Happy new week folks! Don't foget to check the last few posts of the previous week. Heron posted a photo of a female reed bunting, AQ saw a "ginormous flock of corellas" (must Google that!), OG has found a nice B&B for her trip, Alan posted a nifty shot of the changing of the guard at the eagle nest, folks are wondering how Diane is doing with the storm the big storm back East, and much, much more! :-) We had almost 2 inches of rain in Santa Barbara today, which is brilliant. Still sorting files and likely to be doing so for a day or three to come. Take care all.
Diane (I missed yours while I was typing) and Annette - Just to prove me wrong, the weather gods are actually sending down some rain right now. Maybe I should not boast or it will stop !!!!
Tiger: Thanks so very much for the photo of the Space Shuttle Endeavour launch. That is a truly powerful picture, and I now have it as my desktop wallpaper. You must have heard me lamenting that I missed the launch. Now I don't feel so bad. :-)
The paths are wet! It must be real rain as the weather website says we have had 0.4 mm since 9 am. Wow!
Diane: This is an OLD Toyota Camry - 1994 - we just want one to tootle around town in. It's apparently been well cared for and has way-below-average mileage for its years. But you can still make jokes! I had a '64 Dodge Dart that went to 175K miles before I gave it to my then-teenage daughter; then a '73 Ford Maverick that went to 182K miles. It still ran great but the headliner was unraveled by grandson - who was age 2 then - and seats starting falling apart; I bought both used and they were fantastic cars - too bad "they" don't make them like that any more, but that explains why we've had to bail out U.S. automakers. Since then, it's been Hondas and Toyotas. Oh yes, we do have a 1972 full-size Ford truck - marvellous old banger - we always seeming to be helping people move stuff in it! And we've had folks offer to buy it; it's in great shape.
Re couches, we went to Ethan Allen, which had just one we might consider, then of course, there's Pottery Barn. Shopping in Santa Barbara, as I've whined about before, is certainly a challenge. We got two wonderful comfy old chairs plus a matching ottoman from the local consignment store and I'm now a regular visitor - we keep hoping a decent couch will show up there, even if we have to recover it. And of course there's Craigslist, which I've used to buy and sell a bunch of stuff. I like Craigslist because you can focus on your local area - have you used it? I'll keep my eye out for a chocolate brown one for you.
How's your Dad these days?
AQ: So your winter sounds a bit like ours. I know you guys have had the most awful drought - our Southwest (New Mexico/Texas/Arizona) has been in a drought for some years; not sure if the current El Nino pattern has made a difference. Typically it takes longer than one season to make up for all those years of nothing.
Off to rose garden to pull weeds and get grubby in the morning!
OK, well you can tell I'm having a silly evening. Here's our lovely old 1972 Ford Truck. Noisy as all get out, but fun to drive. We are the second owners and I baby it - wash it myself but need a ladder to reach the middle of the camper shell. It even has working air conditioning. We had it painted a couple of years ago - these are the original colors. Ford certainly knew how to make trucks. And yes, in addition to a/c, that's a working fan you see affixed to the dashboard! Crazy eh?
Oh, my stars, 1972!!! Now that's a good solid vehicle. And I definitely want that nifty fan. Seriously. My Dad burns me up in the car.
Great car, Annette! We love what we call 'estate cars' here, & have had several over the years. We always buy second hand cars, they are such good value. Our extended family are always requesting various furniture moves/tip trips/kids from University hauls in ours,as they are so useful. Now of course, Dog has his kingdom in the back, with a special tray in case he spills the water (which he manages to do sometimes, even in his special patented 'non spill bowl!') & his own blanket. Once, years ago, we bought a Ford brand new, & watched it rust in the driveway within 3 years- I always reckoned it was because I had insisted on a particular colour, so they had sourced it from hundred of miles away where it had been sitting in a field, waiting. Since then we have bought second hand, and have had some wonderful buys.
Margobird: Hope you feel better today. The sun is trying to come out here, so hope its doing the same down there, for you.
patriciat: Sorry to hear about your sister, what a worry. A lot seems to be possible these days to sort these things out, so hope all goes well & she is soon back to her old self. (know what you mean about hospital visits, have done plenty of those & all the travelling/parking problems are hard.) Our Dog, Buzz, is about 11 or 12 years old, we're not sure as we got him from a Dog Rescue Centre. He was approx. 2 then.
Just heard on the news that it's, amazingly, 20 years since Nelson Mandela was freed from prison: my friend and I are going to see 'Invictus' this afternoon, the film about his first attempts to bring his country together after his election. Will tell you about it tomorrow. (my brother lives in S. Africa, but I hear from him very little, so don't know about the state of things there now, except that they do have law & order problems & the economy is struggling somewhat).
Have a good day, All.
I'm back already, as I forgot to mention that last night we watched a great programme called "Natural World" which was about the landscape & wildlife of Essex. Some great footage of various animals & birds, as the programme said, living cheek by jowel with the awful constructions of Man plus the railway lines etc. They also showed the Rainham Marshes which have been bought by the RSPB & have been a great success, with all sorts of creatures & birds returning (including Peregrine Falcons, and Water Voles.) The muddy seals, covered in a red mud from the Thames estuary, were wonderful!
Morning all - a beautiful, sunny morning here for a change!
Margobird - so sorry you are poorly again ... I wish you a speedy recovery
Annette - love the Ford truck - what a sight!
I am off out for lunch with a friend today - I am going to try and eat healthily but .....
Thanks to everyone for pics/links/chat etc
Take care all!
Joan - avid bird and nature watcher in Northumberland!
Index Thread
patriciat sorry to read about your sister, hope all goes well with the pacemaker op. You are right it is amazing how much time visiting takes. Had to laugh about her OH taking the right nighties etc.
Very cold here this morning and had a very hard frost overnight so its back to defrosting bird baths again. I shivered while I was out there this morning doing my bird thing, have a heavy cold and not feeling great but I would never let my birds down especially while it is so cold.
Hope the dog agility goes well at the weekend.
Margobird