the bird d'pot

We went down to the garden last evening to pick the last of the tomatoes. The garden is finished with the exception of the gourds. 

The sunflowers are all looking down.

There were lots of goldfinches enjoying the crop. 

The males are molting. Fall is here, or will be in another 8 days. 


Linking to the Bird D'pot

Willy Nilly Friday Five

The sunflowers next to our untility shed are blooming. I hope the goldfinches find them soon!

1. I saw a word on facebook this morning—pluviophile. Do you know what it is? Yeah, me either. Sounds like a criminal of sorts doesn't it? But after I read the definition I found I have pluviophile tendencies.

pluviophile. (n) a lover of rain; someone who finds joy and peace of mind during rainy days. 

Not stormy days, but rainy days. Rain is like snow in that I enjoy it when I can stay home and see/hear it from a comfy chair with a cup of coffee or iced tea and a good book.

2. My favorite granddaughter called me with some fabulous news. She submitted a poem for publication and has made the semi-finals. She was so excited I'm sure she was jumping up and down, as I was. I remember how exciting it was the first time I received one of those letters. Fingers crossed!

3. I have a cousin coming to visit this weekend. She lives the pacific northwest, so she doesn't come every year. Our family reunion is Sunday. It will be good to see all the family. My mom was one of 14 children with only 5 left. I fear the reunion will be no more once these are gone. The younger relatives don't seem to be as family oriented as their parents were.

4. Speaking of family reunions, I need to bring a couple of covered dishes. Any suggestions for something different? 

5. August is ending and September is beginning. I'm looking forward to a couple of fun weekends. My favorite granddaughter plays clarinet in the school band. They will be marching in a parade next weekend. Another weekend, Punky Doodle has invited me to hop in for a trip to see Sonny Boy in Tennessee. Can't wait!

Linking to Willy Nilly Friday Five

I'm still having computer issues. The new modem is supposed to arrive today. I apologize for my failure to comment, but everytime I try to go visit a blog the internet drops me! It has taken me approximately 2 hours to finish this post.

Rubbish Tuesday #15

Another Monday morning. Mr. Coffee is dripping slower than normal. Gramps might need to be replaced with a newer model. He's been a good 'ol boy, but it may be time to lay him to rest in the rubbish bin. I better hurry and get this post finished so I can run down to the local convenience store for a cup of Joe.

Everything is looking spring green again after our nearly three days of rain. I've taken many pictures of this old barn, but it was looking especially nice with the flowers in bloom.

This truck has been parked along the road to Bro O's for several years now. The property owner keeps the area mowed, but time is taking its toll on this old abandoned fella.

This old Ford tractor is gathering its share of rust. It is sitting in a lot near a mechanics garage, just off the town square. Not sure if it is there because it is for sale or perhaps merely for decoration.

Another old barn I've posted before. You can tell from the haze how humid it was. 

Thanks for stopping by. I hope you will join in the fun.

My idea was to have a place to post 'old things'.  Anything old and/or deteriorating such as old houses, barns, outbuildings, old cars, rusty things, antiques, interesting junk, or it can be something in pristine condition, but just old. 

1. Link to a post featuring photos of something old.

2. Link back to Rubbish by Roan in your post.

3. As time allows, visit other participants and comment on their posts.

Sunflowers and Birds

The rain finally stopped, but it has been cloudy and cool the past couple of days. Today looks to be more of the same. I'm not complaining, I like the cooler temperatures.

The sunflowers out back next to our storage shed are getting tall (see largest photo), but they haven't started blooming yet. We were late getting them planted this year.

We did plant a variety in our garden and as you can see they are in full bloom.

I finally got a hummer to stop by the feeder yesterday. I changed from the mix to making my own out of sugar and water. They seem to like the homemade variety best. I took this shot through the window, which has a screen. I need to take that darn screen off!

The goldfinches were busy working on Bro O's sunflowers last evening. 

On the way down to the garden we saw a red-bellied woodpecker and an indigo bunting, but they were too fast for me.

We had a visitor while working in the garden. This guy lives about a mile from Bro O's house. He stopped by for a visit. He was very friendly. Here he comes for a pet after sitting in the pond for a while.

Needless to say, I didn't hang around to get soaked...

Happy Sunday!

Linking to the Bird D'pot

Blue, Red, and Yellow Plus Some

Guess what? I didn't go to work yesterday (Saturday)! I will probably go this afternoon for a while, but NOT all day. The Democratic party has picked a candidate to run for Circuit Clerk in November.  The newly appointed clerk begins his reign next week, which means I go back to doing ONE job. Yay!!! All those other responsibilities are gone. I feel like a building has been lifted from my shoulders. I just hope, if he is good at the job, he wins in November. Otherwise we will be back to another new clerk.

Of course, I didn't get to lounge around on my day off. I spent the entire day dancing with Mrs. Mop! Have I mentioned how much I dislike housework? I used to enjoy it, now I would much rather play.

 The sunflowers were a busy place Friday night. Indigo Bunting.

Mr. Cardinal and his wife, but she wouldn't show herself.

 The Goldfinches were dining, as well. Again, the Mrs. was camera shy. 

The pretty yellow petals are all falling onto the ground. I'm not sure if it is the birds landing on them and knocking them off or if they are merely falling off. They are not as pretty as they were. But the birds make up for the missing petals.

 I planted some sunflowers in our garden, but they are slow to bloom. This is the first.

I also planted zinnias and they are in full bloom.

HAPPY SUNDAY!!!

Linking to the Bird D'pot

Good Fences

Today I'm posting more shots of my last visit with — okay I'm going to get off the track here and go with a name explaination. We always call daughter Tex, but since bloggers might get her confused with TexWisGirl, I'll now refer to her as Punky Doodle. This was my name for her when she was a pretty little redheaded girl. Today she is a pretty lady, but I still see her as Punky Doodle. Anyway, today I'm posting more shots of my last visit with Punky Doodle and the Grands.

Some people are irritated by slow moving farm equipment on the roads, but I always try to be patient and wait for an opportunity to safely pass. We followed a tractor for quite a distance with no room to pass on a narrow road. The tractor turned in here, where this cow was peeking over the fence. We might have missed him had we been traveling at a normal rate of speed. 

A bit farther down the road was a field of sunflowers. No fence, but there were gates.

Back in town, we took a walk through the downtown area and then walked to the library to meet up with #1 Grandson. On the way back to the car, we spotted this place of business.

After reading the sign and a little persuasion from a Grand or two, we decided to go in...

...and this is what we found. Yum! Punky Doodle doesn't allow her family to eat a lot of sweets or snack foods, so this was a special treat.

I'm linking to Good Fences today. Click on the picture below and come join in the fun!

Hodge Podge and a Bird or Two

1. "Summer is like childhood. It's full of warm memories and gone too soon."~Kellie Elmore  Agree or disagree? Share something you loved about the summers of your childhood.

Summer always seems to slip away too soon. I love summer, despite the heat. I would rather be hot than cold any day. Cold hurts. Before air conditioning, a glass of lemonade and a shade tree made the heat tolerable. My brother and I also went wading in a creek near our house, oftentimes having water fights to cool off. But my all time favorite thing to do in the summer was ride my bike to the library. I would bring my book home, find a nice grassy spot under a tree, and read the afternoon away.

2. Are you a fan of auto racing-NASCAR, Indy, Stock, Grand Prix, etc? Ever been to a race in person? Any desire to do this?  Do you know a lot about cars? Do you notice particular makes and models when you're out and about?

I grew up with an older brother. He liked cars and racing. I remember listening to the Indianpolis 500 on the radio every year. When my brother was in high school, he was on a pit crew for a friend of his at the local stock car track. We also had a drag strip where some of our friends would race their cars. Other than a movie theatre to go to on Saturday night, going to the races was the thing to do on the weekends. Now I follow Nascar. JD is a Jimmie Johnson fan. I root for Rowdy Bush. JD doesn't like Rowdy so we have some fun banter during races. I have never been to a Nascar race, but we talk about going to our favorite track in Bristol, TN. One day maybe we will go.

3. What's something you think is too serious to be joked about? Or do you think anything and everything is fair game?

I think health issues. Ones health should be taken seriously.

4. July 29th is National Lasagna Day. Are you a fan? Do you have a great recipe, and if so where did it come from? If given a choice would you choose a plate of lasagna or a plate of spaghetti?

JD cooks most of our meals. He likes to cook. I think instead of a teacher he should have been a chef. He is full on German, born and raised in Pennsylvania, but lived most of his adult life in Upstate New York in a city filled with Italians. He loves Italian food, so spaghetti is served a lot in this house. I'm not a big fan of spaghetti. As a matter of fact I can hardly face it any more. But being the nice person I am, I don't complain. So, my pick would be lasagna. I would much prefer a plate of chicken alfredo, though.

5. What's a simple pleasure you'd miss if it were not a regular part of your life?

Hanging out on our screened in porch with a good book and a bottle of wine.

6. If you could be the CEO of any company, which would you choose?

I would choose not to be. I prefer a job where I don't dread going to work. So, I would forgo the heavy duty paycheck.

7. August is just around the bend...bid farewell to July in exactly seven words.

Too much sadness, glad it is over.

8. Insert your own random thought here.

I share a love of reading with a couple of attorneys who come in the office frequently. We seem to like the same type of books and share our favorites. Ms. KB came in yesterday raving about The Astronaut Wives Club by Lily Koppel, which is  a true story about the wives of the Mercury Seven astronauts. A new TV Series on ABC to air this fall is based on this book. I grew up during a time when the TV was on in the gym at school so we could all watch the Apollo missions take off from Cape Canaveral. I'm looking forward to reading the book and watching the series. Has anyone read anything good recently?

Linking to Wednesday Hodgepodge

Another shot of SIL's sunflowers. I can't get enough of seeing these guys!

While standing in SIL's yard talking, I heard Mr. Oriole singing, so turned around and zoomed in as much as possible. Wish I could get closer!

After Anni's comment, I dug out my bird book and agree with her that it is a Scarlet Tanager. Now I'm even happier with my really bad shot. :)

Linking to Wild Bird Wednesday

Nothin' But Yellow!

Yesterday, Saturday, I went to work at 7:00 a.m. and stopped for the day at 4:00 p.m. Daughter, a.k.a. Tex, (not TexWisGirl, just Tex) came down to help. To add to the short staff in our office, our newest clerk's brother passed away and she will be off work Monday and Tuesday, our nightmare days! So, Tex was kind enough to pitch in. I'm still way behind, so will be heading off to work as soon as I finish this post. I'm only staying 3 or 4 hours though. Really, that's all!

The Democratic party has picked a successor for the office, but he won't start until the 11th. He will be green as grass as to the duties, but I'm sure he will quickly adjust. 

Friday night we went down to the garden to pick tomatoes, zucchini, acorn squash, and okra. We also pulled up a few radishes. I use the term 'we' loosely. JD, a.k.a. Hubs (daughter doesn't like the word Hubs, so from now on he will be JD. JD is an inside joke, which I may explain later. No time today) JD did most of the picking while I wondered around with my camera. Well, I did pick the okra.

 The Gold Finches were out in force. Enjoying SIL's sunflowers.

Above is one of my sunflowers. It is only about 4 inches from tip of petal to tip of petal. Not sure the variety, but they are pretty.

 Now back to SIL's. Beautiful, huge..

...and stately.

Linking to the Bird D'pot