Hi All: I'm a bit early starting this since it's right before midnight your time. Anyway, on the last page of the previous Weekly Chat, Tiger had some interesting info about what's involved in putting forward Big Ben. I had no idea. And Cirrus posted a shot of two very noisy creatures (thankfully we can't hear them!). And Soosin is looking for Karen. Had a nice day out with daughter; won't be around tomorrow evening your time as I'm taking the train down to Burbank Airport to meet a friend for dinner who's got a stopover there for a few hours en route to her home in Sacramento. Won't be home 'til around 10:30 p.m. - 6:30 a.m. UK time.
Hi Emma: Just looked in at LOTL after you posted and I couldn't agree more. It's going to be a tough couple of days for all the ospreys that have made it back so far, and for all other returning migrants.
for those that have been following pheobe she has laid an egg this morning
Alicat
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Evening/Night All!
We're gearing up for some warm weather here toward the end of this week and I can't wait cause it's been windy and chilly for too many days. The full moon on the rise was a beautiful yellow/orange shade this evening.
Diane, Annette AQ and all other cemetary fans: Yes, come to Chicago and I will take you to all the best and most interesting cemetaries; especially the Jewish cemetaries with the portraits on the head stones thusly:
The portraits help me really visualize the person as they were in life, what their station may have been and perhaps a beloved friend may be in the photograph too. It's very touching and I never tire of looking at them.
Diane, you must tell us all about your book when you have the opportunity. Oh and, Peppermint Mocha! While not being a big fan of Starbuck's Coffee, I LOVE their Peppermint Mocha with the whipped cream, chocolate and peppermint on top!
Annette: So happy your train trip was enjoyable. Sounds like a very cool run!
Lindybird: A wonderful poem and thank you so much for sharing it with all of us.
Cirrus: Chin up now, Odin shall return home again very soon. =O)
I'm off again but wanted to check in on all of you to say hello and to please be well and safe.
Evening/Morning all: Gosh, looks COLD at LG and LotL - looks like snow at LG - and I see Marge hunkered down at LotL. :-( What!? She had to fight off an intruder already? No wonder she's sticking close to home. Wasn't there talk last year about knitting woolly jackets for the girls? Nine whales during my shift today; one in really close, the others out a ways.
Paul: I had a latte and biscotti this afternoon with my English friend who counts whales with me. Haven't had instant for yonks
Caerann: I'm not a big Starbucks fan since they've put so many independent business out of - um - business, but that's where I was today. Love those photos - I'm the same way with antique items and old houses: I wonder who first owned them or lived in them, admired and was proud of them - it's a contact down through the years. I have a lovely antique greeting card - embroidered - that was mailed back in 1914 during WWI from a soldier, stationed in France, to his wife in England. It has a very delicate and romantic reference to a special time they spent together. I've tried to find their descendents through various genealogy groups, but no luck yet.... If they were my grandparents or great-grandparents, I'd love to have it. Oh well.
Hey Gary: Keeping up with it all is getting complicated isn't it? And it's going to get even busier. Take care!
Thanks Cirrus for that lovely photo! And don't fret - EJ and Marge are tough ladies.
TerryM. Lily's fans must be some of the comparatively few people who've seen the underside of a bear's feet. (Wasn't on my "must do" list, but hey, I'll look on it as a nice bonus!) Love the smell of roasting coffee. There used to be a place on the Parade in Watford where they roasted coffee beans - delicious! - even when I was small and we only had tea at home. Terry/OG: I'm sure all the interesting stuff will make it to these pages since we'll all be watching the nest and you know what a blabby lot we are! :-) I'll be blabbing on the Daily Update while you guys snooze (and as long as I'm not out dancing or picking up sailors) but keeping track of carrot cake intake and agility trials, etc., on here.
OG: Steak and onions with mushrooms and cauliflower. Sounds like dinner for a cold evening. Some of that Chilean wine is really good - we get it here but of course we have some pretty nice basic California stuff from our own backyard, so to speak. Thanks for the recipe!
AQ: Good grief - Easter already?! What is "arvo" ??? Aussie for afternoon?
Alicat: Thanks for the Phoebe update - my goodness she's determined.
Off to do other stuff with one eye on the cams. Weathermen are all excited tonight because we have two more storms forecast for the next week, which is pretty unusual this late in the season.
Phoebe is a "beggar for punishment" as my mother would have said. Caerann, Diane, Annette & other cemetery viewers - I love browsing the stones in cemeteries. I'll join your cem tours !!! The words, the verses, the ornate stonework. I used to transcribe inscriptions (for a family history society) and I have, somewhere in a notebook or two, a collection of lovely words. All I can find just now are some words a bereaved mother wrote of her 21 year old son in WWI - 'Just a lad whose motto was always "duty first" '. Annette - Wow 9 whales. And what's with story of picking up sailors? Have I missed something? LOL Arvo is indeed short for afternoon. I must get back to my Aussie-speak book (as I promised Diane long ago) <hangs her head in shame>.
Oh my. Some lady brought some 1940s-era watches to Antiques Roadshow - they were valued at about $20,000 - then the appraiser noticed the humungous diamond ring she was wearing - and appraised that at about $200,000! I immediately asked OH if we had any of his Mom's jewelry stashed anywhere.....but no.
Marge still on nest; it's darn windy there - can't figure out whether she's preening or trying to keep warm by burying her head in her feathers. Hope EJ is off somewhere sheltered. Looks like tomorrow night it's going to be really cold there, with heavy snow forecast. :-(
Happy Full Moon to all!
Annette: $200,000 for the ring, eh? I'm pretty sure that the jewelry in this family isn't that valuable. :-) Picking up sailors?!?!? So, out there on the beach, you're only pretending to watch for whales; it's the sailors that you're really interested in!!!
Dearly loved hearing about your train trip. Isn't it amazing that the trains are that busy? I thought SoCal was all about the cars. Standing room only? That would be a long trip to stand all the way. Always hated it when I couldn't get a seat on the bus in Indianapolis.
I'm glad that you saw 9 whales this week. The close-up sighting must have been exciting.
AQ: Take your time on the Aussie-speak book. No need for shame. LOL Oh, "beggar for punishment" is also an expression used in our family! In fact, I saw quite a few sayings that were familiar to me when I read that Australian slang dictionary. I don't know why that would be, because we have had very little Aussie immigration to this area, although Australians may have worked in the coal mines here generations ago. Or maybe those familiar expressions were originally Scottish/Irish, which is my heritage on both sides (my family has retained a lot of the language and traditions).
Caerann: Seriously, wouldn't that just be jolly good fun if we could all get together and tour the cemeteries in Chicago. If I hit the lottery or inherit money, I'll buy all the tickets. Thanks for posting the amazing pics. Isn't that tombstone interesting? Ah...peppermint mocha! Sinfully dreamy.
Those nests look so cold, soon I shall have to fetch a jumper. So much to watch, I'm not getting my regular stuff done. I think I am ready for tomorrow's stint in the library, but rather fear that my mind is elsewhere.
Diane - A lot of our sayings must have come from "The Old Country", transported with the immigrants. Hence similar. I believe the language spoken by the older "Germans" in our Barossa Valley is old-fashioned. Some call it "Barossa-Deutsch". Nowadays we get all those Americanisms from the TV!
Hey Diane: It's 6 a.m. in the UK and still pitch dark. EJ's nest looks buried in snow and Marge has been hanging on through lots of wind at LotL. Hate to think these poor creatures have left warmer climes for snow. Oh, there, it's light - suddenly - at LG and yes, that's snow. Wonder where EJ's hanging out...
DjoanS: I so hope that your back is improving. Be careful with the painkillers; they can be potent stuff. I sympathize with your blood pressure issues. I have a lot of trouble keeping mine down, too, and I take meds. I'm fairly fit and my cholesterol levels are great (I'm a vegetarian), so doctors have never been able to fully explain mine. My current doctor simply pronounced that I am "high strung." Thank you, Mr. Obvious. And what are you charging me for that helpful diagnosis?! :-) Anyway, very best of luck getting yours under control.
OG: Haven't heard too much from you. Hope you are doing very well!
TerryM: Hope the Jazz Festival was fun. We have a huge annual Jazz Festival in Indianapolis, and I used to enjoy going every year.
Patriciat: Loved the 'Donald MacMurchow tomb inscription!
Lindybird: Your poem was just lovely!!! You're so talented. By the way, is there a chance of you "going off with a toyboy" as you mentioned in your post yesterday?!? Hmmm. First Annette may be picking up sailors and now you and toyboys!
Alan: Just loved that puffin picture. Must remind myself to start checking that cam again.
Tiger!!!!!! I just read the good wife and the back issues comment on yesterday's Daily Update. Shame on you. LOL LOL