Yard Critters

The summer has been extremely busy (and hot!), and my area of the country is in a severe drought. We are thankfully getting some rain right now, but they said we would need over 19 inches of rain in a month to get caught up with where we should be. We are under Stage 2 Mandatory Water Restrictions, and are to conserve at home and only water outside on Thursdays and Sundays. We don't have an irrigation system, so that isn't a problem for us, but I do miss being able to wash the car.

A couple of guys in the neighborhood are offering free guitar lessons, so I had my Yamaha classical guitar restrung and have been attending the classes, which are held every other Monday. I practice every day and have built up calluses on my fingertips, but I just can't seem to get the stretch in my fingers to make certain chords. I used to play a bit 40 some years ago, and I don't remember that being a problem in the past. I am getting a little frustrated with it. A friend has a smaller guitar, so I'm going to try it to see if that makes a difference. Another friend has a ukulele, and I messed around with that a bit. I am kind of interested in trying a uke if the smaller guitar doesn't pan out.

We have had a lot of creature activity in both the front and back yards recently. It is so fun to see all the birds, butterflies and lizards around. But recently we were visited by a toad, which was cool. We also had six deer grazing out back, which is highly unusual. Fortunately they were not picking on my plants, but were instead eating the scrub stuff that grows on the hillside. All this action is one of the reasons we wanted to live here, particularly with the lot we were able to get.

yard critters

Snow Birds

 

snow birds

The weekend after we had the ice storm in Charlotte we ended up with a snow storm. Honestly, we moved here from St. Louis to get away from this kind of this crummy weather! I guess these snow birds did not fly far enough south. Our part of the state got 11" of snow. At least it was a light, fluffy snow and no ice like we received the previous week.

Most of us in the community left all our snow removal equipment back in the northern states we moved from. With the lightness of the snowfall, many used their leaf blowers to just blow it away. We have a gardening shovel that we used - not ideal, but it worked.

The goodness of our community was again brought to light as many neighbors came out to clear the sidewalks and drives of those unable to accomplish the task themselves. It's one of the huge advantages of living in a 55+ community. We definitely take care of our own.

The amount of snow kept us in the neighborhood for several days as they do not plow the roads in here or the county road we have to take to get to the state highway. We planned for that, so we were fine. Now the snow is all gone, and the weather has warmed up significantly. Hopefully it will stay that way for awhile.

Mountain Island Lake sunrise

The Iceman Cometh

No, I am not referring to the all-capitalized ICE. I stay far away from making any political commentary on social media, or most places for that matter. Our area was hit with ice in the form of winter storm Bern, a system that caused much chaos and damage across a large portion of the United States over the weekend.

Forecasts for the area were grim, with predictions of up to .50" of ice for our location. When ice forms that thickly, the likelihood of trees falling and taking down power lines rises dramatically. We were so fortunate that in our neighborhood we predominantly had sleet, which tends to fall to the ground and not stick to items in its path. While we were prepared for a loss of power, that did not occur here. We are so grateful that we avoided the worst of the storm. I'll gladly take being stuck inside for a few days over having no electricity.

We had plenty of food and extra water just in case, and are lucky enough to have a gas fireplace in the house. It has a battery charger in the event of power failure, so we would at least have had that as a heat source if the power had gone off.

Making sure that the bird feeder was full before the precipitation began was good for entertainment. The birds and squirrels were very active in the yard during the storm. I never get tired of watching them, and taking pictures.

backyard critters

There is still some residual ice on the side roads and walkways, so I will stick close to home again today. In fact, I cancelled my six month dermatology appointment for this morning as the secondary road out of here is shaded and never treated. I hated to do that because it is so hard to get an appointment with my doctor, but it was not an emergency and certainly not worth the risk of an accident.

There is another storm heading this way over the weekend, and hopefully we will again be lucky and avoid the worst of it. I guess we didn't move far enough south!

Peru & Ecuador - Part 8

The next day we talked to our guide about changing lodging since we had no hot water. After looking at the options, we decided to stay in our unit since it was the only one that had two bedrooms and two bathrooms. The guide was able to show us a temporary solution to the problem. We had to open a spout on the cabin and drain out a bunch of water before the shower would heat up. That sort of defeats the "eco-lodge" impact, but at least it made the water tepid instead of frigid.

After breakfast that morning, which was December 4th, we had a busy touring day. We first drove to the Laguna Kawana Reserve in Puerto Misahuallí. This was a canoe-based experience, where we traveled through brackish water, spotting many birds above and piranhas in the water. We also got off the canoe and hiked a trail, enabling us to see various monkeys and even a sloth up in the tree!

Laguna Kawana Reserve

After leaving the reserve we went to the Centro de turismo Comunitario Shiripuno, a women-run Amazonian Kichwa cultural center which hopes to preserve their traditions. We had our faces painted, watched and participated in dances, and learned about their eco-tourism initiatives.

cultural center

A short drive then took us to the Misahualli River, which is a tributary of the Amazon River. There we boarded another canoe, which took us to Monkey Island, home of playful Machin monkeys. We first visited a reserve that is home to one of the largest ceibo trees in Ecuador. Then we had lunch in the town of Misahualli before exploring a bit. Of course we sought out the monkeys which give the island its name. They were very comfortable with people around, and were fun to watch. After that we took a canoe back to the car for the drive back to our lodge, which was about an hour away.

Monkey Island

We had another delicious dinner, again with only the three of us at the lodge, before turning in for the night. We had hot water on our side of the cabin, but our daughter's bathroom did not. Sigh...

dinner

Peru & Ecuador - Part 4

Day 2 on board the Santa Cruz II took us to Isabela Island. After breakfast we boarded the pangas to study the coastline of the island, which is a nesting place for several of the area's unique species including the flightless cormorants, Galapagos penguins, and boobies. After that we jumped into the water to snorkel. It was freezing at 67 degrees fahrenheit! I nearly climbed back on board the panga. They had provided us with partial wetsuits, but honestly it was still so cold. I'm glad I persevered though, as it was some of the best snorkeling I have ever done. The sea life was plentiful, and I saw so many sea turtles. I had not experienced that before. Unfortunately my underwater camera decided to stop working after only a couple of photos so I didn't get much there.

Isabella Island morning excursion

The panga ride back to the ship was quite chilly. Jim and I decided to hop into the hot tub on the back of the boat once we shed our wetsuits. It felt great! Then we had to shower and have lunch so we could rest up before the afternoon hike.

the ship had two hot tubs

Fernandina Island was our hiking expedition in the afternoon. This was probably my favorite spot on the whole trip. There was a high concentration of marine iguanas of all different colors. The sea lions were also abundant, and a sheltered rocky cove was a perfect nursery for the sea lion babies. They put on quite a show for us! The colorful Sally Lightfoot crabs scuttled along the rocks as well, and the American Oystercatcher traversed the rocks looking for a meal. We saw another sea turtle resting on the sand, paying no attention to those of us trying to take his picture. The beautiful sunset was a perfect ending to an exceptional day.

Fernandina Island

Welcome June

It is so hard to believe that it is the first of June! Sometimes it seems like the months drag, and others they just fly by. That seems to be the case with May. The weather has been quite nice, though we have had periods of heavy rain. That is okay, though, as we are trying to recover from drought conditions. Hopefully all this moisture will alleviate the forest fires we have been experiencing.

The birds have been very active out back. For the first time since we have lived here, we actually had two ducks under our bird feeder. That's unusual since we are about 100 feet above the lake. I guess they like good birdseed, too. 

backyard birds

This week will be quite busy with pickleball, making lanterns for the Mount Holly Lantern Parade, a followup visit with my podiatrist, and company coming for the weekend. I am hoping this will be the last appointment with the foot doctor, though I am not 100% pain-free yet. I'm optimistic that he will say things are still healing and that is why I still have some pain. Fingers crossed!

Still Waters

 Last weekend we finally had the opportunity to take our kayaks out on Mountain Island Lake. It's been quite a while since we've been able to do that. But the lake was calm, the heat wasn't too oppressive, and we didn't have anything else scheduled for the morning.

There were so many birds out! We put on our Merlin app, and it quickly picked up the sound of over a dozen different birds (including a wild turkey!) We saw a flock of geese, several herons, osprey and egrets. The water is a little high right now, so we were able to get back into some coves that are sometimes too shallow even for a kayak. It was a beautiful and restful adventure.

Mountain Island Lake

What's Up, Doc?

biopsy

Yesterday was my regular six-month checkup with the dermatologist. She froze one spot on my right cheek that has been continually peeling. Unfortunately, she also saw a spot on my right shoulder that she felt should be biopsied. That wouldn't have been too bad except it is right where my bra strap sits. I am highly sensitive to any adhesives, and I've yet to find any bandage that does not make my skin break out in an itchy rash. While the wound doesn't necessitate a bandage, the fact that I have to keep it smeared with vaseline and its location make it impossible not to keep it covered for a few days.

But I was most interested in hearing what the doctor thought about my lip situation. I showed her a photograph from when it looked its worst, and she does not think it is due to cold sores. She believes it is severe lip damage. I don't know what caused it to react so extreme as I wear a big-brimmed hat if I am going to be outside, as well as Z-Block on my lips. 

She wanted to use the liquid nitrogen on my lip, which she said would hurt and look bad for about a week. As we have company coming today, I did not have her do it. She said just schedule it when it's convenient for me. When would that be? When is it convenient to have your lip look awful for a week, and have issues eating and drinking??? In the meantime she called in a prescription for an ointment that should at least make the lip feel better until I can get that done.

Our community brought in a gal from the Carolina Raptor Center yesterday afternoon to talk about their organization as well as raptors we might see in our area. She was great and very enthusiastic about her job. What I wasn't expecting is that she would bring three birds with her. She also had talons, a small skull and bird wings to show us. It was a wonderful presentation, and well worth missing our normal Wednesday pickleball session.

Carolina Raptor Center

For the Birds

We have had some fun bird activity in the back yard recently. It surprised the heck our of me when this sharp-shinned hawk landed on my bird bath for a drink. Then he hung out there for awhile checking things out. He came back the next day as well.

sharp-shinned hawk

While typically the goldfinches congregate at my finch feeder, they have found now found our coneflowers. Both the females and the males love to have a snack with those. Hopefully they won't beat the snot out of the flowers as they have done in the past.

goldfinches

Different Baby News

baby bird on the way

The other day I went to water the hanging begonia in the backyard, and something flew out and hit my shoulder. I'm sure the neighbors heard my startled shout! When I peered in the plant, I saw the brown speckled egg inside. I haven't been able to determine whether there are any additional eggs in there or not as I don't want to disturb the nest. 

I've yet to get a close look at the momma bird. Looking at bird egg photos online, it looks like it could be a wren. But many birds lay eggs with brown spots. Hopefully I'll get a better look at the bird. Now when I water the plant I go to the opposite side of the pot and slowly water. She's flown out one other time, but at least I'm not in the line of fire when I do that.

In other bird news, this morning I was watering my planters out front and heard some blackbirds calling out. One flew to the top of the small street tree across from us. Just like that a mockingbird let out a cry and took on the blackbird. Apparently protecting a nest, she was quickly joined by her partner, and together they chased those blackbirds right out of their area. It was something to see!

Speaking of mornings, this was yesterday's sunrise. We are so blessed to live here.

sunrise over Mountain Island Lake

March Madness

Jacksonville

No, my title does not refer to college basketball, though it was fun while the ISU Cyclones lasted in the tournaments. Instead, I am talking about our decision to drive to Florida for vacation during Spring Break Madness. Some friends of ours purchased a condo on the west side of Florida, and invited us to come and visit them. 

We thought if we were going to make the trip, why not drive and see some sights along the way? While our stops were not necessarily ones that spring breakers would frequent, we did not take into account the traffic getting there. Or coming home, for that matter, as the snow birds were heading back to their northern homes. Wow! There were many stretches that were stop and go, making a long drive even that much longer. Live and learn - we won't do that again.

On the way down we stayed in Jacksonville for a few days, which enabled us to visit local forts, preserves and plantations. One of the highlights was a store called Jax Pickleball, which sold everything you need for this sport. I picked up some new pickleball shoes (which are hard to find and harder yet to be able to try on), and Jim got a new paddle. We also drove down to St. Augustine, which was packed! I think we got the last parking spot in a 3 mile radius, so we left the car for the day and walked everywhere instead. I certainly did not think that town would be a spring break destination, but boy was I wrong.

Vero Beach

From Jacksonville we traveled to Vero Beach where some friends of ours have a boat that they winter on. It was fun to be able to see it, and them. While it was too choppy to take it out, we enjoyed sitting outside on the boat enjoying drinks and snacks with them. The next morning we drove to Jupiter, where our beloved St. Louis Cardinals have their spring training games. How great it was to take in a Cardinals game for the first time since we moved away from St. Louis!

St. Louis Cardinals game

After that we crossed the state to go to the Punta Gorda area of Florida. We spent four nights with our friends at their condo, and we can certainly see why they jumped on the opportunity to purchase a condo there. The birding in their community is great, and all the flowering trees, shrubs and flowers really made me miss our gardens back in St. Louis. The Charlotte area is sadly lacking in blooms, especially our community as it is only a couple years old.

Punta Gorda area

The last part of our journey was spent in St. Simon, Georgia. I picked this location because it was about halfway home, and also we had never been to this part of Georgia. It did not disappoint. There was a lot to explore in the area, and we enjoyed our time there. 

St. Simon area

Overall, we had a wonderful trip. We just won't make the mistake of taking another one down south in March. Otherwise I might have to switch vehicles with this woman.

Lake Living

Mountain Island Lake

Mountain Island Lake continues to amaze me. We are so happy with our decision to live on this beautiful North Carolina lake. The skies are fantastic, and we enjoy getting out on the water. But the best part is waking up each morning to see what the sunrise looks like. And then during the day, keeping a watch out for the backyard birds. They are a source of endless entertainment for me!

our backyard

On Squirrels and Birds

Despite purchasing an 18" hook as recommended by the seller of the new bird feeder I purchased, the squirrels out back have mastered the fine art of dining from the feeder without tripping the anti-squirrel mechanism it contains. This one went through all kinds of gymnastics to reach in and grab a handful of food. She is about to be outsmarted though, as I have purchased a shepherd's hook which will be placed away from any trees.

wily squirrel

The amazing array of birds out back continues to amaze and entertain us each day. It is exciting to see so many birds that I haven't been exposed to before. I am getting a lot of practice with my camera, and enjoying birding as a way to pass the time during the pandemic.

Eastern Phoebe, cardinal and bluebird

For the Birds

Last spring I got my first bird feeder (with the exception of feeding the hummingbirds over the years). I purchased one specifically designed for finches as we have many goldfinches in the backyard. It has functioned very well, attracting other small birds too. Bird watching has become a favorite thing to do during Covid-19 and the safer at home mandates.

My next door neighbor has multiple feeders in her yard, and while I enjoy watching them, they are too far away for me to be able to capture good bird photos. So this week I ordered a new feeder that was advertised as being able to attract a large variety of birds. I put it on an existing hook that I had used for my second hummingbird feeder last year. But that hummingbird feeder attracted too many ants, despite my best efforts to dissuade them, so I threw it away the middle of last summer. The hook has remained empty since.

Though the information that came with my new feeder warned that it could take awhile for the birds to find and trust a new feeder, that did not prove to be the case. The afternoon that I hung it, birds were already munching away. I am thrilled with all the different birds it has brought to the yard. Now I can stand in my warm kitchen and photograph the birds through the windows. I'm particularly excited to see the cardinals up close as I always think of my father-in-law when I see them. He loved them!

I need to purchase a new hook, however, as a wily squirrel has already figured out how to hang on the side of the tree and reach out to grab the feeder. While it is billed as a squirrel-proof feeder, they do recommend you have 18" of clearance from all trees. I don't want him chewing on my new feeder, so I'll order up a longer bracket. I may be tempted to get a third feeder as well. My yard is definitely for the birds!

birds out back

North Carolina Reopening - Phase 2

St. Louis Cardinals masks

Governor Cooper decided to go ahead with the reopening of North Carolina. Effective as of 5:00 p.m. today, the state moves from Stay at Home to Safer at Home, easing certain restrictions to help revive the economy while still protecting public health. The new order lifts the statewide Stay at Home Order and moves to the recommendation that you stay at home if you are sick, age 65 or older, or suffer from high risk underlying conditions such as chronic lung disease, asthma, heart conditions, diabetes, etc. It is further recommended that you wear a mask in public, practice social distancing by staying 6' away from other people when out and about, and wash your hands or use hand sanitizer.

Restaurants can now offer inside dining but with the number of patrons restricted and at least 6' between diners; child care centers can now serve all children and not just those of essential workers; tattoo shops, massage parlors and hair salons can reopen with a 50% reduction in capacity, requirement that masks be worn by the employees, maintaining 6' between all customers, and new specifications on sanitizing practices; swimming pools both indoors and outdoors can open at 50% capacity; and there is a limit of 10 people for indoor social gatherings and 25 people for outdoor get-togethers. Restrictions on other activities and venues that were covered under Phase 1 remain in place.

new signage at our pickleball courts

So what does this change in my life? Not a lot, quite frankly. I may end up getting a haircut if I feel my salon is safe, but it will be a long time before I will eat inside a restaurant. We  have not even done carry out food for the past 57 days. I don't want to gather inside with 9 other people, and certainly will not be with 24 others even if it is outside. There is just too much that is still unknown about this virus.

I will feel comfortable playing outdoor pickleball in my own community as we have 0 cases of the virus here. But I don't intend to play indoors anytime soon. I'll still avoid going inside of any store unless it is to buy food. And I'll continue to wear my mask when I do so even though there is now public shaming going on towards those who wear one, as well as shaming those who do not wear a mask. People in this country have gotten to be so disrespectful. It is shameful. Obviously everyone needs to make their own choice about what they are comfortable doing during these uncertain times. But the judging needs to stop, unless someone is blatantly breaking the law or purposefully putting someone else in danger.

In the meantime, I will continue to try to de-stress by enjoying the beauty and antics of the colorful creatures in the backyard.

wildlife of Mountain Island Lake

Stay at Home Day 53

our backyard

Today begins the 53rd day since our county issued the Stay at Home order. While others in the country, and world for that matter, have had to shelter in place for longer than that, there is no arguing that we have gone a long time without being able to visit family, attend gatherings, play pickleball with our friends, participate in any of the group activities we had become accustomed to in our new community, eat at restaurants, travel, visit local cultural institutions, etc.

To date, there have been 4.76 million confirmed cases worldwide, with 326,000 deaths. In the US there are 1.53 million confirmed cases, with over 90,000 deaths. North Carolina has 18,512 confirmed cases to date, with 659 deaths. Gaston County has one of the lowest virus cases in our area, fortunately. As far as we know, no one in our community has gotten the virus. Having said that, we know that it is out there and we need to remain vigilant.

While Phase 2 may go into play this Friday, lifting some restrictions for restaurants and hair salons, I will need to decide what I want to do about a haircut. I found a stylist in Mount Holly who I really like, and have been to her several times. However, she has chosen to spend her time off this week in a beach community, posting photos on Facebook. She admitted that her location is very crowded. This is the type of situation that puts people at risk, and I would have expected her to spend the two weeks before going back to work in a more controlled environment. There is no way that I can wear a mask when she washes and cuts my hair, and I doubt that she will wear one either in light of her disregard of the stay at home order. I will need to think long and hard about whether I want to be that close to her upon her return. My hair is in desperate need of a cut as I last saw her on March 3rd. All the stylists will be swamped when they can finally reopen, so odds of getting in to see someone new are slim. And I have no idea what any of them have been doing in their time off either. This is our new world, and everyone has to determine what their risk tolerance is going to be.

Yesterday morning Jim and I took our kayaks out on the lake early in the morning. Weekends on the water are a zoo with all the boats and jet skis, so we wanted to go out on calm waters without having to worry about being hit. Or knocked ashore by the waves. It was beautiful and peaceful, and certainly a wonderful way to forget all the pandemic madness for a little bit anyway.

Mountain Island Lake

The other thing that brings me joy is watching the birds in the backyard. The goldfinches have finally discovered my finch feeder with its special finch food. Another bird this morning made good use of the bird bath, and I saw my first hummingbirds out back over the weekend. I picked up a lantana basket at the farmer's market on Saturday, and it drew them right in. My hummingbird feeder certainly hadn't been doing the trick.

for the birds

We shall see what this Friday brings in terms of removing some of the stay at home restrictions. But thinking about the birds reminded me of the John Lennon song "Free as a Bird." Somehow the lyrics seem very appropriate today.

Whatever happened to
the life that we once knew?
Can we really live without each other?
Where did we lose the touch
That seemed to mean so much?
It always made me feel so
free as a bird.

The New Normal

Our calendar used to be chock full of activities for our community as well as various pickleball outings. Now we daily use White Out to remove said activities one by one. We are keeping busy with walks through the community and chatting at a safe distance with other neighbors. Last night eight of us gathered in the yards behind our house and the one next door. Keeping a safe 6' apart, we placed chairs in a circle. Sipping our own beverages, we spent a few hours catching up and discussing anything but COVID-19. It was so nice on a beautiful evening to feel somewhat normal again. I know how fortunate we are to be in a situation where we can get out and enjoy nature, as well as communication with others. I feel for those who are confined to a small apartment in an urban area as the sense of isolation must be huge.

I gave Jim a new camera for his birthday earlier this month, and it is the newer version of the one I own. We have spent quite a bit of time practicing shots together and apart. As one who has never been that comfortable taking my camera off of automatic exposure (don't judge-it takes great pictures), I am finding it extremely helpful to learn what else my camera can do by watching Jim work through his new one.

The community Lifestyle Director is currently running a Photography Scavenger Hunt. She sent out prompts for things to photograph, and we are to compile our photos into a collage and submit them to her. As the first prize is a $100 gift certificate to a local restaurant, I decided to submit. Though God only knows when I would be able to use the certificate should I win. There are 45 items on the list. The deadline is tomorrow, so once I hear who wins I will post my submission here. In the meantime, here are a few of the birds who have been visiting our yard.

bluebird, turkey vulture, and red-headed woodpecker

Summer Hummer

hummingbird

In the spring I put out the hummingbird feeder that I purchased last year, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the tiny birds. Weeks went by without a sighting. Friends of mine had been commenting on Facebook that they had yet to see anything at their feeders either, despite following the instructions on how often to change the sugar water solution. I wondered what was going on weather-wise that the birds were not making their way to St. Louis. Finally on July 17th I saw my first one. Now there are several who come to feed, including a much smaller juvenile.

Last Sunday I went to the Missouri Botanical Garden with someone from my Women in Focus group. It was a beautiful morning in St. Louis with a cooler temperature and low humidity. There was a nice breeze as well, which isn't necessarily a photographer's friend. We had a good time while she worked with me on going 100% manual with my camera settings to try and capture a water droplet. I can't say I was totally successful, but I learned some things about my camera so that was worthwhile. All the water lilies were in bloom, and I am a huge fan of those. We wanted to play around with our lens balls a bit, and that certainly resulted in a lot of strangers coming up to us to see what we were doing!

Missouri Botanical Garden

After grabbing lunch we drove over to Horseshoe Lake in Madison County, Illinois. I had never been there before, though I had seen a lot of photos on Facebook that were taken there. It is a nice lake, and many people were there fishing, having picnics or just taking walks along the lake. We even saw a woman walking her dog with a bow and arrow on her back! When we stopped to talk to her, she explains that she fishes with a bow and arrow. The arrow is attached to fishing line, and she reels it back in after each use. I never knew such a thing existed.

Horseshoe Lake

Friday there will be a camera crew at my house filming a show. Morbid Curiosity is a "made for TV series of short Horror/Drama stories" which air locally through Charter Communications. For this particular story they were looking for a Victorian home, and ours fit the bill. The first part of the show  is set in the 1920s, and that is the portion that will be filmed Friday. The second part is present day, and will be filmed in our back yard at a later date. There will be murders, ghosts and mass casualties! It will be very interesting to see the making of a show. And to watch my neighbors' expressions when a "For Sale" sign goes up in my front yard, albeit on a temporary basis. Hopefully all the ghosts will leave when the filming crew does. Stay tuned...

Bird is the Word

Audubon Center at Riverlands

Last weekend I picked up one of my friends at 6:20 in the morning, and we drove to the Audubon Center at Riverlands in northeast St. Louis County. We wanted to arrive in time to see the sun coming up over the various bodies of water at the center.

The Audubon Center is located on 3,700 acres of restored prairie marsh and forest, and serves as a migratory bird sanctuary. Over 325 species of songbirds and waterfowl live in or migrate through the area. This time of year the main draw is the arrival of the once endangered trumpeter swans. In late November a record 1,089 swans had been recorded. They will hang around the area until around February or March.

We did get there in time to see the sunrise, but I'm not sure where in the heck the 1,089 swans were hanging out. I would say that we saw several hundred on Heron Pond, which was pretty cool. They are such large birds, with a height of 4 feet and a wingspan of 7 feet. And they are certainly noisy, earning their name of "trumpeters".

trumpeter swans

After we finished with the birds, we decided to play around with our crystal balls. I'm so glad I thought to bring mine along as it was really fun to see what I could come up with when shooting through the ball.

crystal ball

We ended the morning by catching breakfast at a local place called the Florissant City Diner. The food was plentiful and tasty, and the prices were unbelievable. I need to go back there with Jim some morning. What a fun day!

Burn, Baby, Burn

thermos

Yesterday was my semi-annual visit to the dermatologist for skin cancer screening. Since last year was a banner year with four basal cell carcinomas having to be surgically removed within a six month time frame, I wasn't sure what kind of report I would be getting. My doctor, ever optimistic (not!), always enters the exam room with a red plaid thermos filled with liquid nitrogen in hand. I'm old enough to remember the plaid metal lunchbox that came with this exact thermos. What a way to spoil a childhood memory!

The procedure is known as cryotherapy, because liquid nitrogen is extremely cold - at around negative 328 degrees Fahrenheit. Using an extra-long, cotton-tipped swab, the doctor places the liquid nitrogen for ten seconds or so on each spot on my skin that he deems suspicious. The affected skin is frozen, and forms a blister which eventually dries up and falls off. The hope is that all the pre-cancerous cells are killed, and that the remaining cells underneath are healthy. Yesterday I had 25 spots frozen. Yikes! But the good news is that only six of those were on my face, and the doctor was not alarmed by any of the spots that he saw. I'll take that news.

As someone who grew up before the advent of sunblock and spent long, summer days playing outside with my friends, I've had lots of exposure to the sun. Add in my light skin, blue eyes and the fact that I wear my Irish heritage proudly, and I am the poster child for skin cancer. As my doctor says, "You shouldn't walk from the house to your car without wearing sunblock". I try to be vigilant about this.

Onto a happier topic...This weekend we were blessed with incredible weather, particularly on Saturday. I knew that my husband would go out for a motorcycle ride, so I left the house early and drove to the Audubon Center at Riverlands. Many migratory birds stop here during the winter months, and January is usually a good time to see the trumpeter swans. I wrote about visiting the center last January (you can read the post here), and mentioned that there were way fewer birds on site than in 2015. This year I think there were less birds than in 2016. I'm not sure what that means, but it may have something to do with the fact that the weather has been a little milder. Maybe they just don't have to travel so far south to survive the winter. It was a little disappointing, though the sixty plus degree weather helped me get over it.

Audubon Center at Riverlands

Continuing on my drive, I crossed over into Illinois to travel on the River Road. I was hoping to spy some eagles. I saw one swooping down overhead as I was driving, but none in the trees. Normally drivers are pulling over to the side of the road to take photographs or look through binoculars, but that didn't happen either. Driving through Grafton, I saw several cars turning down a side street. Following them, I finally saw an eagle high in a tree. The other photographers there said the eagle had been in the same spot for at least an hour. I snapped off a few photos of the eagle, and then caught this unusual bird formation in the sky. Doesn't it look like a fish?

eagle

The Loading Dock

As luck would have it, my husband and his friend were also traveling on the River Road, so we were able to meet up at The Loading Dock for lunch. It is located right on the river, and has a wonderful patio area. It was nice enough for us to sit outside while we were eating. Following lunch, they continued north and I headed south for home.

On Sunday, Jim and I took our first walk around the neighborhood together since losing Kirby. It was strange not to have him with us, but as each "first" passes, things get easier and easier. I'm sure he walked with us in spirit.

Kirby