Still Working the Cows

(Note-the pictures disappeared!)

Kristi trots in pursuit of a cow-calf pair. They finished sorting and turned the bulls in today-about two weeks late. With cow cycles pretty close to humans it will take several weeks to make sure the cows cycle and the bulls "cover" them. So no more hot lesbo heifer action ("bulling" or "riding") and hetero action takes over. The bulls are persistent if unromantic. They complain constantly about not getting enough. It is a life and death deal for the cows. Not many ranchers will carry over a dry cow. Thayne takes care to match bulls and cows for good outcomes.

Feglers have been down here a LOT. Their routines are completely disrupted but I think they have the farming side well under control for the moment. We have had mid-90's temperatures and a hell of a windstorm today. Dust was blowing. Honey seeks shelter in the house during the hot middays. I take a siesta, too. The nights are in the 50's and so far the fan is sufficient to fill up the house with cool air at night and the house keeps comfortable. Serious irrigation is going to need to take place soon. I have been watering with the hose until the ditch water comes.

Harlan is a gambler like all farmers but I cringe when Harlan mounts the hay wagon and Tye Eric drives the Dodge. I've seen Daryne do it all himself-set the throttle and jump on the wagon and jump off to turn the truck. But they are all getting a little old for that. Harlan lets Tye drive and shouts directions like "go toward Manu's." Tye doesn't know right or left from his ass. And he doesn't know "slow and steady" either. That old Dodge gets to revving.

Heh, heh. Kindle for Android is out and installed on the Droid. I always have something at hand to read now. All the Kindle purchases are at Amazon until they are downloaded to whatever device is handy. And it keeps your place! I can read on the laptop, go to town and have lunch and fire up the Droid and it opens to the last place I read. Witchcraft!

Ho, Ho,

 It didn't take long to break my resolution about going to town at night. Santa had some shopping to do Monday for the Christmas in July party as well as getting the prescriptions that WalMart didn't have ready at last visit-daytime stuff. Incidentally, the Walmart pharmacy operation is a nightmare. Somebody needs to crack the whip on that outfit. But... $14.00 for meds that my insurance company pharmacy wants to charge me $75.00 for is worth some inconvenience. I had fun shopping. Wacky stuff-good for a laugh. Web stuff is coming too.

Poor Honey is a good sport but she is getting less and less ready to hop in for a ride. Buster always had a treat in mind. Honey is not particularly food motivated. So I stopped at a place I know to let her run. She LOVES that. There has to be something in it for her to make these road trips work. She disappeared in a flash. I had the training collar on her so I wasn't too concerned. She came back with her tongue hanging out and ready for some air conditioning.

Life, here in the West

Up early to take in the morning and morning coffee. The coyotes were singing-there are plenty of them out there. Mid-morning a pair came trotting across the pasture. Honey was in the sideyard so they were undisturbed. They were coming from what I hope was breakfast at the Prairie Dog Cafe. That name sounds real Wyoming. It could have come from an E. Annie Proulx story in Close Range. I have been immersed in them. I have had the book for about a year and I love Proulx's writing but amidst the descriptive passages are these Wyoming people, not far-fetched-some of them might be "ripped from the headlines." There is almost always a "Wyoming Truth" in them that is like getting kicked in the belly. They are not happy stories. So I have to be in the right mood for Ms.Proulx. I am in awe of her talent.

I have been trying to catch the iridescence of the Grackles. This is about the best I can do so far. They are even flashier to the naked eye. This is a male. The females are a dark grey but still have the iridescence though not as much.

Unknown to me a branding was planned. This was not a day for meditation with the bawling and clanging and howls of pain so I read,snapped and cooked a little. Weedwhacked a lot. Feglers set up their lunch under the trees in my lower driveway. Aside from family, there are not many repeater volunteers for this experience. Even Thayne hates to work cattle with his family and he is the cowboy of the outfit. I gave Daryne some nutrients to try with Tye. They are discouraged. His EEG was the same as last time. The poor little guy is stuck academically but I see some progress. I also burn out on communicating with him because only part of it makes sense.

Rosy

The wild rose bushes are popping. Nicely aromatic but very brief blooms. Fortunately there are many more to come and they will all leave nice fat rose hips which are tasty and very high in vitamin C. Good for me and the critters, furry and feathery. A quiet day with no human interaction which is helping me get my "hermit groove on." There is so much sensory clutter in our lives-visual and aural. And words are the worst! Words are also my hardest obstacle because I pretty much live by them. But gradually I am able to increase the time I am able to simply "be." It is hard to explain, but when you get there it feels so good and you are part of the sky, the earth, the critters, the birds: creation. The observation ends and the participation begins. Sounds very LaLa land but it is real, to me. And healing.

Well, I kinda lied. I did have human interaction via 44 minutes of Skype with Mme. Latour who called to collect her compliments on her emailed greeting to Rene and Therese and talk about her totally optional MRI's. One yesterday to see if her arachnoid cyst is the same and one soon to check out her carotid artery. Her brother had a heart attack and had three stents put in so she needs an MRI. But, she says "Marc is never sick." He was sitting behind her and I could see his face. So I had to remind her about his six weeks of agony with his prostate this spring. Nobody is going to out-drama the queen. Of course I am a completely empathic listener-she seems to need this but it always ends with me saying to myself-"There goes 45 minutes I can never get back."

Reminds me of my sweet boss Alex Semryck who had a pscho-harridan wife. "People ask me if I ever think about hitting Bernice," he said. "Hit her? Never! But murder..." They have both gone to their reward or wherever it is Jews go.

Landlubber likes boat pictures!

Nicole's boat is named for an idea-Le dou dou is like a child's "blankie," comforter, teddy bear. Andre hauls up the anchor but make no mistake who the sailor is. Nicole has been sailing since she was a child.

In Wyoming it was 91 degrees in Riverton today. We got a reprieve yesterday. Sue called and said the mail service was up again so I waited at home to pick up my meds, etc.,etc. That took one thing off today's list. Today was probably the last daytime trip for awhile. It is too hot to leave the dog in the van without the air conditioning running. Speaking of her, she is the ultimate working dog. I have to make her come in at night and she had dispatched three Prairie Dogs by 10:00 a.m. this morning. Alas! I counted 16 of them running around my pasture including the one I was looking for that saw Honey at work and ran for the hills as fast as his stubby little legs would carry him. Honey is funny. She is so official. She is on her missions and will not be deterred. Pretty proud of herself too.

I cleaned up and put on a shirt with a collar to go get my picture taken by the DMV. Renewal time for the old driver's license. That went well, but I had better get my glasses renewed. I had to take an inch off my height and the examiner said "silver" was not a choice on hair color. The "silver fox" became greyfox. Another humiliation. Shrinking and greying-I did not inquire about a "bald" category. Enough is enough. The new license will expire on Aug, 23, 2014 unless I beat it.

I reversed my trip and got to thinking there is some advantage to this roundabout route. Usually I get about nine miles toward home and say "Oh, shit, I forgot ____." Now I have a whole other town to catch up the misfires. I had my list in hand though and there were no misfires. Ace hardware, WalMart, Radio Shack, Verizon store, 789 Bingo. Still, it was five hours and we were both glad to come home to cooler shady environs. I stopped at Big Noi in Lander for takeout. The Thai lady didn't understand. I asked, "To Go?" She took me to the men's room. Took home some Pad Thai, Lander style, very different from Denver style but Honey liked it as an appetizer for Prairie Dog Tartare.

Canuckians!

Pictures today from Canuckian friends. Rene and Therese above when Nicole and Andre visited them at home last week. Rene had his last radiation treatment this week and is doing well. He will hear from the doctor what course is to be taken now. He should have heard that today.

Andre and Nicole are sailing on Lake Champlain for the summer. The weather is better. So this is their life for a few months or should I say this is THE life. The above shot is in the "cabin." Below they are under sail.

Below, they are in one of the many coves on Lake Champlain. Part of the lake is in Canada, part is in the U.S and is bordered by New York and Vermont and other places. I've looked but I can't remember.

Also heard from Greg and Lew. They have the parents settled in their new digs in Boca and they are delighted to be there. They have their own complete condo but mostly step out in the hall, ride the elevator downstairs one floor and take their pick of restaurants-the Bistro which is casual and lighter fare or if "the gentleman desires to wear a jacket," the more formal dining room is available. Greg and Lew have worked like dogs to get them moved. Now they have to finish clearing out the house. They are accelerating their efforts because they are dying in the heat! They are heading back to cooler upstate New York as soon as they can. They will likely return to Florida about the time I plan to get there.

The feet are all inside the shoes, there is some slack in the calves, I am making progress. I feel OK. So I am good to go. Petty annoyances. I hope Honey doesn't burn out on the prairie dogs. She took care of three of them today and they seem endless. I keep hoping one will escape and tell the others. I am going to try for town tomorrow. Big day.

Plates

Learning Photosuite is the process. Bird "Plates" is the product. Cussing is the by-product. Progress is being made.

Through the magic of Facebook mobile and his iPhone, Jason instantly shared his Jackpot tonight at the Hard Rock Casino, I assume. When we talked the other day he was talking about sliding their day to avoid the high heat. Perhaps they did. A pretty nice payoff.

Honey has been working hard. She was playing "catch and release," at first. She headed into the house with one in her mouth but I intercepted her and shut the door in her face. I do not need a Prairie Dog in the house. I can see them on the rim of the field next door eyeing the property. I think the girl is keeping up but I really don't like the mayhem. It would be best if Reverend Farmer John Morrison would take care of his problem.

I finally got a little relief on my hugely swollen calves today. Not much but enough to be encouraged. Keeping the water flowing in every way I know.

Solstice

Just finished watching the sun go down after drumming and chanting all day in the nude-not!  The Native American neighbors are a few days into a peyote ceremony, though.The teepee and sweat lodge are set up. I heard them yelling at their barking dogs somewhat incoherently so I gathered Honey in and took the safety off the pistol.

In fact, I celebrated this beautiful first day of summer by installing the satellite radio on the deck. The actual radio travels but there is a dedicated boombox out there. I had to run the antenna up the flagpole. Filled the hummingbird feeder but let the other feeders go empty. The birds have an ecological role to play and I do not want to create a dependency so I am going to intermittently feed them. I do observe that they are sleek and have shiny plumage from the easy high-quality grub. The Finches were taken with the music. There is still food in their feeders but they stole close to listen. One sat in the Russian Olive tree not four feet from me-totally new behavior.

Honey took down another Prairie Dog-they are feisty little things. She has worked out the logistics. Thayne said the prairie dogs are really spreading in every direction from the Arapaho Farm. Besides their hungry destruction, the burrows present a real hazard to cattle, horses and cowboys because a critter can sink into one to the knee which can mean a nasty spill or a broken leg. Thayne brought me another pound of wild aparagus. This makes four bunches so far. He is keeping up with the picking better than anyone has.

Barnes and Noble has lowered the cost of their eReader, the Nook, to $149.00. The little video commercial at Barnes and Noble is naughty.  Amazon dropped the price of the Kindle too...a lot!

Father's Day

A very pleasant day it was. Fine weather, good book, played with my fuzz face daughter. Then the communication started and it was fun. Rich and Val  got a dog from the Humane Society and are thrilled with an 8 year old (but younger acting) yellow Lab. It has nice manners and that loving mellow Lab temperament. Nicole and Andre called from Burlington, VT. They sailed there to buy some fish for dinner and were enjoying their cocktails. Andre doesn't fish. He told me I should relax- the reward on my head has been reduced to $2.00.  Matt called from Medford on Skype and I got a glimpse of Audrey. Therese and Rene Skyped also from Montreal and they looked fine. Rene is speaking well-French and English. He will be done with radiation Tuesday. Jeanne called also from Georgia. When you conference call with Skype you can't all have video so we group chatted. Jason called and I caught a glimpse of Lori. It is very hot there in Florida.
Sunset on the deck.

Saturday...

stills feel like Saturday even though any day can be Saturday in retirement. Honey doesn't "do" days of the week. She is the only one that earned her salt today. She casts a benign eye on the birds as they feed unless the Grackles start to squabble. Then Deppitty Dawg gives a rush and they scatter. It is not that she loves tranquillity. It has more to do with if there is going to be a murder, she wants in on it. She did manage that today too. A big fat Prairie Dog came scouting for a new colony site. She had it trapped between the swamp cooler and the house. Through persistence she dragged it out and then had it cornered for a good 40 minutes. I wince at it but they are really rodents non-grata and she gets to be a dog once in awhile. She got a nip in the process but carried on. I went into the house. I came out later and she was just hanging around, though energized. Then she waltzed past me with a little head and little feet sticking out of her mouth. Having captured a prize, she thought I was going to take it away so she was off to stash it. She came back with a dirty nose.

Thayne told me he went to Bill Frank's funeral Friday. His boys, Tom and Ron, are out here a lot helping with brandings and are just great cowboys (men). Bill was 70. He and the boys were out driving their cattle near Bonneville last Monday. The neighbor's bull got in with their cattle. He told the boys to head on with the cattle and he would load the bull to take it to its home and catch up to them. Ron noticed the pickup hadn't moved and rode back to see if there was a problem. The bull had killed Bill.

I took a few photographs of the cropduster and farted around all day-literally. I made a pot of bodacious pea soup last night, enjoyed it for lunch and was expansive in the extreme. I was in triple thunderblast territory. Ah, the happy life of a hermit!

Dusk

Enjoyed a rest on the deck at dusk. It was a busy day. Rich called and invited me to an Elk's Club Father's Day brat-roast in Casper tonight but I declined. I had business in town and a hundred mile trip planned already. An ultralight airplane flew over the pasture this morning and I was wishing I had one. I did the great circle route again. Lander, Hudson, 789 Bingo, Jiffy Lube, Ace Hardware, Wells-Fargo Bank, Wal-Mart, Burger King, the Post Office Annex, Kinnear, Ethete, Home. Pretty spendy day but all could be justified. The Post Office has not altered their hours for those of us who have to drive for our mail. Two p.m., the dutch window closes and I lost out. I haven't had mail since the bridge went out. The rest of it I feel good about. We were swarmed by mosquitoes at the door of the house. The wet weather has been ideal for them. The state health department is warning about West Nile Virus so I took one of my purchases which was a big bottle of solution for the Black Flag Fogger and fogged the little buggers. I decimated them. The 10% left were still bothersome but I was able to watch the Sun go down in relative peace.

The feeders are getting great use. In fact, because it will likely be another week before I hit town, I bought a 40 pound sack of birdseed to augment the 2/3rds-gone 20#'s I started with. A bunny came to sup with the birds tonight. Honey apparently didn't notice it.

Odds and Ends

Friend Andre, from Montreal took a bit of silliness from Florida and made it sillier. I spewed my coffee when I opened this. I had taken Honey's brushings and given myself a head of hair, donned the goofy glasses and then we passed them around taking shots of each and all. I have heard from Rene and Therese and Jeanne and Marc that since I am "on the lam," they offer me safe harbor though the $4.00 reward is very tempting.

This picture was taken at Worthen Meadows above Lander last Saturday (wasn't taken by me!). So at least this much moisture is waiting to come rushing off the mountain. Though things are more tense in other parts of the Basin, the Little Wind River is mostly within its banks. Very temperate day today though last night was chilly. We may get more flood and we may not.

I had two census takers today-one for the tribe-a needs assessment really. UW will compile the results. The other was for the labor division of the U.S. Census. It is longitudinal and this was my 5th interview. I am still unemployed.

Friend Delores left for D.C. then to West Virginia for the summer. She will return in time for August festivities: her #2 son's Wedding Reception and her best friend Ruby daughter's Wedding in Jackson.

I am still trying to "get regulated." Took to my bed for awhile.

"The Bird,the Bird,the Bird is the Word"

I
I call the top one "Mourning Doves with cow pie." Worth a click to enlarge they look so soft. They seem to like to graze and take pleasure in the company of other birds.

The Grackles and Red-wing Blackbirds are the clowns of this show. The feeders are a little small for them but the birds are acrobatic and these two species like to grab on to the gazebo feeder, flap one wing which winds the string and then stop and have a little backward merry-go-round ride as the string unwinds. Although I have been broadcasting some birdseed on the ground for the larger birds, they exhaust the supply early. Then one gets on the feeder and scoops more seed to the ones below.

A Black-headed Grosbeak. The squirrel-proof feeder is a pretty stingy feeder. No refills yet. While I was re-stringing the weedwhacker, I scared up a female pheasant in the sideyard who, in turn, scared me up. A pretty indignant lady, she was.

After shedding about two gallons of water from my body yesterday, I felt pretty spry today. The bad weather had me too confined. I need to move to get the juices flowing. So I weedwhacked about a half an acre and groomed Honey which is more exercise than one might think. She really was very good but after awhile it always turns into playtime and a wrestling match. I also found time to read. More vintage mysteries- ca. 1910 +/-. Call it C.S.I. London. Dr Thorndyke is a "forensic medico" who espouses the gathering of facts without prejudice-no foregone conclusions, then using Inductive reasoning rather than deductive reasoning explains it all. The mysteries are "fair"-the clues are all out there for the most part. His tools are rudimentary- cameras, chemistry, a portable microscope, all of which were fascinating to the generation. That time period is fascinating to me: attention to logic produced Wittgenstein, Einstein, Russell, George Bernard Shaw, all in a time when the rudiments of bits and bytes were telegrams sent by Morse Code, gentlemen walked most places, the trolley was pulled by horses, and messages were delivered by servants. A great belief in science pervaded. This is the era of Tom Swift on this side of the ocean. Women come off well in the Dr.Thorndyke Mysteries. Three dimensional. A bit of romance in a few stories. Very ingeniously plotted in some instances, I have enjoyed "being in" these stories. Ninety nine centers. A lot of entertainment for the money.

Rinse Well, Repeat

While it rained liquid green here in the valley, 17 inches of new wet snow fell in the Wind Rivers. Tuesday or Wednesday they are saying we will have new floods. There are 223 National Guards here in the county and it is kind of novel to see military vehicles standing guard at the bridge. I was out of butter and soon will be out of dog food so I went to Lander and also visited Pamida and the new Safeway store. A very nice Safeway store it is and the sticker prices were not too shocky. While I was in Pamida, I started a pretty rapid fade. I grabbed my bird-feeding stuff and went next door to Safeway after I popped some pills. Bought some OJ, drank two little cartons and started to pick up a little. Among the pills was a potassium pill. I have been trying to get my potassium from a daily banana. I figured the pill might cause a potassium overload from a deficit so I headed toward home feeling progressively better. Stopped to take these photos, tried to jump a dry ditch, didn't make it, and had a heck of a time getting out of it. ("National Guard Unit 43-We have an old fat guy stuck in a ditch at 420 17 Mile Road."was the haunting vision I had. "No, no car, just him. Better send two units.") Still wasn't up to snuff, I guess.

I stopped to watch them pouring boulders and fill at the washout spot I photographed on the Givens Road bridge. Made it home in time for the potassium colon cleanse-barely. But the improvements kept on and I helped Thayne a little as he fixed fence, then I got out the fogger and hit the emerging mosquitoes with a good blast.

My "bird-brain" friends were stumped by the one bird-they think it is an Arapahoe Boobie, perhaps. I put together the improvements to my bird feeding scheme this evening.

Sunday Buffet

Second day of steady rains of varying intensity. The flood waters are no higher, nor lower. I've been on a reading jag with brief breaks to sit in the drizzle and cook a little. I've been re-creating some of the "homely" meals of my youth with a few concessions to better ingredients. Mom used to make boiled potatoes, sauerkraut and hot dogs. I upgraded to kielbasa. This is comfort food of my sort. The feeding stations have been discovered and are getting a lot of action. The variety of birds could be better-goldfinches are becoming "ho-hum." They are all interesting. Grackles are considered "rough birds" but I have a soft spot for them. They are excellent parents and when the sunlight catches their iridescence they are beautiful. They are also great "watchbirds." When they start fussing look around. They have a hard time negotiating the feeder but they cruise the ground for copious spilled seeds. Sunday buffet for all creatures great and small.

I need to learn more about the bird below. The color is very intriguing.

Everybody is home. Matt got home from his conference in New Orleans. Judging from the Facebook pictures, he got to do some sightseeing and networking with other officers from around the country. We Skyped last night. Jason Skyped to me last night too. They had a good visit with Lori's family. They helped Joy, Lori's mom, finish her re-decorating. While Jason was in Oregon, the ladies went shopping for household amenities. Then Joy, Lori and Jason moved in on Lori's nephew Blake's house. Blake and his wife are newlyweds, employed, and have no time. Their house was in disarray so it was extreme makeover time. They went to Lori's dad's side family reunion in Paris, Texas and hopped off to Florida from there. Then Jason had to fly to Las Vegas for a business meeting. All are now home, catching a deep breath. 90 degrees in Florida-mid 40's in Oregon and Wyoming. I'm cool with that.

Greg called. They are back in Florida and glad of it. They will go home to New York to close up that property in September. They are going to be moving Lew's folks to a continuum assisted living place in Boca this summer. JJ is continuing to mend.

Birds I.D.'d

House Finch, White Crested Sparrow, and Titmouse, according to expert Ida. I got the first two but never would have guessed a Titmouse. The House Finch is actually out of its normal range here according to the map. But they are great survivors and somebody introduced them to the eastern U.S and they took off. They are officially Carpodacus Mexicanus. I looked for a little "green card" in the picture but I can't see one. Now I have to decide if I am going to let it continue to work for food or call La Migra. I certainly can't blame it for wanting to improve its lot and this is a great place to be. It eats like a bird... O.K. it stays. Ssshh. I think maybe it was born here anyway. That is my story and I am sticking to it.

Now I have to research the "Titmouse" and how it got its name. Could be a lot more interesting than "house finch."

Cold and rainy today. The cattle are numbly standing under the overhang of my trees.  Cozy inside, French toast for breakfast, a rare treat-the dawg tried some and liked it, and plenty to do. The trek yesterday to Fort Washakie, Ethete, Kinnear, Riverton, Hudson, Lander, and home was productive and l-o-n-g. I should be good for a week. I saw some sights-construction by Fort Washakie, Diana Kouris at Wal Mart-so good to see that nice person. All these little burgs seem to be perky-something is going on.

Downloaded some more vintage Mysteries. The free Kindle for PC application reflects Amazon's decision to sell "content" regardless of hardware. I read on my laptop as much as my Kindle.  Soon there will be a Kindle for Android application so my books will also be on my Droid phone. 

Name That Bird!

I think I can name two of the species I caught with the camera but I am not sure and I know I have knowledgeable readers. Meanwhile, I am having great fun. To my naked eye, so many birds are just birds. Photographed and blown up, they have identities. The purchased feeders are designed for certain types of birds but I was feeling sorry for the larger birds so I made one more feeder with a water bottle and a pencil. I caught a glimpse of the tanager but he eluded my camera. Maybe he will be back to the bigger feeder. I am learning a lot. Each new bird sends me Googling.

Cool, water-saving days here. The flood waters seem back up a little this morning but nothing like when they crested. The predicted rains haven't amounted to much. The cattle are looking for lush grass which is in my yard so we have been chasing them out. I don't begrudge the grass but cattle have been bred so large, they can wreak havoc without even trying.

I have figured out how to end Jeanne's SMS ramblings on Skype: introduce a topic she is not interested in, namely me. Day before yesterday over 100 lines on her colonoscopy. Yesterday about 50 lines on Rene and Therese and her own experiences with cancer. Then I mentioned we had floods and I had a long trip to town. One short paragraph later "Marc is calling me." Marc NEVER calls her except for meals. "St. Marc," I call him. I have my "invisibility shield" selected on Skype now.

I do need some supplies today. We will trek.

Bridge is OUT

It is shaping up to be an interesting summer. The bridge over the Little Wind River on my road is still standing but two of the trusses are unsupported. This means I will likely do business in Lander  about 20 something miles away and a trip to Riverton will be about 50 miles and a major undertaking-for the foreseeable future. We suspect that there will be some solution before school starts. Up in the air is mail delivery. The non-readers  are still scooting past until they come to the barriers. Then back they come. The road closed signs extend for 10 miles. Kind of makes you wonder.  Thayne came  to check fences in the dusk yesterday- lots of damage. But we are loving it. There is very little traffic on the road and the quiet is a balm. We may be the only ones rejoicing and that may be short-lived as the reality of major detours in our habits sets in.

The Governor declared a disaster. 100 National Guards have been sent. Multiple bridges are out. This has been a record breaker with the rivers being nine feet over flood level. The waters are receding fast but we have the mixed bag of cool temperatures- a good thing when it comes to snow melt, but two days of rain forecasted, more snow in the mountains. It will be interesting to see if the "government haters" forego the benefits of disaster relief consistent with their rhetoric.

I am a big mystery fan. And I like vintage mysteries. Dorothy Sayers, Lord Peter Wimsey series got me started years ago. There are freebies for the Kindle or Kindle for PC, as well as a lot of "99 centers." I downloaded some "Raffles" stories. Raffles was a thief by night, star cricket player by day. The author was married to the sister of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle of Sherlock Holmes fame. Raffles was sort of a lighthearted rascal alter-ego of Sherlock Holmes and was wildly popular. The stories are ingenious but to my ear are "gayer than gay." "Bunny", the sidekick, is the narrator. He "flounces" out of bed, is seriously devoted to Raffles though they don't live together until late in life, and they go around London "arm-in arm." He is also a little "thick," not very quick on the uptake. I don't know if these are Edwardian conventions or a hidden message but they add a layer of humor to the stories. In the interest of full disclosure I have joined Amazon Associates which will pay me 4% if anybody orders through a blog ad. I am not expecting much and fully intend to be occasionally ironic in product placement- hence the rubber raft ad in the flood entry.

Water, Water, Everywhere

Loaded up the hound and went on a photo safari here in the valley yesterday. The flood water and its power is very impressive. I let the girl out to range and I am always amazed at what an athlete she is. She scared up a rabbit where this photo was taken. I have never feared for a rabbit with any other dog but I did for this one. Honey bounds over the sagebrush. Luckily br'er rabbit went to ground in the nick of time. The water is some subsided today due to cooling weather. There is still snowpack up in the mountains waiting to come down. The BIA police were stationed at the bridge near my house to monitor it and close the road if necessary. Some bridges in the county are gone. They are sandbagging in Hudson and Lander. I suspect things have crested, though.

An album is at the link.

06072010 WY Flood

God Willing ..and the Creek Don't Rise

Well, the creek is rising-dramatically. They are sandbagging in Hudson and Lander. That is the Popo Agie River. The BIA helicopter and several planes were flying the rivers today. The bridge one mile from me is at capacity in underflow. The Little Wind River is more like a miles-long lake. I went for provisions in case I am stuck for awhile. They have closed the bridge through an abundance of caution before. I can always go the other way but that would require a 50 mile trip to Riverton. Lander is a nice alternative, though. I'll get pictures tomorrow. It cooled off this afternoon and that will help slow the river's rise.

Today I got Finches! American Goldfinches. A pair, dining out. She was much hungrier than he. Maybe she is in a family way. They are pretty little things.

Denis and "Dix" emailed to tell me the unidentified bird I snapped yesterday was a Grosbeak. I was glad to learn this. Neither feeder is getting a lot of action. The birds are in the midst of abundant food right now.

Jason and Lori and Juneau are home in Florida after several weeks in Texas with her family. They enjoyed their trip and are experiencing the wonderful feeling of home. Juneau was good as gold, enjoyed riding in the car and is glad to see his pool. This is the first time they have left the state via car since moving there. Lori has lots of family and loves them dearly. A nice long visit did her soul good I am sure.

Sunday Morning Symphony

A burro brays in the distance, a cow lows softly to her calf. The Little Wind River is roaring and the wind chimes in half an octave higher-then subsides, geese honk alarms at the neighbors, sheep are chatting to each other, songbirds sing soprano, Mourning Doves coocoocaroo, a Pheasant calls, a Raven flies- wings beating whoosh, whoosh, whoosh, the seed pods in the Elm tree rattle, a car goes by at its leisure, an Appaloosa drums the ground once and blows wind over rubbery lips. These sounds after thirty-five years are in my soul.
Music to my old ears.

The bird feeder went in yesterday and fell over in the night. I live on a moraine. I relocated it farther down the hill, raised it with a three foot pipe, and wired it to a fence post. I sat back this morning, coffee in hand, and waited...and waited... and waited. Finally I had a diner but it was shy and stayed on the other side of the feeder. I could see its busy head and a tail feather. It left and I scurried down the hill and applied duct tape to the tray and some feeding holes on the far side. It came back and I caught a glimpse and took some pictures. In the house with the pictures blown up, I don't have any idea what kind of bird it was. It is colored like a juvenile Meadowlark but it has the wrong beak.

The finch feeder got no action. Half of the lower pasture disappeared overnight. The Little Wind River is out of control. I am perched on a hill and the deluge that would reach me cannot be imagined. The sloughs are filled. Honey went down there this evening and what she is used to walking across had some depth. She looked at me as if to say "what the ...? Then she played in it. Had a ball.

It was not all bird-watching or dog-watching. I went through two sets of trimmers on the weed-whacker mower and now I have to get more to continue but the critical parts are done. A headache started up but I slept it off in about thirty minutes. I made a pot of Galician Wedding Soup and dinner, using up a package of chicken breasts that needed to be used up. Played with the hound and she came to snuggle and put her head on my shoe as I sat fixing the mower. She is getting downright chummy.

Greg's dog JJ got run over by an ATV but gets to come home tonight-with pain killers: Facebook news. I sent a note. Rene continues to make good progress. He feels good and his speech is improving daily. In Palm Beach news, Rush Limbaugh, the man who knows best how to run the country, married for the fourth time-a woman nearly half his age. I think she married him for the money unless she is really into turkey wattles. Elton John did the music-for a cool million.