Welcome to 2018

I just want to say, to start off with, that I am so glad I am around to learn new things. 

I wondered why I have not seen any raccoons and few possums on my 

game cams the last two weeks... and thought to myself 

that they may hibernate, and I had never noticed it before.  

Well, guess what, I thought to ask Friend Jill, who is a vet 

tech and a naturalist, herself.... and she told me that they 

do go into a sort of hibernation in the extreme cold, 

denning with other raccoons, and maintaining just enough 

body function to keep on living.  Since we are in this bitter cold 

spell along with seemingly the REST of the nation... no wonder. 

I did some reading about it, and it is fascinating.  This alone (along 

with all the other nature-watching I am doing) has made it worth moving

back to Calamity Acres. 

However, there have been some visitations to the deck, and two 

have made me happy. 

Whoops!  That's not a raccoon!

That's Jester yesterday morning, pausing on the deck for a 

second.  

This made me happy.... darn the long extension that 

I cannot get to lay down, it powers the bird water basin on the deck...but 

that shadowy cat behind it is the grey tabby feral that I have not 

seen in months.  My neighbors at the bottom of the pasture feed ferals, 

and also, my neighbors across the road.  I am glad to know he is still alive. 

There is Spooky, he has grown into a beautiful cat... remember, the 

Feral Four were already vetted and neutered when I got them. 

You will have to double-click and enlargen the picture to see this one. 

That's Harlequin, who has been missing from the henhouse for the past week. 

See the white under the neck?  I saw her the night before on the cam, 

very fleetingly. 

At least I know she is alive in this bitter cold.  I have straw 

in all the outbuildings.... hopefully she has bedded down somewhere. 

Ferdinand and his ladies like the heated dog bowl on the deck, too. 

We have all been doing a lot of this. 

Yesterday, I saw this at the foot of the pasture as I was getting ready to 

leave to get some milk. 

Here is a closer-up picture, taken with my long lens.  

I suspect the larger of the two is the female, on the right. 

They look like red-shouldered hawks, from a distance. 

So far, they have left the hens alone. 

The beautiful Wolf Moon... and I need to 

seriously start using my cameras again and LEARNING about them. 

Here is something I never thought I would see again.  Lilly Ann, 

just now laying on the big bed, I did not think she could still get up 

there, so I know she is feeling good today!  She can watch out the windows towards the gate, and see who is going up and down the road.  It made my heart happy for her. 

Stay warm, everyone, we still have a few more days of coping with this 

stuff. 

WINTER IS SO FUN. 

For the Last Week

Our new kitty, Sister, has come up out of the basement and joined the family. 

We all sit together in the evening and watch tv... and Sister sleeps at 

the foot of my bed.  Jester sleeps next to me... Bed Hog.... and Lilly sleeps in the 

doorway until early in the morning and then jumps up with the rest of us. 

This cat has brought so much happiness into my life, Keith loved cats, and he would have 

loved Sister.  I found her, you remember, at the hospital parking lot during his last stay. 

Friend Jill is convinced she is his spirit animal. 

I am not so sure she is not. 

I am seeing this redtail regularly now at 155th and Fairmount.... it is a very dangerous road to stop on, so I have to hurry when I snap a picture of it. 

Here is one of my favorite shots, taken on the 12th... Stranger Creek at the bluffs on Leavenworth Road.  I stopped on the way to church that night.  I'll have another shot of this later. 

I took this on the way home that night, it was so beautiful... the supermoon rising.  See the hawk on the pole on the right? 

Here is what was interesting... I was standing under another hawk, taking the pictures.  Usually, they do not hunt so closely. 

This makes me laugh every time I drive by.  You see, the deer was the very first thing in the tree, why, oh, why did I not get a picture of it?  These folks decorate every year, they bring a cherry picker in to do the top of the tree.  The deer now has a red glowing nose on him, they are very creative. 

The begonia is still blooming in the window of the tv room. 

I have visitors on the back deck again, and have been enjoying watching them. 

Now, here is the same scene I showed you above of Stranger Creek. 

I took this Saturday afternoon on my way to church. 

The chair was over to the left in this picture.  I saw no one around... and no cars around.  

I don't like to be in a place where someone can sneak up on me, so.. I got back in the car and left. 

Interesting, it might be a photographer who is being patient to get his shots. 

This was the park Saturday afternoon... today was a much gloomier picture, we have heavy clouds and expect rain tomorrow.  We need it! 

This is gomphrena at the Ag Hall.  They kindly agreed to let me get some seeds today, so I am going to plant some next year.  I think this is Strawberry Fields, but I am not sure. 

White gomphrena.  I got some seeds of this, too. 

Our girl Lil has found a place where something is living below ground, and she heads there everytime we go out the front door. 

Jester was with us too, we were on our way to the park. 

Tomorrow, we go see Dr. Tom for a pawdicure.  I suspect we are not going to get our walk 

at the park because of rain. 

These Last Few Days

I usually go to the Ag after I drop Keith off at dialysis on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays. 

Friday morning, the geese were back.  The Renaissance Festival is right next 

door to us, and for six weeks after Labor Day, we have a cannon booming as they 

open and close.  The wild animals don't like it.  I don't like it. 

The geese have been away, so I was glad to see these four on Friday. 

This guy was back at the vet on Friday afternoon.  He has a badly infected ear (his right) and 

eye infection in both eyes, so we are treating both. 

He is doing okay, but we may have to get more ear meds. 

You know I love the Beatles.  I went with a good friend on Saturday night to see the Liverpool Legends at the Topeka Performing Arts Center.  Keith and I have been to several concerts there, it is a wonderful small venue.  Louise Harrison, the 85 year old sister of George Harrison, manages this group, and they have a residency in Branson.  They also sponsor a program to keep music alive in high schools, and they work with master classes with local schools in each town where they sing. 

Hayden High School was the high school for Topeka, and the band played the orchestral parts to numerous Beatle's hits in the second half.  It was wonderful. 

A snippet of "Revolution" without the band, sorry: 

We drove home through a terrible rainstorm, and it was heart-in-the-throat time. 

The jelly feeder had water in it from the rain, but look whom I saw 

drinking from it! 

I actually saw this for two days running, but.... temps are dropping here, 

and today there was a lone hummingbird left. 

On the way to the park Sunday afternoon, we saw this little guy with a big burden. 

Remember our llamas? 

Some new neighbors have moved into the neighborhood, about 12 of them! 

Uh Huh. 

It was raining when I passed the bluffs on Sunday morning on the way to church. 

I missed the most beautiful shot... an egret was winging it's way through the canyon of the creek, and I could not get the camera up before it went around the bend.   

You see the leaves are beginning to change. 

Sunday's sunset almost hurt to watch. 

Yellow and blue always go well together! 

The dogs resign themselves when I jump out of the car.

There goes Big Daddy into the pond. 

And my favorite calf. 

I think this is probably The Last One. 

I'll be surprised if I see him tomorrow. 

This one will be around for a while. 

One Last Picture

I thought you all would get a kick out of this. 

I 

Jester really picked up being a good traveler over the five days we were 

gone last weekend. 

On Monday morning, he knew I was loading the car again, as I kept leaving the room. 

(the bed was like a throne)

He knew we were about to hit the road. 

One last pee pee in Iowa, and we were on the way home!  

And seeing our beautiful Lilly, who came to greet us as we came in the door. 

So, since Monday, we have had several days too hot to walk, but we 

did manage today and Tuesday.  The problem is, when 

it's so hot... the animals are hiding in the shade. 

We are back to the land where gas is more reasonably priced... 

we paid 2.64 a gallon in Indiana. 

Back to geraniums blooming on the deck, and the herbs coming up well.  

Keith took good care of them while I was gone. 

Flowers are blooming in the in-ground garden, too. 

Yes, I have some cleaning up to do in this bed. 

Love how the ear tags are all lined up :-) These are the mamas from the little pasture pond. 

Their babies were out of the picture to the right, under the shade of a tree. 

I did get one hawk.  

And the back of a rock pigeon that was just beautiful in the sun, at the dump. 

(Recycle station) 

There were geese on the pit-pond at the dump, too. 

But this is the picture I was so glad to get! 

It's a quail, and I had to snap a bunch to get a decently clear one, because if I open the car door, they are up and away.  I finally got her to hold still long enough!