Turkey Day Travel

I'm calling this Gumpy's Girls. That would be Sarah, youngest daughter; Halle, granddaughter; and Amanda, oldest daughter and mom to Halle.



We made a last minute decision Thursday morning for Scottie to drive to San Diego for the Thanksgiving celebration at his daughter Sarah's home. I'd been telling Scottie to go and let me stay home with pets, but the sweetie didn't want to leave me alone.

But, you see, the thing is I don't care about Thanksgiving. As a life-long vegetarian the whole dead bird thing grosses me out, and the requirement of getting family together as opposed to a choice. . . . well, it's not something I do easily.

So that morning when Scottie talked to his oldest daughter Amanda and his Dad on the phone, I could tell he was getting teary-eyed at the prospect of missing the family get together and sensed a weakening of his resolve to stay home. Sure enough he agreed that he really wanted to go. Traffic around LA was so bad it added an hour and a half to his drive, but he still made it in time for dinner and had a blast surprising all those who'd been being told we weren't coming.


This is Uncle Dougie and cousin Bruce along with John, the long-time significant other to Scottie's ex. Dougie at 90 is very frail, and Bruce is an absolute gem to see that he gets to all the family events.


John and grandson Declan. Deckles doesn't look thrilled. Don't know why.

Brother-in-law Don, Grandpa Hughie, and sister Susie, all very photogenic.


Sarah, Amanda, Scottie's ex Sally, and Susie. All standing in the brand new kitchen at Sarah's house, designed and installed by Bobby.


I stayed home, put together a couple of veggie dishes and ventured across the road to friend Judy's home where it was just one of his sisters and brothers-in-law. Just four is much easier on my nerves.

On Friday the San Diego contingent did the zoo, then Nati's for dinner - our favorite Mexican dive restaurant - then Scottie left at 3 AM, REALLY, was home by 8:30, rested for all of half an hour, took the recycling stuff to the recycler, and then we went for a nice bike ride. The man has ridiculous amounts of energy!

Weathering

Gray skies, wet ground, droopy trees,
all bearing witness to the rain that fell here last night.
The sense is sad, melancholy, even heavy
as if not just rain fell from the sky.
Dreams perhaps.
Shattered upon landing.
Broken into a million tiny shards,
too tiny, too fractured to ever be repaired.
Will I walk the dogs today?
Likely not.
This is the kind of day
that finds me wanting to curl up by a fireplace
with a good book or a catalog
to dream new dreams.
To buy this, make that, go there.
Restorative dreams.
I need days like this this,
days when I can shift gears,
move into a new vision of my life,
find a way to fit the me that is
into the possibility of a me that could be
somehow greater.
Smarter, maybe. Or kinder.
Not some silly pop-psychology new me
but the old me improved.
Finding a rough corner that could be
gently sanded
so as not to cut so deeply
into the hearts of others.
Or perhaps a mental limp
repaired
with new mental muscle
built around it
that I might not lean so
in one direction or another.
Stability.
Not huge, dramatic changes.
No LOSE 20 POUNDS IN TWO WEEKS
claim.
Not LEARN HOW TO SELL ANYTHING
TO ANYONE IN SIX EASY LESSONS.
No, not those.
Quieter changes, more subtle.
Perhaps none but me will notice.
But after many of these
gray-toned days,
decades of them now,
the me that is emerging is somehow
both stronger and softer.
And if I could show you
the girl of twenty-five,
brash and brittle,
heedless and often thoughtless,
then you'd see.
She did change you'd say.
A BRAND NEW PERSON IN
FOUR EASY - DECADES.
Not lessons or weeks of course.
These are not the changes that come
with either speed or ease.
Like last night's rain
gently wearing away rock
in such slow and tiny increments
that none will notice
the change taking place before them.
Inevitable, these changes;
and so much gentler when one
has learned to let them be.
It's a gray day, heavy even.

Can it REALLY be???

Almost the end of November? Really?

I'm finally recuperating a bit after the workshop last weekend. Doing two sessions in one day really took the starch out of me, but it was a very good financial result for the Arts Alliance.

My own two wreaths that I made for samples are being put to use. The one with succulents is attached to one of the very old wooden wheels by our entry door. It has to come down for watering, but I like it in this location.




The other, made with spider plant and coleus and planted front and back, was meant to hang in a window like this:

I'm finding though that I don't like how much dirt and moss falls to the window sill. The only reasonable window in our house is in the back hallway which is a travel zone - just to the right of the back door and the hangers for jackets, etc., and just to the left of the dog door - so it gets bumped and jostled. Consequently I'm thinking maybe I'll let the back die off and use it as a table center piece for Christmas. It will be fuller and fluffier by then. Hmmmm.




Letting sleeping dogs lie. . . well, this is part of my morning routine. Whichever dog gets to my studio first curls up next to me. This time it was Buck. So, Cocoa got the pillows at the other end.


Outside both dogs have places they like to station themselves for guarding. For some reason Buck has adopted a new spot on the bank near the propane tank. That's a very recent development, following a couple of incidents of a bear in the garbage and much smelling by both dogs in this vicinity. Guess it now needs guarding.


My big job for the day? I'm going to finally go through all the stuff I accumulated while getting ideas for this house. I have notebooks full. Really. Finally I've come to understand that if we ever move and build again I'll want to start over anyway. So, out it goes.

I'm one of those people. You know the ones. Can't seem to live without a project, preferably several, going on at all times. Mine lately have all been about landscaping. Time though to start on the project for this year's Sofa Art show. This time it's Sofa Art goes Vegas. Should be fun.

Beneath the Oaks & Beside the River

Saturday was a fantastically fun day and a very, very tiring day.

I led a workshop on behalf of the Arts Alliance to demo making living wreaths. We were fortunate enough to get permission from the local coffee shop, The Buckeroo, to hold it in the outdoor area next to the river, and Nature cooperated by giving us a sunny and unseasonably warm day with temps rising into the 70's by mid-afternoon.
One major glitch - with an entire pickup truck load of materials the wreath forms were missing. Did I forget to pick them up? Did I lose them while cleaning out the storage shed? Don't know. But at the last minute, I had to make a run to the hardware store for wire cutters and chicken wire and workshop participants also learned how to make their own form. Surprisingly, no one complained and all had fun.

This group lives down in the valley and drove up to the foothills for the workshop. All are either related or work together. The little girls on Mom's lap, McKenna, is only 4 and became my "helper" for the day earning a whole $2 at the end of her efforts. You can get an idea of the wonderful setting beneath big oaks and right at the river's edge.


These two, who decided to make things other than wreaths including little pots of plants and mud balls of plants. I'm asked to bring the workshop to the February birthday party of one of them. She and her mother have asked for a "green" theme and decided on the spot that this would be a fun thing to do. Cool.


At one point, wrapping fishing line to secure the wreath, four hands are better than two. I loved how all the adults, even those with manicures, dug in and had fun playing in the dirt!


And, I wasn't going to include this picture 'cuz I hate the expression on my face - somewhere between words and giggle - but since I rarely have photos of myself on here, I decided to include it. The Buckeroo has a little stage where they occasionally have outdoor music. It made the perfect spot for demo with everyone able to see and hear.


All the photos are from the morning session. By the time the afternoon session was over yours truly was completely exhausted. I still had to clean up and load everything back into the truck. But, the truck DID NOT get unloaded until the next morning.

Newly added to my wish list: A small barn on our lot where I can do this once a month as a business - called Second Saturdays - and also work on making garden stuff, recycled art, whatever. If you know anyone giving away barns, let me know.

Ancestry

My granddaughter is doing a school paper on her family tree and called for a bit of info. Set me to thinking. Obama is a self-described "mutt", and I'd guess I'm similar - but different, as are all mutts. We don't have those long, serious pedigrees or numbers after our names. No two of us are ever the same. I like that.

Given that my biological father was killed in an accident a few months before I was born, I have very, very little info about that side of my family. Thanks to my older brother I was able to give the granddaughter the names of his parents (funny, I don't think grandparents), but it ended there. That group of people, while related by blood, was never my family. And, the man I've always called my Dad, and will always feel that way about, was never a blood relative. So he doesn't fit into a family tree. Doesn't quite feel right.

Makes me think of gardening. I go to the nursery in the spring and buy a six pack or flat of little plants. I don't know who started them, put that seed into soil, but without that no flowers or veggies would follow. Equally important though is the gardener, or in Dad's case farmer, who tends and fertilizes and trims when needed. Without that, what would we have? Weeds perhaps or maybe overgrown plants that flower but fail to fruit.

And me? Well, if I was a plant it would be one of those that comes with a warning - maybe "can be invasive" or "difficult to establish" certainly not one of those labeled "easy to grow." So that Dad who doesn't fit on the family tree had all the hard work. I think at least there should be a side branch labeled perhaps "Family of Choice" or some other title that would convey that without this individual the sprouts might never have reached maturity or might have yielded only cracked or bitter fruit. (Yes, I know some would say "cracked" is still appropriate.)

So, though he's long gone from this world, thanks to DAD, the only one I ever knew. I know I didn't make it easy. I think it was Erma Bombeck who wrote a column about step-parents that ended with a wonderful statement something like I have a step parent; I've just forgotten which one.

Birthday Bashing

Where to start?
Well, I took the bus fromVisalia to San Diego on Monday so I could spend some time with my father-in-law and give him his shots of blood thinner for a few days. He's doing great! Then Scottie drove down Friday so we could celebrate his 70th birthday. A photo montage:

Dougie, my uncle-in-law and Hughie's baby brother. I think he's about 92 or so. Not sure. He's had some health issues but still loves a party!


Cousin Bruce, Dougie's youngest son. Bruce drives a race car for fun when he's not doing some sort of stupefyingly brilliant stuff for work, and he took me for a ride - in the dark - in the city - FAST. I managed to return with dry pants, but barely.


Bobby, the son-out-law and Foxy, the grand-pup. Both kinda cute!


The birthday boy - in no way does he look SEVENTY! Oh, and that would be me with him.


Grandpa Hughie, all 97 years and going strong and Jimmy B, Scottie's oldest and dearest friend. Two of my favorite men!


And the boys. . . I wonder how many photos of these two together have been taken over all the decades since the met as third or fourth graders. Want to start an argument? Ask who ate the last hot dog on the eons ago camping trip. Each still blames the other.


Sara, youngest daughter and fourth-generation San Diegan, presents the icecream cake. It's a tradition.

Yep, I think he had fun!

When it ALL hits the Fan

Let's see, it will be a week tomorrow that Scottie got home from two weeks in San Diego. The schedule was that we'd return to SD next Friday to celebrate his birthday with family and friends. He's waiting for news on his Park job. He's supposed to do a small handy-guy job for our old landlady. And, he's hard at work on the roof/shingling of my garden storage shed to have that done before we leave since we should be heading into rainy season.


I have to give this man of mine credit: he's got the roofing thing down! OK, he's not fast; but it looks good.


But, yesterday, the kitchen faucet sprung a leak. We've got stuff pulled out from under the sink and all over the kitchen and water to the faucet turned off. Luckily, I guess, I'd kept everything from the house building, even the installation instructions from everything. So, Scottie goes through the faucet install stuff and figures out that this type of faucet, when it leaks, all you do is remove part A and tighten ring X. Simple, huh? Wrong-O! After removing part A, he discovered that ring X ain't there. Either the faucet shipped w/o it, or the plumber who did the install lost it. So. . . .




Mr. Amateur Plumber pulled his head out from under the sink and picked up a different tool - the phone - to call a professional. We're waiting on him.


And I'm in dire need of The Dog Whisperer to deal with a major jealousy issue. After Scottie gets up and feeds dogs, then hits the internet, the dogs come back up for an after breakfast nap with me - I'm still sleeping. First Cocoa appears and asks permission to come up on the bed. Fine. Then Buck comes up and Cocoa starts growling and barking at him, not wanting to share. This time I simply got crowded out since, after several minutes of her behaving like a major Bitch (and not as in "female dog") he wouldn't lie down by her. That pillow his head is on - MINE. That nice quilt covering him - MINE. And me? I'm downstairs making a latte.



I head out Monday by BUS for San Diego to spend a few days with my favorite father-in-law (FIL for short) who has blood clots and needs coumadin shots for a while. Scottie will finish up stuff here, board the dogs and drive down Friday. Meanwhile Lucy Cat is stuffy and sneezing. She has a history of colds, and I'm hoping that Scottie doesn't have to add taking her to the vet to his list.

Then, after what cannot remotely be called a restful time since he's been home, he will have a 5+ hour drive, we'll do a scaled-back birthday celebration for him (SEVENTY), and we'll drive back Sunday. Whoever said retirement is easy is full of - - well, the smelly stuff.

Cackle, Cackle, Cackle - - It's Wanda Witch

The Arts Alliance is doing a fun/fund raiser this weekend with an adult pumpkin carving contest. There will be an out-of-town artist as the judge, and many of us will donate our pumpkins for sale with the money raised to go to the Arts Alliance.

I decided a black pumpkin would be more interesting than the usual orange, and BBQ paint did the trick. Carving Wanda was a challenge, especially her hooked nose, but it got done. Curiously the hardest part was creating the broom and getting it to stick to the pumpkin. It's glued on, and gluing a straight broom onto a curved pumpkin was a challenge.

So, Miss Wanda will make her debut on Saturday. Should be fun.

Just Another Day in the Foothills

We had several days and nights of cooler than normal weather though it's warmed up again now. That cool weather got me in a fall frame of mine which led to planting pansies. Just for friend Y, no not X, those are being put online. I think they'll look better after the portulaca is finished going dormant for the season, but I like their little faces even now. There are lots down both sides of the front walkway, over by the side, around the bases of a couple of shrubs, but I thought one photo was enough.



The cool season ground cover on the north-ish side of the house has come back and the petunias and pinks have perked up - Perky Petunias and Pinks?? That's almost too cute!



I've spent the last couple of days mixin' up all the home-made potions for my plants; the stuff to repel deer and other critters, the mixture to "clean up" plants, i.e., wash off pollution, etc., and the special potion that is supposed to send gopher's packing. After mixin' it all, it had to be applied, some by dribbling, some by spraying, and all exhausting. Then I put together the home-made bird food to replace store bought suet type feed. Both dogs came hurrying in for the smell of melting lard and peanut butter that forms the base of this mix. I didn't give in and give them any especially since Buck threw up at 5:30 this AM. Enough.

We still have lots and lots of goldfinches gathered both at feeders and the fountain. They don't seem to notice my new pansies or any of the other work I've been doing.



And, a friend told me that having red flowers outside the front door is a feng shui means of bringing in abundance, both financial and otherwise, to one's life. Home Depot's sale on one of my favorites, cyclamen, gave me the chance to do that affordably. So, thinking abundance, vibing for prosperity. . . .




Oh, I can't resist, one more pansy face:

Irritating Infection; Silly Sleepover; and Damaged Dignity

Irritating Infection: Last week The Man was bitten on the hand by one of our cats. (Repeat after me: Do NOT tease the kitties.) Did he care for it? Did he tell me so I could care for it? Do you see where this is going? By the time I knew of it the next day it was infected. By the time he agreed to go to the doctor it was badly infected. Long story short is we ended up with a trip that evening to the ER 45 minutes away. High fever, low blood pressure, and red lines up to the elbow. Not good. He got some sort of major shot in the fanny and was well enough the next morning to make the drive to San Diego for my father-in-law's 97th birthday celebration. Question is, did he learn anything? He's finished out 10 days worth of strong antibiotics and is still in San Diego working on some repairs at FIL's house. We'll see how he does with kitties when he gets home.

Silly Sleepover: Friend Judy from across the way was gone over night and I got to bring her guys here for a sleepover. First I took my two to her house for a play date so the four could have a bit of off-leash time together. That went really well. That evening, I fed her guys and brought them across the road to our place. Beau is an absolutely ancient Golden Retriever. He's got to weigh at least 120, and he's very arthritic. Yet, he made it down her steps, down both of our steep driveways and into my house with surprising ease. Leo, the little guy, is a Shepherd mix, and a bit hyper as well as truly sweet. When I sat on the deck at Judy's for their play date, he really thought he should be my lap dog. That earned him a scolding from both Beau and my own Cocoa-Dog. Since Beau is way too stiff to make it to my second story bedroom, these two spent the night in the "prison" - ok "room" sounds better - where I can shut my dogs when they need to be contained. They had a blanket on the floor, and settled down easily.
Morning was a bit nuts with getting my own into electric collars and out the door before getting leashes on Beau and Leo to walk home. I was amazed at how well the old gentleman managed going up both driveways. He did hesitate a bit at the steps up to Judy's deck, but tackled it and went up easily. I'd do this again without complaint!



Damaged Dignity: That would be mine. I decided yesterday that the cool weather and all the work I've been doing entitled me to some hammock time. It hasn't been used for months. And, lesson learned, I should have taken it down for the hot summer months. When I sat in preparation for flopping up and in - it broke. I was dropped on a rock, a rock with a rather sharp ridge, right on the tail bone that I've broken twice before in my life. Major, major, major pain. Now here's the kicker: I'm fine today! Go figure. I put a heating pad on the area - try that sometime - and took Tylenol PM. Slept like a baby until all the dogs got me up. I had really thought I'd be very stiff and sore this AM, but I rolled out of bed in great shape.
I hesitate to say this, but I think it may actually have broken loose some of the old cartilage that has always stiffened the tail bone since a long ago break. Wouldn't that be funny? Third time's the charm and I'm back to all better???

For the Birds!

It's the migration season, and we have birds, birds, birds!

Since I'm the one home alone much of the time with Scottie working up in the Park the little darlin's have become accustomed to me and unless I'm moving abruptly will let me quite close to them.

This is a white crowned sparrow that ducked his/her little head just as I clicked causing me to miss the white crown! He had been picking up spilled niger from beneath the finch sock before hopping down the hill to hid in the tall grass.



And, I've wanted all season to get a hummingbird in flight. This photo isn't very good 'cuz my camera isn't really good enough for this kind of shot. Still, I did capture one in flight.



The acorn woodpeckers come to the little hanging bird bath for a drink. Because they are much larger than this was designed for they often cause most of the water to spill out over the edge as they hang onto the side using their tail for balance.


And, the finches? What can I say? So long as we continue to put out niger they continue to eat it. And eat, and eat, and eat. I can fill this little sock more than once a day if I'm willing to spend that much and they'll go through it all. The sock is less than a foot long, and the maximum I've counted on it at one time is eight. When the sock is out of room, the complaining and jockeying for position starts anew.



The routine is eat your fill, fly to the fountain for a quick drink, and return to fight for position on the sock.



That's how I spend my hours in the Sierra Nevada foothills. Not a bad way to live is it?

Of Foothills and Fires

We have had horrible drought conditions here for several years leaving the foothills and mountains dry as tinder. Late summer lightning strikes then start fires.

This is not the fire I posted about last week. This one is actually in Sequoia National Park, and is one of 7 or so that are currently burning. The "Hidden" fire, named for it's location, is over 6000 acres now.


We are getting terrible air quality as a result, especially in the mornings. Overnight winds blow down canyon carrying the smoke to our elevation and below. I awaken each morning with eyes full of yukky stuff with headache and difficulty breathing - all this despite running the air conditioning solely to have its filtration abilities.





This view normally has Moro Rock -
now it's impossible to tell one is
looking toward the Sierra at all.










So, I'm heading down into the Valley today for a haircut and some shopping. Normally a trip down below would mean worse air than here in Three Rivers, but right now it is better there than here.



On to better things - CRITTERS! Yeah, I know, I can never finish an entry without putting in something about critters.


This black dog shows up most
mornings for some romping with
Cocoa and Buck. I can't get close
without him taking off.















In addition to our constant visitors the
hummingbirds, we have lots of goldfinches
going through niger like crazy!

This little beauty is much, much paler than
all the other females, males of course being
the dressed up dandies. My Sibleys shows
a pale morph but not nearly so pale as this
one. I don't know if that means she is
immature or just unusual.
At any rate, I like her very pale look.
That's a seed in her beak, making the beak
look larger than it is.

I wonder if the birds are bothered by the
smoke as I am? When we had the fire close by,
the pair of red shouldered hawks that nest
below us were going beserk, crying, circling,
and generally raising a ruckus.

Fire close by

About a mile as the crow flies a structure fire spread to surrounding weeds, etc., all of which around here are tinder dry.

Everything from bulldozers to helicopters were called in to help with the fight.

The helicopters seemed to use our house as a marker for a sweeping turn that had them banking down into the steep canyon that is home to the main fork of the Kaweah River.




I had a great seat to see the 'copters up close.


Helicopter after helicopter droned overhead, dipped to fill it's bucket and then flew close over the top of the fire to drop it's life-saving load.

For much of the time I could not see the activity just above the fire for the smoke roiling up.






Finally, after the fire was knocked down quite a bit the smoke had cleared enough that I could get a shot of the actual water dump.



I understand that one of the fire's up in the Park has grown to a point that evacuating Lodgepole Campground is a possibility.



This fire was close enough that I packed up critter food, a few clothes, water, and finally remembered medications just in case we needed to make a quick exit. I'm thinkin' that it would be a good idea to put together an emergency box with those items, important papers, etc., just in case. Wonder why I never thought of that before??

Leaving it in the hands of The Powers that Be

The Powers that Be, that's my name for whatever you might choose to call a higher power, be that God, Allah, Yeweh, or whatever. Anyway, I'd pretty much convinced myself that staying here was the best thing for us to do. My breathing has been better, though not good, since the major fires got subdued, and I really do enjoy Three Rivers, the people we've come to know and our home. Then, the house was shown to a couple that seem like a serious prospect (though that's always meaningless until everyone has signed on the line) and my breathing has taken a downturn at the same time. This time there are no fires nearby, just heat and resulting bad air. More 100 degree plus days and more bad air.

So, I'm just saying "I have no idea what's best." We'll see what comes and just have confidence that whatever that is will be the very best.

Meanwhile, back in the studio, Scottie came upstairs to chat. That meant Cocoa came to get petted. Seeing that action, Ellie decided to join in. Fortunately Buck was outside and Lucy napping on the bed in the master or Scottie would have run out of hands and room.

When Scottie got tired of petting with both hands, Cocoa took the hint and elected to nap. Ellie decided to pester Cocoa for attention. When Ellie first came to us as a very young feral cat, she didn't purr and really didn't get the concept of petting. Now she's insatiable. Cocoa decided that Ellie was her kitty at the very beginning, possibly some innate mother thing since Ellie was very, very young to be on her own. They've remained really good buddies even as Ellie has learned to be a family cat.

Ellie has learned on her own to give kisses, too. She's turned into quite the house cat and shows no desire to live in the wild again. Earning a living out there must have been difficult.

I guess that whether we stay here or move on, home is where the critters are.

All the news that's fit to Blog

One day last week I had just the best day in terms of animal sightings! I was out watering early and a cute little racer snake slithered out from under a salvia when the water hit him/her, about 18-24 inches long and no bigger around than a pencil, with a pretty yellow stripe running down the side.

Then, while watering on the opposite side of the house that same morning, I heard the quail start a ruckus in the gully and looked up to see a bobcat frozen in place stalking them. The cat stood perfectly still for maybe 30 seconds, watching me watching it, then bounded on up the gully leaving the quail alone.

Then, as if that weren't enough, the red shouldered hawk that often circles above and tries to pick off the birds that come to our feeders landed in the oak tree outside our kitchen door. This time all the birds squawked!

Just a day or two later, I found these tracks on the back of our berm where there is often mud:


Those by Scottie's hand are the bobcat. The one above and to the front may be a coyote, not sure. . . . How cool is this? (Thanks, Dr. Hannan for the help on ID!)



And, very, very good reason for my cats to be just indoor girls. Both Mr. Coyote and Ms. Bobcat would love them for dinner!

We have just a ton of birds right now. Migration is obviously starting for some. The rufous hummingbird, one of my absolute favorites, doesn't spend the summer here; and just a very few of them come through here on migration. I got to know them when we lived in New Mexico and really get a kick out of them. They are really pretty with their rust coloration, and they are much more aggressive than the Ana's hummingbirds. They chatter a lot and drive the Ana's away from the feeders. In NM we'd have 20 rufous guys gathered 'round a feeder and full blown hummer wars.

We seem to have more birds that travel through here, but there are a few that I loved in NM that we don't get. The Stellar Jay can be seen higher up in the mountains, but not at this warm elevation. We don't get the pyrrhuloxia (Yes, I had to look up the spelling.) at all, and I really like that grayed-down relative of the cardinal. And, I haven't seen any green tailed towhees here. Darn.

Guess that's just me, always wanting "more" be that animals and birds or something else!

Scottie's is off to the Park for the week. Having sent off his letter to three in the upwards chain of command, he should be in for an interesting time! Leave it to my Sweet Babboo to take on the National Park Service.

Animal House

There are critters that crawl around on the house - like this little lizard.



















There are critters that live in this house.

Ellie Cat is one. She's learned to purr finally.










Lucy Cat rules. She's the oldest of our critters and has no doubt that she is fully in charge.












The dogs got flea meds and hated it. Buck chooses to role in the dirt to disperse his as much as he can.











Cocoa pouted for a while and then retired to the grass and her half of the big bone.








Some critters are wild!

Many of these were taken from a distance and blown up, so they aren't the most clear.


Papa Quail was leading the group for their evening visit to the seeds on the ground beneath our feeders.













The acorn woodpecker is on the oak at the moment, but on his way to the feeder. I've never observed woodpeckers to eat directly from a feeder as much as the ones here do!















Probably the worst photo is the grossbeak! This guy is very skittish, and every time I try for a photo any closer than this one he takes off. So, this is taken through a window from quite a distance and then blown up.















When the sun is hot, the little gold finches like to sit under the big leaves of a sunflower. They also eat the leaves, but they are too tiny to eat the sunflower seeds.


And doves, lots of doves, come around morning and evening to gather whatever seeds they can. They aren't my favorites, but I guess they are entitled to eat too.


And, of course, we have hummers and hummers and hummers. The electrical tape covers places the local bear ripped the little blossoms off to get at the sugar solution inside.


I have no photos of the bear, the deer, the bobcat or any of the other truly wild animals that run around here. But, I'm glad they're here!