Final touches

I had a few things left to do today to finish my set up here on the refuge.  Most important was getting some bird seed for my feeders.  Mice really like birdseed, so I haven’t had any on board for a while because of the mouse problem at Anahuac.

I headed for Ocean Springs and the Rouses Grocery store.  I was a tad bit hungry when I arrived there, so you know what that can do to your shopping cart.    They had a huge display of King’s Cakes with free samples so I was sucked right in.  Yesterday was King’s Day, and, I believe, the beginning of the Mardi Gras season.  Traditionally, King’s Cakes have a little baby baked inside, and the person getting the piece with the baby will have good luck for the year.  Since the baby was on top, I decided to choose a piece to eat with it on it.  Had enough bad luck last year, so hope this will help.

That cake is more than one person can eat, so I shared it with my fellow volunteers this afternoon.  The cakes come in many varieties, but all are adorned with green, yellow, and purple sprinkles, the traditional colors of Mardi Gras.  I chose the Bavarian cake because of the chocolate.  It was stuffed with Bavarian crème.

As I was unloading my groceries, I noticed this pileated woodpecker working the pine trees around the rigs.  Hello Woody!

In the afternoon, Emma and I took a hike around the Dees Nature Trail on the refuge.  This was the area that had the prescribed burn last April.  Fire has brought needed life back to the under story.

The remains of last year’s pitcher plants were evident.  Can’t wait to see this year’s crop.

The trail goes through the pine savannah and along Bayou Castille.  It was a gorgeous afternoon for a walk.

There are several benches along the trail where you can sit and enjoy the solitude and nature’s geometry. (A=Pi r squared)   You can take the teacher out of the math classroom, but you can’t take the math out of the teacher…

Emma, of course, doesn’t give a crap about math.  She just craps when and where she wants to, and sniffs her way through life.  Phew!

Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later,  Judy