ABC Wednesday - K is for kindness

Always be a little kinder than necessary. James M. Barrie

For more fun from the letter "k", please visit ABC Wednesday.

If you hang it.....they will come?

A couple of weeks ago I bought a Woodpecker feeder at Walmart, complete with a block of seed. It was the first time I'd noticed the product and thought it was worth a try as I'd seen one (yes, 1) Downey Woodpecker in our neighbourhood last winter.

Since hanging it in our garden we've received lots of little visitors, including this Black Capped Chickadee. But no sign of a Woodpecker.....

Until this morning! When I came downstairs at 7:45am to get a bowl of cereal, this guy was having breakfast too.

According to my Lone Pine Ontario Nature Guide: "Woodpeckers have feathered nostrils, which filter out the sawdust produced by hammering" Of course they don't have to worry about sawdust at my feeder.

Photo note: the soft appearance on photos of birds at our feeders is due to the fact that I shoot through the kitchen and diningroom windows which have screens as well as glass.

Skywatch Friday - Port Burwell, Ontario

For more fun, please visit Skywatch Friday. Thanks again to the Skywatch Team for all their hard work: Klaus Sandy Wren Fishing Guy Louise

Friday My Town Shoot Out - My favorite place to ________

This week's theme, is compliments of Cindy in Alaska and my choice is "my favorite place to spend time bird watching" and that place happens to be our backyard. Well the view of our feeders through the diningroom window, to be exact.

An American Goldfinch with our budding lilac in the background.





Gray checking out the feeders in the summer.





A tree full of sparrows in the fall.





But my favorite time for birdwatching through the diningroom window is in the winter.

We see Blackcapped Chickadees.

Northern cardinals - everyone thinks this male looks like it should be on the cover of a Stephen King novel.
A Mourning Dove basking in the winter sun.

Chow time at the mess hall.

The Friday My Town Shoot Out is always fun, check out the home page for more information. Have a great week everyone!

Awesome site and contest!

Mark at Musings in Monochrome has an awesome site and he's running a contest. Please visit, read the rules and participate. I've recommended Constable Thatched Cottage in Mark's gallery "colour".

He is also entered in a contest himself -Digital Camera's Photographer of the Year 2009 . His entry, Walking the Dogs, is stunning. Good luck Mark!

Sunday Afternoon Photo Shoot

It was a spectacular day for the last day of summer. Geoff and I decided to drive down to Port Burwell to see if we might be able to spot any migrating hawks or Monarch Butterflies. We saw one Red Tail Hawk, one Merlin, one unidentified hawk and two measley Monarchs. Might take another run down that way in October or early November.

Here are some things we did see.

A few swimmers at Port Burwell west beach.



Remnants of ????


A few of the wind turbines in the Erie Shores Wind Farm which is comprised of 66 wind turbines, each approximatley 25 stories tall.

Friday Shoot Out - domestic animals

The theme for this week's Friday Shoot Out - domestic animals - was chosen by Sandy of Apache Junction, Arizona. Thanks Sandy, this was fun!

Here are some of the animals I know and love.

Our impertinent cat Gray.

My brother Rob relaxing with his two cats Haydes - on the back of the couch, and Kit - reading the newspaper.

My cousin Deborah's dog Tucker LOVES to go for a drive in the car.

Deborah used to have dear little Cali, who also loved to go in the car. Cali is gone now but certainly not forgotten.

Our next door neighbours have Nitrous, an eight year old white German Shepherd. This photo of her and my husband Geoff was taken just after they'd been for a walk together.

I occasionally see these two sweet faces in the morning on my way to work. They wait patiently while their owner picks up his morning coffee.

And finally, another shot of our poor spoiled beast. He allows us to live here.....

Please take a moment to visit some of the other Friday Shoot Out participants. If you click on the camera icon in the right hand column it will take you to the Shoot Out site and the participant links. Thanks again to Patty and Reggie Girl for starting this weekly fun and to Gordon , Gigi and Jen for keeping us organized

Skywatch Friday

I took this sky shot the evening of August 10th just north of Cow Head on the Northern Peninsula in Newfoundland when I was there on vacation.

For more wonderful sky views, please visit Skywatch Friday. Thanks again to the Skywatch Team: Klaus Sandy Wren Fishing Guy Louise

Tonight on the trail - My World Tuesday

I can't believe how bad the mosquitos were tonight but, that being said, it was still a great evening for a walk.

The angle of the light at 5:45pm was lovely.



This is the first time I've seen a turtle on this trail.



Leaves are starting turn.




Chicory.


A fleeting glimpse of a Great Blue Heron.



These pretty white blooms were a mystery to me but now I have it on pretty good authority that they are calico asters. Thanks Deborah!


You've just visited the Youth Start Trail in Woodstock, Ontario, Canada. Please drop by That's My World to see more of the world!

Friday Shoot Out - aged and weathered

The theme for the Friday Shoot Out, "aged and weathered", was chosen by Pauline of Northland, New Zealand.

This is my favorite weathered object here in Woodstock (Ontario, Canada). This totem pole was created by Jason Triemstra of Different Seasons Landscaping. Isn't it beautiful!?

From September 2009

For more fun stuff please check the list of Shoot Out contributors, they're listed in the right hand column of this blog.

And for anyone who had already left a comment on this post, I had approved all comments for publication but - for some bizarre reason - my post and all the comments had disappeared. Blogger acting up a bit???

Skywatch Friday

Sunset as seen at the Oxford Drive-In, Saturday, September 5, 2009

Please visit Skywatch Friday for more beautiful vistas.

My World Tuesday - for the birds

We've had a busy nesting year with our resident Mourning Doves. I'm thinking the latest two chicks might be the last for this year but Geoff is betting we haven't seen the end of it yet.

Saturday evening was full of activity as the chicks were obviously getting ready to fly the coop. You can hear them calling out to mama and papa and the parent's return call. Just after I shot this brief video clip the chick on the left fledged.

Sunday afternoon the second chick fledged as far as the tree on our lawn and stayed there for a couple of hours before venturing further into the brave new world.

The final count for this season? Four successfull nests, producing 8 healthy chicks in total, and two failed nests. I wonder what next year will bring??

Please visit My World Tuesday for more fun.

Friday My Town Shoot Out - doors and windows

I've always admired the architecture of this old firehall here in Woodstock. It's long since been re-purposed as an office building but the windows and the windows that now fill the locations of the original engine doors still speak to it's original purpose.



I can imagine fire fighters sitting at a table in an upstairs window playing cards to pass the time when the bell rings and they rush to dress, fly down the pole and jump on the pumper which rushes out one of the big garage doors, siren blaring.

Thanks go out to Kerri, a fellow Canadian, for this week's theme: windows and doors. You'll find the name of Shoot Out participants in the right hand column of this blog.

Central Newfoundland & Skywatch Friday

I spent the second week of my vacation based from the Sandy Point (near Norris Arm) area in central Newfoundland. So, this view is my choice for Skywatch Friday this week.



While in the area I popped out to Campbellton for Sunday dinner with cousin Deborah and her friend and former co-worker Pat. I took this shot while standing in Pat's garden.



On my way back that evening I had an encounter with a local critter - a black bear strolled across the road and into the woods.



A Sandy Point sunset from Carol and Gerry's dining room window.

From More NL 2009

Gros Morne National Park

Part 2 of 2, photos of Gros Morne National Park and area communities.

Shallow Bay Beach









The trail from the mouth of Baker's Brook to Green Point campground (a 6km round trip hike)is one of the many trails of varying difficulty within the park.

ABC Wednesday -"G" is for Gros Morne National Park

Part 1 of 2, photos of Gros Morne National Park and area communities.

Deborah and I spent 2 nights and 3 days in the park from August 10-12. We've visited the park a number of times over the years, starting with a very damp camping trip in the summer of 1976. These days we like our creature comforts.

This is the entrance to the park, pretty stunning for starters, don't ya think?



Gulls (another "g") taking it easy on the wharf at Lomond.



The highway to Trout River passes these spectacular peaks of the Tableland Mountains



Looking up Bonne Bay towards Glenburnie (yet another "g"!)and Winter House Brook.



Norris Point with a touch of "dry brush" effect from Photoshop


For more fun from the letter "G", please visit ABC Wednesday.

Friday My Town Shoot Out - aged and weathered

The theme for this week, "aged and weathered" was chosen by Pauline of Northland, New Zealand.

My favorite aged and weathered object here in Woodstock (Ontario, Canada)is this totem pole which was created by Jason Triemstra, owner of Different Seasons Landscaping. Isn't it a beauty?!

For more fun, please visit other members of the Shoot Out Gang, you'll find their links in the right hand column of this blog.