Roseate Spoonbill

It’s a banner spoonbill year. We see them every day.

Here is one feeding at Charlie’s Pasture mudflats.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCJaJlm8NpE

Pool plantings

Several pots of plants in the pool area were beginning to look worn.




Jeff and Carol are horticulturally inclined, and they like to hang out at the pool, so they volunteered to redo the plantings.

Much nicer now.

Gulf Waters

It’s a fragrant time to be here.

Ten days into the shoulder recovery

The stitches are out. Judy has been released from the sling. She can use her arm as long as she keeps it low. She isn’t supposed to lift anything heavier than a cup of coffee, but the doctor said doing dishes would be great therapy. That’s what I heard him say anyway.

She got to lie down last night. She didn’t have to sleep sitting up in a chair.

She took a three-mile walk on the beach today.

We thought there would be a lot of stitches under the surgical tape over the incision. It turns out it was just one really long one. Two regular stitches and one really long one. Three stitches. Judy thinks there are a bunch of sub-surface stitches that were all tied up to that one long external one. She might be right, but I still think she owes me.


Tonight’s dinner, Redfish, compliments of Jeff and Carol.

Great Blue Heron

So there’s this great blue heron.


He caught this fish. (With the spear attached to his face.)



Now what could a skinny necked heron do with a fish like this?


Hold it this way?

Or maybe this way?

It doesn’t look promising, but… Gulp.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yUCx7cs5so


Nothing to it.

Annie goes to Africa

Annie was having a Play Day at Eddie’s house last Tuesday, while I took Judy to physical therapy. Can you believe physical therapy 5 days after shoulder surgery? Passive range of motion only, but still, that is amazing! Everything moves like it should. Judy is way ahead of schedule.

Anyway, Annie was there at Eddie’s house for the weekly Skype video call from Jeff and Carol’s daughter, Robin, who is in Africa. Once a week, Robin finds her way to an internet café with her laptop and fires up a Skype video call. Robin and Annie got to “meet” each other on webcams. Now Annie has a friend in Africa!

I’ve only had to be nice to Judy for a little over a week now, but she is getting better so fast that part of the process might be almost over. Soon it will be time to go back to “Hey. Where’s my dinner?”

Blue Grosbeak



Rose-breasted Grosbeak

We didn't really want to drive to Alice on a workday. Again.

But the Jeep was done. Again.

Can’t put if off until Saturday. They’re not open on Saturday. Here we go again.
When we got there, I gave the Jeep a quick fifteen or twenty starts and it sounded perfect. Much better than before. I think they nailed it this time.

Home by lunch. Lesser nighthawks circling when we got here. Taking a walk tonight, we got chipping sparrows


And a yellow-headed blackbird.

And know what else? There is a Jeep in our driveway instead of a rental car!