March

The birds are still showing up for lunch but the variety hasn't changed much.    This red winged black bird 

was a nice addition.  

  

But mostly, it's still the busy house finches.   I even bought dried meal worms  ($$) in hopes of attracting more variety but so far,  mostly finches and house sparrows......which is fine for now but I expect colorful additions soon.  

We made a trip east and arrived in time for Andy's birthday and his ice cream cake.    We stayed with Murphy, while Andy and his parents flew to Europe to see WW I and II sites.   Andy has a keen interest in that time and despite rain and cold, they covered many historical sites.  

  

Weather was pretty typical for Connecticut springs, overcast and gloomy but we got in some good walks. 

 

Around here the daffodils are blooming and the trees are starting to blossom  and the golfers are out in force.   Of course, it will snow again but we do need the moisture.     

Meet Nala.    She is a rescue English Mastiff.    She's almost done and then I'll start on Maple.   It's been nice to get away from white dogs.    I'm also looking forward to  a class on landscapes in April via Zoom.    It's very convenient and the classes are recorded so easy to watch several times.     

I'm rereading "Shogun".    I started to watch the series but the brutality and violence became too much so I decided to go back to the book.   I remember nothing from the first time I read it.    It's also very stomach turning at times but I can speed-read over those parts.    

And a high five and Thank you to Mark for being a loyal blog reader and I have gifted him a free subscription. !! 😏

 

Where did Jan and Feb go.....?

Fortunately, spending this winter at home instead of AZ hasn't been that bad.    But, the downside is no pictures of my favorite desert plants and blooms.      And no interesting explorations or getaways.    Instead, one of us plays pickleball a lot and the other one walks a lot.   And draws a bit.     

Oz was finally finished...... 

This is Lucy.    She is elderly and drawn for a friend of the family.     I'm done with whitish dogs for awhile.  

And this is Maple.   She and Nala are Mastiffs..... I see them most days on my morning walk.   They don't really walk, they lumber .     And when I stop to chat with their mom, they lie down and go to sleep....even for a minute or two.   I've started their portraits..... stay tuned.      Maple doesn't like the camera ..... 

 

         So, I've read a lot of books and listened to even more.   I'm enjoying Wolf Hall on PBS..... it mostly seems to follow the book or as I remember it.    

We do have some travel plans coming up........... to spend quality time with the granddog.. 

Wildlife

It's quiet these days .    We don't regret our decision not to spend a few months in AZ.   We keep reasonably busy but I miss my outdoor walks.    I'm an early morning walker and I just can't force myself to bundle up and trudge outside in 10 degrees.    We have a treadmill and recumbent exercise bike and a Pilates Performer so there are no excuses.    AND, I can crawl out of bed, put on my Hokas, and do the treadmill all before 7 or 8.    

We are thoroughly enjoying our gifted Bird Buddy.    I have fed the birds for a few years but this brings it to a very interesting level.      

Male and female house finch.

We get notifications when a new bird appears...... BUT, that has only happened twice since we only have finches and one Pine Siskin ( although I question that ID since they migrate ).   The camera has a wide angle lens so up close they appear a bit distorted ....but it adds to the experience!.    We were able to 3-D print the blue accessories....well, HE was able to do that....I have no idea how that printer works.

The house finches are busy all day.   I like Anne Lamott's description of them.   The male shows up in his "glorious red headdresses and chest and the females in their faded brown bathrobes "

Yesterday, a Northern Flicker showed up .   But, it was off to the side, feeding from the suet cup and only his beak was captured.   And he left when I tried to get a picture of him.   Their wing feathers are a beautiful orange and I have one they left behind last summer.  

Yesterday, we drove to Grand Junction.   I need a bookstore fix every now and then.   There used to be a nice one in Ouray but it closed.  I liked supporting it.   

I went specifically for this book by Amy Tam.   It is delightful and I highly recommend it if you have any interest in bird watching /journaling.   

And, speaking of wildlife.    My neighbor Leslie, next door, has seen foxes in her yard early in the mornings.    Usually 3 large ones.    I have not seen any nor have we captured them on our security cameras.    My friend across the fairway has had them at her front door cameras in the night.    And, our neighbors across the street managed to get these pictures yesterday.   They are quite magnificent and I'm glad we don't have small dogs or cats.     I would like to see them, from a distance.   

Yesterday, after our trips to the bookstore and the Wild Bird Unlimited store for birdseed, we went up to 

the Colorado National Monument.   It's a beautiful drive and it's guaranteed that there will be Bighorn 

sheep.   Yesterday just a small herd of females.    

This is Oz.   He lived a great life, from days in Nicholas' dorm room until this fall.....over 16 years.   He was a scruffy little dog.    This is my 2nd attempt at capturing him.   My first attempt was on drafting film.   It's an interesting surface to draw on and allows for amazing detail.    It came out as a good drawing but I didn't feel like it really looked like Oz.    So I'm starting over on my favorite surface, a textured (like very fine sandpaper) that allows for many many layers and a softer look.    I enjoy the process and the learning experience so I don't mind starting over.   But white dogs are hard for me.  

 

Christmas

And so we flew east.... Always a beautiful view as we take off over the Elk Mountains. 

  

Yes, the boys still make Christmas cookies.   Their  special Grandma Rae gave them these aprons, obviously many years ago.... and Star War cookie cutters to match.   

I didn't get out in the favorite woods due to very slippery trails but we did do a healthy walk with serious uphills .    

The pilots went flying on a sunny day.......

And Murphy loved his Christmas bear, minus a few parts. 

And now we are home, enjoying the quiet days and the fireplace.    

 

Thanksgiving

 

I meant to include this at the end, but I can't get it to move.   This is Charlie in his younger days.   He is now quite grey and moves slowly.   We have done many hikes with him when we were both more vigorous.    His tongue was actually longer but I shortened it ..... 

We drove over to Mike and Jenna's and met up with all these lovely people.   I have no pics of the delicious spread of food and the joy of watching great grands having rambunctious fun or the wonderfully soothing pedicures ..... putting my feet into warm melty wax until it hardens is the ultimate in self care.

We strolled along the colorful paths at the Botanic Gardens light display at Chatfield farms.   The giant 

cottonwoods were stunning.   

Chilly but not uncomfortable....We cancelled last year's outing when it was windy and near zero.  

We had to delay our drive over by a day due to spectacular amounts of snow.   The drive is long and busy on a sunny day so ice and snow are way out of our comfort zone.     I think this was the prettiest we've ever seen the Canyon .   Well, Glenwood Canyon is always spectacular but the snow added the perfect touch.   

So this ad pops up on my phone..... I know ads usually reflect what you've been googling but trust me, I was no where near this topic.   Well, unless my lichens and fungus group on FB was a trigger.   I'm sure it's available somewhere in Colorado....I'll let you know.  

 Usually, I get my drawings matted at a local framer.  John knows what I want and I suspect, charges me a bit less.   Well, his back gave out and he needed some treatment so was closed.    My only other choice was Hobby Lobby.    The nice person in the frame dept was very complimentary of my drawing of Charlie.   And then she showed me a picture of her cat and asked what I charged.    When I saw those eyes, I knew I had to try and capture that expression.    I finished Chloe yesterday and took her back to HL.    When she saw it, she started crying.  It was all very emotional.        And, I don't charge. 

And then we went to Amsterdam.......

So, one day Jon called and said "come with us to Amsterdam".     We paused  and thought of reasons why this just couldn't possibly fit into our busy ??  schedule.    And then 3 days later , we got on an airplane.  

Why Amsterdam you say?    Jon and Mary Beth have very busy schedules and when they find a block of days, they try and travel.   And since Jon works for United, they look at availability and go where it is relatively easy to get a seat.....thus Amsterdam.  

Weather was chilly but dry.   I can't imagine doing this in rain.     We covered most of the high spots and found the local trams to be clean and efficient.   We bought a 3 day pass which gave us access to museums and all the transportation we needed.   

There is no way I can adequately describe the bicycle situation .    Everyone rides them.   They are propped up and locked up everywhere.   They fly down the streets.   They carry babies in seats on the front and older kids on the back.   Crossing the streets is an act of courage.  They appear out of nowhere and are very stealth.   Rarely hear a bell although most bikes have them.  The bike paths are part of the roads and finding room for trolleys, pedestrians, cars and bikes is a work of engineering.   Many many cars are electric so between silent cars and bikes, it is much quieter than large cities.     Everyone spoke English and was very nice.   The bathrooms were spotless.   If I could live in one of those narrow canal houses (very very expensive) in the nice weather , I would be happy in Amsterdam.   

We found this pub with the best veggie burger I've ever had.   French fries seemed to be very popular as well as the ubiquitous stroopwafels.   Vegan options were popular everywhere.  

 

 

We did a daytime cruise on the canals and also a private tour at night on a beautifully restored boat owned by a young couple trying to make it in the tourist trade.    Highly recommend.   

Out of order, but this was our arrival at the airport about to take the train to our hotel after 7 hours flying.  

We did the Van Gogh museum ..... excellent presentations of his works.   Interestingly, Starry Night was not there and there isn't even a postcard or a mention.   It is actually permanently in MOMA in NYC.   Jon and Mary Beth did the Anne Franke house.   We were too late getting tickets so we went to the Tulip Museum nearby.   

Fortunately, walking is not a hardship for us and we managed to pile up the steps most days.    Makes me happy to know that my persistence in regular walking does pay off.    I don't think we held up the young people all that much although sometimes we went our separate ways.   

Before, we crossed the pond , we spent a day in CT.   I love this hike in the woods and it was a much greater challenge this time of year.    The rocky trails were covered in leaves.   I took a hiking pole to feel out the rocks and holes but I was slower than usual.    One should never take a picture wearing a waist pack and expect to look svelte.   

Murphy has to seek out all the waters.  

Because of Jon's seniority and our choice of flights, we managed to fly in Business/First Class both ways.   It makes a big difference on these long long flights but they do serve way too much food.  

After landing in NY, we debated about going back to Jon's for a few days but decided to keep going.    The next flight to Denver was full but we got on (middle seats )..... then we sat and sat as our flight to Montrose  was delayed due to snow.    Finally we got home close to midnight....a long long long day but we slept well.   We woke to this pretty picture.

It's good to be home with so many memories.   And now it's back to learning.   I finished Abby and was mostly pleased.   I met her on my usual morning walk and took several pics and told her dad that I might practice drawing her.    I gave them the picture and they were thrilled and surprised.    Next up is a friend's old dog but I'm doing it from a younger picture.   They don't know about it and I got the picture from their occasional dog sitter.    It's going well.   

 "It's so weird ..... being the same age as old people."     

October

It's been 60 years !!! ..... since I was a freshman on this campus.   We met Jon and Mary Beth and spent the weekend with sophomore Mason.    We got the grand tour, of which I remembered very little.  It is a beautiful campus and a perfect day for wandering.     

We went to the airport and watched the students take off one by one.   I think it's a good place to fly...,without mountains.   I was a bit anxious thinking about Mason being up there by himself.   I don't remember being concerned about Jon doing the very same thing.   I'm assuming I just can't remember but Jon was also flying on his own before he even left for college so had some experience.   And Mason is the youngest of the grands......

It was a fun filled weekend, punctuated by a UND hockey game.        How fun to see all the families, babies with headphones, everyone in green and cheering loudly.   And they do sell a lot of beer.    Mason is in the band but skipped this evening so was my guide to everything hockey and band....they are good and added so much to the spirit of the game....but they still lost.  

He sent this pic to his girlfriend  ( who is in school in Gainesville ! ) and she said I was 'slay'.... I took it as a compliment ?

Back to our other life..... the leaves are turning, the roses are in full bloom ( after hardly showing up this summer ) and the weather is perfect.   

  In the recesses of a cupboard, I found this like-new rice cooker.    It made the fluffiest and most perfect quinoa in 35 min.   Normally I use the Insta Pot , which is faster, but it sticks to the bottom.    Next up is brown rice.    

We will get our flu and Covid vax today and hope that getting them at the same time won't be a mistake.   

This is Scout.   He is a Catahoula Cattle dog.   He looks more ferocious than he is.   But he was a pain to draw.   She gave me several pictures and he was grey, brown or black depending on the light.   And the pics were out of focus.    I should have taken my own but I stumbled thru.    He has
 a blue and a brown eye.   That was the first thing the framer said so I'm glad that is obvious.   I give them double matted.  I think it enhances my work and protects the surface from contact with a glass frame.  I hope they like him.   Next up is a golden retriever..... I think it will be very hard.