Little Red Bird

The first photo is a cell phone shot that I took in a hurry. Other birds had flown away as I approached, so I feared that this one was about to take off too. 

It was perched on Deborah‘s bird feeder, and I think it’s a male house finch. For comparison, here is an older shot of a house finch on my deck. He appeared to have an attitude. He probably saw me; I was indoors looking out.

Bubbles in a Pan

City Daily Photo Theme: Bubbles / Wordless 

Greetings from Wichester

...and Patsy!

When I read that artist Sarah Gallahan had painted a new mural in Winchester, I made a mental note to see it. Last week I had a medical appointment there, so I went to find the mural. Unfortunately, a car was blocking part of it so I can’t show the entire painting at once. 

On the left is a postcard view with the word “Greetings from Winchester.” On the right is a painting of music legend, Patsy Cline.

Patsy Cline, who died in a plane crash in 1963, was from Winchester and became a recording star in both country music and pop music. Her biggest hit was the song "Crazy," written by Willie Nelson.

I think it’s appropriate that the painting is on a wall of the Workingman’s Store / Blue Collar Mercantile. Patsy was from a working class family, and was initially looked down on by Winchester society. Her parents were divorced, and Patsy left high school in order to go to work and help support her mother and siblings. Her mother was a talented seamstress, and made many of Patsy’s stage costumes. 

The apple blossoms that you see in the paintings are references to local apple otchards and the annual Apple Blossom Parade. Blossoms are painted on the pavement here and through the town to direct visitors to the parade route

Mosaic Monday / Murals

Another Tough Week Completed

One accomplishment this week was getting my car inspected. Most inspection stations in my town require an appointment, and I was reluctant to make one because I was unsure how I would feel the next day. Fortunately, I found a garage that had availability the same day. My car passed easily, but the tires are starting to show road damage and should be replaced before winter.

Recovering from a fall has been painfully slow, but I am feeling progress. This afternoon, I was able to take Charlie for an abbreviated version of an adventure. We went to Seven Bends State Park and walked to a bench near the river. It was only about 40 feet from our parking spot. Charlie enjoyed watching people go by and they were even two dogs: a slim white dog who was proud, and a big German Shepherd, who was loud. 

Charlie was happy to get outside. We left just as a rain storm was approaching.

In other news, my condo in Edinburg is now vacant. The tenant left it in good shape and turned over the keys yesterday. I need to replace some lightbulbs and decide whether I’m going to rent it back out or sell it. I’m very tempted to sell it because I’m tired of maintaining it. It doesn’t seem to have gone up in value very much though. It’s only a one bedroom unit, and most buyers in this semi-rural area want something bigger. 

I expect that this week will be better for me, at least as far as how my back is feeling. Soon I’ll look back and say that I was lucky that I didn’t break any bones and was able to recover in only a few weeks. 

Charlie, Some Helpers, and Some Bugs

Filtered Picture of Charlie

It’s been a challenging week because I’m still in pain from the fall I took, Plus I’m still unable to lift very much or even walk Charlie. Fortunately, my sister-in-law has walked him a number of times, and Lynn came yesterday and took care of Charlie and also did some chores that I could not do. 

Lynn cut some nuisance plants, including some small trees that had come up in my backyard garden. She saw some insects that she thought were spotted lantern flies, an invasive pest that is fairly new to our area. I did not recognize them because I’m only familiar with the adult ones. It turns out that these are in stages three and four of their lifecycle.

She removed the plants that attracted them. Hopefully they’ll leave, but I probably should alert my neighbors. 

I’ll with a picture of Charlie looking out the door as Deborah arrives to take him for a morning walk. He’s always excited to see her.

Looking Up from Under

Lynn spent the afternoon helping me today. She took care of Charlie, removed some large invasive plants from my garden, and put up the patio umbrella. I had gotten it a while back, but found it was too heavy for me to lift over the table to put it down through the center. 

Return of the Ponds

Maurertown, VA

Last summer, the ponds in Shenandoah County Park dried up due to the drought. Recent rains have brought them back.

We are officially out of drought stage, but ground levels of water are still low. As I write this, a thunderstorm has brought showers once again, and relief from a very hot spell. The heat will be back, of course. Some parts of the country are getting it worse than we are in Virginia.

Red Flyers

Bird Cam Photos 

Although I am no longer putting out seed for the birds, this male house finch stopped by just in case. Sorry, buddy!

There is plenty of natural food for the birds at this time, and it’s better for them than crowding around a feeder where they might catch an illness from another bird. I do put water in the birdbath though.

The Birdfy camera is motion-activated. It captured video of this little red creature and I don’t know what it is. Since the camera is set to focus on close objects, the subject is not clear.

I’m going with “fairy.”

And finally, it captured a red bird diving downward. I think it’s a cardinal, but the bird did not fly closer so other images of it are not clear.

Black Fence, Yellow Flowers

Today in Winchester

Utility Box Mural, North and Main

Woodstock, VA

Monday Murals