Cooperation

Often birds don't like to share. Today a Sparrow and a Downy Woodpecker managed it, only because they were on opposite sides of the feeder (I think). I was surprised that the Downy didn't move over to the suet nuggets or the suet cakes, but stayed on the round feeder until it found a peanut and flew away.

 

Mourning Doves have started coming back to the yard. They hang around under the round feeder picking up fallen seed. The squirrels even tolerate them being nearby. Evidently they're not a threat.

 

One of the squirrels spent a few minutes on the suet nuggets this morning. It dismounted very awkwardly and clambered back over the crooks to the suet cakes feeder and then to the ground. It held onto two of the crooks between the coils of the Slinkys trying to look graceful and failing miserably.

 

The gratitude journal page for yesterday was fun to draw. I can't decide if I was more grateful for the bees on the sedum or writing a letter. Maybe it was a tie.

 

Today's drawing prompt was Fern. I was leery when I heard what she expected me to draw. Ferns are complex but she made them simple. Whew.

 

Here's another Dad's rose. Because I can. 

 

The four-year-old and the toddler next door first noticed the horse head squirrel feeder today. When I came back from my walk this afternoon they came tumbling out of their house to ask me about it. The older one wanted to know what the camel head was for and the little one kept saying "horse" or something close to that. Their mama wanted them to eat something and I told them when they were finished to go outside and I'd be watching. I went out, got some corn kernels, and we went up to refill the feeder. "Corn" was the word of the hour then with the little guy. Mama noticed the conch shells on the privacy fence, so I took a couple down so they could hold them. The four-year-old heard the ocean in one and I blew the conch horn which sounded like a deranged elephant but they liked it. So they had to blow that one too. Evidently I'm the interesting neighbor. 

I had a critique zoom this morning with cda and got plenty good comments from her. Then she emailed me the right file of her manuscript so we could go over some questions she had. I was proud of her because she's not very tech savvy but managed to send me the correct file on the second try.

Then I spent most of the afternoon scrolling through the manuscript to find places to insert the lecherous landlord because he's so easy to dislike. That kind of characters are fun to write.

And it's raining. 

--Barbara