wordsfromanneli

November 23, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 28 Comments

Good to Eat?

Imagine being known for your good flavour on the dinner table. The godwit was known, several hundred years ago, to be a “god whit,” a good creature (for the dinner table, it is presumed).

It was netted and sold at market, fetching even more than a snipe might have sold for in those long ago days.

These marbled godwits were dabbling around at the beach, poking their long bills into the sand in search of any small invertebrates they might feast on.

Their long legs help to keep their bodies from getting wet unnecessarily, but these birds do swim. For foraging though, they have more luck near the shore in waters shallow enough to walk around in without getting their bellies wet. Their long bills can easily probe the sand or mud there without having to dive for what may or may not be there.

They are no longer considered a target as a gamebird. Luckily for them, it is too much work to hunt and prepare these birds for the small amount of meat they offer for the table.

And like the turkeys that the president pardons each year, these godwits are thankful for their own version of the “Passover” at Thanksgiving.

November 21, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 41 Comments

Wild Weather

Before the big windstorm happened, the Captain was keeping a few cans of beer cool, in a plastic tote on top of the patio table that you can just see the corner of at the right side of the photo.

The second patio table, the round one on the left, used to sit in the middle of the deck where the fallen hanging basket is lying on its side now. The wind must have blown the table over as far as it could go.

The oranges were on the table beside the beer cans, to keep cool. I also had a small parsley plant in a pot. You might see it lying on its side without the pot near the far end of the deck. Just a matted clump of dirt with a few yellow green leaves in it.

The blue pieces are part of a small clay pot that I painted about ten years ago. I always liked that little pot, but never imagined that the wind could send it flying off the table and smash it. The white saucer used to be under the parsley pot. Not sure where that pot ended up. I think it was plastic so it may have flown to the neighbours’ place or be in the next town by now.

The bits of branches from the fir trees are relatively small compared to the branch that came down just beyond the deck, as you will see in the next photo.

I’m glad no people, dogs, or squirrels were out for a walk when this branch decided to drop in, and I was so happy to see the squirrels and two hummingbirds alive in the morning.

And so, further to the previous post about Thanksgiving Day, and all we have to be thankful for, I feel very thankful to have been spared major trouble from this windstorm. Even the few hours of a loss of power were not too bad. I can’t begin to imagine the terror people go through in hurricanes. Hearing this wind roar through like a freight train was bad enough.

November 17, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 38 Comments

Thankful on Thanksgiving Day

Since those unfortunate fat white turkeys have been raised in a domestic poultry setting, these wild turkeys have a lot to be thankful for every Thanksgiving Day. American Thanksgiving Day is on Nov. 28 this year. It’s still a few days away. Time for us to think about how blessed we are.

“Darlin’,” Mr. Turkey said,

“Sleep in trees or we are dead.”

“I see no coyote near,

Therefore, we have naught to fear.”

“But your night sight isn’t great,

Mildred learned that; she got ate.”

“You mean ‘eaten,’ don’t you love?

Fine, we’ll watch from up above.”

“Thank you, Lord, for common sense,

Otherwise, things could be tense.”

“We can roost up in a tree,

Count our blessings, you and me.”

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. And yes, let’s count our blessings. There are way more than you think.

November 14, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 28 Comments

Queen Ellie’s Visit

Queen Ellie (alias Eleanor Rigby) and Hostess Emma in the family room.

The queen is on her throne today,

She’s not inclined to play,

While hostess Emma, sad to say,

Looks not so very gay.

As Ellie plays at being queen,

Knows Emma won’t be mean,

But still in Emma’s face is seen

Displacement in this scene.

But well done, Ladies, being friends,

As each the other tends,

For scraps gone by, they make amends

The friendship never ends.

November 9, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 47 Comments

The Proud King and his Timid Queen

The golden-crowned sparrow and his girl are having an adventure on the feeding station roof. They are observed from a distance by a fox sparrow and his friend.

My golden crown means I am king,

It’s why I sit atop this thing.

Melodiously will I sing,

To celebrate the fall’s last fling.

Can anybody join you there?

You seem so high up in the air.

To be alone without a care,

Just doesn’t seem to be that fair.

But please, how do I get back down?

My happy face is now a frown,

I’m feeling foolish, like a clown,

My fear is negative renown.

Oh silly girl, just fly to me,

You’ve got two wings to flutter free,

A hero you don’t need to be,

If you come down I’ll marry thee.

Says foxy sparrow to his mate,

Such foolishness will not abate,

I’d marry you at any rate,

Just follow me and don’t be late.

November 6, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 36 Comments

Crispin’s Dinnertime

What a grand winter home Crispin has!

His bedrooms are deep in the middle of the woodshed. You can see that the Scotchman (that pink float hanging on the left side) is still there. He hasn’t frayed quite ALL of the rope that’s holding it up … yet.

His kitchen and dining room are in the center of the house near the middle post. Zoom in if you want a better view of what’s cooking.

Lately it’s been the same old boring diet of walnuts, but at least they are pre-cracked to save on teeth.

Click on the video for a few shaky seconds of dinnertime.

Bon appetit!

October 31, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 48 Comments

And so it Begins

Robbie Robin thinks of spring,

And the bounty it can bring,

In the lower elevation,

Life was like a long vacation.

Summer berries in the hills,

How delicious were these frills,

In the forests by the streams,

Food enough to fill his dreams.

Ah, but what’s that ridge of white?

Yes, it is a pretty sight,

But it means the days are chill,

And he must come off the hill.

Food is scarce, the bugs are gone,

Must be time for moving on,

Back to lower, warmer climes,

And a few more happy times.

See my friends around my table,

Eating much as we are able,

Mountain ash is loaded full,

Grab the berries and just pull.

Oh, my heavens, see the snow,

I knew I was right to go,

One more feast on berries here,

Then I’ll say, “Goodbye, my dear.”

October 23, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 56 Comments

The Lost Dress

My lovely dress of golden leaves

Is tattered now, and worn,

The wind has warned – no more reprieves,

This time the leaves get shorn.

I hold on tight with all my might,

While gusts and gales rip past,

They tear my dress, and though I fight,

I’m nearly bare at last.

I shiver and the last leaves quiver,

Hanging by a thread,

Until they loosen, blowing whither

They know not, and spread.

My golden dress is on the ground,

For all to trod upon,

And scuffing feet will swish it ’round,

While gusts blow ’til it’s gone.

October 21, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 40 Comments

Cozy Winter Prep

It’s a changing season and the squirrels are feeling the need to make a warm, cozy nest to curl up in for those chilly winter nights. They have spent weeks harvesting hazelnuts for food and stashing them away. Now they are working on their next priority – shelter.

The rope you see the squirrel chewing on is holding up a float used in fishing to mark where a crab pot or a prawn trap is located under the water. Or it could be used as a bumper between boats that are tied up next to each other.

I don’t think the squirrel cares what the float was used for. It is only interested in the fuzziness of the rope, that makes it perfect for adding an insulating factor to the nest of dry leaves it has stashed away somewhere in the middle of the woodshed.

But how to get the rope away from the float? The squirrel has been working on it for days and days and days. It is almost ready to let go; only a few strands are left holding the fuzzy ball of rope to the rest of the line. Watch how he keeps rolling up the fuzzy fibers and pulling to try to get it to let go of the rope.

So far, it hasn’t worked. Just a few strands left to rip off. He’s pulling with all his might. It might be just a matter of more muscle.

He must be so frustrated. Watch his new trick where he approaches the problem from another angle. He’s quite the acrobat, holding on with his back feet.

Now you must be wondering if he ever got that piece of rope. Well, this morning when I went out to look, the fuzzy part he had chewed on was gone. The line holding up the float is getting thinner. One day both the squirrels and I will be surprised to see the float on the ground.

October 14, 2024
by wordsfromanneli 40 Comments