JUST CALL ME RUFE!

My friend, the Rufous Towhee, was back at the bird bath catching a drink recently.

My California Hoosier pal, Tom C., noted with a name like Rufous Towhee, he sounds like a blues man from Memphis.

He certainly drinks like one.

And his distinctive call sounds like one, too.

This morning I got a couple of better pictures of him.

When he knows (somehow) that I'm photographing him he doesn't stick around long.

Here he's about to depart.

Up at the hummingbird feeder, I caught one yesterday but his wings were moving so fast he's pretty much a blur.

Back at the birdbath it's a constant parade in the mornings and evenings.

The goldfinches, who nearly always come in pairs.

A damned dumb dove.

And an interloper of a different species.

Oops, just spotted this fellow on the flagstone beneath the birdbath.

Waiting for spillage, no doubt.

Never a dull moment in Catalyst's back yard.

TUESDAY TRAVELS

Yup. Those are the Alps.

Innsbruck, Austria. April '85.

The beer elevation may have contributed to my gaiety.

BIRTHDAY GIRL

This is kind of like forcing you to sit through our vacation pictures.

But.

How often do I get to show off a photo of my great-granddaughter?

Confronted with a cake on her first birthday, Alexis did what anyone would do. 

She piled right in.

And if you're wondering where she got that bright red hair, take your pick.

Here she is with her mother, Kayla, and dad, Russell.

I think you can see why I couldn't resist nicknaming him Rusty when he was about the age of his daughter.

SUNDAY SERENITY

A quiet and restful day.

Alternating between the Diamondbacks game and the PGA Golf Championship on the t.v.

S-l-o-w-l-y reading the New York Times.

Probably a nap somewhere in the afternoon.

Watching the clouds and hoping for rain. Fruitlessly, probably.

Day dreaming.

It's what a Sunday should be.

AN ADVANTAGE OF SLOTH

Since I've moved my desk over a couple of feet, I now have an unimpaired view of our bird bath. It gets a variety of visitors: goldfinches (nearly always in pairs), house finches, a rufous towhee (who likes to bathe as well as drink), the damnable doves, a rare robin, and this guy - a mountain jay.

He seems to be very nervous, jumping around, chirping, and not staying long.

To date, this is the only picture I've been able to get of him. He likes to jump from twig to twig in the tree just above the bird bath and then he moves down the trunk.

He seems to defy gravity, sometimes perching on the side of the tree with his head down, then quickly moving to another position. I mentioned my amazement at his tree-gripping ability to SWMBO the other day.

She said "He doesn't clip his toenails."

Hmmm. Why didn't I think of that?

SOMETHING SPECIAL

In this space I normally have the Friday Funnies, a collection of cartoons I've picked up (stolen) or had donated from various friends. But this week, I've got something different. You may have seen it on CBS News or on Facebook but whether you have or not I think you'll appreciate a story about a boy who just wants people to smile.

The regular Friday Funnies will be back next week but in the meantime, just keep a smile on your face. 

It's addictive.

THROWBACK THURSDAY

Back we go, into the time machine once more. 

Back to the 1970's. 

The scene is a room in the supposedly-haunted old Connor Hotel, above the Spirit Room, in Jerome, Arizona.

Before the hotel was boutiqued.

In an unbearded moment.

Back when people still smoked cigarettes.

Back when men wore love beads.

And long hair.

And sideburns.

Pretty battered look, isn't it?

Here's a much more attractive one from roughly the same era.

The young and lovely She Who Must Be Obeyed, enjoying a glass of wine at a cabin at Kohl's Ranch.

High atop the dread Mogollon Rim.

Ain't she a looker?

Ah, the 70's.