An American Goldfinch

Linking up with Chrisy at Living a Good North Coast Life for Reconnecting with Nature

I looked out the window into the back yard as I walked through the dining room.  Perched on top of the shed was a bright, beautiful goldfinch.  I have learned it's actually called an American Goldfinch.

The American Goldfinch (Carduelis tristis), also known as the Eastern Goldfinch, is a small North American bird in the finch family. It is migratory, ranging from mid-Alberta to North Carolina during the breeding season, and from just south of the Canadian border to Mexico during the winter.

The only finch in its subfamily that undergoes a complete molt, the American Goldfinch displays sexual dimorphism in its coloration; the male is a vibrantyellow in the summer and an olive color during the winter months, while the female is a dull yellow-brown shade which brightens only slightly during the summer. The male displays brightly colored plumage during the breeding season to attract a mate.

The American Goldfinch is a granivore and adapted for the consumption of seedheads, with a conical beak to remove the seeds and agile feet to grip the stems of seedheads while feeding. It is a social bird, and will gather in large flocks while feeding and migrating. It may behave territorially during nest construction, but this aggression is short-lived. Its breeding season is tied to the peak of food supply, beginning in late July, which is relatively late in the year for a finch. This species is generally monogamous, and produces one brood each year.

A Taste of Summer

Fresh Strawberries

and Blueberries

on Angel Food Cake with a little whipped cream.

Yup - tastes like summer!!!

Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day!  Although we have adopted this as the official beginning of summer cookouts, it has a much deeper and more significant meaning.   Memorial Day was originally known as Decoration Day.  The purpose of Decoration Day was a day to remember our fallen soldiers by decorating their graves.

On this day I am reminded of a boy who was killed a few years ago, at the age of  22, two days shy of his 23rd birthday.  Tyler Trahan was a Navy explosive ordinance disposalman, killed in action in Iraq.  He was a classmate of my son.  I cannot imagine losing your son.  Not at any age, but certainly not at 22 years old.  I remember thinking about his family and hoping that, even in their grief, they would know that he was a hero.  As a boy from a small town, everyone knew him.  The 'townies' were proud of all of their soldiers and Tyler was no exception.

His funeral procession drove from a funeral home in a neighboring city, through town for a service at a local church and then to a military cemetary.  As is common in small towns, the streets are residential, with houses on both sides.  As the procession passed, many of the townsfolk stood at the edge of the road, each with their own thoughts and prayers for the family.  The elementary school chose to honor Tyler by having the children line up along the street, each child waving an American flag.  Truly a heroes goodbye and a wonderful lesson for the children.

On this Memorial Day, remember the fallen and honor those serving. 

The Fairy Garden

Tucked away in a quiet, somewhat hidden corner of our yard, is a small garden.  It is easily accessible from the house and Jim has been wanting to use that spot to start an herb garden.   There's more room than what is needed for herbs, so we decided to use the perimeter of the garden for a fairy garden.  These rocks already resided there, he just rearranged them and built the facade and the door.

We decided to go get some herbs and small plants today.  Three garden centers later, we found some.  In the time we drove around looking for a place that either (a) was open on Sunday or (b) had a decent variety of herbs, we could have grown them from seed!  Anyway, we found both herbs and some succulents and got them planted. 

 

Then, of course, I looked around to see what else I could use in this little garden.  I don't really want to buy a bunch of stuff for this, I want to be a little creative.  Of course I first checked out Pinterest to get some ideas, and decided that I could use some stones I had (the kind that usually go in the bottom of a flower vase) and cut up some twigs (Mother Nature has graciously pruned the trees, so there are plenty of small twigs to be found) and make a fire pit.  Jim made the benches to go around it.  I made sure to leave them a nice, hefty stack of firewood.  And that's where we are. 

 It's definitely a work in progress and will continue to evolve.  I'll continue to share it with you.  Let me know if you have any ideas to share.  

Until next time.....

Blueberry Crumb Bars

These are so good!!

 I didn't have fresh local blueberries, but they were on sale this week and I got a lot - a lot more than we could eat before they went bad.  At first I thought I would freeze some, but then I thought I should bake something.   So began the long process of searching Pinterest for a recipe.  After hours of searching (it's so easy to get sidetracked in Pinterest!)  I made these.  Here's the link to the recipe http://damndelicious.net/2013/03/07/blueberry-crumb-bars/.

I didn't have enough all purpose flour, so I used half all purpose flour and half rice flour.  The rice flour seems to be a finer grind, so I think it would have been a bit 'heavier' with only all purpose flour.    But you could make a pretty decent gluten free version of these.  I think I will try using half whole wheat flour next time. They would be great with that little bit of nutty flavor and it would add a great texture.

All in all - really good!  And I'm neither a foody nor a cook.  I think this brings the list of edible things I make to six.......

They were so good that we had them for dessert last night and Jim ate

 it again for breakfast.  Fruit, flour, eggs = breakfast!!

The Screech Owl

Linking up with Chrisy at Living a Good North Coast Life for Reconnecting with Nature

Jim saw this Screech Owl in the woods at the Bowman's Club recently.  He said it's much smaller than you would think.  They're only about 10 inches tall.  There was a rotten tree near the pavilion and they needed to cut it down.  When they did, 6 little owls came out of a nest in the tree trunk.  They cut that chunk of tree with the nest and put it into the woods about 10 yards away and put the owls back into the nest, hoping they would survive.  The guys were pretty happy to see this little fellow in the woods!

I actually learned a lot about screech owls:  "Similar to other owls, the screech owl females are larger than the males of their species. They have a compact size and shape. The screech owls are small and agile. They are about 7 to 10 inches tall and have a wingspan of about 18 to 24 inches. They have prominent, wide-set feather tufts with bright yellow eyes. They have different brownish hues with whitish, patterned underside. This coloration helps them get camouflage against the tree bark. They have well-developed raptorial claws and curved bill. They use them as a tool to tear their prey into pieces that are small enough for them to swallow. They tend to carry their prey to the nest and then eat it.

Screech owls hunt from perches in semi-open landscapes. They prefer areas which contain old trees with hollows; these are home to their prey which includes insects, reptiles, small mammals such as bats and mice and other small birds. Screech-owls have a good sense of hearing which helps them locate their prey in any habitat. They also possess well-developed raptorial claws and a curved bill, both of which are used for tearing their prey into pieces small enough to swallow easily. They usually carry their prey back to their nests, presumably to guard against the chance of losing their meal to a larger raptor.

Screech owls are primarily solitary. During the late-winter breeding season, however, males make nests in cavities, sometimes reusing abandoned nests of other animals, to try to attract females. The females select their mate based on the quality of the cavity and the food located inside. During the incubation period, the male feeds the female. These birds are monogamous, with biparental care. The young of most screech owls are altricial to semialtricial.^[1]

The northern screech owls are found in Eastern States ec. New Jersey, New York, etc. The screech owls are named for their piercing calls. The normal territorial call is not a hoot as with some owls, but a trill consisting of more than 4 individual calls per second given in rapid succession (although the sound does not resemble screeching or screaming). They also have a kind of "song" which is used in courtship and, as a duet, between members of a pair. Calls differ widely between species in type and pitch, and in the field are often the first indication of these birds' presence, as well as the most reliable means to distinguish between species. The distinctness of many species of screech-owls was first realized when vastly differing calls of externally similar birds from adjacent regions were noted."

This video is kind of dark, but you can see their whole body vibrates when they 'speak'  - and look at the claws!  Definitely raptorial claws!

A Life Full of Grace

Such a bittersweet time at work this week.  This sweet young lady is leaving Southwind.  

Not just Southwind, but she's leaving pretty much everyone and everything she knows. She has packed up all of her belongings, put them in storage, and is headed to Uganda to work with an organization named JENGA. One of the things she will be doing, and I know she's really looking forward to it, is working with JENGA’s street children ministry.  She's said all along that it's a three month journey with the possiblity of extending it.  I have to tell you, she's so excited and uplifted by this journey that I won't be surprised to hear that it is continued for an extended time.

We had a nice going away party for her at work - complete with all of her favorite things.  The things she'll miss while she's away - cheese and crackers, brownies, red wine.  A nice send-off from our CEO who reminded her that the company would welcome her back if she chooses to return.  Perhaps in a different position - he did remind her that her job is not being held for her. 

Susan - we will miss you.  I hope that this adventure is everything that you wish for and that it continues for as long as you want.  You are an amazing woman, and your decision to follow your dream will be one you will never regret.  Please, please, please join in on the nature posts on Wednesdays.  I would love to see Uganda through your eyes and you would get to join an amazing group of folks from around the world.  Any of  you that would like to follow her, can check out her blog here  http://unwrappinggrace.wordpress.com/

Spread your winds and fly, my friend. 

A Day In The Life

I see other bloggers posting pictures of their days - like 15 on the 15th where every month on the 15th day they post 15 pictures of their day - and I can't imagine posting 15 pictures of my day.  Maybe my life is too mundane, or too predictable, but what would I take pictures of?  The inside of my car?  Traffic?  My office?  They don't change much from one month to the next.  I decided instead that I would start what I am calling "A Day In The Life".  Every month, on one day, I'll post pictures of my day.  The number of pictures, day of the month, and the month will all be the same number.  Starting today, May 5 - I'll post five pictures.  On June 6, six pictures, and so on.  Make sense?  It's a simple formula, but all that 'number matching' plays right into my most Virgo-est tendencies -- and it's easy to remember!

Before I head to work I like to bring some snacks and lunch.  Today I had a banana for a morning snack, sweet potato, cut up veggies and an apple for lunch.  I have a container of hummus at work, so I had some of that with the carrots and celery.  And a yogurt for later in the afternoon.

It's election time in Nashville and I drive by a couple voting stations.  I couldn't help but take a picture of this array of signs.  Not only is District Attorney Funk running for office, so is Judge Dread.  How awesome is that -- it's like a WWF name.  Or a monster truck.  Judge Dread.

Here's my office.  With my first task of the day waiting for me in my chair.  

The polar bear snowball fight statue is at a very busy intersection in the Edgehill section of Nashville.  They do seem a little out of place here in the south, but they are a beloved piece of Nashville history.

My commute is anywhere from 45 to 75 minutes each way.  Sometimes I listen to music and sometimes I listen to books.  Today I was listening to music on the way home and a Peter Frampton song came on.  It reminded me that we saw him not too long ago.  He a short, old dude - up on stage in his Chuck Taylor's absolutely rocking that guitar.  He's such a talented musician.

Until next time.....