Cold Enough

Common Yellowthroat, a favorite warbler, so confiding and friendly

To charm the feathers off the crickets. If you don't believe me, go out and check your yard. I'll bet not one single cricket has any feathers left. They are quiet too, stilled by the chill, or perhaps just embarrassed to be featherless and all.

First ripe tomato yesterday, with BLTs for the supper the result of that. Second crop of lettuce is ready as well, in a window box on the sitting porch, so that worked out pretty nicely.

Enough string beans to fill a shopping bag to overflowing have been frozen. Hopefully the frost will hold off so I can get a few more. Pulled out all the squash yesterday though. Squash mosaic virus doesn't affect the edibility of the fruit, but, my word they are ugly. It's a disease that is hard to avoid. It comes in on infected seed and lingers long in the soil Oh, well, I didn't really want to freeze squash anyhow.

Cold enough that I am washing and airing blankets for winter....

You should see the Black Walnut tree our friend gave me as a seedling that is planted down below the driveway. Just hanging with enough nuts to fill a hundred squirrels.

Every Box Elder tree is hung with enough samaras to bury a small car. The Winesap apple is burdened down with fruit, small, but in wild quantities. This may be its last year as it is splitting badly. Hey, Mappy, do you want to make cider again this fall? Any time after first frost those apples will be getting juicy.

One of my self-appointed daily tasks is to kick all the fallen fruit down the hill to the lower driveway where the chickens will find it and gobble it up. The hard, green and pink orbs are a menace to old fogies walking down the hill on the walkway under the tree, so I get rid of them. 

The kids did good at the fair with birds and crafts. Liz won both grand and reserve grand champion with the Call Ducks. I do love those silly birds and miss them now that they are over at the show. They are all noisy, Mallardy, splashy in their pool, and bathtub-toy-cute all at the same time. I get a giggle every time I walk past their coop and they announce my presence to the world.

Becky got blues with both the crochet projects she entered, a mermaid and a little Teddy horse, both cute and well done. She has come a long way for a woman who taught herself using YouTube videos. 

Cape May Observatory's migration radar photo. Wow!

Good birds of the week: Common Nighthawk right outside the living room window. Pair of Red-Shouldered Hawks soaring almost beyond reach of the naked eye over the old horse pasture. With binoculars I would see the white crescents in their wing tips that told me what they were. Magnolia Warbler on the feeder arbor eating spiders I think. Gave me a great view as it picked over an old deer skull hanging there. Another first for the farm.