hermit thrush

While on my morning walk I heard a different bird call from the brush. It turned out to be a hermit thrush--a winter resident that has been absent here for the last few years. Usually I could find at least two on the place in the woods. It was great to see and hear one again!

White-throated sparrows have returned in big numbers again after being almost totally missing last year after Katrina and record breaking drought.

Update:3-7-07
The hermit thrush has become a regular morning visitor to the yard!--and is still showing up to feed in the gardens and under the windows. I took this photo (rather blurry) from the bedroom window this morning.

early morning

An early start this morning--4am, but it was a great morning to be up early because a small cool front had come through and dropped the dawn temperature to 66--pleasant after lows of 80 or so. Cooler temps usually means clear skies so I brought my coffee outdoors and drank it on the deck. Perhaps I would hear migrating birds or the coyotes might serenade, but it was unusually quiet.

The big bonus turned out to be falling stars or meteors. There were several nice ones that dropped out the sky while we waited for the sun. I have spent some exceptional mornings on my deck witnessing meteor showers, full moons, the passing of the space station, and the incredible gifts of Hyakatake and Hale-Bopp.

butterflies

Most of the things that I planted to attract hummingbirds are also favorites of butterflies. The small turk's cap attracts the sulphur colored butterflies that appear in late summer and early fall. It is neat to brush the plant and see the clouds of yellow butterflies fly up. They also love the cardinal flowers, vitex, mexican sunflowers, and salvias that are blooming throughout the yard.

One of the best butterfly magnets is the penta that I planted in pots on the patio. Watching the parade of swallowtails, gulf fritillaries, and monarchs while I wash dishes somehow takes some of the sting out of a boring task.

purple martins

First Arrival in February


Every spring the arrival of the purple martins is a big event for me. Most years they return in February with a big swoop and a lot of happy gurgling. The circle is closed and they are back with me for spring and part of summer. After the young leave the nest, the flock returns most days for flights around the place, and the sky is filled with their calls. But at about this time in July they finally quit the daily visit, and I have not seen them today although they were here yesterday. They are often seen roosting in larger flocks as they begin the "big gathering" for migration. It will seem quiet without them---however----a bluebird pair has already built a nest in one of the gourds.



Gathering to Depart

finally some rain!

This has been one of the driest May's on record-after an exceedingly dry fall, winter and spring. The hurricane ravaged vegetation has struggled to repair itself. I am amazed that the trees have managed to releaf with so little rain.

My lawn and garden have been watered almost everyday since late in the fall when it became obvious that rain was going to be scarce. This little shower popped up out of nowhere with not much lightning and a little wind. The rain gauge measured about .65".

manchac trip

When my husband said he had to make a trip to an equipment dealer in Kenner--on the western edge of New Orleans-- I jumped at the chance to ride along because most of the trip is through the Manchac Swamp. There is always a chance I might see bald eagles or ospreys. The damage done to the swamp still shocks me--fallen trees, thin vegetation and a wetland that is disappearing before my eyes. What used to seem a deep impenetrable wilderness is becoming more and more open swamp as the salt water intrusion causes the anchoring vegetation to die, and the trees topple in frequent and stronger hurricanes.
One of our favorite places to stop for a meal is Middendorf's . It is perched on the edge of the pass where water from Lake Pontchartrain meets with that of Lake Maurepas. Fried catfish is the specialty, but shrimp, crawfish, blue crabs and other gulf seafoods are all prepared here. Probably not a gourmet's delight, but hard to beat for local color and flavor. Though I usually pass on fried food, I always eat the fried catfish whenever we stop here.

hummingbirds return

Very windy most of the day yesterday-it flapped the loose tin on the barn and the plastic covering on the Katrina destroyed greenhouse. Dark skies for most of the day, but when the front finally blew through it brought little rain. However, the Ruby-throated hummingbirds rode in on the south wind, and at dusk last evening they were swooping at each other on the patio guarding the few potted flowering plants that I carried through the winter. Quickly, I scrounged for a hummingbird feeder and mixed a little nectar, and I was back in business watching and feeding hummers. It's great to have them back! It's hard not to smile when they buzz around while I work in my flowerbeds.

remembering home

Yesterday I finally made it back to my childhood home in New Orleans. One of the levee breaks was on the London Avenue Canal which was next to the street where I lived.  Every home,  every school and every thing I remembered from my youth had been submerged by water when the levee broke. My old street and neighborhoods were ghost towns. Empty shells gutted of their innards waiting for decisions about whether to rebuild in this threatened land. Some souls in limbo were living in FEMA trailers parked on their lawns or in driveways--but the feeling was that of abandonment. Silence, waiting-

walking

Walking is my best form of meditation. With the first few steps I begin to notice things and fall into the present. My favorite places to walk are natural where I can focus on trees, birds, and weather and not worry about traffic and people. I prefer to walk in silence. Then I notice the natural sounds--birds, insects, the whisper of the pine needles, the brush of dry grass.
My dog comes along and her senses come alive too--sniffing and finding where the coyotes and deer were the night before. However, at age 14 she has lost her hearing and has to rely on her sight and smell.

My dad loved to walk too. Whenever he thought we weren't moving enough or the walls closed in on him he would suggest a walk. Back then we lived in New Orleans, and so we walked along the levee on the west bank of the Mississippi River. We would travel along the levee watching the ships and barges pass by--sometimes comb the waterline looking for interesting bits of wood or flotsam and jetsom on its way to the gulf.

I always took my kids walking, even when they were toddlers, sometimes carrying them or pulling them in a wagon. Often the dogs and cats would come along. Here's a picture of a typical trip when one of the boys was still a hip hugger and the other about 3 years old.

pine grove

I try to walk a few laps around the southern perimeter of our place everyday. The reason I chose the south end is because it is shaded in large oak trees, and in the summer the heat is more tolerable. The rest of our place has open pasture and in the summer months I try to avoid too much sun exposure because it makes me feel sick in a hurry. If I stay in the shade it seems I can walk forever. The first part of my lap takes me through these young pines my husband and I planted as 6 inch seedlings about 10 years ago. Actually we planted so many more all over the place, but that is about the time that we really began to notice climate change. The summers and winters became drier and many of the seedlings just fried in the ground. We are fortunate to have these and another patch to the east. It was tough work poking hundreds of holes in the earth, and then heeling them in only to have most of them die. Every time I walk past these I think of how lovely it would have been if they had all grown. Katrina took out thousands of pines and oaks in the area around us. At least these few will be around to fill some of the blank spaces.

first step

All journeys begin with a single step

I thought I would give blogging a try, and this is my first attempt.

Yesterday I snapped a photo of an incredible golden sunset that occurred after a dreary overcast day.