Northern Flicker Play-Time

I was enjoying a cup of coffee this morning when I heard a different bird call. I grabbed the camera just in time to catch this male Northern Flicker landing in the backyard tree.

Here is a series of photos of what looked to be a "courting dance" - but I am unsure if that is what was going on.

I hope you enjoy the photographs....

I also included a slide show at the bottom of all the pictures I took.

Dedicated To My "Special" Friends

This Blog has an offensive rating- Please do not allow small ones around....

This Blog is dedicated to all my "Special Friends"..and also a few that don't even qualify as that...

Evidently Jimmy Buffett does not have a You Tube video of his version of a song with a similar name (which is I was really looking for) but I have included the lyrics to his song below...

Jimmy Buffett..."Dickhead"

He ain't nothin' but a Dickhead.
He's been one all his life.
If he ever gets married
he'll be a Dickhead with a wife.
He's got no damned excuse.
God knows how he tries.
He'll be a f * in' Dickhead until the day he dies.

He's got a pretty girlfriend
and he flirts behind her back.
He looks at other women,
tries to get them in the sack.
He tells her that he loves her,
then he doesn't call for days.
When it comes to bein' a Dickhead,
he's got a million ways.

He ain't nothin' but a Dickhead.
He's been one all his life.
If he ever gets married
he'll be a Dickhead with a wife.
He's got no damned excuse.
God knows how he tries.
He'll be a f*in' Dickhead until the day he dies.

When he's out drivin' he's a Dickhead in his car.
When he's out drinkin' he's a Dickhead in the bar.
When he's at a party he's a Dickhead drinkin' beer.
He's got to be the winner of "Dickhead Of The Year".

He ain't nothin' but a Dickhead.
He's been one all his life.
If he ever gets married
he'll be a Dickhead with a wife.
He's got no damned excuse.
God knows how he tries.
He'll be a f*in' Dickhead until the day he dies.

If he's got no job he's a Dickhead out of work.
If he's got no manners he's a Dickhead and a jerk.
If he's got no money he's a Dickhead with no class.
If he's got no brains he's a Dickhead and an ass.

He ain't nothin' but a Dickhead.
He's been one all his life.
If he ever gets married
he'll be a Dickhead with a wife.
He's got no damned excuse.
God knows how he tries.
He'll be a f*in' Dickhead until the day he dies.
He'll be a f*in' Dickhead until the day he dies.

Giggles & Glee!

We spent some time with Granddaughter and her parents yesterday with many smiles being shown all around. She is quite smart and says some of the funniest things - even though she is only two!

She definitely is a day-brightener!

You can see where the bubble has just popped in this photo!
Hand Puppet Fun!

She is such a happy little girl! Gran'pa even admitted that these two parents are doing an excellent job with her. Don't change what you are doing, kids!

We are very proud of you both. Keep up the great job!!

The Definition of "Ogre"

I had a conversation tonight where the thought of an "ogre" came up. I decided to look up the word and found this definition of "Ogre" on Wikipedia.

Painting: "Norandino and Lucina Discovered by the Ogre by Giovanni Lanfranco

An ogre (feminine: ogress) is a large, cruel, monstrous and hideous humanoid monster, featured in mythology, folklore and fiction. Ogres are often depicted in fairy tales and folklore as feeding on human beings, and have appeared in many classic works of literature. In art, ogres are often depicted with a large head, abundant hair and beard, a voracious appetite, and a strong body. The term is often applied in a metaphorical sense to disgusting persons who exploit, brutalize or devour their victims.

I can tell you firsthand that not all ogres possess "abundant hair" and Ogres do come in many forms. I think people have known at least one ogre in their lifetime. My Ogre is someone that I have worked with in the past. He went to jail for a weekend once for beating his now ex-wife. She has since divorced him...but this is not his only fault. The Ogre knows how to lie and manipulate people also.

Beware of my Ogre and any others that you may meet.

Commonalities Answered....

Young Cooper's Hawk

Bounce House













Two Candles















Kenny Lattimore











Boney James



All of these things happened on September 18!

Happy Birthday Grace!!!!

Commonalities?

I think this is called a "teaser" blog...but can anyone take a guess what the following things have in common??

• Young Cooper's Hawk
• Bounce House
• Noise
• 2 Candles
• Easter Seals
• Kenny Lattimore
• Boney James

...stay tuned...the answer will be posted in the not so distant future!

Calendar Photo courtesy of Tim Fearington

I just wanted to remind everyone who has not ordered this gorgeous calendar that it is now available to be shipped to your mailbox!

This calendar benefits the Wildlife Center of Virginia & "Buddy". The Wildlife Center is a nonprofit group so you will be able to write off these calendars as a tax deduction too.

The story of Buddy is a heartbreaking yet heartwarming story at the same time...You can read the story and see that the funds from the calendar sales will be used for a great cause!

You can place your order via the Web. Copies of the 2011 calendar may also be ordered by telephone through the Wildlife Center of Virginia reception desk at (540) 942-9453. The Center’s front-desk is staffed from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. seven days a week. They accept the three major credit cards - so have one ready when you call to place your order.

Crime in Small Town Americana

I have always felt safer in the smaller towns in America-but that feeling is no longer there for me. There seems to be an increase of crimes in the small towns of America and I am unsure why.

I have found statistics that covers a 2 year period of time for a town in Northern California that I am very familiar with.

It is hard for me as a female to realize that 41 women reported being raped in that time frame. I cannot imagine how many rapes were NOT reported. (We all know many women do not report this type of crime.)

Can you also imagine 170 assaults occurring? That happens to be more than 130% of the national average. That number is hardly a drop in the pan when you realize that there have been more than 460 auto thefts in this town. That turns out to be more than 400% above the National Average...but even more staggering is the amount of thefts for the two years. There were over 2300 thefts which is more than 20 times the National Average.



I also wonder what type of losses employers in other "small towns" may have suffered due to damages or losses that have happened already - not to mention the guilt that might be incurred due to a female employee being assaulted.

I can honestly say that I will never feel safe in this part of "Small Town Americana" now that I have actually read these statistics...even if it is just walking to my car at night.



Statistics were taken from this location.

Crazy Mama

QUESTION: Who in their right mind would go "camping" and stay in a non-shaded area in a small compact space while enduring 110* temperatures??

ANSWER: Someone who wants to get away from the phone, the chores at home and yet still have all the comforts and conveniences of home.








(PS...you need 50amp service so you can run both ACs!!)

Pool Play Time

I was blessed with a visit from an Eagle Chat Member and part of her family yesterday. We met because of the Norfolk Eagle Cam that we both followed this past season. She is traveling with her daughter and grandson to a family gathering but was nice enough to adjust her schedule in order to spend time with some of my family and me.Our grandchildren are only a week apart in ages so we tried to make the visit more of a "play date" for the two grandchildren. I am sharing a few photos of the some of the fun we had.

We will have to plan a visit just so the adults can visit next time, kdg! (The only discussion we had in reference to the Eagles was about the calendar that we are ordering again this year. (It will be a great calendar if it is half as good as the 2010 calendar!)

Mindless Tasks

This really is a "useless matter" blog topic tonight but it was what popped into my pea-brained head...I started wondering why many claim that females are better "multi-taskers" then men are and here is one thought on it...

Females are taught to do housework when we are young...things like dusting, mopping, sweeping or any other basic cleaning chores. These things require very little thought so we hone our skills over a short period of time. We soon are able to do something else at the same time in order to occupy that empty thought process of cleaning (like talking on the phone). We continue to add things as we become more proficient in each task...which gives us the word "multi-task".

The reason why many men are not good multi-taskers is because what else can they do when they are mowing the lawn??

(Okay - it may be stupid...but this is my blog and that gives me the right to type what I want!)

Hummingbird Fun

You can hear just how a hummingbird sounds as you watch them eat and chase. Listen closely and you can hear a Mourning Dove coo in the background....(YouTube video is just below.)

Precious Moments

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No Explanation Needed

Twin Pins - Okay, Maybe not...but close!

Our Miniature Pinschers have been in the family for almost 5 years now so I felt it was time to share some of my "Twins pics".


We chose Rusty on June 22 of 2005 when he was less than 2 weeks old. We decided to get a female a few months after we brought Rusty home. Both of our dogs are from the Prancealots Miniature Pinscher Kennel. Our pups are even featured in a Miniature Pinscher book. (I guess I should break down and buy the book one of these days...)





























We have traveled there and brought each puppy home so I can honestly state that I have never seen a breeder that has such a clean and loving environment as what you will find at Prancealots. Robyn..I want to thank you again for giving us such an entertaining set of "twins"!

Unanswered Questions...

I was talking to a co-worker today and realized there are a few unanswered questions that we pondered but could not come up with the answers. We are not sure if there are any real answers - but why not ask them here to see if anyone else has any insight...

Some people at work will understand this better than others - but...

"Yo Dude...really - how did those sunglasses actually get into your pants pockets? You know they weren't yours."

Can anyone answer just how a pair of sunglasses that are yours can end up in another person's slacks pocket when you didn't give them to the person?

Can anyone tell me why people who have such great talent in some things have the attention span of a gnat?

Many of us have worked with people who are so skilled and are talented in one manner- but cannot stay focused on some of the simplest things. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia

...and the last question...

Why do people who get picked up for "Driving Under the Influence" still continue to "drink and drive"?

This has always been something that I have wondered about. You will find some interesting facts about Drunk Driving here.

You see, I was hit head-on by William D. McCauley on February 5, 1995. Mr. McCauley was booked with over a .21 Blood Alcohol Level that Sunday night. I was off work for over a year going through physical therapy. The pain was so bad at times that I wished I had died. I will also admit that Mr. McCauley passed me one time years later on the freeway - driving recklessly - that I almost called 911 and reported a drunk driver. I also checked the paper the next day to make sure there had not been any accidents between where I was and Elk Grove.

The one moral of this blog - Please do not drink and drive - the life you save may be your own or someone else that has more to give than you....

Turtle Bay Exploration Park

I found a great place to visit when in the Redding, California area. It is the Turtle Bay Exploration Park. The main reason for my first visit was to see the Bald Eagle nest. Liberty and Patriot are the parents of three bald eaglets again this year...but the reason for this blog is to tell you about many other wonderful things to see and do around the Exploration Park.

You will find a very unique "pedestrian" bridge appropriately named the Sundial Bridge. On the east side of the Sacramento River you will also find the McConnell Arboretum & Gardens with some very different areas.

There is also a Museum, a railroad historical exhibit, a Turtle Pond and a children's playground - plus many more things as seen on the map.

I will also suggest going early in the day if you are visiting during the summer months. It will be much cooler then. You will also be able to enjoy a cool beverage or lunch at the Cafe at Turtle Bay when it is time to get out of the sun.

PS...don't forget to stop and enjoy the turtles in the turtle pond near the river as seen in that slideshow...and here is the other slideshow of the first visit to the Eagle Nest

Birds to Share

I thought I would share my "Birds" slideshow tonight. These are some of the birds I have been able to photograph in the recent months. I have been using a great book to help me identify the birds - along with some online friends. The pg numbers reference the page number of the book.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I have enjoyed taking them...

The Garden of Eagles

This year I started following the Norfolk Botanical Garden Eagles via a live web-cam. It has been a great learning experience along with "meeting" new friends via the "Eagle Chat" which has been sponsored by WVEC TV.


(Calendar Cover photo courtesy of Tim Fearington)

The Eagle Cam has many different groups involved...with one being The Wildlife Center of Virginia. This Center depends largely on donations to do what they do and one way they have found to help raise money is to offer a calendar where photographers have donated their photos of the Norfolk Eagles that were taken throughout the nesting season.

(photos courtesy of S. Taylor)

I believe this is the second year for the calendar project. I did buy one for 2010 and it is beautiful! You can now pre-order your 2011 Garden of Eagles Calendar so you can have them in time for Christmas presents or just so you start the new year with a fresh calendar. It is for a great cause plus you will have some wonderful photos to keep after the year is over! I am sure you will enjoy them as much as I have this year!

Here is a sample page of the upcoming Calendar...

November Calendar Photo Courtesy of James R Deal

Please click on calendar for an enlarged view.

Birds, Birds And More Birds

Little did I know that I would take a new hobby just from viewing a live webcam of a bird nest...but I have.

I have started to take photographs of many different birds.


The process does not stop after taking the picture. I will then try to identify them. One of the best books to identify a bird happens to be this book. I have found it at Costco for about the same price - but some money is donated to a wildlife rehab center if it is ordered from that specific link.
You should really look at the birds around you. They are not as drab as you may think! I will share other photos here soon -

Pretend Friends...

There are all types of friends that we encounter in our lifetime. Most of these friends are good friends...but not all friends turn out that way.

There will be some of our friends that we will have for the remainder of our lifetime. This is the friend that you may not talk to for a month or a year-but it makes no difference. it is like you talked the day before...nothing can break that powerful bond.

You may also have a childhood friend. You will have nothing but great memories of times spent growing up with this friend. This is a person that you would enjoy finding again and reliving those memories.

And then there are people you thought were your friends - these are the people who will treat you like a friend. They will let you believe they are trustworthy and would never do anything to betray your confidence. These are the people who will talk bad about you and laugh behind your back. They do not have the guts to say it to your face -and they will more than likely deny ever saying anything.

I have decided that these types of so-called friends do not deserve my friendship. My friendship is something that I choose to share openly with people I know will not hurt me on purpose...so those of you whom are my friends..I would like to say "Thank You for Being My Friend". For those of you who are in the other group - please feel free to look into your soul and ask yourselves why you are the way you are.