Sunday, December 27, 2015

THE DOWNSLOPE

My new banner photo is in honor of the next holiday we're all facing: New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

The picture was taken in a tiki bar in Phoenix a couple of years ago when we lived down there, once again.

I've been tending to our bird bath and drinking fountain this morning as the temperature hovers in the teens and twenties.

It was frozen solid when I first went out, a little before eight this morning, and I couldn't budge or crack the ice.

I poured some warm water in and a bit later it too was frozen.

So I've repeated this exercise several times, each time banging a bit of the ice loose.

The finches and their friends (whom I haven't identified as to species yet) seem to realize when the fresh water is there and how fast it's freezing over as they flock to the moisture.

I've seen as many as six birds at one time at the dish where under normal conditions only one or two will be there at once.

The mercury only rose to 37 F. (3 C.) here yesterday but it's supposed to be about 10 degrees warmer today.

I can barely wait.

Speaking of rushing the season, I saw this on the street recently.


That's a sweet old vintage Corvette convertible.

It reminded me (once again - I think I've told this story before) of springtime in North Dakota.

When the temperature would get up to the 30's anyone who had a convertible would put the top down and cruise proudly around town.

With the heater running full blast.

But no convertible in my family so I didn't partake of the springtime ritual.

As Val Kilmer playing Doc Holliday in "Tombstone" says, "My hypocrisy only goes so far."

8 comments:

  1. We are still above freezing in Germany (grin).

    Steve

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  2. I had a friend in Austria that "jumped" off a kitchen chair into the new year. She did this well into her 70's. Probably before she had her favorite drink, a Campari cocktail.

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  3. Your cold is coming our way, but the white stuff accompanying it will stop in west Texas. Nice job helping the birdies out, BTW. ;)

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  4. You are a candidate for the St. Francis of Assisi brigade. Good man tending to the birds. Sorry for them and for you the warmth has abandoned you. It got into the mid to low 30's over night here on the Central Coast. On this side of the Santa Lucia Mountains that is arctic!

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  5. Well, you mid-coastal folk can relax, we're taking up the cold weather slack for you here in montana.....it was minus 10 at 8am, but tropiced out at 12 at 2pm.
    That's a nice 'vette, probably a 265?
    The birds that stay out, frolicking around in these temps here are the ravens. They fly, swoop, hang by their beaks, and generally act the fool in low temps.

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  6. Never being a fan of Corvettes (I once had a radio colleague who called them plastic pigs), I have no idea what a 265 is. Sorry.

    And we have those cackling ravensw here, too. I saw one hanging on a garbage dumpster just yesterday. I honked as I drove by and he seemed insulted.

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    Replies
    1. I've also heard Corvettes referred to as "fiberglass coffins".

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  7. Ideal weather to be relaxing inside...

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