Weekly Chat, Sunday, January 17, 2010

Annette: Glad you're okay. Our news channels were showing mudslides and flooding in SoCal. Foggy here...again. Sorry your outing was disappointing. Caerann's story about the man who was hit by lightening was very interesting. Our brains are unfathomably incredible. So glad Lindybird told her story. Really compelling.

Evening all, just a quick catch up. Well done Lily, and thanks Alan for the facebook link and everyone for interesting info (including places to eat in Scotland, hope I remember by the time we go).

Diane, loved those woodpecker babies, sooo cute!

No rain here today, it's been bright, so we went out to cut back a few trees. OH planted willow and balsam poplar when we moved here so we can take a few every year for the woodburner. We always run short and this year it's been so cold already we're more than halfway through last year's stack, and that included two large trees we helped neighbours chop the previous year. Still, don't need heating when you're outside doing strenuous work!

Diane - I should have said this earlier, but at least I know you're around this evening:  Your problems of sewage, water and explosion make my wee boiler drip and the garage burst pipe seem very insignificant!  I don't know how you could cope with all that in one day!  You must be very hardy.  Is your house with Dad now the one you grew up in?  I hope your burns and bruises are not too painful and that the house is now behaving itself!!

Annette - sorry you and Daughter had such a wet day and a disappointing outing - hope you can get out and about tomorrow.

I'm afraid this site lost out to Lily today - she now seems to be fast asleep - as I should soon be!  Good night to all!

Just come home from our Quiz night for local conservation society funds (we won again ! ) and just had to check on Lily and find they are still not confirming a second cub. Glad to see she is fast asleep.

Annette, I really hope your weather improves for you. Dianne, I guess you are still having to deal with the aftermath of your disastrous night, but do take care of yourself .

Still raining here and has done all day. Off to bed now. Good Night. 

Brenda: Congrats on your second win!  Alan: Thanks for youtube link - brilliant (again!)

Got soaked again today when I went to visit Oro and take him for a walk - yesterday he went one way around a trash can and I went the other and the trash can (with a lid full of water from the storms) tipped over and soaked my feet   Today, we meet the same trash can in the same position (middle of sidewalk) and I tell Oro to hold still while I move it, but then he sees another dog and pulls me and the trashcan with same result - wet feet.  Also went to buy a new TV (one of the smaller flat screen jobs) but now realize have to get a degree in TV technology before I make a decision!  I think I'll go live in a cave somewhere......  "They" are forecasting minimal rain but lots of sun tomorrow; we'll see.  Hope you're all okay!

Hi everyone.

What can I say, since I've not posted for a wee while.  Thanks so much for all the good wishes.  I'm generally okay, well I could do with getting my taste buds back in working order, and a weekly shopping trip to Cumbernauld, on Thursday, left me feeling a little shattered, although nothing worth puting in novel or a film. 

Speaking of which.  I know it's late in this part of the world but just finished watching The Howling (well when I started typing this anyway).  At the moment I'm watching a film called Pumpkinhead.  All spooky stuff and when I look out my window, there's a lot of mist.  This is only intercepted by vehicles suspended in the still of night; streetlights watching with their orange lamps, perhaps like fire; and the trees and shrubs in gardens, that seem like ghosts.  Of course they're not.  Or are they? 

Okay I'll admit it, I love horror pics.  Especially the older one where some of the gore is left to the imagination.  Somehow I think those are the ones that scare most, as the more blood and gore, it's very easy for the subconcious to think we're watching a comedy, or parody. 

Okay enough of my demented ramblings. 

Alan:  Thanks for the brilliant links and pictures.  Gorgeous screenshot of Phoebe feeding the younsters, such a fantastic moment.  And as for the black bear:  Lily your an absolute superstar and a warm welcome to the cubs.  Brilliant video of The Who.  :-)  Great osprey screenshot!

Margobird:  I'm sorry your bird bath had ice on Thursday.  It's sad that a lot of smaller birds will decline because of the cold weather but hopefully we get a good spring and summer to help them start the recovery.

Tish:  A female sparrowhawk!  Brilliant to see such a fine raptor.  I've only ever saw the smaller male sparrowhawk in my garden and that was a couple of years ago.  Still a fantastic sight and something that will always stay with me.  Sorry cannae resist this but as Mr Sparrowhawk said to the wee bird: "You think I'm big and scarey, mate?  You want to see the wife."

Tiger:  Great Osprey picture.  That's an amazing white chest, making such brilliant contrast.  Oscar, sir, stunning plumage.  Thanks for posting.  Love the osprey beer pic.
 
dibnlib: I agree the term "murder of crows", is not too nice.  Crows do so many great things, such as clearing up food litter, and making boring shopping trips much better by landing on parked cars.  Better terms might be: "tidy of crows", or "entertainment/ humour of Crows"

OG:  Trust me you live in Scotland no debate about it.  :-)  Thanks for the Odin picture.  A truly magnificant bird.

Maureen:  So great to hear from you.  I really hope you get to grips with bolding text soon. 

Lindybird:  Thanks for posting the fantastic stories.  Glad you and your husband came through the lightening strike unharmed, and what a brilliant restuarant story.

Annette:  I really hope you stay safe in the stormy weather in your part of the world.  Totally agree with you on the TV technology degree line.  I wouldn't be surprised if there was soon a Doctorite in the discipline soon.

Diane:  I hope you recover fully from your injuries.  That sounds like the sort of experiance that would have me armed with nothing but swear words, and madness.  So glad you can laugh at what happened to you now, and your comments on Haiti are so true.  Thanks for the healing energy and the wonderful woodpecker video.  :-)

Caerann:  Thanks ever so much at the links about the hairy and downy woodpeckers.  Fantastic stuff. 

george g:  Glad your annual doctor's check-up when okay.  A man is allowed to gain a little weight over Christmas as far as I see things.  :-)  Great info on bison and the portable hen coup.  I really hope I can find a link to the programme.

ChloeB:  Brilliant beer pic.  If I can get a hold of Peregrine, I'll raise a glass to you.

Listen folks, believe it or not this was meant to be just a quick post but it now read like something that comes in either paperback or hardback, that can be found in a book shop or local library.   Sorry if I've missed anyone out in this post.  Here's a picture from April 2008.

Paul.

Lovely day 25 C, expecting 27. I must be getting old when just one hot day gets to me. Dau sounded quite perky having finished her 110 km ride yesterday – and before the professionals. (They started 4 hours later). The flat 20 km near the end were the hardest with headwind & dust. She was critical of some of the organisation. Lunch was well organised but some of the drink stops had water trickling too slow, not enough water, one food stop had no food and there was practically no mechanical support. All of this had been promised. We have a saying "They couldn’t run a chook raffle". She said some riders were abusive and demanded the slower ones get out of the way. Some were passing on the left (as in UK we drive on left). To my horror the roads were not closed and they had to contend with cars, trucks & semi-trailers. Overall she enjoyed her day.

Oh Lily, fancy giving birth all alone. Another instance when animals are better than humans.

Diane - Perhaps it is good that bad things come in threes, because it means they are over and done with. I love your pileated woodpecker. I want one in my backyard.

Annette - You and Oro and trash cans. Who is in charge on these walks, hm? BTW we call them rubbish bins. As for modern TVs, I say one needs a pilot’s licence to drive them. I can’t turn on Himself’s TV. Too many remote controls to drive it. However I can turn it off – at the power board LOL

Glad that folks liked the pileated woodpecker videos. If anyone remembers the old Woody Woodpecker cartoons, you may find it interesting that that the design for Woody was based on the pileated woodpecker. It's the size of a crow. The male and female usually stay together near the nest all year long. It's one of my very favorite birds. Our woods would be very lonely without their prehistoric squawking and shrieking all year, especially in the summer. A pair raised babies not far from the house last spring, and the two adults and three chicks raised quite a ruckus.

Thanks so very much to Annette, Caerann, Patriciat, Brenda H, Margobird, Lindybird, OG, Paul, AQ, and all who offered kind words and support to me after my "bad day." I'm quite fine; it was just such a strange sequence of events. :-)

AQ: Glad your daughter made it safely through the race and performed well. And the roads weren't closed to traffic? Yikes! You said that you wanted a pileated woodpecker for your backyard. I think they would survive in Australia because they are very hardy. They live in forests in extremely hot areas of the U.S. south, as well as frigid cold northern regions. They do need tall, old-growth trees. And, bless them, they eat ants!

Paul: Good to hear from you, and glad you are recovering. I like horror books and films, but like you, I don't like the gore and violence. I need an interesting premise, especially with a bit of a science fiction flavor to it. One of the scariest horror books ever: The Tommyknockers by Stephen King. Gave me nightmares, but I couldn't stop reading it. Really loved Steven Spielberg's TV miniseries Taken. I don't know whether that would be considered horror or science fiction. Both? Scared me. :-)

Annette: Please let me know when you get your Ph.D. in TV-ology. They really are so evolved now. Scary. Loved your description of Lightening the Cat under the slipcover. Poor kitty. I wish you sunshine tomorrow.

Brenda H: Congratulations on your Quiz win. Yay!

OG: You asked whether the house I am living in now is the one I grew up in. No. This house was built by my great-great (Scottish) grandparents in the 1800s. They homesteaded this land (they were my Mom's family). My ancestors are all Scottish or Irish. I grew up in Crawfordsville and Lafayette (towns in Indiana). My grandparents lived here and expanded the house. When my grandfather died in the 1970s, my parents moved back here. This poor old house has seen a lot.

TerryM: Felling and cutting up trees is hard work!

Lindybird: I forgot to say that I enjoyed your restaurant story. Setting the menu on fire is something I would do. Poor woman. LOL

Alan: Spring is coming! I promise. The sun is still there. I think...all we have is fog. LOL

Caerann: We have both hairy and downy woodpeckers here. Both would come to my Mom's bird feeders. I happened across a video today, and I thought of you -- I know you like beautiful stones. I think you would enjoy this:

http://www.northernimages.com/Video-Vault/Nature-Videos/4153523_bEerT/1/320695049_skxkH#440679545_nLPhr

Take care, all.

Morning all. Temps still around -15C sunrise 9.03am sunset 4.05pm.

Diane, oh dear what a day you had. It is one of those that if it was put in to a novel or a movie, everyone would say that that is not believable. Like you and Paul I like horror and sci fi too and loved that "Taken"-series

Annette, hope you get that promised sunshine and no more storms. Poor Lighting, my cat is kind of weird, if there is thunder she likes to sit by the window and look the lighting

Brenda H, congrats of that quiz-win!

Aquilareen, glad your Dau`s ride went well despite the traffic and lack of drinks/food

Tiger, I would definitely like to try that beer, but it seems that they don`t sell it here

This one is for Lily (karhu=bear olut=beer)