Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Life in our little cottage in the country

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Laptop & Robins

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Fortunately, I edited some photos and uploaded them to the blog ahead of time, knowing I might not have access to my photo editing software. And I don’t, because my laptop has been sent in for repair.

First time, by the way, I’ve been in a mall since before lockdown. I don’t like malls – the atmosphere and lighting always makes me feel bleary – so I usually avoid them. Anyway, Charlie, the tech who waited on me, was very helpful. He ran a few tests to eliminate reasons why the “t” key might not be working. Everything checked out as okay. When he looked up the cost of replacing the keyboard it was almost $500. Ummm…no. So we got into a discussion as to whether I should buy a separate keyboard, which seemed like a solution, albeit an awkward one as a laptop is supposed to sit on your lap, that’s why the keyboard is built in. But I was willing to go for it. Then he asked if he could run one more test and he disappeared with it for a while. Turns out the battery and the keyboard are considered one piece and my battery is swelling, which means it should be replaced. And if the battery needs replacing, in addition to the keyboard, I can get that done for half the price. When repairs involve the battery, they send the computer in via ground shipping. So it will take a few days to get there, then – hopefully – they’ll replace the battery/keyboard, and then they’ll ship it back directly to me via air.

I miss my laptop. As you know, I tend to give human qualities to inanimate objects, so I’m absolutely sure it misses me, too. Sob.

Hopefully, I’ll get it back toward the end of next week. If Don didn’t have a laptop, I’d be up a creek.

All that took a big chunk of time, so I didn’t get to my easel yesterday and that makes two days in a row. Today, I am painting.

Pretty sure Mama has some babies in that nest because I see her thrusting her beak down into the nest and I think I saw some food.. We’re going to try to keep an eye on the nest today. Still haven’t seen Papa, but, I admit, I haven’t been watching for any stretch of time.

It’s sunny right now, but we’re due to have storms in the afternoon.

Okay. Have to go!

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

Flowers, Books, Laptop

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I’ve never seen so many flowers on this particular day lily open at the same time. I happened to walk around the side of the house to this garden bed and what a sight to behold! If only day lilies weren’t day lilies, if you know what I mean. Shouldn’t these beauties be allowed to bloom for a week? Or longer?

Today promises to be sunny and hot, but where will I be? Driving over an hour to the Apple Store to finally take my laptop in. Reminder: the ‘t’ key isn’t working. All this time, I’ve been delaying appointments, either because of the weather or because of my shoulder/neck problems which made me uncomfortable driving. Or because I just wasn’t in the mood. I downloaded photos for the blog via my laptop and then wrote the posts on Don’s laptop. This morning, I downloaded several photos to the blog so I’ll have some available for future posts should I have to leave the laptop for repair – which seems likely. I forget how much I rely on my little computer.

Anyway, this will take up much of the day.

What else is new? I’ve been reading a book on Monet, which I’m enjoying. I’m reading an Elly Griffiths Ruth Galloway mystery. We are watching the Swedish version of Wallander and, let me tell you, it is stunningly good. Far better, in my opinion, than the Branagh version. I really like Kenneth Branagh, but Krister Henriksson, who plays Wallander in the Swedish version is brilliant, beyond brilliant – as is the rest of the cast. Henriksson is Wallander. I cannot recommend it highly enough.

We’ve been watching so much Nordic Noir that I now want to visit Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Finland. If only…

I’m not hearing quite as much birdsong in the morning, which always makes me sad. I know it happens every year, but oh, how I miss it. There’s still birdsong, but not nearly enough. I did hear a wren this morning, but it’s now clear that our ‘tenants’ aren’t going to have another brood in our little birdhouse. Mama robin, on the other hand, is still on the nest. I watched her yesterday and I think she was feeding at least one baby, but I can’t swear to it.

Okay. Have to go and start getting ready for the trek.

Stay safe.

Happy Tuesday.

 

Birds, Oils, & Memories

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A view from the kitchen window. If they haven’t hatched yet, I expect babies to emerge pretty darned soon. Thankfully, the rain has stopped. I’m happy not only for us and our water-logged property and for those who live in the Hudson Valley who have experienced flooding, but also for mama robin. She could use a break.

Finally, a day without a flash flood, flood, severe thunderstorm, or heat advisory warning – at several points we had all of those warnings at the same time.

Working on the next painting. I considered this basket vase a while back but concluded that the handle was a bit too complicated for me. I’m still tweaking everything, of course, and have lots of detail to add.

This morning, while making our second cup of coffee, I saw this card tacked to our bulletin board:

I saved it because it holds such happy memories.

Four years ago, after a somewhat late start, we started on our trip home from California  –  in our CR-V – where Don had been performing Escape to Margaritaville  in La Jolla. That first leg on our journey was magical. We headed north through Orange County, then Los Angeles County, saw Stella for the first time, stopped in Santa Monica and swam in the ocean in the very late afternoon, and headed up the Pacific Coast Highway. We had no idea where we would stop for the night, but we knew we were very, very hungry.

As we drove through Malibu, our search for a good place to stop and have some dinner grew more and more frustrating. We finally found a little place called Gravina, an Italian restaurant. We had no idea whether it would be good or bad, but we were desperate. It turned out to be one of the best meals we’ve ever had. It was late, there weren’t that many people there, it was intimate and lovely and way more expensive than we’d planned. But we went for it and, oh my goodness, it’s such a strong memory for us. I’m thinking of all of these things as we prepare to say goodbye to the CR-V – hopefully, at some point this week. I’ll write a separate post about that car, a car that took us eastward on a new journey in our life.

I’ll miss her. When I stop and write even a little about her, I start to cry. I’m going to take some pictures of her today.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

 

 

Lambs Like to Party

Lambs Like to Party

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