Mockingbird Hill Cottage — Page 42 — Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Waiting

October 9, 2024 at 7:25 am by Claudia

Yesterday, around 10 am, there were tons of birds near and around our birdbath. Sparrows, probably about 40 of them, at least two Northern Flickers, some bluejays, and Northern Mockingbirds. They were everywhere, often sharing space on the rim of the birdbath, bathing, drinking, on the ground eating. It was amazing.

Clearly, they were migrating and decided – seemingly en masse – to visit this particular rest stop. It was extraordinary half hour or so. And then, in a second, they were gone. How fortunate we were to witness this. It took me a while to grab the camera so I missed out on some great shots.

Northern Flicker.

Northern Flicker and two Northern Mockingbirds (appropriate, don’t you think?)

And a local.

I’m going to keep this brief as I can’t really think of anything but Hurricane Milton, my sister and her family, and everyone in its path. This is terrifying.

Prayers for everyone in its path.

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

On My Mind this Monday

October 7, 2024 at 9:35 am by Claudia

Another beautiful morning!

That being said, my concerns at the moment are with Milton, the hurricane headed toward the west coast of Florida. More specifically, towards the Tampa Bay area, which is where my sister lives. I foolishly hoped I was overreacting, but Mere, who is a seasoned hurricane veteran, told me I wasn’t overreacting and that this is a serious threat. That area was impacted by Hurricane Helene. And now this – coming directly from the west. It’s supposed to hit land on Wednesday. Schools have been closed. I’m not sure if evacuations have been ordered yet. Mere lives a bit inland. She probably won’t get an evacuation order. She said that hotels are already full because of Helene.

I’m going to check in with her later today and also watch The Weather Channel. Though, every time I’ve tried to check in on Hurricane Helene or Milton, they’ve not been live. Instead, they air ‘specials’ that have nothing to do with what is happening now. Seriously, all weekend long and after 8 pm every evening. Hello? Weather doesn’t take the weekend off.

I don’t have anything much to share other than my worries about the hurricane. Life is sweet here at the cottage, but neither of us is working and there’s not a lot going on. Once again, I am wondering how much longer I will continue blogging. It’s been on my mind lately. But no decision has been made yet.

Something sweet:

The littles playing in the leaves.

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.

An Encounter on our Walk

October 5, 2024 at 9:33 am by Claudia

These autumn wildflowers – asters – are all over the property. This clump is right by our rain barrel. The front lawn is now covered in leaves once again. In fact, everything is covered in leaves, including my car. It’s a sunny and beautiful day. Don has to sing at a memorial service today. A few months back, a young man heard one of Don’s songs and asked if he could sing it at his uncle’s memorial service. Don, of course, said yes. About a week ago, Don got a phone call from the widow, asking if Don would sing the song at another celebration of her husband’s life that is taking place in Connecticut. It’s in the afternoon and he’ll have a lovely drive. He’s taking my car as his is with his mechanics, who are trying to figure out the lights on his dashboard that keep coming on, even though the car is fine. Otherwise, it will fail inspection.

I liked cars better when there was no computer involved.

Yesterday’s adventure:

We went to the library for our walk – a little earlier than usual, about 9:45 or so. The library sits on a hill and there is a long driveway that leads up to the building. It’s perfect for our walk because there isn’t a lot of traffic. We started at the top, and walked downward towards the road, turned around and started walking back up, Suddenly Don said, “Look!” There was a black bear crossing the driveway, coming from the rail trail on the right. He headed for the back yards of some houses. After standing still for a bit, we continued on the walk, knowing he was gone. Went up and down a few more times and then it was me who said “Look!!” He was crossing the drive again going back toward the rail trail. But this time, he turned left into the area behind the library, walking near the rear deck and, eventually, making a right turn onto the trail.

It was so neat to see him! And, as the library hadn’t opened yet, we were the only people there. After we finished the walk, a guy came off the trail with his dog (named Bear, ironically) and we warned him about the bear. But I’m pretty sure the bear was long gone at that point.

Very, very cool! And just far enough away from us that we didn’t feel any fear. Just awe.

Stay safe.

Happy Saturday.

Waiting

On My Mind this Monday

An Encounter on our Walk

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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