Wednesday, December 30, 2020

OKAY, I'M READY, BRING ON THAT BIG SCARY NEW YEAR WILL YA

MY LITTLE TWEETSY PIE
Woke up to a weather advisory about 'freezing rain' and looking out the window we could see it had snowed in the night.  That snow had now turned to freezing rain making for icy conditions this morning.  Not nice.

 ALONG WITH ALL THE BIRDS OUR SQUIRRELS WERE ACTIVE THIS AFTERNOON AS WELL
We still haven't readjusted from the time change a couple months ago and instead of being up before 6 a.m. most mornings like before, we're not feebly stumbling to our feet until around 7:30 now.  Almost like a big chunk of the day has already gotten away from us.  Instead of being out the door around 8 it is now sometimes after 9 before Pheebs and I have the Jeep's wheels rolling.  There is an upside to sleeping in so late though.  It does measurably shorten these overbearing dull gray winter days. 

Needed to pick up a prescription at Walmart and Kelly needed a couple cans of 'Cream Of Chicken Soup' so Pheebs and I braved the elements and headed off.  Worst roads we came across of course we're right here in our very own Park.  It was a light drizzly rain all the way to Goderich and with varied snow patches along the way I kept the Jeep in 4-wheel drive.  

 IT WAS A MIX OF RAIN, SLEET, AND SNOW EARLIER TODAY

 RAINING IN GODERICH TOO
Took a quick drive down to the harbor but we didn't get all the way out to Rotary Cove.  Surprisingly, the road was blocked by a big pile of dozed up snow.  First time I have ever seen them do that down there.  

 ROTARY COVE ROADBLOCK
 'AWWW NUTS DAD WE CAN'T GET TO THE DOGGY WALKING AREA NOW'
Twenty minutes later with my prescription and soup in hand, we were soon on our way home again.  Roads seemed slushier and it was still raining.  It's what we would call up here a dirty driving day.

 ROADS WERE A LITTLE DICELY ICY IN SPOTS
 OOOPS, MY CAMERA AUTOMATICALLY FOCUSED ON THE WRONG HORSE
 THINKING ABOUT HAVING A SNOOZE IN THE BACK SEAT


Home again I shoveled some slush off the pathways and around the birdfeeders.  Not many birds around at first but later up when glancing up from our sunroom's desktop computer there was probably the best part of two dozen birds zooming around everyplace.  On the ground, on the feeders, and in the trees.  Cardinals, Blue Jays, Mourning Doves, Woodpeckers, Purple Finches, Juncos, Black-Capped Chickadees, Goldfinches, and one Tufted Titmouse.  I am convinced they are all in cahoots and travel together on a chartered bird bus from one bird feeding area to another.  The bus pulls up, the door opens, and a swoosh of birds fly out and gobble up all the birdseed in sight.  Then it's back in the bus they go and off down the street to the next neighbor's bird feeders.  A minute ate all is quiet in the front yard again as I sit blankly staring out the window wondering, 'what the hell just happened'!!

 YOU CAN SEE WHY ITS CALLED A 'BLACK-CAPPED' CHICKADEE

 IN A HURRY TO GRAB A PHOTO OF THE RED MALE CARDINAL I DIDN'T SEE THE FEMALE CARDINAL ON THE LEFT UNTIL I EDITED THE PHOTO
Well, here we are nearly at the end of yet another year.  And what a year it has been.  But then again, I can honestly say that about most every year I have spent here on this Planet.  The ups, the downs, the lows, and highs.  Sad, glad, mad, and bad all seem to go hand in hand.  The changes are real, some routines the same.  Disappointments come in bundles while surprises slip stealthily in the back door.  Don't know what's ahead, can't remember what's behind.  But I guess it was a good year because I appear to still be here.  Common sense and logic have greatly lessened while massive gullibility has rapidly increased these past few years.  And it rapidly ramped up all together in 2020.  Well anyway, it's off to 2021 we go and already the four numbers are easier to type so I guess all things maybe won't be so bad.  Silly thinking I'd say with a healthy hint of skepticism thrown in to balance out that elusively measured jolt of optimism bantering about somewhere in this sometimes seemingly confused and empty head of mine.  Okay, I'm ready, bring on that big scary new year will ya:))  

GROANER'S CORNER:((  I work in a busy office, and when a computer goes down it causes quite an inconvenience. Recently one of our computers not only crashed, it made a noise that sounded like a heart monitor.  "This computer has flat-lined," a co-worker called out with mock horror.  "Does anyone here know how to do mouse-to-mouse?"

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Mother: "When I was your age, my mother used to hide money around the house for me that I would find only if I performed my chores particularly well. One time when I was cleaning out the cupboards for her, I found $20 under the old shelf paper."
Daughter: "Wow! What a cool idea! Why didn't you ever do that with me?"
Mother: "But my dear ... I have been."

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So you don't believe in Global warming eh!!







11 comments:

  1. Oh my gosh, al, you just made us all so much older! Next year will be 2021, not 2121! Funny slip up! Happy New Year! Ann M

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    1. Thanks Ann, I have made the correction and all the best to you in the New Year.

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    2. Thank you. I hope things will change and we can all travel wherever we want to go next year.

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  2. The final two photos of the Cardinals are superb and loved your story about the birds and the bus. Very clever!

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  3. Is that a dual bird feeder? Seems like one side's feed is bigger than the other perhaps for different birds... I've never done a bird feeder but I think I will so I can join the bus tour too.

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    1. Yes, you are correct. One side has a bigger mesh than the other side for larger sunflower seeds, etc.

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  4. That bird bus stops here as well. Sometimes it's a really, really large bus :-) Glad you got out and back safely, looks like some nasty driving conditions. Always exciting to ponder the possibilities of a new year, especially when the one we're leaving was such a mess. Happy New Year to you and Kelly and Pheebs!

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  5. Yes Al, bring on 2021! Can't be worse than 2020, I hope. Lots to be thankful for. Loved the global warming cartoon. Happy New Year to you, Kelly and the Pheebs.

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  6. Al, hubby and I slept in until 6:30 this morning! What a couple of slackers we now are! We stayed up until 11:30 last night watching a series on HBO/Max, however! Happy New Year to you, Kelly, and Pheebes. Our local mountains are COVERED with fresh snow here in the Coachella Valley.

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  7. Love the bird photos. So far we only have seen four different species but we did see a huge flock of robins on our walk today. Perhaps they will come visit us. We also have a bus for the birds, they seem to prefer traveling in a group.

    All the best to you both in 2021. My hope is that we will be able to cross the border into the US and onto Mexico by October. I fear that we will still be wearing masks for a least another full year.

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  8. Yes, it was a good year, we're both still here! I fear that bird bus doesn't stop at our house anymore!

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