Pond Ramblings

For this group of photos you're going to wish I had a decent zoom lens on my camera.  Be prepared to click and enlarge these and maybe find a magnifying glass for additional help!


See MamaDog sitting on the bank?  What does she see?

In the middle of the photo, right in front of the grass in the water, there is a small beaver.  He turned and went the other way once he realized MamaDog was on the bank watching him.  He's making quite a wake behind him!

Here is where the beaver lives.  We can pull the boat in and fish all around the lodge.  We're not sure exactly how many live there.

Can you see the tiny little birds sitting on the top branch of the dead tree?
Good fishing spot!

This one is much harder to see.  Try looking at the dead limb right in the middle of the photo that looks almost as if it's lying on the edge of the grass.  You might be able to make out the grayish bird sitting on it, almost in the water lilies.

I bet you can see this one just fine!  Suzy and MamaDog have been terrible this year about trying to swim out to us while we are fishing.  They have ruined more good spots for us in the process!!  Suzy got all tangled in the grass one evening so I felt sorry for her and dragged her into the boat with us.  Nasty!  On this occasion we just waved her on.  She easily made it to the bank where she proceeded to shake and roll (but not rattle).

I'm sorry my photography is so poor.
It doesn't do justice to the beauty at our pond.

Random stuff

I stepped into the back yard to scoop poop this week and realized something.  The cicadas are gone!!  I'm not sure exactly when I last heard them, but I think it's been awhile.  I'm glad their lifespan above ground is short and I'm also glad I won't have to listen to that again for another 13 years!

I'm getting excited about our pears.  Wait, let me back up for a minute...  My husband has always wanted to have pecan trees and fruit trees.  When we first moved to the country, he planted quite a few on a spot he cleared at the north end of our property (pre-pasture/livestock/pond days).  Despite meticulous care, they didn't make it.  I think the worst was when kids(?) on ATVs destroyed quite a few of them by running over them!  He tried again when we were big into the goat business.  Well, you can imagine what happened with that.  Just think goats, horns, and the need to butt things.  A few years ago he decided to give it one more try with three pear trees in our front yard.  Two of them have fruit this year!!  I'm hoping to at least get a pie or cobbler out of the deal if we can fend off the bugs, birds and whatever else might get in the way.

For this final item you might want to quit reading if you're the type who switches the channel when the lion starts chasing the antelope during the nature show.  My husband was working in our new "pool garden" (which deserves an entry of its own) and I was standing on the back steps calling for Alice and Mabel to come in while taking in the heavenly aroma of our gardenias that are blooming.  All of a sudden we heard a huge crashing noise and I saw something fall from a tree.  Immediately Suzy and MamaDog went tearing into the woods.  My husband asked "What was that??" and I told him I thought it looked like a squirrel fell out of the tree.  He looked a little skeptical and said that squirrels were very sure-footed creatures.  I said maybe the branch broke off when it jumped on it.  Before he could counter that, here came Suzy prancing out of the woods with a live squirrel in her mouth looking very pleased with herself.  I'll stop my story there.  Besides... I decided it was time to come back inside at that point. 

 

Cobwebs at the pond

Start with a loop from one dead tree to the next.

Cobwebs are at the top of the dead tree, not between Suzy's ears!

This is my favorite.

Spiders at the pond stay busy!

Fish, No Fish, and Cicadas

I currently have two tropical fish tanks, a 23-gallon hex-front flat-back in the kitchen and a 55-gallon rectangular tank in the living room.  The kitchen tank houses a gourami and a tiger barb.  The larger tank has two glowlight tetras and three large silverdollar fish.  I recently saw the cutest little angelfish at WalMart and decided to buy some for both tanks.  In addition, I got a plecostomus for each tank to cut down on the need for algae scraping.  *sigh*  My fish obviously didn't roll out the welcome-wagon for the newcomers.  Both the plecostomus and the angel I put in the small tank are dead.  I found the bones of the former this morning and all traces of the latter were gone within the first 24 hours!  Of the three angels and one plecostomus I put in the larger tank, only one lone angel remains.  I've noticed it hides all the time.  Good luck little angel!

We've had so much wind and bad weather lately we haven't been able to do any fishing.  We finally gave it a go yesterday evening.  Temperatures have been fairly chilly during the past week and there is a lot of new water in the pond, so I wasn't sure how well we would do.  It was really slow at first, but my husband ended up catching three - one of them fairly large.  Me?  Nothing.  Nada.  Zip.  The sad thing is I forgot to carry my camera with me and I missed some nice photo opportunities.  Cows, Cormorants, Canada Geese....all sorts of nice "naturey" things.  Oh, well.  Maybe next time.

I should have waited a week to post about the Cicadas.  The volume of their "singing" has doubled and there's no doubt now what is making it.  It's truly amazing!! 

What IS that noise??

About a week ago I stepped outside and heard a curious sound.  At first I thought it might be a small leak on the gas pipeline near our house, but no... it wasn't coming from that direction.  There's a set of high-voltage power lines in the direction it did seem to come from, but sound can be deceptive.  Either notion was mildly disturbing.  Occasionally I wouldn't hear it, but other times it was so loud I could hear it in my home with the doors and windows shut! 

Turns out "Mother Nature" is to blame.  It's nothing more than Brood XIX of the Periodical Cicada!!  It led me to do a little research and see what I could learn.  I grew up plucking little brown shells (the exoskeletons they leave behind) from trees.  We knew they were left by what we called "locusts", but I now know are actually Cicadas.  There are annual varieties (which is why I found the shells every year), but there are also Periodical Cicadas which only emerge on a 13 or 17-year schedule.  The ones in our area are the 13-year variety and belong to Brood XIX.  Come 2015 we may see some again when Brood XXIII emerges.  The little critters spent the past 13 years underground and have all emerged simultaneously to "sing" for the next month.  It's an amazing sound!  My newspaper reported that there was a case a few years back where the sound was so intense near the Memphis Airport that it was louder than the jet engines!

I tried to capture the sound on my cellphone to share here.  It's a poor video, but maybe if you turn up your volume you will be able to hear the steady hum of the Cicadas in the background.  Oh, and that tree in the clip is the same one pictured here.    

Stormy Ramblings

We've had some wild weather the past 24 hours. When I went to bed last night, I knew that storms were headed my way and we were under a tornado watch. That didn't really bother me since we are often under tornado watch this time of year. Still... I kept waking up in anticipation of the storm. That and the fact that the moon is waxing and bright moonlight always disrupts my sleep.

It hit shortly after 3:00 a.m. Oh my!  The wind, rain, thunder, and lightning were fierce!!  No tornado, but the storm was powerful. By 4:00 a.m. the power was out. The storm had blown through, but I kept waking up to see if the electricity had come back on.

When the power hadn't come back on by mid-morning, my husband hooked up our generator (welding unit). You know, we take so many things for granted in our lives. When our power goes out we also lose the pump on our water well. Fortunately, we just got a bigger holding tank for our well and didn't have to hook the generator through the well.  Since it was daylight I didn't really miss the lights. I think I was happiest to hear the hum of the refrigerator and the filters in my fish tanks when we switched on the generator.

The power came back on about 4:00 p.m., hours earlier than had been promised. It was then I realized that the extra fridge we have, one that came from my MIL's house after her death, hadn't come back on when we switched over to the generator! Some of the stuff in the freezer portion had started to thaw. So... that pretty much decided what I would fix for supper.

In retrospect, I realize just how blessed we were. The storms were much worse in many places causing much damage and taking several lives. If the worse thing we experienced was losing a few items from our freezer, I really can't complain. God is good and I'm thankful.

*Achoo!*

I'm encouraged. *Achoo!* Despite the fact it dropped below freezing last night, I think Spring is just around the corner! *Achoo!* *Achoo* Trees are starting to bud, grass is getting green, *Achoo!* and I'm starting to sense some pollen in the air.

*Achoo!*

Hey, it beats being cold!

*Achoo!* *Achoo!*

Squirrel Nest

Squirrel nests are a pretty common sight in my part of the world. Camouflaged during the summer, they become obvious once the trees drop their leaves.

This one just happens to be right in my line of vision every time I open the back door to let Alice and Mabel in or out (which can be anywhere from 3 or 4 times a day to 3 or 4 hundred times a day, depending on their mood). I marvel at the engineering. We've had some fairly windy days in recent months and it amazes me that it's still up there!

Brrrr!!

Once again, despite having snow in our forecast, we ended up with the nasty stuff instead.  We did get a dusting of sleet and snow overnight, but most of today we've had freezing rain and mist.  Our temperature has stayed below freezing all day so thankfully the precipitation never got heavy enough to cause much damage. (In other words, we still have power!)

 Here are some photos I took on my walk to the mailbox.  

Billions of Birds!

Okay.  Maybe not billions, but I'd wager hundreds of birds visit my feeders each day.  That's one of the pleasures of country living, a large and varied bird population.

I found myself totally mesmerized as I watched them through the window this morning.  They're constantly on the move:  eating, fighting, swooping in and out.  I tried to take a head-count, but there was too much activity for that.  I know there were 50 or more birds at any given time! 

Without a doubt, the majority of the birds are Goldfinches.  A few have started to put on their yellow summertime feathers, but most are still in winter clothes.  I also get lots of Cardinals, my favorite kind of bird.  Most folks speak of the bright red males when referring to Cardinals, but the females are quite lovely, too.   In addition, I have Sparrows (not sure which variety...maybe Song Sparrows?) and a few Purple Finches. 

Naturally the birds all flew off when I went out to take the above photo.  I tried to stand there without moving so they'd come back, but it was too cold!  I bet you can spot a few in the photo, though.  I hope by now you all know you can click on my photos to enlarge them for better viewing.

As winter passes the Goldfinches will move on.  Others, like Indigo Buntings, Grosbeaks, and Cowbirds, will take their place at the feeders.  Nothing, however, beats this time of year for sheer numbers!

Busy as a Beaver

Look at what some beavers have been up to in our pond. The top photo is a house (lodge, hut, den) that they constructed in a matter of days right in the midst of one of my favorite fishing spots.

The bottom photo shows another house that has some mud on the sides. The mud is obviously a recent addition since it hasn't dried. Some folks say the beavers start "mudding" when they're fixing to have babies. Others say it's just a way to insulate from the cold or protect the home from predators.

Both photos can be enlarged by clicking.

An unexpected outing

We usually do most of our fishing in the Spring and early Summer. After that it just gets too darned hot. Once things cool down in the Fall it gets dark too early and we're usually busy with other stuff.

This afternoon my husband came in from doing some chores in the pasture and suggested we try our luck since he'd seen some activity in the pond. I had about an hour to spare, so I agreed. Besides, I was curious to see how the pond looked. He had mentioned earlier in the week that it was lower than he had ever seen it before.

We quickly gathered our gear and headed to the pond. He wasn't kidding!! The water level has probably dropped at least three feet! We had a couple of small storms pass through last night, but the little bit of rain they provided mostly just settled the dust. Since there were fire ants in the boat and we were pressed for time we just cast from the bank. He caught a fairly decent bass along with something that got away before he could reel it in. I managed to snag three small bass. All of them went back in the water for another time.

Not much of an adventure, but it was a pleasant change of pace. Actually, the best part of the outing was getting to wear my new rubber boots! Aren't they snazzy? They sure beat my old black ones!

Mooooo!

I came home from Bible study today to find a note on the counter:

"Gone to get cow food. Be home ASAP"


Something about that just made me smile. I never dreamed 30 years ago I would live in the country, enjoy hunting and fishing, and have livestock.

Life is good!

Open your eyes!

You never know what you're going to see when you make the effort to really notice things! You should be able to click on these to enlarge them.

This little guy barely slowed down to get his picture snapped!

I prefer green lizards to this kind.

These died off in the middle of the summer, but came back beautifully later.

This little grasshopper thought he was hidden.

These green dragonflies are my favorites. They love to pose!

My camera never would focus on the flower.

I hate worms, so it was difficult for me to take this one. Ugh!

These flowers (weeds) are everywhere!

Want a closer look?

Another weed, but still quite pretty.

This thing turned its head to look at me. How creepy is that!?

I have no idea what this plant is, but it's sure interesting!

Pops and photos

Here's another recipe from Aarti Sequeira, the newest Food Network star. I knew when I made this that probably no one in my family would eat it, but it looked so good I just had to try it anyway. I think I used too many pistachios, but other than that it tasted quite good.

Creamy Pistachio Pops

1 (12 oz.) can evaporated milk
4 Earl Grey tea bags
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
1 cup heavy cream
Handful finely chopped pistachios, plus extra for garnish

In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring evaporated milk to a simmer until small bubbles form around the circumference of the pot. Meanwhile, snip the tops of the tea bags and add to the milk. Whisk in cardamom. Once the milk is simmering, turn the heat off, cover and let sit and steep for 30 minutes.

Strain the evaporated milk into a large bowl. Whisk in the condensed milk, heavy cream and pistachios. Either pour the mixture into ice pop mold, small bowls or a large bowl. Cover the bowls with a piece of plastic wrap to avoid freezer burn and the formation of a "skin". Pop them into the freezer and freeze overnight.

When you're ready to serve, run the ice pop mold under hot water to loosen it. You can do the same thing for the smaller bowls if you'd like to serve it as a little kulfi half dome. Garnish with more nuts if you like and serve.


I don't have any photos of the pistachio pops, so instead I'll share some photos I took on a return trip to the farm this weekend.

A Day at the Farm

The first weekend in September is traditionally the opening of dove season in Arkansas. I haven't hunted the past couple of years and the last time I did it was right here at our house. This year my husband, his brother, and I decided to drive over to the Mississippi River Delta to hunt. Legal shooting begins a half hour before sunrise, so we began our journey in the dark.

As we drove through the night, I gazed up at Orion (my favorite constellation) thinking how glad I am that I live in the country. I don't believe I could be happy again in town where the lights dim the stars. The faintest hint of daylight was appearing just as we reached my favorite part of the drive... where the Delta begins. It's a noticeable change in topography as the forest gives way to flat farmland.

I was glad I had the sense to take a long-sleeved shirt as there was a definite nip in the air. Perhaps Fall isn't far off! Overall, it was a fun morning. We've definitely had better hunts, but still got enough for a few meals. I'll be honest... as much as I enjoy hunting, I'm getting pretty soft-hearted in my old age. There were moments when I was torn between shooting with my gun or with my camera. Here are a few offerings from the latter. Click on them for a larger view. Don't worry, no dove pictures.

One of several nests I saw.
The sun had not broken the horizon at this point.



The sun rose quickly behind the grain bins.



While watching for dove I photographed some of the farm equipment.

A massive track hoe!

We have loads of dragonflies around our house, but the ones in the Delta put ours to shame! Veritable B-52 Bombers!!
Theirs may be larger, but ours are prettier.

Isn't this beautiful rice?!

Squash Blossoms

It wasn't until I saw the photo of the squash blossom in the sidebar of Marion's blog that I really ever gave any thought to its beauty. I had never before considered it a "real" flower. It was just a means to the end, a precursor... necessary, but not necessarily noteworthy.

This morning I headed to our little garden spot and noticed that the blossoms were wide open and swarming with bees. I hurried back in for my camera so I could share some photos here.

I waited and waited for the bee to exit this flower. Perhaps he was drunk on nectar?

Not sure if this bee was arriving or departing.

I managed to find a blossom without a bee in it!

If you look in the background of this photo you will see blossoms becoming squash in varying stages.

Marion included a portion of a poem by Robert Francis under her photo. Here is the poem in its entirety.

Squash in Blossom
Robert Francis

How lush, how loose, the uninhibited squash is.
If ever hearts (and these immoderate leaves
Are vegetable hearts) were worn on sleeves,
The squash's are. In green the squash vine gushes.

The flowers are cornucopias of summer,
Briefly exuberant and cheaply golden.
And if they make a show of being hidden,
Are open promiscuously to every comer.

Let the squash be what it was doomed to be
By the old Gardener with the shrewd green thumb.
Let it expand and sprawl, defenceless, dumb.
But let me be the fiber-disciplined tree

Whose leaf (with something to say in wind) is small,
Reduced to the ingenuity of a green splinter
Sharp to defy or fraternize with winter,
Or if not that, prepared in fall to fall.

The Walk (and some slaw)

Younger daughter and I decided we'd better take an extra long walk this morning to counteract some of the good stuff we've eaten lately. We set out before 7:00 a.m. and you'd think with temperatures in the mid 70s it would be pleasant. Factor in humidity of more than 90% and it quickly becomes a sweaty experience. Let's just say after walking close to five miles at a fairly good pace we felt like we'd gotten quite a workout!

We live in a rural area with no leash law, so we always hope that none of the dogs along the route bite..... and believe me, there are LOTS of dogs in our area! Many barked at us, a few came to the edge of their yards, and one came up to give us a sniff or two. Some of you might remember that two years ago we sold Debby to some friends up the road. She was pregnant at the time and gave birth to a little girl they named Bella. Evidently Bella's new family gives her lots of attention. As we walked past her pasture she started plodding her way towards us, clearly expecting something. She tuned up and gave a little bray as we passed her by. I sort of felt bad that we didn't stop and pet her! On the return trip she didn't come to the fence, but kept a close eye on us until we were out of sight. I think the most disconcerting part of the walk was when we passed under a high-voltage powerline. You could actually hear the surge of electricity coming from the wires!! Maybe next time we walk I'll take the camera along so I can illustrate my narrative.

My family isn't much on slaw, especially when it's not the mayonnaise variety. The vinegar types are healthier, though, and I really like this version I put together this morning.

Colorful Coleslaw

1 pkg. (10 oz.) angel hair coleslaw mix
1 medium sweet red pepper, chopped
1 medium green pepper, chopped
1 medium yellow summer squash, chopped
1/2 cup chopped red (purple) onion
1/3 cup white wine vinegar
3 Tablespoons lime juice
1 Tablespoon canola oil
1-1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon lemon pepper

Combine first five ingredients in a serving bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together remaining ingredients. Pour over vegetables in serving bowl and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least a half hour before serving.

Shake, Rattle, and Roll

When you hear the words "earthquake" and "United States" in the same sentence, what geographic area usually comes to mind? Most people automatically think "Pacific Coast".... specifically, California. Those of us living in the central part of the States know that the San Andreas Fault is not the only major fault line lying beneath the surface of the U.S. There is also the New Madrid Fault in Arkansas/Missouri/Tennessee which produced a series of major quakes in 1811 and 1812.

All my life I've heard dire speculation about how potentially devastating it would be if this were to happen now. Periodically items pop up in the news about it. The same article which can be found at this link appeared in my local newspaper over the weekend.

If you click here it will take you to my favorite site for tracking earthquakes around the globe.

Monday stuff

Things have been going well with Suzy in the house. She gets along great with Alice and Mabel and as far as I know (unless there's something I haven't found!) there's only been one accident in the house. Out of all the dogs I've owned in my lifetime, though, she's the first "shoe thief/chewer"! Naughty girl!!

On Saturday my younger daughter and I hosted a bridal shower for one of her friends. I obviously didn't check the community calendar before I set the date and location. Turns out there was a "Bugs, Bands & Bikes" festival going on all day in the area adjacent to where we had the shower. I haven't seen or heard so many motorcycles in one place since the time we happened to be in Hot Springs during a Harley Davidson Convention! (Bugs = "mudbugs" or crawfish)

Remember the goose couple I mentioned in an entry awhile back? There have been several mornings my husband has seen the entire family, which now includes four goslings, marching down the middle of the levee road which circles our pond. I would love to get a photo of that!

We've had two new calves in the past week or so. We're a small operation, so it's always a big deal when there's a new arrival. Once upon a time I took lots of livestock photos. As I mentioned here, though, it's been ages since I took my camera to the pasture.

At least when something happens right here at the house I'm pretty good about getting out my camera. Jed was barking like crazy at something in the front yard yesterday evening. Turns out it was a snake. It kept a very close eye on me as I inched up to take its picture. It didn't appear to be a water moccasin or copperhead, so I let it go on its merry way after snapping a couple of pix. I noticed Jed didn't get too close. I guess he learned something from his last experience.