So Close

With Peggy Ann Marie,
who is named after her and her sister, and another lovely lady we know

To making it to 100 years old. Only a couple of months more. 

Still, we are grateful for every month that was given, indeed every day and hour. She was sharp right up to the end and knew Ralph when he visited yesterday and wished us all her love. As I hunted through the office for the inevitable necessary paperwork this morning, I came across birthday cards from her over the years. She always remembered everyone's birthday and sent a card with a sweet little note. I have many of them stashed away here and there.

You see, we lost Ralph's aunt yesterday, quite fittingly on International Women's Day, because she was an amazing woman. 

I used to ply her for stories when we talked on the phone after his mom died.

She was missing her sister...they were very close and talked on the phone for hours every day. So was I, and I thought that as much family history as could be saved should be. So we used to talk a lot back in day when we were lonesome.

They saw so much. Their father was a farmer up on Fiery Hill, their grandparents ran a barge on the Erie Canal. Imagine that? To be so close to history like that? I love those stories and treasure them as much as I do the ones from my own family.

And they were both so strong in the face of adversities that would break many of us in an instant.

Peggy and Ann

Peggy and Ann, sisters, together again now, and not to be forgotten, as their little namesake thunders through our lives on imaginary horses, hunting invisible lions and crocodiles under the dining room table.

Here is a story I wrote when Peg passed. It goes for both of them.

Hiatus

Herring Gulls yesterday. Looks as if they're getting out of town
Do they know something we don't?

Or the calm between the storm....

We are under apocalypse warnings at this time, with a strong chance of zombies. It's already kinda ugly.

Snow, snow, and more snow. 

With wind. 

It is as if ma nature has dandruff and is flatulent. Guess she's getting old like the rest of us.

The ground was white this morning, and wires and twigs and limbs adorned with fluff aplenty. However, the sky was fairly bright by seven or so and you could even...faintly...see the sun.

Hmmm, didn't look too bad and I wondered about the Thruway being closed to trucks and schools letting out early. If this was all we were going to get.....

However, that lasted about and hour, and now the dandruff is coming down hard. Birds are plentiful at the feeders and restless, as am I....restless that is, not plentiful, being one of a kind and all.....so I guess we are in for it.

Again.

Even the birds are screaming, BAH HUMBUG

Four

It's a big birthday, but someone's got to have it!

Happy Birthday, Peggy!

I am Stopping for Now

Working on the Farm Side. I must concentrate to write and the house is getting busy. Wish I could work in a hectic atmosphere, but I can't and that is that. I'll finish it tomorrow when everyone else is sleeping.

However, here are some of the links I'm using in writing about the madness governmental plans in South Africa.

The peeps in power there have decided to forcibly take land from current farmers without compensation and give it away to others. Although this might sound fair and proper in the funny papers, it hasn't worked before and it is a lot more complicated than you might think.

Land reform without compensation does not have a great track record. 

Soviet Union

USSR AG Update

What they're doing

It's Impossible

Imaginary issues, real problems

Update Zimbabwe

Bad publicity and disputed death toll

Trusted experts and their opinions on the topic (this one's a little skeevy, which is why it is last.)

Speaking of the BeforeMath

Sugaring Off

Hauling wood

Adding valuable organic fertilizer to the land

Parked at the Dollar General in town

This was last week. 

In the Aftermath

Just as they came out of the camera

Have you ever wondered what happens during the beforemath?

No? 

Around here it's cleanup. The boss plowed and plowed yesterday, got the house drive opened up. Now we have a hay customer coming so he is working on the barn drive. 

There is still a LOT of snow out there. Many people were without power, some all night. Some still aren't up and running.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the sunrise was.....well, it was indescribable. Good thing there are cameras. These are exactly what the camera saw...no editing.

Get the Witch Hook

The driveway is under there. 

They say that this is going to stop some time. Not yet though.

Meanwhile we are grateful for heat, light, and the internet to keep us entertained. And good food...we like that too.

Jade fed the cows so the boss didn't have to...and walked Finn for me....things were going swimmingly, until Liz looked out the front window.

Oops. There is a tree right in the driveway.

Untouched photo of the rest of the driveway

Jade sent Peggy to ask if she still had a certain tool available.

"Mommy, do you know where the witch hook is?"

Well, no, none of us had any clue.

But, then what he thinks he needs for this job is the winch hook.

Anyhow, the men are heading out to deal....again.....best wishes to all of you facing this mess. Hope you are safe and warm  and dry.

Yuge

Looks as if this storm is gonna to be. At four there were just a couple of inches of snow. Now the car is surrounded by a sort of reverse moat, perhaps it could be called an atoll, of snow that has sloughed off it. 

It's deeper than a Jack Russell Terrier. 

Just ask Mack. He tried to use it as a fire hydrant and nearly fell over. Talk about delusions of grandeur. 

The scanner feeds are full of accounts of trees down and power out. Not good.

Before I filled the feeders the little winter sparrows were digging through snow deeper than they are for spilled seeds from earlier days.

Now all the feeders and the ground are thronged with mixed blackbirds, Red-winged Blackbirds, Brown-headed Cowbirds and Common Grackles galore.

Last year's Rusty

I am going to keep plenty of seed out there today, in hopes of scoring a Rusty Blackbird. We saw one last year during Winter Storm Stella, and I am pretty sure I saw one yesterday and this morning.

 Incidentally, thank goodness Becky is off from work!

And hey, Mom, do you and Dad have everything you need? Love you.....

And now the lights are flickering....

Fish Finders

Seven male Hooded Mergansers displaying like mad for a single female. She must have been a real femme fatale, as they flew up and down the river after her for several minutes, then all landed and tried to look fancy for her.

When they aren't chasing the ladies they are hot on fish and they catch plenty!

Time Zones

I write  texts to send our boy early in the NY morning. Things he needs to know and all. Then I don't send them until three hours pass....time zones you see. It's almost time now...

Spotting deer is important this time of year. Many of them stayed here rather than venturing south as they do in bad winters. 

They are stupid with bold and stroll right up to the road...and sometimes right across it. 

Just the color of the dry brown grass, they are hard to spot, but between the two of us we usually notice them in time to avoid them.

Alas, motorists behind us, doing a ton, and talking on their phones, often barely miss us and never even see the deer. We stopped for these two but a tractor trailer coming the other way spooked them and they returned whence they came.

Quite acrobatically. 

Rare Bird Alert

Check this guy out. He's an American Wigeon. If you go up to Montezuma in season you will see thousands like him. However, here in our county eBird flags him as rare. I have certainly never seen one here before. The boss and I found him in the river this morning, along with his lady, a Gadwall, a couple of Northern Pintails, and a Common Goldeneye.

Hooded Mergansers

What a morning, huh?

Mrs. Hoodie

Color me happy. Sorry about the less than spectacular photos, but these ducks were way out in the river.

Gadwall

Shipping Day

My only contribution was moral support, knowing where to stand, and when to move, and whether to be loud or quiet. And being bossy. I do that so well....

Many thanks to Liz and Jade for helping the boss extricate the big, horned, heifer from her mother and Bama and get her on the truck for freezer camp (as one wise farmer I know calls it). Not a job for the faint of heart or feeble of feet.

She was a scary critter and her mother, Moon, is about as smart as a post. Those things, combined with Bama being just a tad on the wild side, made things interesting.

It is done though and in a couple of weeks we can look forward to some nice beef.

After a diet of chicken, fish, and pork from the store it will be very welcome.

I think the boss has been dreaming about meatloaf.....

I have a new camera...can you tell?

A Week in Bird Days

Our little chickie with a chick

Mighty Bald Eagle youth
and mighty tame too!

Male Common Goldeney

Lone Snow Goose we have been seeing daily

American Kestrel, right where we see him every year

And a couple of Ring-necked Ducks

Just Ducky

Snowy Canvasbacks

Yesterday it hit 75. 

Today it is snowing like January.

We still ran down to the boat launch to look for waterfowl and got lucky.

There were ducks everywhere. Some were too far out in the snow to see anything but dull outlines. However, there was a flock of Canvasbacks, which are far from common here, and tons of Hoodies and Common Mergansers.

What fun!

Update: a couple of better shots from after the snow