A Busy Deck

Well, they finally got around to retarring the road in my developement, after parking out on the far street three other times. The back deck was a very busy place today, the birds were flitting all over. There were squirrels too, though they were not moving very quickly, unlike the birds. The screen pidgeon carrier seems to make a great resting place. So does the railing, evidently. A pilleated woodpecker and a hairy woodpecker, a yellow chickadee, sparrows, cardinals, bluejays, and a mystery bird appeared. The bird looks alot like a crestless cardinal, but has a black head. I have put up the best pics of it I could get (it was shy) and if you know what it is, tell me!

Ah, the Jays...

Some

t

imes when we toss out the peanuts for the squirrels, we get a bluejay diving in to share in the bounty. Today there were three! They are swift, sure and accurate in their flight, landing and grabbing a peanut, then taking off in a short second. To capture them I had the camera aimed at a particular spot and waited til one showed up. The pic in flight was a serendipitous one, and in the meantime the squirrels didn't hesitate to take their own shares. I do love to watch the little bandits, and they seem well fed, so we are not the only ones feeding them! I am told there is a shortage of acorns this year, but the squirrels around here won't have a tough time.

The Latest Kitty

Well, here is my latest offering to the world of kitties... she hasn't told us her name yet, but I am sure she will. I made her for my sister, whose birthday is today. Happy birthday, Kris! I couldn't put a pic up until I confirmed she had gotten there in time.

The little feathers are from the cardinal whom I fould dead on our deck a couple weeks ago. The kitty is made from a sweater I felted in the washer and dryer... isn't it great that what used to be a disaster has become a terrific process? I used wool felt for the features too, and a little trim for her collar. Her friend seems fine, must have just been some feathers found on the ground!

Art just doesn't get any better than this...

If you thought yesterday was good, I saved the best til now. At a little used bookstore I frequent, last week I picked up a fabulous thing. I set it aside and didn't look until this morning, so I am just now getting pics out, but boy it's worth the wait. You know how at antique shops you can pick up prints of precopyright paintings, sometimes for $10, $20 or more for rarer ones? Well, I got 50 Audubon bird prints in unbound format (easy to scan in) for $25!!!!

I am in seventh heaven! I am retiring to my basement, uh studio, to make art!

The Ice Cometh

The weather here has been weird. Seems whereever I go, the weather guessers say it is the hardest place to predict. Hah! My headaches and old joints have a much better record of precip prediction. 5oo years ago, I would have been burned as a witch! (But then, I actually look out the window, and think about what the weather has done in similar circumstances. How strange.) So when they actually get it right, everybody is astounded, especially VDOT (roads guys). So after missing continually, last week they were right, and the roads were awful, no salt, no sand. Then this week they said another big ice storm, and the salt trucks were out in force, and (you guessed it) no storm. Tonight, supposed to be a huge storm, and I say only a moderate one, but then ice is bad in any amount. In the morning, we'll see.

So the birds have been needing the sunflower seeds we put out for them. The squirrels love their peanuts, and chatter at me through the door if I am slow in getting their breakfasts ready. They are so fat! Big as small cats! Note that this one lacks his left ear... must have had an argument with another squirrel, or fox or cat or whartever. He doesn't miss a meal though. Tough little guy.

The book is one I made for my weaving info. I find keeping records sure makes a difference if I want to repeat the project, or make a similar one. So I record the type, weave, fiber, measurments and how it went. If I can, I attach a small piece of the project. The book is single needle coptic bound, hardcovered with paper. My favorite kind! Tomorrow, I start on a new book, one for a friend who did a very very kind deed for me. It will be a two needle coptic with wooden covers with some form of metal decoration. I am still sketching ideas, but I can start the book while I do that. What did I do with all my time and money before I discovered art? Nothing this fun!