Weekly Chat (Non-Osprey), 3 April 2022

HAPPY NEW WEEK! 

I hope everyone has a safe, serene week. 

It looks like the enormous, squawking Pileated Woodpecker has decided to nest right at the beginning of my driveway lane, across from my front door, this year!

  • I certainly hope last week is long gone for OG and Lindybird; sounds like bumpy time for them.

    Diane: Thanks again.  Woodpeckers are indeed raucous creatures. How early do they wake up?  For the second year, we've had a bunch of American Robins hang out in the neighborhood with regular stops at our fountain.   The crows must be busy feeding young'uns or incubating mate coz one very bold one comes right down beside me when I'm tossing out bits of bread and rushes around burying them under the mulch before coming back for more.

    I've done practically nothing but putter around for almost four days.  It's positively unseemly at this point.  It simply can't go on much longer.  What's more, I'm getting take-out (Mexican) tonight. Yum!  

    Have a good Sunday everyone.

  • Thanks for the new thread, Diane, and lucky you to have those amazing birds right outside your door! But if they are announcing their claim to their territory or choose to go hunting for breakfast on neighbouring tree trunks, at or before dawn, you may want earplugs, or get used to an earlier and earlier nature-provided alarm clock! For anyone else interested to learn more, here is the link for the Pileated Woodpecker on Cornell University's allaboutbirds website, including a link for 'Listen': www.allaboutbirds.org/.../
  • Ann: THANK YOU for posting that beautiful link. I didn't think about that one. There's been a Pileated Woodpecker pair nesting on this patch every year for as long as I can remember--back to my childhood when my grandparents lived here. My grandfather called them "Piloted Woodpeckers." I think that's an old Indiana pronunciation. Usually, though, those birds don't nest this close to the house. They often nest on the levee above the creek. Their squawking and drumming won't bother me, but I'm a little concerned that they'll be inclined to defend the nest if I walk down my driveway to go to the store. I may have to divert around through my yard to give them more room when the chicks hatch. I don't think I'd want to get pecked on the head by that big fella! LOL Hope you're well, Ann. 

  • DIANE – To walk down your drive you need a hard hat or perhaps some eyes painted on crown?

    Clocks back to normal time at last. So nice to wake in daylight this morn.

  • Daylight Savings Time. . . so poor people can experience jet lag.

    Time is what keeps everything from happening at once. (Ray Cummings)

    People think they own time. They have watches and clocks and digital pulses. But they are wrong. Time owns them. (Caroline B Cooney)

  • Love the quotes, AQ.

    Good Morning, and thank you to Diane for starting us off. Going back to see her link to the woodpeckers, in a minute.

    It's bright here & I've fed the birds and enjoyed a wander around the garden looking at our flowering plants. It was only 1 degree when we got up this morning, but warming up to about 8 degrees now.

    My OH has been to the allotment to tie up his raspberry canes, and prepare for the season ahead. I'm going to do some of the dreaded ironing as I've been ignoring the big pile for way too long.

    Hope that OG has a better week this week, and that Heather is now putting her feet up after her visitors.
  • Matthew enjoying his prawn flavour crisps (yuk!)

  • Rosie getting to grips with her Mums phone. They are completely unfazed by technology. Later, she decided to try and eat the felt butterflies on her frock!

    Tomasz scowled every time the camera was pointed in his direction-- he is already a grumpy teenager, at aged 11!!

  • Just in from a wander (seated, of course) in the garden to identify priority tasks for E-E. Pleased with what has happened so far. I noticed most of my spring woodland plants under the Birch have managed to push a route through the heap left by the so-called gardeners, and E-E tells me he intended it to become a bank anyway! I think it may sink a bit, so I have agreed to keep it that way, with a bit of tidying and removal of some of the prolific celandines. I didn’t go in the garden yesterday (too cold for me) but he thoroughly weeded and tidied the bird-patch (one view from the dining room) – including cutting the Sambuca Black Lace down to shoot again (already started on most limbs). This morning Mrs Blackbird has been busy rearranging the hoeing and chucking soil onto the deck! Probably going to rain this afternoon.

    Thanks for news at end of last week, and a warm welcome to Rusty.

    LINDA – sorry about your OH’s wasted trip to Wales, but glad caravan has been fixed. Glad you enjoyed family trip yesterday, despite travel problems.

    DIANE – thanks for the new week. You will have a noisy summer with the Woodpeckers so near the house, and I hope they won’t be aggressive towards you.

    AQ – good “time” quotes! Enjoy your cooler Autumn and Winter!
  • Thank you, DIANE.
    OG - you were going to tell us about your dreadful week, but haven't, so I hope that it has receded into the distance !
    Quiet here at home. I miss the Danes,really enjoyed their company. They said that it was a home from home, being here. That was nice to hear.
    I have my fourth vaccination on Wednesday - I will attend but am beginning to get fed up with it all.


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