Small Treasures

Turkeys!

Yesterday I brought home a pair of Black Spanish turkeys. I released them into a pen so they could adjust to their new home. The peafowl immediately came to investigate. The young male is getting ready to display to the new girl in the neighborhood.

Charlie also wanted to meet the new residents. The tom isn't so sure about the big white dog. The pair settled in quickly, and spent the night in the tree just outside the pen, with one of the young peacocks.

This morning the pair are happily exploring their new home, the safe confines of the pen left behind. Tom is displaying and gobbling, unaware that some of his beautiful tail feathers were broken in transit.

The American Rare Breeds Conservancy http://www.albc-usa.org/ has Blacks on their "Watch" list. Heritage breeds are smaller, more flavorfull, and have less breast meat than commercial turkeys. They are also more independent and raise their own young.

Springtime

Spring in the Northwest weaves a tapestry of greens and grays, using white as an accent. The connifers are the base tone, a rich dark green background for the hardwoods. Waves of new leaves of every color green imaginable twist in the wind. Many shrubs and trees exhibit their delicate white flowers. The normally shy dogwood proudly displays large plates of white along its limbs.

If you can drag your eyes up above the depths of green, the sky is an ever changing pattern of grays, whites and pale blue. This is still the rainy season, and clouds dominate the sky. Sometimes they are only a streak of wispy white or pillows of fluffy grey, but often in the over-exhuberance of the season, all types of clouds convene, making their own beautiful tapestry in the sky.

Chicks Growing Up

All my chicks look and act like their leghorn father. They are independent, active, and not interested in people. Here two have joined the hen who is incubating duck eggs. They climbed into the nest with her last night. Today they are back in the building. It's just too dangerous for small chicks outside when ravens fly by regularly.

Swallows

The swallows have returned! It must be spring. I was on my way to feed the critters when I heard chattering from above. I turned to see the beautiful acrobatic flight of a happy tree swallow. Hopefully many will set up housekeeping here and help reduce the fly and mosquito populations. Besides, they are so wonderful to watch and hear.

Light the Way

The Elderberries are in full bloom. Their greenish-white blossoms look like candles, and they brighten the edges of the woods where they proliferate. These beautiful trees are one of the first to re-establish the woods after clearing, and I greatly appreciate their beautiful presence alongside my lane.

New Chicks

The "other orange hen" diligently sat her nest and hatched out 11 lovely yellow chicks! They are 4 days old. Today's the first day I've let them all out of the crate loose in the kennel. Everyone had a great time. Mom flies against the side of the kennel screaming whenever the dogs walk by. The dogs, of course, think this is a lot of fun *sigh*. It will be interesting to see what colors the chicks turn out to be. I bought the hens from a local farmer - no specific breed. They joined my Leghorn and Old English Game Fowl roosters. We'll see!

Birds!

The birds are returning - a sure sign of spring. I saw a mature Bald Eagle flying overhead here, and the next morning one was on a collision course with a field mouse the other side of the freeway near Olympia - flew directly overhead. They are so very large.

Smaller birds line the trees and sing their hearts out. The song sparrow who lives near my bird building has returned and is serenading.

I love spring.

The End of a Beautiful Day

Ursa suddenly stood up and started barking. She HAD to go outside. When I opened the door I could hear the coyotes singing. So close. They sounded like they were in the lane. Ursa, in full bark, joined Charlie and Jesse in a rush down the hill. By the time we all reached the hay shed the coyotes had been intimidated and slunk silently off. Ursa wagged her 12-year-old tail and showed obvious pride in being a vital part of this organization.

I stood petting the goats, enjoying the warm evening of this beautiful day while counting sheep. I felt a presence, and turned to watch a large owl glide silently down to the nearby tree. He sat still except for his head, which he turned quickly back and forth, no doubt looking for the chipmunks Jesse and Charlie delight in chasing under things. After a few moments he looked straight into my eyes, then started searching for food again. I walked toward him and he silently flew into the woods. I looked toward the kennel where a hen sits on a dozen eggs, glad they will hatch into a protected space.

Sheep and geese all accounted for, coyotes and owls gone elsewhere to hunt, the dogs and I headed back up the hill.

Nightsky Dogs at Work

The Double-Headed Guarding Machine at Nightsky, Snohomish, Washington.
Sampson and Molly guard their charges.
Photo by Linda Anderson of Nightsky.

Lost and Seen

My orange hen disappeared a couple weeks ago. The other orange hen has started sitting on the nest in the supposed hen enclosure (they only use the nest; the chickens all insist on sleeping in the trees), so I've been hoping the lost hen also decided to raise a family. I keep looking for her nest. I've searched the woods and all the covered areas I can think of. No hen.

I'd pretty much given up hope on my hen. Then this morning as I was driving down to pick up seed I saw an orange hen scratching around with the others. Since the one is locked in the enclosure, I was pretty sure this was the lost hen. With a sense of excitement I continued on and picked up my seed.

By the time I got back all hens had disappeared. They reappeared like magic when I started scattering food for them - all except the orange one. I checked the enclosure nest, and was heartily pecked by the disgruntled mother-to-be. So I did see my lost hen.

Another search of the woods has turned up nothing. At least I know she's hiding out there somewhere...

Lost and Found

I work at home on Mondays, so it seemed like a good time to get my new kitty accustomed to the house outside of her room-of-seclusion. I put the dogs out and brought Squeek to the computer desk. She explored the area and finally curled up next to the power supply on a shelf under the desk.

Later I decided to bring in my new TV. This meant the front door was open for a significant time as I maneuvered the large and heavy beast from the car to the house. When I got it all set up, I returned to see how Squeek was doing.

She wasn't. I couldn't find her anywhere. I searched the house, then brought the dogs in to search. I sat quietly to see if I could feel her cat essence. Nada. I feared she'd decided to explore the great outdoors. After significant outdoor searching I still came up without a cat. Several times during the night I went out to call and search for her.

In the morning I was heading out to the kitchen, thinking about how I'd look for my cat, when suddenly 3 dogs headed for the closet. I followed, and found my adorable new kitty stretching and offering a small meow. I'm sure the dogs and I had looked there before, but Squeek is obviously a master of the "I am not here" state of being.

My feeling of well being at having not lost a cat lasted until I came home from work. Ursa was not there to greet me. This is very unusual, so I hurried inside to change shoes and grab a flashlight. I searched the area around the house first, thinking her arthritis may be acting up. From there I started down the hill along the fence, searching the hillside and woods as I went down and around the sheep fields. I figured she must be in the flat area by the outbuildings, but was careful to make sure she hadn't gotten stuck somewhere along the way.

But she wasn't by the outbuildings. As I searched the woods coming up the other side of the hill I started wondering how a person can lose a 120 pound dog. I looked behind the dog yard, getting really worried. As I headed by the house I shone the flashlight towards the porch...and the 120 pound dog standing on it, wagging her tail, waiting to be let in.

"Can't you BARK?" I asked, as I gave her a huge hug. I've no idea where she was, or how I missed her. But I was very glad to see her there.

Every Dog Needs a Job

I have a Border Collie with enough physical issues that it's hard to find work for her, and, being a Border Collie, work is important. She is very creative, and is pretty good at finding work for herself.

It is difficult to know when a Pyr or other LGD needs to go outside or come inside. They usually stand at the door silently, looking intently out or in. We are supposed to know, sometimes from another room, that they wish to leave or come in.

Put together a Border Collie and a task that needs doing and something interesting usually happens.

Hannah has taken on the job of butler. While she can't (fortunately) actually open the door, she stands by it and makes enough noise to let me know there is someone who wants that door open. She then excitedly greets incomers, and gets lots of praise for being so helpful.

Hannah has become so good at this that she sometimes alerts before the dog makes it to the porch. I'm not sure how she knows everyone's intentions, but then she is a Border Collie.

No Fighting!

I have 3 free-range geese. They have decided that the safest place to spend the night is in front of my house. The house is at the high point of the property, but I don't think the geese enjoy the view. Charlie the Pyr, however, does. This is where he hangs out while he's listening and looking for threats, in between fence patrols. The other night there was a confusion of noise outside that got my inside dogs riled up. I went to check it out.

At first glance it looked like Charlie was attacking two of the geese.

At second glance it was obvious that the geese were fighting, and Charlie was trying to break up the fight.

The geese had each other by the wing where it attaches to the body, as male geese are wont to do. Charlie was trying to grab something to break them up, but the only "things" handy were goose necks, which he seems to realize are pretty fragile. He would back off, woof at them, and wade in again.

I think this is Charlie's version of "No fighting in MY house!"

Montana Dogs at Work

A rancher had property on either side of a major road. A tunnel was put in so he could take his sheep across the road without stopping traffic. The first year they used the tunnel, his Great Pyrenees went across the road as usual. She stood in the middle of the road while her sheep went underneath, stopping an 18-wheeler. When the truck came to a halt, she walked up to it and bit a tire.

Stay away from MY sheep.

Ya gotta love a dog with attitude.

Greek Dogs at Work

Photos and comments by my friend in Greece, Annie the Greek.

The one in the pen with the spike collar was put there because he was barking so ferociously at me. The other two guys, well, just normal growling.

Once you get to know them, they're friendly enough. If you get friendly enough with them to scratch their ears, they'll love you forever because no one ever scratched their ears before in their lives.

If, however, you just drive by them, they'll bite the tires on your car, and love to bite you into pieces as well.

Annie

My Dogs at Work

Sky Shadow

I've no idea what caused this pattern, and have not seen it before. Interesting morning sky. 

Still Life

This morning is a study in cold-weather pastels. The sky is a watercolor of translucent white clouds stretched over a pale blue sky. The mountains are sketched in with a broad brush coated in dark blue. Patches of snow show through where the brush lifted from the background. In front of the mountains is a layer of dark, dark green, interrupted by the vertical patterns of brown tree bodies. A bright yellow glows amidst the gray layer of clouds that surround the sun, and St Helens stands out in sharp relief against the golden-gray south sky.The world is frozen. Still life with sky.

Red Sky at Morning...

 

Winter White

The usual winter weather words in the Pacific Northwest are rain, partly cloudy, showers, above freezing, heavy rain...

We've had most of that, along with gale force winds and now a couple days of wet snow followed by below freezing temps. The roads have been like skating rinks for cars.

It is, however, very pretty.

Morning drama - the sun lit up the trees beautifullyagainst the dark cloud background.

Ursa walking with me, on the way down from the house.

The peafowl look for water at the culvert by the animal buildings.

This is my drive just up from the county road. My road is 1/4 mile of curves and hills, leading to a long, steep hill on the little-used county road. I've worked from home most of this week.

Those weather words I mentioned describe a mostly mild, wet climate. If we got snow and ice more often I'd have snow tires and chains to go on a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Instead I have a sedan with decent gas mileage to make the 50 mile commute to Olympia comfortable. We are weather wimps, no doubt about it. 

Snow!

Early visitor - searching for food in this unusual white world.

My house felt very snug as I worked from home rather than braving the commute in the snow. 

What Dog?

Charlie has perfected the "I'm not here" state. He's my 24/7 working dog - but that schedule comes with breaks. On horrible, rainy days he'll come in for dinner, eat, and disappear. He's in a dark corner of the house usually occupied by the chair he's pushed aside. He didn't move a hair, even when the flash went off. 

On Watch

Ever vigilant, Charlie watches over the frozen hillside. I was pleased to have a crisp, clear day as I planned to help a friend move. As often happens in the mornings, I wasn't putting together what I was seeing. See that ribbon of fog shining brightly in the valley? My friend lives out that direction. I spent the day in freezing fog, digging plants and moving bricks. Fog really is much prettier from above. Hopefully Charlie enjoyed the sun. 

The Last Great December Sunrise

White on White

The beauty never ends. I am, however, glad I'm on the ridge above the fog. It's much more beautiful from above than from inside.

Dark Plume

Once again the beautiful sunrise compells me to share the images. Mt. St. Helens greeted the day with a huge dark plume.As the skies lightened, the plume was backlit and shone purple. The patterns of the clouds, the light limning the mountains, the plume rising apparently in slow motion all made for another magical morning.

Once the sun was up everything again became the still white and light blue of a winter's day, with no evidence of the mountain's morning exuberance.

More December Skies

I can't help myself. When it isn't raining, snowing, or producing gale-force winds, the sunrises and occasional sunsets have been stunning. I'm filling up my blog with photos of the same piece of sky, but it has held my attention many mornings and a few evenings. I can't resist sharing these pictures.

This deep, firey red laced with gold is a December specialty.

These two are from Dec 8, when the clouds kept changing color and pattern.

More red, purple, and vibrant gold.

The two above are from the 16th. The sun is like living energy, barely contained by earth and clouds.

The beginning of sunset. The fog in the valley turned purple and then blue. And when I turned to the west...

Mount Rainier was glowing white and then pink against a rose and lavendar sky.

Replay

Events of the past week have shown there is indeed a weather Replay button. The one for "Northwest Wind and Rain" got stuck on for a few days.

The Northern Pacific coast of America was hit by a fierce storm that brought up to 100 mph winds and driving rain. It is reported that around a million people were without power Thursday night. I was one of them. My power went out Thursday at 5:00 PM and came back on Saturday around 8:30 PM.

I learned that I'm not as well prepared for emergencies as I should be. I have a well, so no power = no running water. The impressive amounts of rain filled the outside animals' water containers, and lots of buckets that I also used for water. No water for washing, flushing, or watering my inside birds though. And, of course, after a storm that put a million people out of power is not the time for buying water, lanterns, or any other emergency supplies.

It was cold, dark, and lonely without my computer or phones. I'm very glad to have power back, although I'm not thrilled with just how dependent on it I am. The land line phone was out much of the time, and my cell phone still doesn't work.

I will get better prepared for future emergencies, especially stockpiling more water, and setting my generator up to run lights and maybe some heat. It's so easy to put things off, to become complacent. There were trees and power lines down over the roads. While the roads were cleared quickly, that might not always be the case. Living remotely I need to be better prepared for survival without support.

Now lets see if we can disable that Storm Replay button...

Sound and Fury

I open the door to sound, as the winds that recently brushed Hawai'i's shores rush past. Air moving past air makes a deep roar. When it gets caught up in fir trees they break it into flowing waves of sound, the string section, violins and cellos coming to mind. The bare limbs of hardwoods emit the higher tone of woodwinds and flutes, accented by rattling branches. The aerial symphony changes in volume and tone as I move up and down the hill, feeding birds and sheep.

I stand at the top of the hill, arms out, feeling the wind under my wings, wanting to join the ravens playing in the updrafts. The air down here is moving much faster than that pushing the clouds above. Perhaps that is what causes the roaring.

It is warm for a Washington winter day. The wind feels good against my body, but I can't fly off, I'm working from home today. I come inside and sit at the computer and notice that the wind has stilled, and the sound of rain on the roof fills the room. A tropical rainstorm visits briefly, and then moves on.

I think of my friends in Hawai'i, the daily rains watering their gardens, picturing the orchids, the pumice soil, feeling the heady humidity. I've been sent a non-electronic Christmas card, a morning greeting from the warm pacific isles. I wonder if there is a replay button.

Morning Magic

I was listening to a very depressing story about global warming on NPR this morning when I noticed a strange quality to the light. The next room was bathed in orange light that was pouring in through the windows. I grabbed the camera and went out on the porch, to stand under a stunningly red-orange sky. For a short while the human world went away and the natural world once again overwhelmed me. Slowly the responsibilities and realities of my everyday life settled back around me; I would be late to work again. A small price to pay for another magical morning.

A Gift of Gold

December has begun with rainless glory. After a month of constant rain and cloud we are having some very lovely days. This morning the sun formed a positive image of Mt St Helens, drenching the sky in golden light.

Moon Over Mount Rainier

After the wettest month on record it is a delight to see blue skies, full moons and mountains.