Scattered Seed

A couple of months ago I read about a farm,  somewhat local for us,  where lambs are raised and the meat sold to the public.     George and I drove over to Nistock Farms in Prattsburgh one afternoon when I was off on vacation.    We met the very nice couple who raise the lambs,  and came home with a very nice piece of meat.

We’ve been enjoying a delicious leg,  prepared in several ways.      George made a roast,  that eventually became sandwiches.

I made a couple of pots of lamb stew,  first for dinner,  and the leftovers are tucked in the freezer for work lunches.  

Lamb is one of our favorite meats,  but through the years we’ve never really known the origin or quality of our purchase.     This was a good find,  and we look forward to going back.

So many birds have been coming to the feeders in the past couple of weeks. Or maybe I am just seeing more of them, as it is daylight for a longer period of time before I have to head off to work.

I have to be careful about picking up the camera and taking pictures on weekdays, as I get carried away and lose track of time,  and it’s not acceptable to arrive late to work.

These three mourning doves, however,  sat on a limb in the willow for the longest time, and just asked to have their picture taken.   I couldn’t turn them down.   

I love how it turned out.

Today was the day when I checked through our papers, gathered our forms, George made copies, and we packed it all up for the accountant to deal with tomorrow. Tax time! It always drives me crazy till I have our things in order and ready to go. Whew!

Thankfully, there were a multitude of birds coming and going through the day, and they gave me a diversion throughout it all.   I counted 14 species for Project Feederwatch today.

I find myself looking for any little clue that spring is near. I realize that it is still four weeks away on the calendar, but I know that I will spot a little green one day, and my spirits will be lifted from these winter blues.

George was in Watkins Glen,  between bus runs midday.    He called to see if I wanted to drive up,  so I gladly left the housework behind to meet him for a bite to eat and a drive around the countryside.

In all the times we have driven by the elk farm,  today was the first time we spotted them,  down by the water,  amongst the Canada geese.

We drove along a seasonal road that bordered the Catharine Creek Marsh.

We saw several hawks,  crows,  red-winged blackbirds,  goldfinches,  tufted titmice, juncos, and a hairy woodpecker.

The hawks are always well-camouflaged, so I never get a good ID.

The road was high on a ridge,  making us level with the tops of the trees.   This little red squirrel seemed surprised  to see us,  but put on its most adorable face.

As we left the marsh we found ourselves in Montour Falls.    With the temperature just above freezing,  it seemed a good time to check out Shequaga Falls,  named by the Indians,  meaning “tumbling waters”.

As you come down the street, it appears that the falls crashes into the house in front of it.

The perspective changes when you get up close,  and the house is actually to the right.   Much of the falls was frozen,  but the water had started to run again in the center.    It’s one of the prettiest sights around here,  and we check it out in all seasons.

So,  spring is coming,  but it’s not quite here yet.    I’ll keep looking.  It will eventually come.

In the meantime,  I have a little hyacinth blooming in my pot,  and that will have to do for now.

After several days on the road, we spent today at home.   I head back to work tomorrow, and there was laundry and housework to catch up on.

It was a grey and dismal day, so dark at noon, that it seemed more like nightfall.

The snow started mid-afternoon,

and the bare ground turned to white, again.

With a bluebird in our maple,  and robins all around, it seems it should be spring.

I grew up and attended school in a much less complicated time.    I grew up in the B.C. era (Before Calculators).

Back then we had two holidays in February.   One on February 12th to celebrate Abe Lincoln’s birthday,  and another on the 22nd to celebrate George Washington’s.    Now we have the third Monday in February to celebrate these presidents (or is it all presidents?)  or shop the President’s Day sales.    We chose to skip the stores,  and headed out for another day with nature.     I don’t get a holiday or open spaces often enough,  and the fresh air and birdsong was just what I needed,  and I think the Presidents would approve.

Despite an overnight snowfall and overcast skies,  we saw some beautiful scenery.

After many roads-less-traveled and hills climbed,  we neared the Keuka Lake area.    This farm sat on the road below us,  and I could see the stone fence ran from one end of the property to the other.

We drove down for a closer look,  and marveled at the work that must have been involved to collect the stones and lay the fence.

George,  always on the lookout for something unusual,  spotted this turkey down the road,  probably a victim of a car collision.

After about three hours of meandering,  we finally arrived at the Keuka Lake shore.

We saw these common goldeneye,  several mallards,  buffleheads and Canada geese just off shore.

After a stop in Bath for lunch, George felt like continuing on,  so we took some more backways,  along the Canisteo River and the rail line there,  on into Addison,  and finally on home.

It wasn’t a good bird-photographing day,  but we did see quite a bit.     Chickadees,  juncos,  downy woodpeckers,  robins,  blue jays, crows, cardinals,  rock pigeons,  red-tailed hawks,  eastern bluebirds,  a red-bellied woodpecker, a hairy woodpecker,  goldfinches,  and an American tree sparrow.

It was a very pleasant holiday.      Thank you George (my George),  George,  and Abe.

It was the song of the redwing blackbird that stirred me from sleep this morning. It was like awakening to springtime, and it coaxed me from my warm bed.

I did a full hour’s count for The Great Backyard Bird Count,  with my numbers much improved over yesterday. Blue jays, black-capped chickadees, mourning doves, house finches, goldfinches, juncos, house sparrows, a downy woodpecker, hairy woodpecker, many pine siskins, starlings of course, and at least five redwings.

Mid-morning we headed in the direction of Watkins Glen, taking back roads, enjoying the sunny day and scenery.

We did a little shopping in town, then back out into the country for a roundabout drive home. For awhile we traveled over roads we were unfamiliar with, and without a map, it was a mystery where we would end up.   As long as we have a sunny day and a full tank of gas,  I enjoy the adventure.    George always wishes we had a map,  but in 36 years, we’ve never failed to arrive home.

We kept our eyes out for birds along the way,  but for some reason we tend to zip along faster in the Miata on a sunny day than we do in my car on any other day.   We did spot this Eastern bluebird sitting in a tree between two small lakes,  and it made up for all the birds we didn’t see.

Both our lunch and dinner were shared with friends  -  fast food for lunch in Painted Post, where friends happened to stop in at the same time that we did,  and a buffet dinner with George’s fellow union members,  at a restaurant in Elmira.     After a long winter of near-hibernation,   it was nice to be back out and about.

It was a slow day out back, and my bird visitors were few.

There has been a return of the redwing blackbirds,  which seems early this year.

The goldfinches have become more regular than the house finches anymore.

The downy keeps working at this little bit of suet.

Till the starlings come along and take over.

And, of course,  the house sparrows.   They hang out in our brush pile,  and are the first and last visitors every day.

I also had juncos,  chickadees, mourning doves, house finches,  and a lone pine siskin.

I’ll hope for a better count tomorrow.

Someone tapped us on the shoulder recently, and selected us to be economic stimulaters for the month of February.    Just think of the good we’re going to do for the country.

Two weeks ago, I cracked a tooth.  I made an appointment with the dentist, and he began work on a crown.
The evening I came in from my dental appointment, George announced that he had broken a tooth……he made an appointment for next week.

A couple of week’s ago, the check-engine light came on in the Miata. It needs to pass inspection soon, so that went into the shop today.   It has to go back next week for more diagnostics and new parts.

And, not having quite enough funds going out on our behalf, the compressor on the refrigerator bit the dust this week. First we packed in some bags of ice, then headed out this evening to buy a new appliance.

I really think we have done our part…..it’s someone else’s turn now.

After reaching a temperature of 50 degrees yesterday, the wind was howling this morning, and the temp was in the 30’s again. I was glad that we had our outing yesterday.

George made up a couple of batches of dog biscuits, trying different combinations of ingredients.   They went in the oven after our dinner came out,  and now they are hardening.    Martha was quite interested in the whole process, and she will be the final judge!

I headed down to the basement to do the weekend laundry, and this is what I discovered.

I had forgotten that I put my pot of bulbs down there, hidden behind the box of furnace filters. When George used the last filter yesterday, he took away the box, and lo and behold, the sprouts have started.     I remember what a treat it was to watch the daffodils, tulips, and hyacinths open last year as I waited for spring.

There was a lot of paperwork to catch up on, and grocery shopping to do.   And, of course, I did my weekend count for Feederwatch.