March 18, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 39 Comments

NAP TIME

In the shed, a squirrel can hide,

But it’s dark and gloomy,

Warmer days now and I ride,

On the branches, “Zoomie!”

Soon I’m tired of playing games,

Can’t keep up this pace,

Go away ye gents and dames,

While I rest my face.

See my head, it’s hanging down,

Too much work to lift,

No more danger all around,

Off to sleep I drift.

Thankful for my furry tail,

Just like in the nest,

Keeps me warm and without fail,

Sunshine does the rest

The squirrel is in the photos of the woodshed. Do you see him in the top left corner just under the edge of the roof? Over the last of the hoses?

March 11, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 46 Comments

A Glimpse of Sun

A glimpse of sunshine feels so good,

A rarity today,

The breeze is buffeting the clouds,

And begs them, “Go away.”

The wind is messing up my hair,

Can’t get it to look good,

It’s threatening to blow me down,

If I don’t grasp this wood.

But look! The sun is coming up,

It’s bringing warmth and cheer,

And though it’s looking hopeful now,

It won’t last long I fear.

So I’ll just keep on hanging on,

And waiting for a break,

It has to warm up soon I hope,

Just how long can it take?

March 2, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 37 Comments

March

I thought we had escaped the grip of winter by now, but then, this morning, yuck!

March certainly came in like a lion here with a bitter cold wind and then a dump of snow. I’m counting on it to go out like a lamb, hopefully with mild springtime temperatures.

I did some digging and found out that some people think the proverb about March is not so much about weather as it is about the stars.

At the beginning of March, the constellation Leo rises in the eastern sky. Then at the end of March, the constellation Aries (the ram, or perhaps the lamb in its younger days) sets in the west.

Whether it is weather related or has to do with the stars, it’s often safe to assume the weather is better towards the end of March.

Just for fun, here is a timely Knock, Knock joke that you all know.

Knock! Knock!

Who’s there?

Marshall.

Marshall who?

Marshall come in like a lion and go out like a lamb.

January 20, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 37 Comments

A Precious New Day

Photo by Pat Gerrie

Life, the continuous learning curve,

Gives us no warning of what it will serve.

All of us bumble and err on the way,

That’s why we cherish each precious new day.

January 19, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 40 Comments

Mother, What’s All That White Stuff?

Do you remember Bambi asking, “Mother, what’s all that white stuff?” and she answered in such a soft voice, full of wonder, “Why … it’s … snow!”

Well, this morning I found myself saying, “Mother! What …?” etc.

It all happened overnight, and then it continued into the morning. My poor little birds!

The hummingbirds … where do they sleep on nights like this? At least they had a heated feeder this year. Last year I had to run out and exchange the frozen sugar water for liquid every 20 minutes or so. This year, I have one heated feeder, thanks to the thoughtful gift from a friend, and I can also put the not-heated feeders out there when the temperature stays above freezing. It works great!

The heated one is on the left, with the cord running from the outlet in the wall to the feeder.

For some reason the hummingbirds like sitting on the feeder penthouse.

Today it snowed for the second day in a row and just before it got too dark, a hummingbird came for one last drink. I took the video through the screened kitchen window as the light was fading. It’s not very sharp, but the hummer took a long last sip to last him for the night.

The rest of the birds have to find what food they can under the shelter of the eaves or the roof of a feeding station. I think they have a hard time in the snow, especially when the sun comes out and thaws huge portions that slide off branches, and threaten to bury them in the avalanche.

I’m always happy to see the snow because it looks so pretty, but I’m relieved when it thaws and the birds and little animals can breathe more easily again.

Do I dare to hope that this is the last of it for the winter?

January 13, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 45 Comments

A Cool Change

A thin layer of snow covers the usual feeding grounds of ducks, geese, and swans. While the nearby preferred agricultural fields are frozen over with snow and ice, the birds find food and shelter on the edges of the salt water.

The estuary of the Courtenay River holds a lot of bird life. Depending on the wind direction, waterfowl can find sheltered indentations in the shoreline where they can forage for food in the shallows. Rather than feeding on seeds and bits of plant roots when cold weather freezes their usual fields, they make the switch to marine vegetation and bits of animal matter (shrimp, crustaceans) that they find in the tidal areas of the shore. Once in a while, a faint ray of sunshine warms their backs on this southern exposure in spite of the cold day.

Looking upriver at Comox Bay

Looking outwards to the spit

Mainly widgeons and dunlins.

In these very short video clips you can see a swarm of what I think are dunlins flying in to land near the beach. Although it is a very small flock, it reminds me of those murmurations of birds, when they fly so close together in an incomprehensible formation without crashing into each other. If you make the videos full screen you might be able to see the fine snowflakes blowing around as well

These mallards are close to shore for several reasons. They have slightly more cover in case of predators (better than being “a sitting duck” in the open water), and there is probably more food available in the shallows where they can probe the sand with their bills and find small beach creatures to eat. At high tide there is also marine vegetation that is available only at this level, lifted up by the rising water.

They are in survival mode for now, waiting for a good low pressure southeast system that will bring wind, rain, and warmer temperatures, thawing out the farm fields that offer their preferred diet. I hope they are all lucky ducks.

January 8, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 49 Comments

A Cold Midnight Visit

Moans and groans that chill the bones,

Through the window stream,

Scents of icy northern zones,

Invade the sleeper’s dreams.

Cold unwelcome guest descends

On the huddled shape,

Shivering, the ice-ghost bends,

Whispers in her nape.

Who has paid the icy fare,

On these crystal flows,

Hitching rides on Arctic air,

Following their nose?

Walruses and polar bear,

Wolves and caribou,

Send their scent along the air,

Via Manitou.

Think of us, they sadly moan,

Swirling round the room,

Dream of us, for now you’ve known

Our cold nights and our gloom.

December 30, 2023
by wordsfromanneli 35 Comments

Out With the Old

After days and days of rain, the water that has washed down the hills and into all the drainage systems is emptying itself into the sea.

The river is brown with the silt that has no chance to settle because of the quick flow of the extra volume.

Here, the river is near the estuary, and the tide is coming in while the river is flowing out. The tide wins though, and backs up the river. It’s quite the battle, with the volume from the extra rainfall pushing against the tide.

On the left side of this photo you can see the top of the retaining wall that is usually visible and dry to a height of about eight feet from the top (I’m guessing), now breached and letting water through.

Here is a closer look. The road is beyond the river, to the left. Comox is on the left side of the river; Courtenay on the right.

On the right side of the river, the trees and shrubs that line the walkway along the riverside are flooded at the moment. Once the water recedes, they should be all right, but the high water level is very close to flooding this parking lot.

I just know that this summer, when we have our heat waves and drought, I’ll wish for some of this excess water to give my petunias a drink.

I hope the darker events of the past year will wash away just as this flooded muddy river will empty itself in the sea, and like the river, our lives will be rejuvenated by fresh spring rains and plenty of happy sunshine.

So as the old year is done, and the new one comes in, I say, “Out with the old, and in with the new.”