Wednesday June 20 2007

Red Poppy Green Bug

Haiku Verse

by Lynn Thomas

Like a flock of red
birds in a gusty breeze fly
scarlet poppy petals

Whoop-de-doo!! Made the deadline for the Governors' Portrait Project. I guess I proved I'm still an artist and not a computer professional though. Still I think the presentation looked pretty nice. And I think the images are on the CD. I never count my chickens before they are hatched, but will continued to think positive and see what happens. Wish me luck!!

So about 11:30 took the envelope out to the mailbox. It will be postmarked today, the deadline. It's beyond my comprehension why I didn't get it done earlier. At the UPS box there were two ground squirrels and Sparky and Raven each got one. Raven nabbed hers right away. Sparky's gave him quite a chase. Sparky must have gotten bit by his, he yipped, spit it out, and then went right back to the fray, but today there are two less varmints on Big Sandy to Elkhorn Road. They swam on the way back in the creek and again in the ditch and are tuckered out flat in the yard sleeping now.

Isn't the crimson poppy spectacular! They grow like weeds here, and have too many in their bed. Its amazing how all those huge petals unfold out of that small pod.

Saw the hawk's nest in the tree, and as it has for a while, it sure looks abandoned. Wish I knew if they got their young ones raised or not. If so, they must be out soaring somewhere. That reminds me I saw a totally black hawk several times in the last while. And don't tell me its probably a raven or a crow. It has flown by quite close a number of times, and may be a melanistic peregrine falcon. Falcons are becoming more common lately and reclaiming their place in the environment. They aren't nice to have near your bird feeder though.

Windows are open. Ice tea tastes especially good. All the housework and laundry is waiting for me to do. Got our lunch over with, potato salad and grilled ham and cheese sandwiches. Now will get to work cleaning this place up, and maybe spend some of the afternoon out in the yard again. And later its time to pay the bills on line. Joe has gone out irrigating with the dogs.

Had a very nice surprise come in the mail Monday. Nancy sent me a very big very beautiful lightweight blue outdoor self watering pot. I'll shop for a nice plant for it, and then take a picture to show you. Thank you for your thoughtfulness dear friend Nancy. I love it and you too. At the same time Joe got his Father's Day gifts from the kids, real Vermont maple syrup and some blueberry and raspberry preserves. Thank you guys very much, he's already enjoying it every day, and asked for the homemade waffles this morning. I rarely have those kinds of things for breakfast, opting for whole grain cereal or my favorite avocado on toast, but did this morning just so I could try the syrup and it is light and delicious.