I Think It's a Conspiracy

I think the birds are playing with me. They know that I'm trying to take their picture so they only land for long enough for me to lay a hand on the camera and then they fly away. Laughing, I am sure. This morning the prankster was a Rose-breasted Grosbeak that landed on the crook just long enough for me to see it and then it took off. This picture is from last year but it's such a pretty bird that you need to see it.

This morning I filled all of the feeders and then sat all through lunch and into the afternoon waiting for the birds to come. Only Sparrows, House Finches, and Mourning Doves came. Juvenile squirrels came to hoover up the fallen seed but they don't know about the peanut wreath that's back on the hook by the retaining wall yet. I did enjoy watching one Dove menacing the chipmunk that was getting too close by spreading its wings to look bigger but that was it for bird-watching excitement.

Three Stella d'Oro lily plants have banded together to bloom simultaneously. There are a couple others down the line that have started opening up flowers so I'm hopeful that next week I'll have my row of lilies that I've been dreaming of.

Last evening I got out one of my sketchbooks, the dish of paper schnipples, and a glue stick and made a collage on a page spread. I let it dry overnight and then drew a flower and a frog over the top. Look, Aunt B, more mixed media! (Don't we sound all arty?)

Oh! Big news! I went online after supper, pulled up my Amazon ads marketing page, and I MADE A SALE! The first one since I started my ad campaign. I've gotten over 17k impressions (the gold bar graph), 8 clicks (the tall purple spikes), and now 1 sale (a green spike over the right hand click spike). I'm over the moon. I hope it doesn't take two more months before I sell another book.

Tonight at Friday Night Knitting I finished the Red & White Hat. It was a mistake to go down a hook size because it made a short, medium-size hat but maybe there's some head out there that needs a hat this size. I like it because it's bright and cheerful.

I won't be online tomorrow night. I'm going to visit a friend after my author event and I'm not taking my laptop. I hope that I sell more than one book tomorrow at the Author Spotlight at Caramel Crisp Cafe & Bookstore in Oshkosh, WI. Stop in if you're in the neighborhood and say hi.

--Barbara