Tuesday, February 23, 2010

Bluebirds

 Mountain Bluebirds (Sialia currucoides)

I cracked the door open and tried out my new Panasonic Lumix DMC-FZ35 (on automatic) today. That phrase is really a mouth full.  Can't believe bluebirds were right here drinking water.  That's a first as far as I know.  I called everyone to the kitchen window (that would be all three of us) and we watched about half a dozen of them all round the water dish.  They're sure flighty little things though.  And so blue! We've seen a flock of 25 or so around here occasionally.  One day a long time ago I tried to follow them with my telephoto, but they were not very still and all I got were blurry shots. I was surprised that the whole time I was concentrating on shooting the bluebirds the Northern Flicker was at my feet.  Unbelievable.  I didn't notice him till he flapped his big wings and flew away.  Shucks.  The cashier guy in automotive at Wal-Mart calls Northern Flickers "woodpeckers on steroids" because they're so big.  Sometimes I'm surprised at the people who know about birds.  I used to laugh at birdwatchers.  I thought birdwatching was completely doofus and felt sorry for the poor people who were reduced to watching birds for recreation.  Little did I know I was the doofus for not knowing how much fun and how rewarding bird watching and identification is.

Son finished 7th grade grammar today.  He got an 84% on the semester final.  He's pretty pleased that he finished way before June.  Now we can double up on history. 

We have a mean horse next door to our baby Bella and she has nipped Bella two times; once on the neck and once on the rump.  Now she has two spots with fur missing.  Her coat is long enough to cover it, but I'm buying some salve to hopefully help the hair grow back well.  The other horse is Dancer and she's gonna have a foal in March.  She reaches her neck over the fence to bite and is quite a mean horse.  I hope she'll be moved soon.  She's mean to all the other horses, not only Bella.

7 comments:

April said...

When I lived in my little house in Decatur, Georgia and was as poor as a church mouse, my cat Mesa and I used to love feeding and watching the birds right outside our living room window (well, Mesa loved watching, but I'm not so sure about the feeding part). I got so into feeding the birds that I bought a little book on bird food recipes and started making suet and peanut butter treats and stuffing them into holes in the trees and hanging cages, etc. So many birds came and after awhile if I was late getting the food out, they'd sit there all impatient until I appeared. Some wouldn't leave and just watch me fill the feeders and toss seeds on the ground. The tufted titmouses got very close because they were just so curious (and hungry?). I loved watching the birds and their antics and how they interacted with each other. I had an old book of my father's that let me identify them. I'm glad you're enjoying the birds there, Lil. Those bluebirds are gorgeous.

And boo on the mean horse. You need to give that one a good talking to!

Oh yes; congrats on the new camera! What fun. :)

SchnauzerMom said...

I'm glad you're having fun with your new camera. Those birds are beautiful. I love to watch birds too, don't know much about breeds though.

Unknown said...

What beautiful birds! We used to see bluebirds all the time where we used to live, but I haven't seen them at all where we are now. I miss seeing them. So sorry about the mean horse :(. Bad horse! Bad!

Anonymous said...

Liliana, I haven't visited your blog for a long time. I see you are just as adorably funny as ever!

Ah, Flickers... I wish you could come here and see the Flickers. They are a hobby for my husband. He built a fancy house high up on a pole and last year a Flicker couple chose it for their nest. All I ever saw of the babies was their little heads sticking out of the hole when they were almost ready to fly. They are noisy little birds! Then one day it was quiet and I realized that they left the nest before I woke up. So I never got to see the babies. :(

This year there are Flickers again, pecking away at the wooden covering over the hole. I hope they'll stay again. They didn't the year before last. I love to hear their haunting calls.

The bluebirds are so beautiful! We don't have them here. We've seen a few Lazuli Buntings, though. :)

Liliana said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Liliana said...

Hi Sabine! I'm funny? I didn't know that. I don't feel funny in my mind.

Well. I was thinking of you just the other day. See, I *willed* you to visit my blog. I did it with the power of my mind. lol. I was thinking of sewing that skirt pattern again and it made me think of you. How lucky you are to have a Flicker couple nearby. I didn't even know what they were till this year. I am hoping the couple near us will make babies. That'd be something. It's so nice of you to drop in. Don't forget me. Come again. Happy Easter!

(I had to redo this for typos.)

Anonymous said...

Indeed? So you have excellent mental powers, too. LOL.

I still haven't sewn that skirt. It takes so much fabric! I think it would look better on me if I shaped the gores to fit me in the waist and hips and inserted a zipper. Otherwise, the fabric would have to be very thin, to avoid a bulky waist.