Steve`s Country
For a smile as wide as a country sunrise
Waiting For…
Hello everyone! The days are getting longer. And colder. But that’s the way it always works. In this part of the country at least. Hard to believe that 1700 miles north it is warmer than here. Out west they are basking in beautifully warm temps. We freeze.
Sigh. But it will likely warm up soon. In a couple months. At least then we can look forward to warmer weather coming soon. I hope.
Ice Crystals
This morning it was very foggy. But it left the trees covered in frost. Looked absolutely beautiful. And as the sun rose and shone on the trees, the frost began falling. Millions of very tiny crystals of ice, sparkling like diamonds as they floated to the ground. Or rather, to the snow. If it wasn’t so cold I could have enjoyed it more. And perhaps gotten some nice pics.
Poor Birds
They don’t seem to be enjoying this cold. Don’t blame them. Poor little critters. The nuthatches keep taking breaks to warm their little feet. Then back to eating.
Didn’t seem to be as many birds around today. Odd. They sure ate a lot yesterday. There wasn’t as many blue jays either which is really odd. Fortunately the shrike didn’t show up. Those little birds need all the time they can get to eat in this cold.
Waiting…
Muffin and I were in bed the other night. It was snowing. About 3 inches on the deck by that time. Then I heard someone come walking up the stairs and onto the deck, stopping at the door. Muffin heard this too. And followed the walking sound right to the door. It stopped. Muffin stared at the door. I was waiting for someone to knock. I don’t get visitors at 10:30 pm. I’m usually sleeping by that time. But not that night. Nothing happened. No one left. I got curious. Muffin just stared. I had my ‘friend’ handy. Turned on the deck light and looked out. No one there. Not even footprints of any kind in the new snow. The snow had stopped by then. I looked down my path. No footprints there either. I get curious. So out I go. Nothing. No fresh footprints anywhere. Odd. Very odd. I don’t like things I can’t explain. Sigh.
Swinging
I am looking out the window this afternoon. It’s late. The birds have gone to bed. But it’s still light. Not any breeze out there. It’s quiet. I have 4 hanging feeders out there. Two for suet, 2 with sunflower seeds, tube type feeders. Nothing is moving. I’m looking at one of them. Suddenly it starts to move. Slowly at first. Then it really starts to swing back and forth. There is nothing around. There is not the slightest breeze. Finally it slows down and stops again as before. I know there is a logical explanation for it. But I guess I’m not logical, because I can’t figure it out. If you have an answer, please share it with me, I would love to know.
Phone Calls
I have been getting odd phone calls lately. The person always seems to be surprised when I answer and asks to speak with someone. He gives a different name each time. It is the same person, easy enough voice to recognize. Makes me curious. I’m always curious about odd things. Ever since someone threatened to kill me last summer. Oh well.
Before I Forget…
Muffin has a new post if you haven’t already read it. Some people say it’s stupid saying Muffin writes something. Hey, I have seen books written from the viewpoint of an animal. I just consider it a different way of writing something. She will try to write something new every Wednesday. There is also a new poem in Steve’s Country Extras. I will be adding some other items in there over the next week. And something new starting over the next few days as well, actually two things. Stay tuned.
Hmm…
This ended up being longer than I thought, wasn’t planning to write anything today. Technical difficulties. This cold weather causes things to go down. Me included. Don’t forget, it’s almost here! I hope you all enjoy your weekend, please come back next week and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2019 Steve McLeod
Warm Days And Cabin Fever.
Greetings everyone on this third Monday of January and that means…it’s Squirrel Appreciation Day! No, I didn’t make that up. Someone else did. But it’s a good time of year for it. Brightens the cold January days. And everyone likes squirrels.
Okay, maybe not everyone. But they are cute. And they can be very friendly. And they can be annoying. Like LB, my squirrel. He took over this territory and chased away all the other squirrels. That means 6 females and their little ones. Five of those females had four young each, one had 3, which included LB and his 2 brothers, Jasper and Whitey. I have talked about them before.
Now, LB thought he was smart chasing everyone away. Except right now he should have a mate. He doesn’t. No females now. Turned out he wasn’t so smart. He is still not very friendly. Strange squirrel.
IT’S HERE!
It has been very cold here lately, -34F, colder with the windchill. Too cold for me. And when weather like this arrives that means that, that…CABIN FEVER really hits! And hits hard. No energy. Don’t even feel like doing anything. Muffin and I stand at the window, staring
outside…looking…looking…nothing but snow and cold. And we are only half way through winter. Real time winter. Not calendar winter. Winter started back in October, not December. Sigh. And it’s not even International Cabin Fever Day yet. Sigh.
Warm Sunny Days
I think both Muffin and I were thinking the same thing the other as we gazed out the window at the frozen surroundings. Summer. Green. Flowers blooming. Warm sunshine. And it doesn’t take half an hour to dress to go outside. After all that I say to myself, ‘Why bother?’. Sigh. Muffin wants the door open. I open the door. She feels that blast of cold air and retreats to a warmer location. Which is not easy to find sometimes. Even inside. This floor is like walking on ice. Amazing. So I dream. Of warmer places. Looking at pics of tropical locales. Sitting under a palm tree. Muffin climbing the palm tree. And not being able to get back down. And I have to go up and get her. Okay, maybe it’s not quite so much fun. But it is fun looking at the pics. Or just pics of our summer days. It is very beautiful here in summer. Looking across the lake. The amazing variety of birds. I am trying to get photos of as many of our birds as possible.
Quite a task since I am mostly just around my apartment. There is a great variety here however, but many are quite shy. Others are very small and stay mainly in the shrubs. Others stay higher in the trees. So it is a challenge. But if it was all easy, it wouldn’t really be much fun. Still, a little easier would be nice. Sigh.
Birds
The poor little, and not so little, birds in this cold weather. Their legs and feet disappear. Just balls of fluff bouncing around on their stomachs. But they don’t complain. Just go on with life as normal. Those little chickadees, bouncing through the air, chirping and singing out their name. Just like on warmer days. And yes, they really do look like they are bouncing through the air when they fly. People like to complain about things. All kinds of things. All the time. We should be like the chickadees. Enjoying the day. Instead of grumbling and complaining. After all, each day is a gift from God. Even the cold, gray days.
Sigh
I was reading. I like to read. I turned the page. It ripped. Not a tiny rip. A big rip. Don’t make paper like the used to. Was putting veggies on my plate for supper. Phone rings. I turned. Dumped the veggies on the floor. On my foot as well. Rats. No, not rats. Rats. It’s what I say when things go wrong. If things go really wrong it’s, rats, gnats and blueberry bats. Yes, I know. I’m strange. But Muffin likes me anyway. It’s cold. So when I came in the other day I closed the door as quickly as I could. My fingers were in the way. It hurt. It’s enough to make a person bang their head against the wall, jump up and down and, and…AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It’s okay. I’m fine. I’m calm. Like I said, CABIN FEVER is here. Sigh.
Okay. It’s not my best post. It’s one of those days. Watch for changes coming to Steve’s Country. Real soon. And hopefully my fingers will be better soon too. They are cracked and bleeding on the tips. I notice it when I type. It’s the cold weather. Would likely help if I wore gloves more. Sigh. I hope everyone enjoys their week and God bless!
Steve and Muffin.
©2019 Steve McLeod (except featured image which is not mine)
Steve`s Country 