge is also doing fine and if all goes well we should have lots to eat fresh and for the freezer. I used to make lots of jam but it seems we don't eat much of that any longer. Calories... you know !!!!
Our Tiger Lilies are a bit late this year. We have lots of buds but nothing is in bloom yet.
I harvested a romaine lettuce and after sorting and washing the leaves I ended up with over 2 pounds of lettuce. It was really big. All year long we have a salad with our lunch although in the winter I have to buy it.
I am sorry to say that this year I have not seen any little winter squash plants. Every year before they used to spring up all over the garden and I had to pull out a lot but nothing this year. Maybe it is because Cliff got 3 loads of horse manure and spread it around very thick. I guess the poor little things could not push through that.
It was a beautiful day and we did a few things around the yard.
Good night everybody ☺

agecheese

Friday, June 18, 2010

You can't fight City Hall... or can you?

Last Friday at supper time the doorbell rang and 2 nice young ladies handed me a brochure.
 Eco Depot
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The property for this has been a farm for as long as Cliff's Family has lived here, since 1952. The infrastructure that would lead to this "ECO Depot" is totally inadequate and has to be updated greatly.
It would serve 16 000 people and create lots of traffic.  There are lots of houses in very close proximity. On the other hand there is an industrial park only about 1 mile away from there where we already have a large composting facility. This facility has applied for a license to do exactly what our CVRD wants to establish on this former farm. I cannot understand why the Municipality wants to compete with business!!  Why would they want to take a large piece of land out of the property tax pool for something that could generate more tax base if they would get the license they have applied for?
Tomorrow morning will be another session at the proposed site. We went to the first one last Tuesday and will certainly go to the next one. We had a very hostile crowd and I think we will even get a bigger crowd tomorrow.
Nobody knew anything about this until it was sprung on us by the young ladies that came around with that brochure. It looks like a done deal but we will fight it any way we can. This is a pristine neighbourhood and we don't want it spoiled and polluted.
Wish us luck!
Good night everybody ☺

Monday, June 14, 2010

Finally

we had a few really nice days. We took advantage of it by working in the garden and doing some shopping as well.
On Saturday I had to go for an Ultra Sound. I was supposed to drink 32 oz of water one hour before my appointment. I did that but when the technician had started she noticed that my bladder was only 1/4 full. So I had to drink another ton of water and wait nearly 45 minutes before she could finish with me. The actual procedure only took a few minutes. I am glad I drove myself to the hospital so Cliff did not have to wait for me. When I got back to the car it was boiling inside thanks to the sun. I turned on the air conditioning and it cooled down in a hurry. We never had a vehicle with air conditioning so that is one of the things I like about our new car but I don't like the size of it. I cannot judge If I am forward enough in a parking spot or not enough. 

On Sunday afternoon we visited our friends Tom and Joyce for Happy Hour. Since the weather was so nice we were able to sit on the deck. I really love that because it is nestled in trees with flower baskets all around plus bird feeders. It is amazing how many birds visit them. We saw a few baby birds that were learning to fly and one ended up behind Tom on the back of his chair. It took awhile before it flew away again. It was fascinating to watch the birds coming and going.
Here is where we spent the afternoon
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I hope it stays nice for awhile.
Good night everybody ☺

Thursday, June 10, 2010

Waiting for the sun

It peeks out once in awhile so I hope it will shine more permanently soon.
I have been informed that my Wildflower bouquet is actually a bouquet of weeds! I don't care what they are called I think they look very pretty and there are lots more where they came from at a very good price ☺
Cliff tried to dig up some buttercups yesterday but the ground was too wet. Now there is a weed that we hate. The bloom might look pretty but it is too invasive and very hard to eradicate. Seems that is a job that has to be done every year.
Since he could not work in the garden we went shopping at Costco. I really like going to that store. This is the first year we had a Costco card. I don't buy much there because quite often the price is not any cheaper than for instance at Superstore and I try to patronize local businesses. I needed some Vidalia Onion salad dressing and Costco is the only store I have seen that. We found a few other things that I could not possibly live without!! We were lucky with the weather, dry roads and no rain, that started just after we got home. The weatherman predicted sunshine starting tomorrow for the next few days. I will hold him to his word.
A few days ago I recorded the movie "A tree grows in Brooklyn"  I read the book a long time ago and since the movie is in black and white you can imagine how long ago that was. I am watching it on my TV in the kitchen while I do the cooking and cleaning. Nice way to do chores.
Time to carry on with my day.
Good bye everybody ☺

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Tuesday, June 8, 2010

A good day for weeding

That's what I did today for awhile. It was not too hot to be outside. The sun came out off and on but for the most part it hid behind some clouds which suited me perfectly.
Before I came in I pulled a nice butter lettuce and some green onions which was part of our lunch. The salad tastes so good when it is that fresh from the garden.
After lunch and clean-up I went out again for a bit more weeding. Before that I walked up to the mail boxes to see if anybody thought of us. Yes they did but unfortunately it was only the bank statement. I had taken my camera for that walk because I wanted to show one of the most intrusive plants on Vancouver Island. It is the Scotch Broom. Here is what I found out about it:

Control can be as seriously challenging because there are no simple solutions. Physical removal--simply pulling or grubbing out--will eliminate plants, but the soil disturbance can result in a plethora of new seedlings. Fortunately, seedlings are easy to pull while still young. Programs of biological controls have introduced a stem miner and seed beetle with limited success. Goats have proved more effective but require direct management. Herbicides such as Roundup have been widely used, but toxicity, particularly in wildland ecosystems, creates a new set of challenges.

This is how our road looks at the moment. It is actually quite nice looking at this time of the year but later on it has only pods and just drab looking leaves.

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On the way home I picked a small bouquet of wildflowers.

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All told it was a great day.
Good night everybody ☺

Saturday, June 5, 2010

And then there were five...

I made more Heavenly Jam yesterday. I want to have enough of it to give it as gifts and our rhubarb is growing so great this year. It must be the horse manure that Cliff spread all around it. As a matter of fact the whole garden is full of it. ☺
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Shortly after I took above picture I took the jars to our storage room downstairs. I wanted to do this in one trip only so I placed all the jars on a cookie sheet and off I went downstairs. Just as I was almost there the unthinkable happened, the jars shifted and I heard the unmistakable sound of breaking glass. Oh nooooo and it was on a carpeted floor to boot. It did not take me long to clean it up though but I was sorry to have one jar less.
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I am glad I did not cut my fingers because there were quite a few glass pieces all over the place.
Other than that is was a beautiful day. The sun was shining all day long and it was warm enough to have the doors open.
Tonight Cliff hung up our two hanging baskets on the balcony. It looks like one of the plants is not going to make it. I hope for the best but if not I'll have to buy a new plant to replace it.
Not many things happened since my last Blog, everything goes it's normal slow pace around here.
Time to publish this and say
Good night everybody ☺

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