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Tuesday, May 27, 2008

found old Haiku

As I was spring cleaning I found some old Haiku I had done for my old Homestead website...
I also found a story I started about Ballie...which i will post later....




Cat Haiku

Black boy sits and looks
intently at the toy
hoping it will move.

Overflowing the cardboard box
the cat finds coziness
inside its cramped corners.



Silly boy, Silly boy
he jumps and pounces
on his shadow.

6am fur alarm
stone hits hardwood floor
hungry cat happy with our stirring.

Eyes open in slits
mouth wide in yawn as paws stretch
eyes close...Its Nap time.


other Haiku


The sun sits gently
on my cool face
making it feel like summer.


Pink blossoms unfurl
to breathe in the freshness
of spring.

Coziness, cats and a dog rule
in their household run with love

and collections.

Beautiful woman,
yesterday, struggling teenager
today she saves the world.






Monday, May 19, 2008

Another lifer


howdy all,

Jeff and I went birding this morning at Bluff Point.
We were hoping that there would be allot of migrating warblers.....but it was a windy day..
We did see lots of yellow warblers, a black and white warbler and the lifer of the day was a Blue winged warbler, as it turned out there were actually quite a few blue winged....i believe that they nest here.

We met a biker while we were birding and he showed us a few trails that we haven't been on...so next time we will do a bit more exploring. One of the trails leads to Haley farm...another goes out to Groton long point area. This is a great place for mountain bikers as well as walkers and joggers.

The air smelled so sweet today....there was something blooming that filled the air with a wonderful aroma......we didn't have time to look for shore birds...as we were busy looking for migrants....I think all the birds we saw were migrating locals.....
I think we missed the big migration here which would be the first two weeks of may....but we may check out a few more areas for late migrating birds.

I worked in the garden today....pulled up some brick borders and replaced them so that they would show up a bit more....the soil had covered allot of them...also planted some annuals...
I will do some more gardening later this week....maybe change a few things around.....

anyway....spring has sprung again....ha...our first spring was in North Carolina....
Lucky us to have two springs.....



Wednesday, May 14, 2008

NYC walking ,birding, eating, and Spamalot



Howdy all,

We had a really great day yesterday....in my opinion, the best that NYC has to offer...
Central Park birding...eating and a really terrific show.

We wanted to take a walk in Central Park and happened upon many birders in the Ramble area....all staring at a Chuck Wills widow...a rare bird here.

We didn't have our binoculars but the birds that we saw were all down low. Canada Warbler, Ovenbird, Black throated blue warbler, Common Yellow throat, Wilson's Warbler, Black and White Warbler, Magnolia Warbler, Verey, Wood thrush, Catbirds, Robins, Cardinals and a few others. Boy did we wish we had our Binos.
We left the birdy area and headed back into town for dinner before our 8pm show.
Dinner was sooooo yummy.....We went to Blossom. Jeff, Samarrah and I all ordered the same entree. Sietan cutlets encrusted with rosemary and nuts pan fried with a garlic cream sauce and cranberries, served with whipped cauliflower and sauteed spinach with garlic. Desert was the most wonderful tofu cheesecake I have had, with a strawberry sauce.
I cant tell u how delicious it was...I am dreaming about it now....it is not an inexpensive restaurant. I think our entrees were 21 dollars each, well worth it for a special treat.

We topped of the night by seeing Spamalot.....it was excellent...hysterical and just plan fun.
Go see it if you get a chance....
I cryed because it was just soooo good.
What a fun day.



Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Brooklyn Botanical Gardens more photos and a video

Image hosted by Webshots.com
by dawnjeffprodigynet

click on the picture to go to the full album

More photos of our walk in the gardens.....I forgot to mention that this is prime migration time for birds and without our binoculars we saw alot of great birds.



Brooklyn Botanical Gardens





Howdy all,
Jeff, Samarrah and I had a Lovely day at the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens....
the weather was perfect...warm and sunny. The gardens were in full spring bloom...the smell of the wisteria and lilacs was so wonderful....
It was a pleasant relaxing day in the city...
I will add more pictures and a video if i have time tomorrow...

Sunday, May 11, 2008

Annapolis Cousins some 35 years later



Howdy all,

Jeff and I left the bird festival and headed to Annapolis...we landed a little after 7pm. Parked at the Annapolis Elks club then went inside to meet up with Toni and her husband Phil. Later Sandy and her daughter Tina joined us for a nice reunion evening at the Elks.

When I was a child my family would travel to Annapolis every summer to visit my fathers family.
That was our only vacation. My dads father passed away when he was young, and his mother raised the family after that. We would visit Grandma and Uncle Vic in Annapolis. Toni and Sandy and their siblings would visit us. Their dad was my fathers half brother. I have fond memories of Annapolis and my cousins. We stopped traveling to Annapolis when I was in my teens. Jeff and I have seen cousin Janice and her family in Florida and it rekindled my desire to catch up with the rest of the family.

The visit was short but nice. We will try and get together some more in the future.
We also drove by my grandmothers home that we used to visit....the homes around it are very nice...but my grandmothers home seems vacant and in disrepair.

.Check out the pictures and video in the slide show...You can also go to my webshots album to view the pictures as they were taken.



Annapolis cousins 40 years later

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Goodbye North Carolina we are On the road again

Howdy all,

Thanks for all your calls and cards and cyber-birthday cards...I had a nice birthday...and a great birthday meal.

We left Adele and Craig's (boo-hoo) on Thursday and made it to Davis Lakes campground...our destination for the Great Dismal Swamp Bird Festival in Suffolk, Va.

We had a wonderful time at Adele and Craigys as usual....Jeff got a bit of golf in...but had shoulder and elbow problems...I did some gardening...and we both did a bit of birdwatching.
It was sad to leave as usual...but we will be back again in November for some more fun.

But back to the bird festival.....I have never been to a bird festival...where you don't pay for the walks or tours....where they give you water and crackers to start your early morning bird walk...free coffee the second day...along with hot dogs, chips and water again...as much as you would like...
And to boot...Jeff and I were both given kits and made bird houses....wow..

This is the second year of this small bird festival, and it is sponsored by Suffolk Tourism, Fish and Wildlife Bureau the Dismal swamp national wildlife refuge and a few others. The festival is three days...with a few bird walks, bus tours and some displays.keep in mind it is quite small when it comes to bird festivals, but it was very nice and we saw some birds....ha..
The first day was Friday. Jeff and went on a 6:30 bird walk, an afternoon tour to the lake and an evening owl prowl..no owls were seen on that prowl....oh well...

The second day an 8am walk...with warm coffee to start.....and after the walk we had hotdogs and chips and made two birdhouses which i will give to Mom and Dad if they want them....i don't think the birds would appreciate us taking them touring around the USA with us.

We saw two life birds for us.... a yellow billed cuckoo, which is actually quite common here....and a Swainson's warbler.. We also saw many other birds, the Prothontary warbler is quite common here....Hooded warbler, black and white warbler, Acadia fly catcher, Redstarts, Great crested flycatcher and others.
It was a nice little bird festival and we recommend it if you happen to be in the area.

We are now headed to Annapolis, should arrive around seven this evening....We will park at the local Elks lodge and my cousin Toni,who i haven't seen in 30 some years, will meet us there with her husband...So i am excited to see her again after sooo many years.
Will get back tomorrow with pictures....
catcha later..

Monday, May 05, 2008

They say its my Birthday



And its true....Today I turn 52...Yikes...
I am going to get a massage later today...and for my birthday present I have pre-ordered Wii Fit
(thanks Tammy for taking care of that for me)



Jeff and I will also be going out to dinner with Jim, a friend who is visiting from Oregon.
Thanks mom and dad for the target gift card...and thanks Tammy and Joe for the email card...it was really cute and so fitting....
Adele brought over a nice concrete garden cat for my birthday this morning....it looks like my sweet little noblet....I put him here in the garden so i can look at him whenever I am here.
That's all for now....

Happy birthday Me...