Natural Musings

My Cousin Paul

My maternal grandparents produced six children and those children produced 15 grandchildren. I was the second oldest of the batch and have fond memories of big Thanksgiving dinners with all the aunts and uncles and cousins. I remember good food and laughter. Thanksgiving was the main time I got to see them all, since we lived in a different part of Texas.

As time has moved on, some have passed. I think there are a dozen of us left on this earth. We are an eclectic bunch, but there are threads of interests and occupations that either have a genetic component or were just picked up from our parents or grandparents: car afficionados (collectors of cars and sellers of cars); gardeners; seamstresses; teachers; artists; writers; chefs; kayakers; dirt bikers; diplomats; beer lovers; moms; pops; animal lovers; travelers; musicians; computer programmers; photographers…

My grandfather took lots of slides of family and places he and grandma traveled. I remember long slide shows where we enjoyed seeing each other projected on the dining room wall. One of my uncles also took lots of photos, mostly with slide film too. Grandma and grandpa gave me my first little camera when I was eight years old and I was hooked. As the years went by I took thousands of photos. Not so great at first…I got better as I studied photography as an adult at the local community college. I have used many of my photos to illustrate my blog pieces throughout the years.

My cousin Paul is also a photographer. He worked many years as a biologist for the Navy. His travels gave him the opportunity to take photos of many places and the creatures who inhabited those places. He recently retired and has set up an online shop to show off his wonderful photos and sell prints of them. Here is a photo I recently bought:

Paul’s photo of a ruby crowned kinglet showing his ruby crown. This is an 8X10 inch print that I got a frame for. Here is another shot of the photo on my dining room wall.

I love how the background foliage accentuates the bird’s crown color.

His website has more great photos of birds and other critters, plus some wonderful waterfall pics.

Please check out his website at:

noplanetbphotography.pixieset.com

And may your day be filled with small joys!

It Is Raining Cats And Dogs

The yapping sound brought me to the window.

The poodles came first, their fluffy bodies cushioning their falls. And then I saw dachshunds…the lucky ones landing on the poodles. The unlucky ones were snatched up by the dog catcher and taken to vets, or put down on the spot.

People were shouting and crying. It was heartrending.

The cats were last. Many of them managed to land in trees or on roofs.

So, that is how I acquired my little family here: Fifi, Fifi #2, Fifi #3…I just call them two and three. Then, this is Dash. Zach and Zorro are out back. Ooh! This sweetie who just jumped on my lap is Catherine, and those three sleeping on the couch…Bernie, Bernice, and Troy.

I still get nervous when the forecast calls for rain.

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*This was written a few years back to an online class prompt. The prompt being “It is raining cats and dogs.” While going through some piles of papers recently I came across this little piece. We have a real need for rain right now and got teased with a few drops yesterday. Anyway, I thought it would be fun to share.

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Lost and Found

“The best laid plans of mice and men aft gang agly”….my mother’s often spoken version of a bit of Robert Burns 1785 poem “To a Mouse.” (check out link to original words at end of post)

It is Monday August 31st and I have felt extreme fatigue since Saturday the 29th. Took a covid test a bit ago and it turned up negative. I have lost my energy and here it is at the end of the month and my blog deadline. So, here I go with a slightly muddled brain.

When Dolly Parton died last week I cried off and on throughout the day as I watched news reports. My strong reaction surprised me. I have always been a fan of hers, but her passing is a gut punch ( I hate that phrase, but can’t think of anything more appropriate).

Other losses this past week that have brought tears and anger. The horrific flooding in Nepal brought the tears and the beginning desecration and destruction of Big Bend National Park brought the anger.

I like to be an optimist and look for the good in the world and so that is what I am doing. Amidst the world’s woes and personal stress I take pleasure in the other bits of life that bring us positive energy. So, here are a few found joys:

Toad in our pond. I had about given up on ever seeing one again when one evening I heard a male calling. This went on for 3 nights and then in the morning I found strings of eggs in our pond and this sweetie nearby (momma toad?). Others who have come back after months are the owls. One night I heard a barred owl and the next night I heard a screech owl. Saw a giant luna moth on the back porch and yellow warblers in our trees. These all lift my spirit.

Katydid on Beauty Berry Bush….love the color contrast!

Mexican Petunia from behind

Swallowtail wing underneath

Swallowtail wing top

Cicada emerging from old skin

I am hoping that is me in a few days after shedding this virus and feeling my energy again!

May you find many small joys each day

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/43816/to-a-mouse-56d222ab36e33

Reflections

A memory from my childhood: Two five year old girls on the sidewalk of a city in the southern United States. Both are wearing shorts and summer tops. One has short blonde hair and fair skin and is standing watching her friend trying to fix her bike chain. This little girl has a full head of curly red hair and is crouching down trying to position the chain on the gears. She tells the other girl to hold the foot pedal still while she adjusts the chain, and to not move the foot pedal. The little girl being told this went ahead and did it anyway. She pushed on the pedal and the little red haired girl screamed and jumped up with a mauled bloody fingernail. They rushed to the other girl’s nearby home where the momma doctored the injured finger.

This story is about myself and my very best friend, Vicki. Guess which one moved the pedal after being told not to? Yes, it was me. I have regretted that action ever since. I don’t know why I was being defiant. I was only 5. It did teach me a lesson about impulse and thinking things through. I think I probably apologized and that we remained friends…at least until we turned 6 and I moved to another state.

Vicki, I hope you forgive me and know that I learned a lesson.

Why am I writing about this now? Well, in the past month I have had the reccurring urge to go to Washington, D. C. and go to the reflecting pool and stick my finger in the water. Not that I could at the moment, because it has been drained for repair. But, after the recent renovations came apart (sabotage or not) I know that at least one person was charged with damaging it. I think the case is still pending. He pleaded innocent. People were being blamed for damaging the pool and I even saw a video of a female tourist sticking her hand in it and maybe taking a souvenir piece of the weird blue lining.

i never would have gone up there and stuck my finger in the pool. I can easily fantasize the consequences and I don’t want to go to jail for acting on a silly urge.

I did share my urge on Facebook after my cousin L. shared something about how someone should go there and taunt the ones in charge by standing by the pool with a finger near the water and saying “Look! I am not touching it!” in a teasing way. Seeing the sharing of my urge on Facebook, my Aunt J. called me and left a hard to hear message on my phone. All I could make out was “…putting your finger in the reflecting pool…”. So, I called Aunt J. back and we had a good catch up chat. She pointed out the fact that the reflecting pool did not need a blue liner…the whole idea of the blue color comes from the reflection of the sky in the water. Thank you Aunt J!

Here are 2 photos I took from the Lincoln Memorial of the Washington Monument and blue sky in the Reflecting Pool over ten years ago.

Letter To My Backyard

Dear Backyard,

Happy 28th Birthday!

Thank you for all you hold,

the bur oak,

towering over half your green lawn,

squirrels at feeders,

birds perching and waiting their turn.

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I see before me

the rail fence my husband built,

now covered in a vine of purple morning glories,

piles of limestone rocks awaiting a project,

a hummingbird visiting the blooming red Turk’s cap,

and little green lizards in a mating embrace.

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Thank you for all I see in my mind’s eye:

a swing set and a sandbox,

a sweating teenage son digging the hole,

where the pecan tree will go,

another, younger son pulling baby sister through the grass in a red flyer wagon,

past the cactus garden, and around again.

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Grandma, blindfolded, swinging a bat at a star shaped birthday pinata,

the laughter of friends chugging beers and

dodging smoke from the grill,

while lights fly from 4th of July sparklers

in the hands of kids, arms stretched to the limit.

And generations of dogs running in the grass.

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Thank you for giving me retreat

under January’s cold stars,

long ago,

after a spousal tiff,

with only you and the cat on my lap as a witness,

as I dried my tears and cooled down.

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You are our creation,

full of colorful plantings, love, memories.

And we are your creation.

Thank you for all you hold and

thank you for giving us space to grow.

With Gratitude, Betty

Dove On Hand Built Cedar Rail Fence And Blooming Turk’s Caps

(photos by B. McCreary)

A Photo And A Poem

My Places

My place is on the couch,

glass of merlot in hand,

ready for the catharsis

of a Lifetime movie

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My place is in the voting booth

the paper ballot in the slot,

my tiny voice a part

of the process

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My place is behind the lens

focusing close,

on birds and bugs,

as the purple morning glory climbs nearby

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My place is on the path,

each step bringing

wonder and wisdom,

moving forward in life

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My best place is beside you,

both in our porch chairs,

coffee cups empty,

reminiscing and planning

Illusions

Just a few things seen recently…

A little Animal (Bat?) nestled at base of Cypress tree

These hearts were scratched into the path from the parking lot to the entrance of The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. Just seeing them made me smile.

Wishing you small joys and smiles today and everyday

To Weed, Or Not To Weed…That Is The Question

Our backyard is an eclectic collection of growing things. There are our natives, the giant Bur Oak, delicate Redbud trees, and various bushes and flowers. And there are our non-native plants like the Crepe Myrtles and the Rose of Sharon bush…both of these are part of my late mother’s legacy. Part of me wants to go totally native in our yard plants, but I don’t want to get rid of the ones I got from my mom.

And my husband enjoys having a yard of grass to mow. Our grass is a combo of native buffalo grass and St. Augustine. We planted the buffalo grass. The St. Augustine has migrated from a neighbor’s yard and now covers much of the yard…except for various weeds.

Weed- “a plant that is not valued where it is growing”-Webster’s Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary

In late winter the Dandelion and Sow Thistle flowers are often the only thing blooming and are a source of food for bees and numerous other insects. So, I like to let them be.

Unknown Type Of Insect On Dandelion Flower

My husband and I “consult” on what can be mown and what I want to let grow. Something new this year are the little red flags placed around areas I want let alone, mostly the bunches of native purple Spiderworts that are all over now. They are descendants of a couple of plants my mother gave us years ago. I have written here before about how wonderful it is to see them come up each year, a part of her legacy that lessens my lingering grief.

Anyway, beyond the red flag areas, my husband had some other plants to ask me about. One was an old Sow Thistle plant. It is growing just off our back porch in the path of our brick walkway causing us to step around it. Seeing that the flowers were gone, and it having gone to seed, I said “Sure, go ahead and mow it down.”

I was thinking that having lost it’s flowers it had lost it’s usefulness.

We had the mowing conversation while sitting on the porch enjoying a warm February day. The upcoming mowing would be the first of the season.

Suddenly, a little bird landed on the plant in question.

Okay…So, I had forgotten about birds liking the seeds. The plant would stay for awhile longer in our yard as a nice little food source for these critters. And the plus here is that we were only about 6 feet away from this little guy and got to enjoy his beauty.

Here is another weed shot:

Can you imagine never, ever getting to pucker up and blow this bundle of seed heads off into the sky, maybe making a wish as you do?

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All photos by B. McCreary

Sources:

Southwestern and Texas Wildflowers – Peterson Field Guide-Niehaus/Ripper/Savage

Wildflowers of Texas by Geyata Ajilvsgi

Weeds-A Golden Guide by Alexander C. Martin

Scene Change

No real subject this month. Just some pretty photos from a trip to the coast in January. So grateful to be able to get down there at least once a year and enjoy the critters and scenery that I can’t experience in my home town.

We stayed at a new place called The Lighthouse Inn at Aransas Bay in Rockport. I recommend it. There is a restaurant on property and at least 2 more within walking distance. The grounds are nice, with a covered pier for fishing or just enjoying some relaxation by the bay.

Brown Pelicans Near Fishing pier at The Lighthouse Inn

We saw dolphins in the water, but I didn’t get photos.

Besides a change of scenery, our main objective of this trip was to see the Whooping Cranes that winter along the coast. They arrive in November and leave in March, so January is a perfect time to look for them. The following photos are from an area just outside of Goose Island State Park.

Whooping Cranes, Sandhill Cranes, and Others on private property near the bay and Goose Island State Park

The water in the bay was down and these birds were on a sand spit. This is the closest I have ever been to the Whoopers.

Whooping Crane Family On Sand Spit In Bay Across Road From Private Property With The Other Whoopers

Some people travel the world to see specific birds. I am lucky to have to only drive 191 miles to see these once endangered birds.

Go to this site for more info on the cranes:

https://www.fws.gov/species/whooping-crane-grus-americana

All photos by B. McCreary

What Stuff Are

“Why are you up so early, before everyone else in the family?” A young mom says to her 3 year old.

The 3 year old replies: “To See What Stuff Are!”

This was told to me by my mother many times throughout my life. I was a curious child and continued wanting to know what was going on around me. What were mommy and daddy doing when I was not around? I can remember sneaking out of bed and watching t.v. with them ( I was undetected behind a chair!). Maybe it was/is a sort of “fear of being left out.”

When I was 8 my maternal grandparents gave me a transistor radio. I listened to music and news and talk radio. I remember being at a sleepover at a friend’s. We were in a tent in her backyard and she was sleeping and I was listening to my little radio with an earpiece. I found the Christian radio programs being broadcast from over the border in Mexico. Hell fire and damnation sermons that fascinated me and were so different from my Unitarian church services. Hey, I could even send in some money and buy a piece of the cross Jesus was crucified on…not sure I am remembering that correctly.

As I grew older I wanted to know what was going on in other places. My brother and I got walkie talkies. I was excited to learn that not only could we talk to each other from the next street, we could pick up some police radio chatter! This is how I learned that someone was shooting people from the University of Texas tower. I went into the house and told my mother and some visiting friends what was happening. We turned on the t.v. and watched a live photo of the tower.

A year or two later we were visiting some friends of friends. The dad of the family introduced us kids to a shortwave radio. So cool! We could hear people talking all over the world. I wanted one and finally got one at Christmas or on a birthday. I would spend an hour or two tuning the dial. I would hear ham operators chatting with each other, morse code…which I briefly attempted to learn…and broadcast channels like the Voice Of America, Radio HCJB from Ecuador, and Radio Havana, Cuba. I listened to all sorts of languages, often having no clue to what language it was.

I got rid of my last shortwave radio about the time it could be accessed over the internet. And then only checked out the stations a few times. I have no idea how to do that now. Instead, I have discovered live streaming on You Tube! Lately, I have spent a lot of time checking out a few regular feeds to watch the anti ICE protests in U. S. cities. One or two of the reporters seem to be unbiased journalists. Others are pretty open on their point of view. I mostly watch the liberal leaning ones, but sometimes check out the right wing feeds.

Imagine a bear in a cave, supposedly hibernating, but actually watching You Tube on her Ipad…that is me. Last night I was up late watching a fire someone had set near a detention center in Los Angeles. But, I can only stand so much of people chanting and yelling F*** ICE and watching people being dragged from cars or houses and being shot.

So, I tune into live bird and animal feeder streams from all over the world. I have watched live (and sometimes old clips) views of jackals and gnus at a watering hole in Namibia; hummingbirds in Costa Rica; Pandas in China (in captivity); badgers in Denmark; and birds coming to snow covered feeders in upstate New York and Canada.

A recent discovery is live feeders in South Texas and in South Carolina.

You Tube Feed South Carolina-Deer and Raccoon

Raccoon, Armadillos, and Opossum (in background) -South Carolina

Javelina, Skunk, Raccoon, and Opossum-South Texas Feeder

I have seen some tussling (usually within the same species) and growling and other threatening behavior between species. But, mostly they are feeding right next to each other…aware of their differences…but tolerating each other as they eat. I know these feeders do not replicate their lives in the wild…but it does make me think that maybe different people can get along better and even be kind to each other and share resources…?

Meanwhile, I will go check out videos of the venerable Monks and their Walk for Peace day 98.

*photos taken off You Tube from my Ipad

*Teenager with head down taken by Barbara Downes

Youtube.com

South Carolina Crittervision Critter Cam: Do a search for this on Youtube…I think this is going 24/7

Blue Indigo Trails Camera in South Texas-do a search on Youtube.com…they may only be streaming at night

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