A NEW BIRD STATION GOES UP & SOME THOUGHTS ON AGING

TURNED OUT TO BE A DAMP MUSHROOMY KIND OF DAY 

Well, the Squirrels finally succeeded in battering down my plastic 'boot tray' defense wall on the bird station & are free once again to make their 8 foot flying leaps off the Pine tree to the bird feeder again.  My usual first frustrated response was to just give up & take the bird station down.  My second usual  thought was to think, 'no way, I'm not giving up that easy!!!!  So, it was off to my work shop with a new bird station defense plan in mind.  Besides, it was a dreary gray day with light rain showers so I needed a project to focus on.

WITH OUR WET SEASON THIS YEAR THINGS ARE REALLY GROWING 

For a guy with few carpentry skills I sure have quite a supply of scrap lumber around. It has been saved from when we had our sunroom, roof, deck & carport construction done over the past few years. I was able to gather enough pieces together today without having to measure or cut anything except one small support piece. It is always a bonus when AL doesn’t have to measure or cut anything.

BEGINNING MY BIRD STATION ASSEMBLY THIS MORNING (NOTE THE CUSTOMARY JC PENNY SHIRT:)) 
By early afternoon the project was assembled, complete with roof & a pine needle stain finish. No fingers or toes were lost in construction, no cuts or scrapes & I don't even remember having to use any bad words.  Mounted my finished bird station creation on the front yard pole, filled 2 feeders with seed & placed them inside.   I use the word 'inside' because this time I put a roof on the place.  Next step is to wait & see how the Squirrels will defeat my design.....& they will defeat my design!!  The ball will then be back in my court to figure out how to plug up the weak spots & fortify the defenses. It is truly a see-saw battle in these Squirrel wars every year.  Some days with Squirrels ya win some & most days ya lose!!

OF COURSE ALL THE WHILE I AM WORKING ON MY PROJECT I AM BEING CLOSELY WATCHED BY THE ENEMY!!

  

THE TWO BIRD FEEDERS CAN BE TAKEN OUT & FILLED PLUS I PUT THE ROOF ON TO PROTECT THE FEEDERS FROM RAIN...HOPING THE LARGE BOARD AT FRONT WILL DETER THE SQUIRRELS THAT COME UP THE POLE....IF NOT I CAN POST A WARNING SIGN ON IT SAYING 'TRESPASSING SQUIRRELS WILL BE PROSECUTED.'  
It is always interesting to me when I read peoples thoughts or reactions to the inevitable age old problem of aging. Interesting to see how some folks seem to be in denial while others accept the fact & deal with it accordingly in a well thought out manner. I can’t speak for anyone else’s thoughts but I find myself at a point of accepted awareness now with my own aging process.

KELLY TAKES A DEER PARK LODGE RESERVATION WHILE THE MOTORMOUSE KEEPS A CLOSE EYE ON A NEARBY CHIPMUNK  
I think one of the keys to successful aging is learning to adjust, understand, & accept the fact that ‘yes’ things are changing. Knowing my body is not that of a younger man anymore is key to knowing my physical limitations. The same applies for my mind. As frustrating as it is at times & despite my stubborn denial at other times I have to also accept the fact my mind does not necessarily approach life’s challenges the way it once did, nor can it handle them the same way it once did. Easily solvable problems sometimes appear difficult & the brain has to rewire itself to work around them & approach things with a different way of thinking. Understanding some instruction manuals has become a real challenge in itself & that’s where I have run into problems with a lot of the new age techno stuff, so I have a tendency to avoid it. My days are much less frustrating that way.

A RED WINGED BLACKBIRD IS THE FIRST TO STOP BY & TRY OUT THE NEW BIRD STATION  
It is the daily conflict between that youthful energetic young man who lives within myself & the aging older fella who also resides here. The young man becomes impatient with the older man’s slower ways & is harsh in his criticism of the older man’s forgetfulness & sometimes challenged learning abilities. With the enlightenment & experience of many years, the older man understands the younger man’s impatience & can only hope that acceptance & understanding will soon be a part of the younger fellas personality too.  After all, these two guys have to live together in some kind of a friendly working relationship. 

THE MUSHROOM GENERALS GATHERING TOGETHER THE MUSHROOM TROOPS 
Strange how my mind has instant recall on any one of the countless thousands of photographs I have taken over the past 50 years but yet my brain won’t tell me where I have just set a pair of scissors down 5 minutes ago. That short term memory loss is particularly brutal if I am at the computer trying to learn a new program or working on resolving a technical problem. The brain just seems to bog down in a mass of befuddlement. Remembering to return emails & answer comment questions is proving to be a real challenge.  But, ask me about a piece of history, a period of my life many years ago, past people's names or the titles of many music pieces including songs & singers & I may very well have a recollection for you.

CUTE LITTLE GUYS THESE MEANDERING MUSHROOMS ARE 
Here’s an example of one of those things that annoys me. I can be working away in the flower garden at something & decide I need the garden rake. Probably not knowing where the garden rake is I set off to find it, but half way to wherever it was I was going I suddenly can’t remember what it was I was looking for. I then have to retrace my steps back to the flower bed & re-enact what I was doing in order to spark that very same thought process again.  I know things are not as they once were, but I am becoming aware of how important it is to roll with the changes, cut myself some slack & be open minded & aware of this thing they call aging.....10-4:))

A COMMON GRACKLE STOPS BY THE NEW DIGS FOR A BEAK FULL OF PEANUTS 

GROANER'S CORNER:((

A workman was killed at a construction site. The police began questioning a number of the other workers. Based with past brushes with the law, many of these workers were considered prime suspects. They were a motley crew:

The electrician was suspected of wiretapping once but was never charged.

The carpenter thought he was a stud. He tried to frame another man one time.

The glazier went to great panes to conceal his past. He still claims that he didn't do anything; that he was framed.

The painter had a brush with the law several years ago.

The heating, ventilation and air conditioning contractor was known to pack heat. He was arrested once but duct the charges.

The mason was suspect because he gets stoned regularly.

The cabinet maker is an accomplished counter fitter.

The autopsy led the police to arrest the carpenter, who subsequently confessed. The evidence against him was irrefutable, because it was found that the workman, when he died, was hammered.

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