Yesterday I walked down to the apartment office to take one of my last homegrown peppers to the manager.
Sometimes I give away the vegetables I’m growing. Particularly peppers, which upset my stomach. I don’t know why on earth I grow them. Probably because they’re easy to grow.
The manager told me that a woman had just signed a lease for the apartment next door to me.
That means that on this row of four-plexes there will be a single woman in each unit. Which is just fine by me. More than fine in fact.
The Dragonfly:
When I was walking back to my apartment, I saw a dragonfly in front of me.
I thought, “Please fly to my place so I can get my camera to photograph your beauty.”
But it didn’t. Just before I turned the corner to walk down to my end unit, it flew off into the distance.
Well darn it. I would love to have gotten a photograph of it. They seem to be just as illusive as hummingbirds.
Beads:
For those of you who asked where I got the beads I used to make the bead project, I noticed that they are on sale half off at Hobby Lobby.
I just thought I’d put that out there if you are interested.
The sale is for the Tree House brand of beads.
Depending on the size, some have 16 pieces, bigger ones have 10, and they are regularly $1.99. Which means this week they are $1.
The Cardinal Couple:
I’ve been telling you a lot about the young cardinal couple lately. I think they’ve decided that the ginkgo jade tree in the container is their tree.
Much of the time when I look out there, either the female is taking a bath or drinking water. And the male is perched in the little ginkgo biloba butterfly tree. Or the opposite is true.
Sometimes I see the female on the patio pecking at something on the cement.
I see them on my fence or on my patio more than any other bird. Even the sparrows.
The sparrows seem to gather in the front bushes.
I haven’t seen a mourning dove or any other bird in a month or so.
Good Time For Reading:
It’s a good time for reading when the weather is so darned hot. At night before bedtime I’ve been reading “The Twelve Mile Straight” by Eleanor Henderson.
The book is set in 1930s Georgia.
The Jesup house is full of secrets. Two babies were born to young Elma Jesup, the daughter of a sharecropper.
The baby girl is white; the boy is dark.Â
According to the Jesups they are both Elma’s babies.
A field hand named Genus Jackson is accused of raping her and was lynched. He was then dragged through town behind a truck down the Twelve-Mile Straight.
One of the boys involved was dating Elma Jesup.
What ensues is a complicit arrangement involving Elma Jesup, her father Juke Jesup, and Nan, a young black girl who lives with them.
Nan is a bit younger than Elma but they grew up together. Nan is the housekeeper’s daughter who died some years back.
The townspeople and those from far away all want to come get a look at the “twins”. Because they’re curious about one being black and one being white.
The three people living in the Jesup house is Elma’s father Juke, Elma and Nan. Elma’s mother died in childbirth.
So the reader wonders: What is the story here?
Juke Jesup is trying to pass the babies off as twins. And he forces Elma and Nan to do the same.
Things were very different back then. It is really an eye opener to read about a time period when people were free. But they may as well have still been slaves due to how they were treated.
It seems impossible that these things happened.
But then again, in some ways unprecedented is the word I would use for the times we currently live in.
I have one of those metal flag holders in my back yard that hold the smaller flags. The flag on it right now has a male and female cardinal sitting on a branch with fall leaves. I picked that flag because I do see cardinal pairs in the yard pretty often, along with robins, blue jays, mourning doves, crows, and a few others. There have been more butterflies this summer because I planted more flowers this past spring. We’ve enjoyed seeing some monarch butterflies come through here in the past couple of weeks.
Sounds like a good book. I have a stack of new reading material here that I need to dive into. Have been a little busy lately.
It was hot here in IL yesterday – in the 90’s. But big cool-down coming later today – a 30-degree difference. Such is fall in this area.
Watching the birds come to eat on the deck outside my breakfast/dining room is one of my favorite things to do. In Winter I usually have a cardinal pair and some male blue jays plus the little juncos and of course, the sparrows. Then there are the squirrels. I like watching them, too. They are greedy little buggers! Good thing they are so cute!
Our weather here in Michigan (lower peninsula) is crazy-nuts. Still hotter than all get out for days and then a pleasant, cooler day and then gradually hotter and hotter again. So weird. I just want cool every day now. I think the whole country is sick of hot weather as well as the political crap that’s going on all the time.
I try to focus on happier and more up-lifting things most of the time. Kind of like I just don’t want to know all the negative, destructive things going on in the world because mostly I can do nothing about them except send positive energy. So that’s what I do and try to keep my spirits up. And sometimes I can barely do that! My living situation is not optimal right now with my daughter and her twin 7-year-old boys here. I have a small house and it feels like we’re all on top of each other all the time. I hope that I will once again have my own place before I die!
I haven’t read all the other replies to your post today so you may have already answered this : How is little Charlie doing since being off his medicine? Fine, I hope. For both your sakes. Give him a pat or two and yourself a hug.
‘Til next time.
I love that you take notice of your birds living close by. That book sounds intriguing but depressing. I think I will order it though
Mary Ann
Hope Charlie is doing well. One of my cats is limping, so I need to get that checked out ! Cooler weather can’t get here quick enough for me ! It’s still pretty warm here in Virginia. I love everything about Fall !
Hmmm…I thought I left a message and then I clicked off and thought—did I send that through? LOL
Anyway- I am happy you have another single lady moving in. You will have to name yourselves the Fearsome Four!
It’s always fun to see birds make a permanent home where you can watch them.
I jotted that book down and will place a hold on it at the library.
Have a great day-xo Diana
I enjoy watching cardinal couples. It seems that the males are always fussing at the females! Hmmm…..I’m not sure I’ll read this book, but I am intrigued about it, especially since I’m Southern and enjoy Southern fiction.
Have a great day!
RJ
I love to watch them too. I like the way they turn their heads back and forth and hop around. They are fun to watch.
I love cardinals too and there is a pair here in the neighborhood. My favorite bird is the black cap chickadee, but I have not seen any since early summer.
Keep cool! We have a day of heat and humidity here but then a fall-lie weekend, so they say.
I hope you have a nice new neighbor…and that Charlie is doing well.
I haven’t seen a chickadee in a long time. I used to have them in my yard in TX. Here I seem to just have mourning doves, sparrows, cardinals and blue jays.
My cardinal couple has a son this year! They were all on the fence separating the driveway from the patio around sunset, just a sit started raining. I could hear the distinctive “chirp” sound the male and female make so I quickly went to the patio door where they could see me in the rapidly fading late (it was even darker than usual due to the stormy weather that had threatened all day but held off until near sundown) and threw out a handful of shelled unsalted peanuts. They just love peanuts! Son was sitting between mom and dad. Dad flew down first as he always does to make sure it’s safe after giving a couple twists of his head back and forth checking out the yard and me in the patio doorway with his eyes looking this way and that. Then mom flew down and grabbed a peanut, and flew away.
Junior was still up on the fence, he seemed unsure what to do. So dad took another peanut in his beak and flew up to the fence. Junior fluttered his wings like a baby begging for food and dad started feeding him bits of the peanut. I know robin pairs take turns hunting for food and feeding their babies, and I’ve noticed that sparrows do this too. I don’t know about blue jays. They fly in quickly with their raucus JAY JAY JAY calls, grab peanuts and fly out in the blink of an eye! I’m slowly getting this new generation of cardinals used to eating peanuts (unsalted) in the shell. I have been carefully tossing out the smaller peanuts picked out of the bag to the patio so they can pierce the shell with their beaks and carry it away easily while also chipping the peanut open to get at the goodies inside. I think if more people took time to observe the wonders and the incredible beauty of nature that’s right here in our yards and reflect upon what they are observing, there would be a lot more peace in the world.
I so agree with you! Loved the stories about your birds. I’d throw out peanuts but I know nuts are bad for dogs.
Sounds like an interesting book I may try to get it .Terribly hot in Tennessee today .I am ready for fall .
I love the colors ,the smells ,the clothing ,I love fall Ya’All !!!!
Have a great day and enjoy your book,give Charlie lots of hugs !
I love fall too. I especially love the tree leaves once they turn red and orange and gold.
I love cardinals, I have a couple that lives in my tree too and they hop around while I am doing the dishes. How is Charlie feeling? I hope you stay cool.
He seems to be feeling okay. He isn’t limping today.