Category: Nature

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Lilac buds

Every year at this time I take photos of the lilac buds.

I think they are beautiful.

And they are the first thing to bloom in my yard.

The day lilies are 6 inches tall.

The rhubarb is up.

The lily of the valley shoots are about an inch out of the ground.

But the lilacs will be the first things to bloom and the buds are so pretty as they grow and unfold.

It is Passover and Holy Week…overlapping. Both speak to new life, albeit in different ways.

Chag Sameach or Happy Easter – whichever you celebrate!

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It’s Thursday ???

Yes, Thursday.

I’ve struggled with my work hours this week.

I need a monster day tomorrow, Friday and I’ll still need to work a bit over half a day Saturday. Not my favorite, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.

I’m blaming it on the Yellow Jackets.

You heard me…Yellow Jackets!

Last Sunday, there was one in the house. Auggie made a flying leap after it. I grabbed Auggie and then a paper towel and after a brief battle in the window sill rail I persevered and 1 dead queen went in the trash.

I did some reading and found out that the queens emerge in March and April.

YIKES!

I ordered some traps and attractant. The attractant shipped but the traps were backordered.

And THEN!! Yesterday as in Wednesday…ANOTHER yellow jacket in the house. I won that battle also.

After some online research noted that Home Depot in Kalispell had the traps in stock, I decided that I would head there first thing this morning and get the traps.

Each queen yellow jacket is an egg making machine capable of laying up to 5000 eggs.

Right.

The mission is to trap as many queens as possible BEFORE they start the egg laying thing. According to Scott at Bug Hunters, Inc., the queens emerge about the time the day and night hours become equal and temperatures are about 40F. As in now.

As scary as it was to have the two queens in the house … and I had doors open at the time so they might have flown in… it gave me some notice as to timing. Outside, the queens are sparse enough, I doubt I would have noticed.

So, this morning, off to Home Depot Bear and I went.

This has nothing to do with anything except that this truck was parked in the contractor pick up area and I noticed the dog.

And I laughed.

The truck is an extended cab and the dog is in the back, hanging out over the cab window and lounging on the tool box.

I’m partial to Northern Breed dogs and also it just looked so funny to see the dog casually half out of the window, resting on the tool box…waiting for the person.

Ok.

So, I got the Yellow Jacket stuff and some other Home Depot stuff and a quick stop at my favorite natural food spot: Mountain Valley Foods and then home we came.

Funny.

I thought this was a good supply of stuff.

Then I read the instructions.

The instructions say 8-16 traps per acre.

GAH!

Well, we will see if we get any queens with this lot and if so I’ll consider more.

Srsly.

I do NOT want a repeat of last summer.

Maybe we will have to run away in the motorhome…

But we are so comfortable here.

And we have an island.

It’s Thursday ???

***Really, though, I am so grateful every day for all we have. I’m grateful for Bear and Auggie and this house and the woods. There is so much truly horrendous stuff happening in the world. Every night, before closing my eyes, I tell Bear and Auggie that I love them, I send a prayer of honor to Bob, Karl, Gus, Zack, Jake, my Papa and my grandparents, and I give thanks for another day on earth. It’s Thursday and I’m behind on work and the yellow jackets…but in the whole scheme of things…Life is so very good!

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Another bear story without a photo of a bear.

Bear and I saw another bear today. (see Another episode of Wild Kingdom for Bear’s first bear encounter.)

A black bear.

A BIG black bear.

So.

Bear and I were in the Jeep returning from a brief outing to our walk on the empty subdivision road a bit to the north.

Shortly after we entered the “tree” part of our road, Bear’s nose was in the air and he was doing the scent gulp thing.

It had just registered in my brain that he was smelling a bear when we rounded a corner in the road and THERE WAS THE BEAR!

I am fairly vigilant for bears and particularly in the Fall and Spring. But as I think about it, I have NEVER seen a bear when I was expecting to see one. No, they are always a surprise.

And today was the first time I’ve ever seen one on a road.

The ever alert Bear sounded with the bear bark.

The bear turned toward us briefly…Bear was barking loud and continuously…the bear exited stage left off the side of the road, down a steep incline and into the woods.

Somewhere in there I was fumbling for the camera on the seat beside me.

Rats! Another bear story without a photo of a bear.

But…we cannot have a post without a photo…oh, no!!! THAT would not do.

So…a bit of a teaser…

What I did with that extra pumpkin:

I don’t think I have ever made a more beautiful little loaf of bread.

Oatmeal Pumpkin Sunflower Seed Cranberry Bread.

More later.

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Another episode of Wild Kingdom

Despite my prior very poor batting average at identifying birds…and especially birds of prey…I believe this is a Cooper’s Hawk.

And, I have to credit Bob for seeing it at all :( !!

Bob was where you see him, but instead of looking at me, he was looking up – with GREAT intenseness. His tail was thwap-thawapping on the porch.

So I looked also – and saw the hawk. Hawk was my first thought but when I was looking at the photos and thinking about my past experiences, I wasn’t sure…young eagle???

I settled on Cooper’s Hawk as it fits other photos I found on the web AND the behavior fits as well. According to my reading, the Cooper’s Hawk is at home in the “forrest”, is an extraordinary flyer capable of darting among the trees in a dense wood. And they typically perch low. That was my other quandry…I had NEVER seen a hawk – in the woods – and as low as this bird at maybe 10 feet off the ground.

Earlier in the day, I had a somewhat terse conversation with God regarding the mice that have been frequenting my house in the night. Despite traps, despite Bob and Bear, despite me picking up every bit of tempting food…in they come, leaving their little poopie calling cards here, there and everywhere. (traps, Bob and Bear have dispatched a number of them, but in more of them come!!)

So…seeing the hawk, I gave thanks. God sent a hawk to help with the mice! But then I read that the Cooper’s Hawk hunts small birds…like chickadees and nuthatches… I have no quarrel with the little birds and would hate to think of them being hunted even though I also love the birds of prey and know everything has to eat… hmmm. Ultimately, I decided that it was not an issue that was mine to trouble over and the circle of life must go on.

Still earlier in the day – earlier than the hawk and mice but later than the moon and Venus…Bear and I were on the last leg of our morning perimeter walk when Bear alerted and ran toward the house but down on the game trail below the footpath that I walk.

A bear! A smallish bear, but not a cub and it stood quietly by a tree as Bear approached and then stopped. All was a standoff until Bear barked. The bear went up the tree, Bear rushed to the tree and stood on it barking. I was a little concerned as the tree was sounding a bit stressed…approximately 120 pounds of black bear went up a medium-smallish tree with a LOT of noise and branch breaking. I had visions of tree and bear toppling on to my Bear…I called and he came and headed straight for the front door and in the house.

Bear (the dog) was trembling with adrenalin and I was not far behind. I praised Bear, hugged him tightly (I’ve found this calms him … it doesn’t hurt me either!), removed his collar and got his normal treat.

He was not interested in the treat, but ran for the bedroom to watch…and to sniff. The windows were open.

That is not a smile…he is gulping scent. He gulped scent, barked, watched and stuck his nose up and sniffed. I stayed back and let him figure it all out. I am sure he now knows what a bear smells like and what a bear is. It was a good first experience for a ‘Jersey dog’ without western wilderness experience.

Later when we went out he was calm. We have had two outings…just like normal. Hoo rah Bear!