Me vs the Honeysuckle

In preparation for my upcoming surgery, I'm trying to keep ahead of the honeysuckle that seems to sprout up and take off all over the place!

Three years ago, our neighbor decided to pull out all of his bushes that were next to his fence.  My little birds that visit my feeders would have nothing left to perch on as they waited their turn at the feeders.  So, I bought three nice little bushes (I can't recall what they are...it'll come to me eventually).  They flower and then have nice berries that the birds love.  However, he didn't pull out the bushes by the roots, so now we constantly have honeysuckle and other branches hanging over the fence to our side.  I certainly don't want the honeysuckle to strangle my pretty little bushes that are now filling out nicely.

Our neighbor is a nice guy, but he doesn't really bother much with his yard except to cut the grass, so I know he doesn't mind me hacking away at his remnants.  So one evening and yesterday morning, I proceeded out with gardening tools to neaten up the fence line.  There is a slight grade on our side of the fence which really doesn't look like much, but my knee really doesn't appreciate the pressure that it feels when I'm standing there.  So  I took a nice big ibuprofen for my knee and had at it!!

I know this picture isn't all that grand, but I do feel so accomplished at cleaning out the area, both his fence and our fence where the drainage tubes are sitting.  I filled up several bags of cuttings as you can see sitting on the other side of the fence.

I have about another month before surgery, so I'm sure I'll have to go out a few more times to keep ahead of the game.  I don't know about after surgery...I won't worry about it but hope it gets taken care of eventually.

Herb and I went to Natorp's Nursery Outlet on Sunday.  Herb is like a kid in a candy store when it comes to plants.  Unfortunately, he really doesn't have the time to keep up with his plants, so some die, some just barely get by.  And, of course, when I have my surgery, he'll be helping me and perhaps doing some extra stuff like laundry.  I try to remind him all the time about how busy he is because I hate to see plants die, but I can't convince him not to buy his plants.  This is a part of what he bought Sunday.  Two lettuce plants, ten tomato plants and some other little plants I didn't want to get too attached to...I said a little prayer for each of them.  Did I mention we have deer and other wildlife that like to visit our yard?

 Oh well.  We are definitely different types of gardeners.  I like to keep plants simple....he likes them scattered and messy!

The Time Has Come

I finally made the decision to look into knee replacement surgery on my left knee.  It's been bad for about 20 years, but has progressively gotten worse as time marched on.

I love to hike, but lately it's become too painful to hit the trails any more.  Now that spring is here, it's become more apparent that something needed to be done.  I may be getting older, but not old enough to give up and spend the rest of life just sitting around.  I miss my outdoor time and enjoying nature. 

I went to my primary care physician a few weeks ago and he referred me to an orthopedic surgeon.  I really was apprehensive taking that first step, but I went ahead and set up an appointment.

In the meantime, Herb and I went to Petsmart to pick up some bags of cat food and other pet supplies.  Imagine our surprise when we opened up the back of our car to load our purchases, when we found this:

Herb thought we were in the wrong car.  Duh!  We opened it with our keys, it had to be our car!  I was quite taken aback, as the knee surgery was almost constantly on my mind. Was this an omen?

Finally, we remembered that our son-in-law had borrowed this spare car of ours, and the wheelchair was probably his...although he is perfectly able bodied.  After checking with him, he said it was his.  I still don't know why he has it.  Any way, we are keeping it for now....just in case I need it in the future.

After looking at my Xrays the surgeon said I either had a high tolerance for pain, or I just hate going to the doctor.  I laughed, and said it was both.  So, any way, I have all of my appointments set up.  Pre-op checkup, JET class, surgery (which is June 7) and post op appointment.

Of course, being who I am, I have all kind of scenarios spinning around in my head.  I hate to be a burden to anyone...family included.  I don't like to be fussed over and I don't want to inconvenience anyone.  I want to know people care, but I don't necessarily want too much attention either.  Don't know if that makes sense, but I am an introvert, so that may explain my feelings.

Just yesterday I joined some Knee Replacement groups on facebook, and after looking at a lot of posts on those groups, I feel like it will be something I can definitely handle.  Lots of positive posts, along with giving others lots of support.

In the meantime, I am trying to exercise by using my stationery bike and rowing machine.  They are both low impact for the knees, so that's good.  The rowing machine seems to work my arms more than my legs.  The bike works the legs more.  The hardest part about the rowing machine, is getting up and down off the floor!  So hopefully, my arms and legs will be nice and strong to support me on this journey!

Today, I went out and bought some yarn and other craft supplies in case I'm not able to get out for awhile after surgery.  I have lots of books too.  I'll have plenty to do in between physical therapy and resting.  So, those are the main things I'll need.  Right?

The Close & Highlights of a Season of "Counting Birds"

The bird counting season has come to a close.  I have counted birds for the Cornell Lab of Ornithology Project Feederwatch Program for six years now.  The season runs from November through April.  Participants pick two days in a row of the week to count birds species that visit their site. We then log onto their website and enter our counts.  We can also enter behavioral data between species.

I have learned a lot over the years.  I'm finally able to distinguish some of their bird songs/calls too.  In the dimness of morning and of evening, it can sometimes be difficult to see the birds clearly, but now I've been able to distinguish many birds just by their flight patterns.

The little chickadees seem to dart up and down as they head for the feeders.  The red bellied woodpecker swoops down from a tree to land on a feeder.  The big ugly common grackles just seem to drop down out of the sky!

It currently costs $18 a year to participate.  Some people may feel they shouldn't have to pay a fee to collect data, but I think of it as a form of entertainment and a learning experience, which it is.  It is certainly worth the $18 to me!!!

Here are a few pictures/videos of this past year:

These are just simple little houses finches and a red winged black bird.  Pretty common birds, but I liked the contrast in colors in this photo.

An Eastern Towhee on a snowy morning.  I rarely see this bird in our backyard.

A short video of a hawk looking for a bite to eat.  

A couple of pictures of a Northern Flicker.  I just love their markings and colors!

 

 

This photo though not very clear, has been verified as a Barn Owl.  Barn Owls are endangered in Ohio, so I was very excited to see this guy.

 

 

This will be the sunset of the counting season and this post.

Kingfisher Trail 3/29/2016

It's been a while since Finn and I hiked Kingfisher Trail in Winton Woods.  It was a nice crisp morning with only a few people on the trail.  A couple walking a dog and 3 young boys on bikes.  Bikes are not allowed on the trails, but I've learned over the years people believe those rules are for other people not for them.  I used to say something to the kids, but they always acted innocent and just kept going any way, so I've given up.  They're just going to do what they want to do any way.

There are 3 portions to this trail.  The lower trail where the first two pictures were taken down by the creek.  There is also an upper portion of the trail.  There is also an "unofficial" portion in between the bottom and top.

I don't know if you can see the tiny yellow flowers among the spring grass, but it looked like a beautiful carpet.  The creek is in the background.

Another shot of the creek farther along the trail.

 This picture was taken from the upper portion.

A lot of the trees in Winton Woods have been cut down due to the Emerald Ash Borer infesting so many of the trees.  This particular tree is one where every year we saw Black Racer snakes sunning themselves in the spring.  Since the tree has been cut down I wasn't sure if we'd still see snakes in the tree.  No snakes today...I looked around in nearby trees and on the ground too.

This picture was also taken from the upper portion.  If you look into the background you can probably see the boardwalk, which is the beginning of the trail on the bottom portion.

The path in the middle of this picture is what I call the "unauthorized" portion of the trail.

Taken from the upper trail.  Another pile of cut down trees.  The forest has really been opened up.  Of course I prefer the canopy of trees...especially during the hot weather.

We usually hike the trail twice.  First in one direction, then turn around and go in the opposite direction.  The lower trail was quite muddy this morning, so on our second time around we decided to take the "unofficial" middle trail back out.  I can always kick off my muddy hiking boots, but I wanted to give Finn's underbelly time to dry out before we got back into the car.  He's such a short little guy.  He sits on an old sheet in the passenger seat.  This is a photo of the beginning of the "unofficial" middle trail.

Finally, the nice bright forsythia bush at the end of our hike near the parking lot.

Easter Sunday/Monday

I've never really been big on Easter. Not so much the Holy Season of Easter, but of the secular holiday of Easter.

Even as a child, I wasn't one who liked to dress in frilly dresses or back in those days, Easter bonnets. My parents always got me a new Easter outfit complete with an Easter bonnet. I was never comfortable in dressy clothes and couldn't wait to get out of them.

I liked candy (still do, especially chocolate) but would just be happy with the candy, forget about the basket and the phony grass. I don't like pastel colors, springtime colors are too subdued. Give me bright and bold!! Any way, Easter has always brought me down a little, maybe it's just due to the emphasis on the secular celebration of Easter. Or maybe I'm just a little weird.

This Easter Sunday though was very nice. Herb and I went to 8:30 Mass at Corpus Christi Church. Although, it was a bit crowded as usual on Easter and Christmas, I wasn't bothered too much by the crowd. I like a bit of elbow room between people, and on Easter and Christmas that is hard to come by.

Herb and I had a nice surprise as daughter, Emily and granddaughter, Emmi showed up for Easter Mass too! After Mass, Herb had to go to work (Boo!), so Emily, Emmi and I headed to Frisch's for Easter breakfast. We had a really nice time, and was surprised that we didn't have to wait to be seated. Emmi wore a pair of bunny ears (she didn't wear them in church.) I thought she was supposed to be the Easter Bunny, but she said she was Louise Belcher!

You be the judge:  Easter Bunny or Louise Belcher?

In the afternoon, I took my dog, Finn for a walk at Winton Woods Park.  Neither of us have gotten a lot of walking in over the winter.  He tore his ACL in November and had surgery, and I felt guilty going for walks without him, so I didn't walk either!  We took our time, and it was a nice sunny warm day.  It felt good to get out after having a couple of back to back colds.  We even saw the rookery where the Great Blue Herons are nesting!

Today, (Easter Monday) Herb and I made a trip to Half Price Books to clear off our book shelves of books we were finished with.  We kept our books separate because I was hoping to make a point with Herb.  He never wants to part with anything and I knew his old outdated computer books probably wouldn't get him much.  He had 4 large bags full of books and they paid him 50 cents for all!!  I felt really bad for him, I thought he might get a little more than that.

I carried in a small easy to carry box of novels, and got $13.00!  Not a king's ransom, but good enough for me.  I was hoping Herb would realize a lot of the stuff he's hanging on to isn't worth much and maybe he will just trash the rest.  Or, perhaps, it will all backfire on me, and he still won't part with the rest because no one appreciates them like he does.  I'll let you know what happens!

I also have a second tab at the top of this page entitled "Fur Kids", I've recently updated that page as well if you'd like to read about my furry kids.

I'm baaaack!

It's been a very long time since I've written anything for my blog.  I figured no one was reading it any way, and I was very busy working and just trying to keep things caught up at home.

I retired in November 2015 due to the type of work I was doing.  I was working full time on a seasonal basis.  I worked there for about 9 months until the work slowed down.  They laid me off then but after about 7 weeks they called me back, but by that time I was enjoying my freedom and decided not to go back.

I was thankful that I had the opportunity to work there, but the work was fast paced and sometimes quite physical.  I appreciated the fact that they tried to keep me off of the physically demanding work as much as possible...since I have bad knees.  However, sometimes that wasn't possible, and I understood that.  Again, they were very kind to me, but I didn't feel I should continue.

I would have liked to have found a part time office position, but at my age, I knew the possibilities of being hired would be low, even though my skills and experience are excellent. 

I interviewed for 2 positions that I really wanted and thought I did very well during the interview process, but did not get the jobs...I believe they wanted someone younger.  One was as a receptionist at a local neuter/spay clinic.  The other was a receptionist at an animal care center.  Oh well...their loss.  I can be upbeat and as much fun as those young whipper snappers!!  (I think that's the way old folks are supposed to talk) Haha!

I will update the rest of my page soon.

Until I log in again...be happy and stay well!!!

Changes...Changes..Changes

I haven't been blogging much lately for several reasons.  One being that I've been busy doing other things.  Since I got a new puppy in June, I've been spending a lot of time with him and not taking very many pictures.  We hike trails and play in the back yard.  When we hike, I'm busy working with Finn.  He still wants to jump on people and kiss them.  He's just a little guy, 9 lbs or so, so he won't hurt anyone, but he still has to learn his manners.  A camera hanging around my neck just gets in the way when I'm tending to Finn.

One of our cats is not doing very well either.  Magnum has lost the use of his back legs.  He doesn't seem to be in any pain, but we do keep an extra eye for him.  Finn likes to jump on the cats and give them "kisses" too, and poor Magnum has no way to escape quickly.  We move Magnum to higher ground (the sofa) when Finn is out tearing around the house.  Magnum is having some litter box issues too.  His back legs usually don't make it into the litter box (he thinks they're in, but because he doesn't have any feeling in them, he doesn't realize they aren't in).  We have a pretty good system set up so the mess stays in a big tray, but it does take extra time and effort to clean up after him.

 These are a couple of shots of Magnum's spot when he wants to sit with us in the family room

Magnum in his safe spot on the sofa when Finn is running wild.

Magnum's other safe spot in the "cat room" only the cats are allowed in this room.  Litter boxes, food and water and of course, Magnum's special resting spot.  Magnum spends a lot of time in here away from crazy Finn, but he can come out whenever he wants. 








I don't get a lot of comments on my blog, and that's OK.  I know some people read my blog, but don't leave comments...I'm OK with that.  I read a few blogs and don't leave comments either.  I do appreciate anyone who stops by to read my blog leaving comments or not.

So, I've decided just to blog when I have something that I'd like to share with others or just for my own enjoyment.  I hope you'll tag along with me whether I blog once a week, once a month...or who knows, once a year!

Today, I've decided to share a video of horse I used to ride at Winton Woods Riding Center when I took lessons a few years ago.  His name is Sultan and has always been one of my favorites.  This video was taken by a lady who works at the Riding Center and was kind enough to share it with me.  This video shows off how beautiful Sultan is...such a handsome boy!  Horses are such magnificent animals! This is my first attempt to post a video, hope it works!  Enjoy!