2025

I have a bit of trouble with my projects this morning.

There's a couple issues at my TGIF group, which kind of sets me off my game. And then I had a rant going on in my head, and I need to find the news articles I was thinking about before they get totally lost. And then I've got a long blog post to work on, I think I need to split it into two posts. But I also haven't even sorted the photos for the post yet, so that's just a mess!

*laughs*

The weather is all over the place as well. Very suitable!

There's sun. And the clouds are moving around.

Then there's rain and stupid wind. And most of my walk, the camera is tucked under the rain jacket.

The sun comes out again as I'm heading home and I run into the Hooded Merganser pair again.

I keep thinking I should name them... But I just can't come up with any names. And it's just as well, really.

They'll be gone in the spring, to nest somewhere else.

And... I should only name people that I recognize! I can't tell this pair of Hooded Mergansers from any other pair. I just don't see Mergansers often enough to know how to tell them apart! I might be seeing a different pair every day, and I wouldn't know it! Ha!

My nature time has calmed me. But I feel bad about my disorganization this morning.

Especially since I actually have good energy again today. I need to get something done!

There are plenty of Spring Cleaning projects to do... And I get the canister vacuum out and vacuum the dust that gathers near the wall along the stairs.

I am mildly annoyed that it doesn't look any different! ha. But it's cleaner, even if it looks the same!

I go back to reading and then my friend shows up!

*laughs with delight* But we are both dorks and neither one of us knows what to say.

She has presents for me. A gorgeous journal with leaves on the cover! She knows me!

And a book, Zen Camera.

It looks like something I will definitely enjoy!

I'm coughing a bit this morning, and the pulled rib muscle still hurts, but is healing. But most important, I've still got energy!

I am becoming more sure that I've left the covid tiredness behind!!

It's 39° (4°C) when I leave the house, but I've noticed there are a lot of Snowflake Icons in the forecast. Ugh. Starting tonight with 40% chance of snow, and an increasing chance of wintery mix all thru the week. Ugh.

This is a Collard Dove, the invasive kind...

A few years ago, these birds were all over the place, and the only dove you'd hear cooing. But now, I hardly hear or see them at all.

Their coos are easy to distinguish from Mourning Doves coos. But I don't hear Mourning Doves very often, either.

Hello?

oh, Thanks!

See Ya!

This pair again!

These Lenten Roses have been blooming all winter!

I am looking around the house, with my new found energy! There are some projects I can tackle, oh yes!

My New Years Resolution is to Declutter and Clean around here. Covid and the lack of energy has sidetracked me for January. But I'm ready now!

I don't actually have any organization yet, tho. But I wipe some baseboards clean. And then I scrubbed a perpetually dirty spot under the dishwasher.

That made a difference, with just a couple minutes of work! I can do this!

No snow this morning despite the forecast, thank goodness. It's 37° (3°C) when I head out for the walk, pretty chilly.

Oh! What happened to your poor tail feathers?

Maybe I should mind my own business? *laughs* Okay! Sorry!

I'm at the Community garden to drop off the compost. As I'm walking to my plot, this catches my attention!

It's unfortunately Impossible to see here... but this pile of wood chips has warmed my heart!

Someone has mulched this illegal grape vine growing in the fence.

*LAUGHING* in the face of Comm Garden directors and pissant rule makers!!!

The new rule for the 2025 season is that we are supposed to put grape vines and berry canes in pots!! Which is, of course, ridiculous. There are many gardeners here that have well established fruit vines and having to dig them up to put them in a stupid pot would just kill them.

So I applaud this act of civil disobedience!

Great energy again today! I'm just doing some regular chores around the house, since I still don't really have a plan of attack for my Declutter and Clean Resolution.

Stuff is getting done, and the brain is ruminating!

Good Morning my cute little Pine Siskin!

No snow again, tho it's still on the forecast for the rest of the week. It is a bit colder: it's 34° (1°C) when I leave the house today.

All the pretty Rose hips!

well, and the bird in the middle of it!

Thank You! Very sweet to hang around with me for a minute!

Someone gave you an apple bit? Nice!

Aw, that's a cute little monster!

Rock Doves!

They are looking beautiful even on a dreary day!

∞ Eugene church declares sanctuary for refugees, immigrants in response to president's immigration crackdown

This is a church I have walked by on a few of my downtown walks. And I am proud of my community, for everyone who stands up to evil.

Later in the day, I watched this video...

∞ Rev Ed (in Canada): The Church MUST Be Seen Standing Up To Tyranny

Let your light shine brightly.

And I've put a Progressive Pride flag up in the side bar.

It sounded like rain when I was waking up this morning, but when I sat up to look out the window it was big, heavy clumps of snow coming down! A wintery mix with rain and it's just melting on the ground!

Perfect. It looks nice coming down, but doesn't cause any issues!

The clouds snow and rain themselves out, and it's blue sky and dripping trees by the time I get out. 41° (5°C) but the wind is blowing and it was so cold I wondered if I would survive, even with my layers.

But walking warmed me up.

Oh Henrietta. Look at all the trash you have to deal with. Ugh, I'm Sorry!

The wind today makes photography tough... I don't find many birds, and I'm taking crappy pics.

OH!

Vulture!!

I love taking photos of the little birds. Ducks are fine if there's no one more interesting around. Hawks and other raptors are def cool. But my all time favorite birds are Vultures!

Supposedly our Turkey Vultures migrate down to Central America and South America. But the Christmas Bird Count says that we've got a little population who stay for the winter, out at the coast! So it's not unusual to see a Vulture flying here during the winter... It's just a day trip for them!

I've got a great Vulture book - Vulture, the Private Life of an Unloved Bird - and now I'm thinking about re-reading it...

I've had a great line of books that I've read this year! I finished That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America, And I re-read the brilliant book by Ursula K. LeGuin, The Dispossessed. And now I'm reading Somewhere Beyond the Sea. And next in line is the third Semiosis book Usurpation.

So maybe I could read the Vulture book after that?

I'm walking back home, and Henrietta is still in the same place with the trash.

Sighs.

I finally have a real project going for my 2025 Declutter and Clean Resolution!

The book I've got suggests cleaning in 20-10s... 20minutes of cleaning, and then a 10minute reward. But it's just a suggestion, you're to customize your times to whatever works in your life.

20minutes is way too long for me to contemplate. It's fine for regular chores, for instance it takes about 20minutes to vacuum the house. But for the Spring Cleaning type stuff that needs to happen, 20minutes is a hard NO!

*laughs*

So I've been experimenting this week. And it turns out that 3 to 5 minutes is doable for me. I've started cleaning the living room window.

And I feel good about it! ... I hate cleaning with all my being. But I can handle 3minutes of it!

It's cloudy and 36° (2°C) and that stupid wintery mix snow stuff is still in the forecast.

Aw. These two pairs of Green Wing Teals are courting!

They've got this cute little whistle sounding quack.

His courtship display:

So Cute!

And always nice to see a Hummingbird singing from his perch!

He's trying to show me his colours, but it's too dreary for much to show today.

And back at home, I'm so inspired by my new morning cleaning success, I get a couple other little things done as well!

Yay Me!

Looking this way, the cute puffy clouds are nice!

But over here, they are looking like they are going to do something!

Oh cute Squirrel, with your hand tucked under your chin!

Look at that! Daffodils have come up!

I don't know what this tree is... but it's coming to life!

I've come up to the Solidarity Garden and decide to look to see what they've got going! Some pretty, little Lettuces!

And what's this stuff??

Weird leaves!!

But pretty!

On the way back, I decide to get off the path in this wild area...

Snowdrops!!

And back at home, the quote at the end of today's A.Word.A.Day made me laugh out loud!

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:
I used to think that the brain was the most wonderful organ in my body. Then I realized who was telling me this. ~ Emo Phillips, comedian, actor (b. 7 Feb 1956)

*laughs*

Aw. Seriously??!

*laughs* That is the butt of a Bushtit who did not stick around for proper photography!!

I'm walking past the Community Garden today, but I glance in and... for long minutes I try to figure out who this is!

oh, HAHA! It's just a Flicker, preening!

But check out the back of his head... those little bits of red on his nape actually belong to the eastern version of Northern Flickers, the Yellow Shafts!!

The males of our western race, Red Shafts, have a red mustache and no nape.

The males of the eastern race, Yellow Shafts, have a black mustache and a red nape.

So I wonder who this guy's parents were! Or maybe grandparents? Or maybe this is a recessive trait that just pops up now and again? So interesting!!

And, looking thru my pics, I realized I had just seen him the other day! Feb2 Flicker! ha.

A Ruby Crown Kinglet, but they are moving around too quickly for me and the camera... this is just a point and click and hope!

The Point and Click and Hope works out often enough that I keep doing it. And, really, what else am I gonna do? Just stand there and NOT take pictures?? Bahahaha!

I support local journalism. I subscribe to the paper version of the local (corporate) newspaper. And Eugene also has an alternative newspaper, the Eugene Weekly. The paper version is free. It's printed on Thursdays and I usually read it on Saturday because the regular newspaper is not delivered that day (to give the delivery drivers a break).

I open up this week's EW, looking forward to reading the Letters to the Editor (because the corporate newspaper discontinued this a while ago) (jerks).

I see the Letters, but on the opposite page, there's an article about 4J, our school district...

I am child-free by choice. But kids are important members of the community! So I try to read all the news about the local schools. There has been a thing about one of the principals resigning in the last month or so, and I assumed that's what this article is about.

Nope. This is something else...

∞ Our Children Are Our Common Ground

The blurb says Eugene District 4J affirms its commitment to equity and belonging and I decide to read this before the Letters...

By the 2nd paragraph, I'm hooked! In Eugene School District 4J, our answer is to reaffirm our commitment to providing a safe, welcoming and inclusive learning environment - one where every student is valued, supported and challenged to reach their full potential.

I love what this guy is saying, and tears have sprung to my eyes. About ⅔ into the article, I'm reading the school district resolutions he has included.

The first one is about welcoming students of all national origins without barriers related to immigration or documentation status. Yay!

And then the first resolution of 2025, affirms gender identity, expression and equity for transgender and gender-expansive students and staff.

... And now I need to pause to have a quiet cry.

I'm happy. This is happy crying. I'm relieved. I'm so glad that our community, our schools, will protect children - ALL children. Our trans kids are so important, and they need all the help they can get. And I love the city and state I live in!

Okay. It's mostly happy crying.

The reason why I'm so emotional, of course, is because Felon45 is threatening our children.

It's sad that school districts have to broadcast the fact that all students are entitled to a high-quality educational experience, free from discrimination or harassment. It seems like this should be just ... expected from our schools. But here we are.

And it's necessary to point out that we will protect them by all legal means available.

Hell Yeah!! We are a sanctuary state, so the Legal Means include not letting ICE into the schools. I'm not sure what it means, exactly, for trans kids but the resolution is reassuring.

These Primroses are looking a bit rough.

But the pop of colour is definitely welcome!

Um. Well, humph.

At least this cute Rock Dove was more accommodating!

I am feeling productive today, and I jam thru the blog post I'm working on, from December. I've not sorted the rest of those photos, yet, so that needs to be done as well. And then I figure I might have time to write a second blog post!

Look at me go! Ha! I've gotten a lot done this morning, and I feel good, heading out for my walk!

Not that anyone else cares about my accomplishments:

*laughs*

I'm dropping off compost at the garden today. Most of the cover crop Favas are deceased... we had almost two weeks of overnight lows in the 20s in January. A couple smaller Favas still have life, tho!

At the back of the plot, there's a little Strawberry leaf poking up thru the mulch... This is where the Strawberry Patch is, approximately, but I'm not sure I actually planted this one! Ha, maybe a runner, expanding their territory?

And LOOK! There's a teeny tiny... caterpillar? You are welcome to munch, Little One!

That's great how they have their eating area, and then their separate toilet area! ha!

I planted these Leeks last spring, but they are in the crappy dirt area at the end of the Tofu Patch where most everything was stunted... They never got big enough to bother taking home to eat.

Leeks have a two year life cycle... Hopefully they will grow some more before they start bolting this spring.

And here are the volunteer Elephant Garlics. I don't know why the leave are so yellow. Too cold? Too much rain? Don't know.

I look at the Lesser Celandine plot that they are trying to rehabilitate. *shakes head* They chopped it all down at the end of January, but didn't put the tarp back on. And sure enough, the Lesser Celandine is coming back.

*rolls eyes* I don't know what the hell they expected.

Plus they didn't hit the borders, so that's a mess too.

I notice there's a few patches of Lesser Celandine in other areas of the Community Garden. Maybe I should put in some volunteer time and dig that up and haul it out.

The Community Garden requires 2 hours of volunteer work every year, and digging up Lesser Celandine is what I traditionally do... Since it comes up in the late winter, no one else is really paying attention. And it's nice to work alone! :)

On the way home, I see the Hooded Merganser pair again.

Lookin' Good, Girl!

The sky is blue and the sun is shining, but it's still a couple degrees below freezing when I leave the house. brr.

But I think I've got energy enough to go up Hidden Trail for the first time this year! Yay Energy!!

I meet a small group of Wild Turkeys on my way up.

Haha! He jumped up on the walking bridge railing!!

... And jumped down again!

I decide to not go up to the Acorn Woodpecker territory and turn around at the top of the trail.

*laughs* there's a group of Bushtits bouncing around right over my head!

As I come back down the hill, I meet up with another Turkey and at first I wonder if he was the one I saw before.

But no. There's something wrong with this guy. I can't tell what, exactly, but there's something wrong with his face.

I sit quietly with him for a little while. I don't know what's going on, but it seems like the right thing to do.

It's not til I get home and look at the photos, that I realize how devastating his injury is. Ugh. He'll be dead in a day or two.

I am so sorry, buddy. Nature is cruel.

I'm going up Hidden Trail again because I don't want to traumatize myself by associating it with the dying Turkey I saw yesterday. Sighs.

Aw! Hello!

So Cute!

Bahaha! I like your sign!

Being so close to the deers makes me realize how tiny our native Black Tails are! The Internets say the females are about 100pounds, the males about 200pounds... These are all females. But those two smaller ones, in the first pic? I can't imagine they are over 75 or 80pounds.

Just interesting to think about.

The Deers move on and I keep going up the trail to meet the next group!

It's a bachelor band of Turkeys, and I look at them all carefully. None of them are injured. Good. I can relax.

I've noticed they've put up some new signs along the trail...

Haha, By Permission Only.

I was amused about a coincidence today...

I've been writing blog posts for the end of December, and so I'm referencing my journal entries from that time.

This little nugget was in the journal entry I'm looking at today:

∞ The Democratic Party's relationship with its voters has turned spammy and abusive

>>> Yeah, seriously... I could write a blog post about this!!

And surfing the internets today, I hit upon this little nugget with the exact same core:

∞ So The DCCC Called Me Up For Money, And I Apply Jiu Jitsu And Vent About The Democrats vs Trump.

It's just unbelievable to me that these idiots are STILL asking for money. After they got millions for the Harris campaign. That failed!

Dems are literally doing nothing while Trump and Musk chaotically dismantle the government, not to mention dismantling democracy itself!

And then I came across another article today that made me just start to rage...

∞ Democratic leaders are pissed voters want them to do their job
The outlet reports that a senior House Democrat told them that Jeffries is 'very frustrated' at activist groups like MoveOn and Indivisible that have helped concerned Americans make phone calls to congressional offices.... Democratic Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia, told the outlet [Axios] that his office has been rebuffing these callers, telling them, 'Please call the Republicans.'

UNFUCKING BELIEVABLE!

People are dying because of Trumps policies. DYING! People have _been_ dying from the first go around, when he radicalized the Supreme Court and they turned over Roe v Wade.

And people are going to die because of each and every one of the exec. orders that traitor has been signing since he became a dictator on day one.

People are DYING! and all the Dems have is Please call the Republicans??! WTF.

...

I am not a registered democrat. I'm registered as independent. And for this, for what has been going on with Dems sitting on their hands and doing nothing, barely even lip service... I will Never change over to democrat. I have had it up to here with these worthless Dems, who are NOT representing us. FUCK THEM!

And it's probably never going to matter. Because at the rate that things are going... we won't ever get to vote again, anyway.

...

*Deep Breath*

And so we must depend on ourselves. We can't trust those Dem bastards in D.C. They don't care about us and they don't have our backs.

We will have to take care of each other!

I woke up to a winter wonderland this morning! And I kinda wanted to go out right away to get photos of the snow! I was pretty sure the snow wasn't going to last, and it would be nothing but a few piles of slush by the time I got going for my regular walk.

But I've got stuff to do! I'm hosting a new swap series at Swap-Bot, and I want to make sure that's staying organized. And I'm still sorting photos for the blog posts I'm working on, and that takes extra time.

So my morning was full. But it turns out, the weather has stayed cold... it's still cloudy and just 30° (-1°C) when I head out. And the snow remains.

I've got my boots on and my layers! And the snow on the bike path isn't slick at all and is nice to walk on.

Ha! The snow is coming off the solar panels in sheets!

Do NOT walk under these! The sheet of snow falls randomly, and that would be an unpleasant surprise! *laughs*

Oh, nice! Someone has brought treats for the Brewer Blackbirds!

Aw, their little footprints in the snow!

heh... it must be several degrees warmer, down in the water!

And here comes the other Nutria, walking down the bank!

There are more Teals than usual on the creek today.

And I see my friends the Hooded Merganser pair as well.

On my way back, the Brewer Blackbirds are still hanging out in the same place.

The males are black with a sheen, while the females are brown with dark eyes.

Oh, haha! There's a Crow, coming in for a landing behind her! That's cool!

As I was getting back home, I realized I had not seen a single snowman, even tho the kids had a snow day from school.

And almost right as I had that thought, I saw one of my neighbors had a tiny snowperson right out front!

*laughs*

The snow will definitely melt this afternoon. The clouds will clear out and we've got a forecasted high of 39° (4°C).

The forecast for a warmer afternoon yesterday was entirely incorrect! The sun never made an appearance and it barely got a degree above freezing.

But today the sun shines and the snow melts! The dripping from the trees sounds like a heavy rain!

Oh wow...

I've noticed several small birds taking baths!

Ha. I was taking pics of this Flicker, but there's also a Starling, all but camouflaged!

Ha. Why do the birds have to be straight up? *laughs*

I was going to fix the colour on this House Finch, but I kind of like the stark blacks!

A pretty good bird day!!

I head out for my walk and oh my gosh... it is such a pleasure to walk in the NOT COLD!!! *laughs*

Oh hey! Sir Shy?

*laughs* Yep, definitely! He's not letting me get close!

He's flown to the tall nest box in the Community Garden...

And then he flies to one of the path lamps.

Something has caught his attention, and I pause a moment to see what happens.

He swoops down and POUNCES on someone in the shrubs next to the creek!

And then he flies back...

Ha, dang it. The Community Garden fence is in the way. But I don't think he's carrying anyone.

He goes to a different perch in the Garden...

And, yeah. He's not eating. So that pounce was a definite miss! He'll have to try, try again for his lunch!

I walk on.

And I'm still not over the Lenten Roses!

There was a little bit of rain this morning, but it didn't last long and when I head out for a walk it is a blissful 52° (11°C)!!

But when I get out on the path, oh sheesh! There's a lot of humans out here! *laughs* They are all enjoying the warm weather as well. And everyone I pass by has a sing-song Good Morning!

The birds are happy and singing as well.

Robins running around outside the Community Garden! The red dots in the background are rose hips of our native Nootka Roses, planted along the creek to stabilize the banks!

Robins are not a sign of spring around here... They are here year round!

Pretty good bird day, for all the Humans wandering around! :)

My New Years Resolution is to Declutter and Clean around the house. I was sickly with covid and resulting tiredness during January, but I've gotten my energy back and I've been trying to develop a new cleaning habit for myself!

I'm working for about 3 to 5 minutes every morning, before my coffee and right after my morning exercises. And I've decided to call this a Tiny-Clean!

I've started with the living room window.

Last year I had started cleaning the blinds. I've finished that up and now I'm cleaning the window frame and sills.

It's all absolutely gross...

Seriously... three minutes with the rag, and that's it! The rag is mostly black with guck and needs to be washed out! And my five minute Tiny-Clean is done!

And slowly but surely, every day, progress is made!

I am pretty happy with how this is going!!

I'm taking compost to the garden plot today. There's a bit of rain, but it's still nice and warm. 50° (10°C) when I leave the house.

Most of the cover crop Fava I planted in the front of the plot is starting to decompose.

The little Favas that survived the weeks of below freezing nights, are looking pretty rough. But hopefully I will get some seeds out of them in the spring.

I have a little walk about. Uh oh! I'm checking the west side neighbor for Lesser Celandine, and here's a bit growing.

In past years, there have been two clumps of Lesser Celandine growing on the far side of that plot. I don't know how many years I've been digging that up every Feb or March... but apparently I have finally murdered those clumps! Yay!

But now I'm bummed to find this new clump... still on the far side, but more towards the back of the plot. *grumble*

I will definitely need to bring my tools and get that thing murdered soon! I do NOT want Lesser Celandine in my plot, and this is a bit too close for comfort!

I double check the plot that was being rehabilitated from Lesser Celandine. Yeah, it's terrible... little plants coming back all over the place.

Why didn't they just put the tarp back on??? WHY??!

Well. Whatever. I'm heading back home.

Okay! I've got my little hand spade in my backpack, and some plastic bags. I'm going to murder some invasive Lesser Celandine at the Community Garden today!

On my way there, I hear a single frog singing at the back of Gudu-Kut Natural Area.

I stop and listen to him for a few minutes. I love our precious Pacific Chorus frogs!

Lesser Celandine is a cute little swamp plant, very pretty yellow flowers! They bloom so early in the year, the little pop of colour is actually welcome!

Until you realize that next February, the one clump will now be five or ten plants. And the February after that, your entire plot is covered with these damn things!

*laughs* So I dig them up! I'm pretty sure I'm the only one around at this time of year, and I'm happy to do my part for the Community Garden!

I'm just going around, checking people's plots. If there's a single plant, or a little scattering, I dig it out and put it and the dirt in the plastic bag.

Lesser Celandines have very small rootlet balls under them... they are pretty impossible to find, so you have to dig up some of the dirt around them.

And because of those rootlet balls, you can't put Lesser Celandine in the compost pile. They will just regrow and take over!

So you have to bag up the plants and dirt and put it in the landfill trash.

This is a limiting factor for me, since I'm walking... (The Community Garden does not have trash pick-up!) I fill up a small bag, which will just barely fit into my small backpack. But since the dirt is muddy, it gets heavy quickly. Which is why I don't use my big backpack!

Okay! The plastic bag is full, and I've come around to my neighbor's plot. This is the one plant that I really need to murder, since it's so close to my plot!

When I push aside the leaf mulch... Dang it! It's already trying to spread itself!

The plastic bag is so full, I can't completely zip up my backpack around it! It's heavy and it's lumpy! Bleh, uncomfortable walk home.

OH NO!

This used to be a covered bus stop with a bench! Oh, I am so sad!

The Transit District had stopped running buses on this route during the first year of covid, in 2020. And I guess it's never coming back. They've removed all the bus stops from the street, this is the last one they are working on.

I am so disappointed. Removal of bus stops is the beginning of the Decline and Fall of Civilization, I'm pretty sure.

Sighs.

And then Nature conspires to cheer me up!

Hi Solar Baby!

Hi Little Birds!

I see one of my Hooded Merganser friends... Huh! I couldn't tell what he was holding at first.

He's going downstream, like me, and I follow to see what's happening!

Oh! He's got a Crawdad! And he's desperately trying to eat him!!

How is that poor thing going to fit in your mouth, dude??

My friend paddles behind a bush, and I walk ahead to see him on the other side...

Wait. Aw, crud! I didn't see what happened!!

Did he just drop the Crawdad??

He must have!

Yeah.

And his girlfriend is here, so I walk on and contemplate the terrifying day the Crawdad has had. But at least he gets to live another day.

Kinda like we get to live another day even after shutting down bus stops for good.

Back at home, ha! I was making my lunch and noticed how pretty the purple cabbage is!

Partner eats cabbage, now and then, and the other day I decided to try it as well.

I've been cooking it with my Big Bowl of food. Yeah, that's okay.

But I really like it raw!

It's got a good crunch, that's a little bit different than the crunch you get from celery.

And mmm! Just that subtle sweet taste! It's good!

I wonder if I can grow some in the garden?

Oh! The Red Flowering Currants are starting to bud out!!

I get to the top of the trail and decide to walk on up to the Acorn Woodpecker's territory. Oh, nice... They've planted some saplings in the hell strips here!

And further up, they are paving more road and have started a new building. Sighs.

I hear the Acorn Woodpeckers, talking across their territory. And another one is gently hammering somewhere.

I also hear a ton of frogs singing! I walk across to get closer to the bioswale, and then realize there's a second bioswale a little further up, hidden behind a rise...

That's where all the frogs are, and the sound here is just incredible!

I don't want to get too close... I don't want the frogs to stop singing. But also, I don't want to accidentally step on anyone who might be in the grass.

There are just so many singing. And it's loud!

Major difference with the one or two frogs I hear occasionally along the creek.

Which makes me sad. Humans are destroying the frogs habitat along the creek... chemical run-off from lawns and roads, and the invasive Bullfrogs.

Humans have made this bioswale. But they are also making roads and houses up here as well. This will only be a temporary habitat for the Pacific Chorus Frogs... and then poisons from lawns and roads will get washed through here, too.

Sighs.

I made a video of the frogs singing. I need to figure out how to convert it so I can upload it here!

And then I'm heading back down the hill.

A Ruby Crown Kinglet... too bouncy to keep up with!

And at the bottom, going thru the neighborhood, there's a big group of female Wild Turkeys!

They've seen me of course, but they are not going to let me get in their way! They purposefully walk towards me, their destination is probably the forest at Hidden Trail!

As they walk by me, I notice how individual their faces are.

Most birds, you can't tell who's who just by looking! But these girls, you could get to know them more easily.

Well, except that there's just so many here! ha!

A good walk.

Good Morning My Dear!

The rest of the wildlife is not cooperating today.

*laughs* That's okay. Look at the plants! They can't fly away!

The seed heads above are Hardhack, a native that wildlife uses for food and habitat! The blooms are a cheerful pink in the summer.

And then I decided to go down and try to get some photos of the Snowdrops again.

And the Willows are starting to bud out! They look so soft and furry!

Heading out a different way today. It's been ages since I went out to Stewart Pond.

I'm walking thru the neighborhood, before getting out to the bike path.

There's a couple of Green Wing Teals at the creek.

And a group of them at the temporary wet prairie ponds at the park!

The males are doing their courtship display, with their cute whistle quack.

The ducks here are always too far away for decent photography, especially on a dreary day.

But the place does have it's own beauty!

I head towards the little forest. There's a few guys playing Frisbee Golf... when I swing around to the forest, I'm dismayed to see some players at the back holes.

This is an ecological sensitive area, and there are signs saying players shouldn't go back there during the winter! Pacific Chorus Frogs live in the ponds in the forest, and it's their breeding time! They do not want to be disturbed because a frisbee has landed in their pond, and there's a stupid human wading in to retrieve it!!

When the guys see me approaching, they quit and take their packs of frisbees back to the front holes. Good. I wasn't going to yell at them or anything, but they've definitely ruined my walk.

There aren't any birds in the little forest. And no frogs singing either. Sighs.

On the way home, I stop to check out the Little Free Pantry.

I'm so glad they restored the original art on it! It's beautiful! I love the crow!

Rained all night and still it rains.

That's fine, except I need to put a package in the blue mailbox at the Post Office... my backpack isn't waterproof and the package, a 9x12 flat rate, is larger than a ziplock. Ha, I have to put the package in a trash bag to make sure it stays dry!

Oh, Madam Flicker? Your shafts are showing!

*laughs* She must be molting. It's funny that our western Flickers are called Red Shafted, when that is clearly a shade of orange!

Yep... that's what I thought. The bike path is flooded here, under the bridge.

I'm zig zagging thru the neighborhoods on the way home, and go by Gudu-Kut Natural Area. Gudu-Kut is the Kalapuyan name for frog... but I don't hear any singing today.

But there are some Mallards here, enjoying the wet prairie puddles.

Still with the rain, today. But now we've added some wind. The weather page said it was 5mph when I left... but the wind speed picked up dramatically while I was walking!

And now we've got a wind advisory. 25mph with 31mph gusts!

Bleh. Stupid wind. I have to wipe off the camera lens several times along the walk today.

When I walk by the back of Gudu-Kut, I can hear several frogs singing! Yay!

I'm dropping off compost at the garden... oh my gosh! My Crocuses!

I look around... oh crud... there's more Lesser Celandine coming up at the back of the west neighbor's plot.

And I find a couple more places where it's popping up.

bah. I want to murder it... but I don't want to do garden work in the rain and mud. I wonder when this mess will have the chance to dry out.

humph. But then I get distracted by this beautiful Beet plant!!

I wasn't sure if I wanted to show this photo... It's pretty personal. But it amuses me and delights me so much!

This is part of my work space.

I'm listening to the Bob Ross Remix, I love that song! and I decided to take a photo... Bob Ross is painting on my monitor and my Grandma's Bob Ross Style painting is hanging on the wall!

I am a bit grumpy this morning about my new Tiny-Clean habit.

I am working on the living room window for 5minutes, and then when I go for the second cup of coffee, I work on the pantry door for 5minutes.

But I'm almost finished with the window, and it's harder to see the results when I'm down to the details. Maybe I should stop and move on to something else... the window looks a lot better, and it doesn't have to be perfect!

It can't be perfect, actually. The building is old and the paint job before we moved in was... excessively rushed.

...

Yeah, don't even get me started!

Like I said. Grumpy. So let's head out and get some happy nature time!

oh! A cute tiny fly! Hello Friend!

ha, she's been preening and has feather fluff on her beak!

This is a temporary wet prairie pond... and the prairie is thinking about taking over, even with all the rain we've gotten!! All the green grassy things are Camas Lily leaves!!

When I get home, I have renewed energy! I pull out my journal pages... ugh what a mess. And I get them organized.

All sorted and the pouches are neatly labeled!

And the place where I keep the journal pages, is suddenly much easier to deal with! Yay!

After being all grumpy about the Tiny-Clean I'm doing on the living room window... yep, I've decided to move on. Today I started on the porch room by cleaning a single porch door blind. That took 5minutes and I'm done.

And when I came for the second cup of coffee, I looked over and noticed the kitchen window was a little bit dirty. So, I got my rag and got to work.

I wiped down the glass and started cleaning the frame. It's like I can't stop myself!!! Tiny-Cleans are SO AWESOME!!!

*laughs*

I head out for a walk... but foo. I have walked pretty far and I'm just not connecting with any birds. And such a nice, bright day! Humph.

Huh. I've not noticed this before...

I wonder how many years it's been here. The hole is big enough for a Flicker. Did someone raise a family here?

Hm. I wonder what caused the crinkling on the petals?

*laughs* So many unanswered questions today.

Another blue sky day, and I've got some extra walking time so I'm heading towards the downtown neighborhoods!

And check this out!! A bunch of new sapling have been planted in three neighbors yards!

That's awesome!

The signs say: Friends of Trees, Because Trees make this place, Find your tree at FriendsOfTrees.org.

All three yards have the same sign, and Friends of Trees is local to the Pacific Northwest, with offices in Portland and Eugene. A pretty active group, it looks like! That's great!

But then I get distracted by some Crocuses!

*laughs* I am such a sucker for the pretty flowers!

Okay. I'll stop! But they're so pretty!

Back to the bike path!

There's a Ruby Crown Kinglet bouncing around, and I try a few Point and Clicks to see if I can get him.

*laughs* AllAboutBirds says they are are restless, acrobatic birds Ha!

Oh, that female Kingfisher flew by me... I've not seen her in weeks. And she's still quiet, not announcing her territory.

I guess that means she's still not found a new mate. Sighs. Poor girl. I am so sad for her.

Ha. I was preoccupied when I left the house this morning. I should have walked in a different direction, for something new... but since my brain was distracted, my feet just walked in the usual direction!

I didn't have very good aim for the point and click at this Ruby Crown Kinglet! *laughs*

Am I getting tired of looking at Crocuses yet? No.

Okay! Here's something different! Cherry Blossoms!

I love the colour of that privacy fence!!

Moving on... to some Red Flowering Currants!!

Well, these flowers need a couple more days to open up before they get really pretty.

And then this freaked me out! I thought something was wrong!!

But I just happened to catch her sunning! Basking in the sun!!

She saw me, but it was a few long seconds before she did anything! Eventually she rousted her feathers back into position and then flew away!

Here's a Great video with a bunch of eastern birds doing this.

∞ Sunning Birds and Why They Do It

And the title image is a Blue Jay with the exact same feather floof at their lower back! Turns out birds have a gland right there which makes oils to be spread on their feathers! huh!

The sunning birds... look really weird! But it's perfectly normal and they are happy birds!

So I'm glad that I walked this way, after all! I did see something different, and now I've learned something!

∞ President Zelenskyy says Ukraine won't enter peace talks with Russia until it has security guarantees

The show Felon45 put on here is absolutely disgusting.

I am so pissed! Fuck Trump. You do NOT disrespect President Z. Ever!

President Zelenskyy did the right thing by walking out.

It's just gross. President Z should not have bothered coming to Washington DC to talk face to face with our stupid dictator... and honestly, I hope other world leaders pick up that lesson as well!

I was happy to see this, tho, at the end of the article:

European leaders were quick to reiterate their support for Zelenskyy and Ukraine. In a post on X, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said Zelenskyy's dignity honors the bravery of the Ukrainian people. Be strong, be brave, be fearless, she added. You are never alone, dear President.

Good.

President Zelenskyy is a hero. The American people support President Zelenskyy and Ukraine, regardless of our idiot dictator.

And to try to set things right, I've donated directly to the Ukraine government here...

∞ United24, Ukraine