Merry Christmas!

Wishing all of my readers a very

“MERRY CHRISTMAS”

 

Woodpecker Stack

Click on the Woodpecker to go to the “stack”

 

UPS is NUTS!

I ordered an item from Newegg.com on Monday, Dec 14.  It shipped out on Monday from Memphis, TN.  I live in southern IL.  The package was originally scheduled for deliver on Wednesday, Dec. 16.  So, I look at UPS tracking info on Wednesday morning and it is in Earth City, MO where it sits for three days … or so I thought.  NOT … it was sent to Dallas, TX.  HUH???  Now the delivery date is Dec. 22.  What happened to Newegg’s “UPS guaranteed 3 days shipping”?  Of course, it is UPS that screwed up and not Newegg.

WHAT CAN “BROWN” DO FOR YOU 

 

Doggy Christmas Surprise … too cute!

Last of the Leaves

Floating on Dolans Lake

Happy Birthday Jan!

This is one of my favorite shots of you …. I took it in 2005.  You and Trish were sitting on Milly talking and laughing.  Of course you weren’t all “gussied up” but this is they way I like to see you …. just Jan …. the Jan that I have known and loved ever since we were tiny little tots.

Many years have come and gone …. some bad and some good!  You have managed to make it to a very important milestone in your life.  I hope you continue on a happy path for many years to come.

Happy Birthday Old Friend

 

Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii)

He had his eye on “lunch” so he let me walk very close to him. 

Among the bird world’s most skilful flyers, Cooper’s Hawks are common woodland hawks that tear through cluttered tree canopies in high speed pursuit of other birds. You’re most likely to see one prowling above a forest edge or field using just a few stiff wingbeats followed by a glide. With their smaller lookalike, the Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper’s Hawks make for famously tricky identifications. Both species are sometimes unwanted guests at bird feeders, looking for an easy meal (but not one of sunflower seeds).

Look for Cooper’s Hawks to fly with a flap-flap-glide pattern typical of accipiters. Even when crossing large open areas they rarely flap continuously. Another attack maneuver is to fly fast and low to the ground, then up and over an obstruction to surprise prey on the other side.

Verizon Wireless Launches More Anti-AT&T 3G Network Commercials

Even though AT&T filed a lawsuit against “Big Red” they are still coming out with new commercials.  You go VZW!!

These are just too cute ….

 

 

CHICKADEE

Cutie!

BABY ALERT!

Grandma Cruser called me a 5:30 this morning, screamed in my ear … We’re having a baby!  Yes, Lindsey is finally having the baby.  Grandma & Grandpa Cruser are on their way to Lexington.  Poor Ryan is probably a nervous wreck  …. first babies tend to make fathers that way :o) 

I hope everything goes well for Lindsey … can’t wait to see a photo of that sweet baby girl.

And, on another happy note …. I’m picking up my son today!  He will be arriving at 2pm from Rhode Island.  YaY!  He will be here for almost 2 weeks ….. so, it’s a GOOD day for everyone!

Ruby-throated Hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris)

Two more hummer shots from several days ago.  Most of the hummingbirds have departed from this area.  I have a couple that are still buzzing around the feeders.

 

Duckies at Burdette

These images were taken at Burdette Park in June and July of this year during a couple  of my visits to Heavensville.  We always go to Burdette early in the am and sit for hours …. she reads and I shoot a gazillion photos ….. always loads of Ducks and Geese around the water.

 

 

  

 

Hummingbirds

I haven’t shot any hummers this summer so I decided to take a few shots today. 

 

Fungi …..

I took this photo in August when I was at Dolans Lake.  It is some kind of Fungi but I don’t have any idea what kind it is.  It was just gorgeous!

I grabbed the little Canon P&S, jumped out of the car and started taking shots  …. Mother was with me and she was just amazed at the beauty of this thing.  Now, I could kick myself for not taking the time to change lenses on the DSLR and getting some decent images.

View this image at the larger size to see how pretty it is.

Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias)

“Old Blue Beauty”

 

 

A couple of intruders in his territory

A Double-crested Cormorant Take-off (Phalacrocorax auritus)

One lone Double-crested Cormorant on the lake yesterday ….

 

 

 

 

The double-crested cormorant is a little more than two feet long with a wingspan of about four feet. It has dark brown to black feathers, a long hooked bill with an orange throat pouch, a long tail, and webbed black feet. Adults have tufts of feathers over their eyes. Males and females look alike.

Cormorants dive for fish and marine invertebrates from the water's surface. After catching a fish, the cormorant surfaces, flips the fish in the air and swallows it head-first.

The double-crested cormorant doesn't have well-developed oil glands and isn't waterproofed very well. It often dries its feathers by perching on a pole or tree limb and stretching its wings out.

9/11

Leaves in the early morning …….

 

 

 

“The Government Can”

It will make you laugh …..

Top 100 Web Sites of 2009

Two sources for the Top 100

PCmag.com

Time.com

Some I agree with , most of them I don’t!

25 Best Blogs 2009

Time.com

The Huffington Post???  give me a break ……

Assassin Bug

Wheel Bug, Arilus cristatus

This silver-gray insect is the largest assassin bug.  The “Wheel Bug” gets its name from the structure on its thorax which resembles a gear or saw blade.  It has a 

hinged Beak used to inject poisonous digestive fluids into its prey, which can immobilize it in seconds.
It is then used to extract the digested Insect or Caterpillar,
leaving only the empty skin of its victim as evidence of the event

Although assassin bugs  are not considered dangerous, most can bite, and should not be handled.

I was outside talking on the phone with Jan when I saw this  “assassin” on my old petunias.  They are truly one ugly bug!

Look at the larger size to see just how ugly he is :)

Great Egret (Ardea alba)

  The Great Egret is a large bird with all-white plumage that can reach one meter in height and weigh up to 950 grams (2.1 lb)  It is thus only slightly smaller than the Great Blue Heron.  The Great Egret can be distinguished from other white egrets by its yellow bill and black legs and feet, though the bill may become darker and the lower legs lighter in the breeding season. In breeding plumage, delicate ornamental feathers are borne on the back. Males and females are identical in appearance; juveniles look like non-breeding adults.

There were plenty of Great Egrets at the river yesterday, along with several Great Blue Herons and Cormorants.  This image is my favorite of the day. 

Red-headed & Pileated Woodpeckers

He was far away but I got off one shot!

 

Nearly as large as a crow, the Pileated Woodpecker is the largest woodpecker in most of North America. Its loud ringing calls and huge, rectangular excavations in dead trees announce its presence in forests across the continent.

 

I was trying to hide in some low hanging tree branches but the Red-headed Woody  spotted me anyway .. ha

 

An unmistakable bird, the Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus)  is striking at rest and in flight, showing its colors of red, black, and white. It is one of the most aggressive members of the family and one of the most omnivorous

 

 

Wild Flowers

In the early morning sunlight ….

 

 

 

 

 

The little orange flowers are “Jewel Weed” (Impatiens capensis)

The Day’s First Stop Is Online

I will be the first to admit that I check email and news sites before I do anything else in the morning.  Most of time I don’t even wait until I get out of bed to do it either.  I will roll over and boot up the laptop ….. then I get up and make coffee.  On the way to the kitchen, I boot up the desktop if I turned it off the night before.

The article by the New York Times is quite an interesting read.  It made me think about what I did before the “computer age”.  You know, I can’t even remember.  I suppose I turned on the trusty TV to find out what had happened over night …… those days are long gone and have been for many years.

Read the article HERE

OBAMACARE!!! NO NO NO

 I'm Not a Doctor but I Play One on TV!

found on The Weekly Standard

OBAMA/KENNEDY

 

The “anointed one” is giving that fat old bastard  a “Presidential Medal of Freedom”!    The ballooned faced drunken moron is nothing more than a MURDERER!  How can this happen?  What about Mary Jo Kopechne?  Her birthday was July 26.  She died on July 18, 1969, 40 yrs. ago.  Did we hear her name mentioned by the MSM?  Of course we didn’t.  The young woman was left to die when Kennedy drove his Oldsmobile 88 off of a small bridge on Chappaquiddick island, into eight feet of chilly water. The vehicle landed upside-down.  The “drunk” left her there to die.

BO is a racist and TK is a murderer but the MSM will bend over backwards to paint both of them as “gods”.  Naturally the “fat boy teddy” had to have some kind of payback for supporting BO during the campaign.

Do you think old teddy is suffering with brain-cancer?  His suffering will only begin when he finally bites the dust.  

“MAY YOU ROT IN HELL, TEDDY”  …. that is your payback for murdering a young woman.

 

This is the  most disgusting article that I’ve ever read.

 

 

ABC and NBC Jump to Herald Obama's Presidential Medal of Freedom Picks

By Brent Baker | July 30, 2009 - 21:08

When Obama does it, it's news. ABC and NBC on Thursday night made time to highlight who President Barack Obama will bestow with a Presidential Medal of Freedom in two weeks -- on Wednesday, August 12. Both started with Senator Ted Kennedy. On ABC's World News, which never touted President George W. Bush's picks in advance, fill-in anchor Elizabeth Vargas trumpeted:

The White House announced that Senator Ted Kennedy, who is battling brain cancer, will be among sixteen people given the nation's highest civilian honor, the Presidential Medal of Freedom next month. President Obama said he's honoring Kennedy and the other recipients for their contributions as agents of change. Among the other medal winners are tennis great Billie Jean King, former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor and physicist Stephen Hawking.

Found on NEWSBUSTERS.org

Oh that silly Squirrel

This little squirrel has become my buddy over the past few weeks.  I put out pecans for him so he hangs around most of day.  He always manages to keep me laughing with his silly antics.  He is a very young squirrel so he is just learning the ropes!  I've seen him fall out of the maple tree twice and I'm sure it's not the only two times he has made a crash landing.

I opened the front door a couple of days ago and there he sat on the porch eating a pecan.  Needless to say, I scared him and away he went like a streak of lightning .... out to the road and climed up a pole.  He sat up there for about 10 minutes just staring at me and then decided he would cross the wire to another pole.  A couple of times he nearly fell but he kept right on truckin. He's a wreckless little guy so I have named him "Kamikaze".

He makes it over to the next pole ….

He almost didn’t make the “swing” around

Oh yeah … he’s gonna make it … LOL

He’s looking at me as if to say “I knew I could do it”

Little “Kamikaze” is quite the entertainer!

(all photos are clickable for a larger view)

Snowberry Clearwing Hummingbird Moth

I’m always delighted to see these beautiful little moths.  At first glance, you might think it is just a bumblebee  ….. some people think it is a hummingbird because their wings are constantly fluttering. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Purple Finch (Carpodacus purpureus)

I was looking out the kitchen window at one of the feeders and saw what I thought was a male House Finch.   I left the kitchen and headed for the front door and it hit me …. no, not a House Finch, a Purple Finch!  So I grabbed the camera and took some shots of him.  He certainly is a beautiful little thing.  I haven’t seen one around here for over a year.

The Purple Finch is the bird that Roger Tory Peterson famously described as a “sparrow dipped in raspberry juice.” For many of us, they’re irregular winter visitors to our feeders, although these chunky, big-beaked finches do breed in northern North America and the West Coast. Separating them from House Finches requires a careful look, but the reward is a delicately colored, cleaner version of that red finch.

 

Purple Finches are numerous and conspicuous during spring migration; pairs are territorial, the brightly colored male displaying in front of the female with his rich, spirited, warbling song. After the clutch is raised, they may be seen in large flocks visiting orchards, parks, and other woodlands. In winter they visit feeding stations in large numbers, showing a fondness for sunflower seeds.

 

Female Purple Finch 

This image was made in February 2008