The last couple of days haven’t been very exciting, so I’ve taken a little break from blogging. Didn’t do much of anything besides laundry on Sunday because of the rain, it rained a good share of the day an Monday, and today it was back to painting posts.
Notched 21 more posts on my paintbrush this foggy overcast morning, which brought me up to a total of 180 posts so far. It was pleasantly cool, but muggy, this morning, and I enjoyed seeing my friend the young bald eagle as I stroked along. Little chickadees, nuthatches, and American goldfinches were flitting about, with a background music of honking Canada geese and trumpeting swans. There was also the winnowing of the common snipes, and the screech of a red-tailed hawk. A symphony of natural sounds so much better than a blasting radio.
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Fall may be approaching, but there are still some asters and Canada thistles in bloom to keep the bees busy. I’m sure my friend Marilyn could tell me what kind of bees these are, but I sure don’t know.
By noon, I was done with painting for the day. My right shoulder has been bothering me some, and I asked my doctor about it while I had my physical a couple of weeks ago at Mayo. I suspected bursitis. The Doc agreed, and asked if I’d been doing any repetitive activity with my arm. Duh! Painting 180 posts might qualify?
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In the afternoon, I decided to restock all the kiosks with refuge pamphlets, and found this bunch of red dragonflies. There are lots of different kinds of dragonflies, but this is the first time I’ve seen a red one. I like those red and blue tags on its wings.
“Emma the Hunter” was on duty this evening as we sat outside. Notice the thirteen lined ground squirrel in the bottom right of the photo.
It was stuffing its cheeks with seeds that had fallen from the Hard Rock Bird Café. If you remember, Emma had actually finally caught one of these guys last week.
With a renewed sense of victory, Emma remained as still as a statue as the interloper came closer.
Can you see how stock still Emma remained as the ground squirrel got closer and closer? All that moved was her head a bit. Kind of reminded me of a stalking cat. Don’t worry, the squirrel finally got smart and ran away… just in the nick of time. I’m sure my vigilant companion will be back on duty again tomorrow.
As for me, I’ll paint a few more posts in the morning and then do a new chore in the afternoon. I’m sure you can’t wait to hear what that will be.
Thanks for stopping by… talk to you later, Judy
I'm pulling for the squirrel. Never seen a red dragonfly before.
ReplyDeleteYou are Tom Sawyer - you make it sound like so much fun, makes me want to paint those posts.
Being out with nature is better than inside with AC because of the heat and humidity. Be Safe and Enjoy!
ReplyDeleteIt's about time.
I have a hard time understanding why some folks need to listen to "music" when they're doing outside jobs... listening to what's going on around me is so much more interesting. Sounds like you feel the same way.
ReplyDeleteThe dragonfly is beautiful. I love to see them no matter what their color, but I've never seen a red one before. I'd take it easy on the painting for a while. I developed bursitis in my hip from hiking in the mountains due to the constant repetitive stepping up and down, and someone told me that the bursitis can become chronic after a while. That is what has happened to me, so take good care of your shoulder.
ReplyDeleteI saw red dragon flies in Moab...so pretty!
ReplyDeleteWe never turn on the radio when we are traveling or outside. . It's either nature sounds or quiet.
And how many posts are there? If you said, I forgot! That is quite an undertaking.
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ReplyDeleteMy shoulder hurts, and I haven't painted one post. Hope you are almost done with our painting.
ReplyDeleteGreat pics of the thistles, sharp and clear. You must be painting posts in your sleep by now.
ReplyDeleteEmma is a real hunter she knows her stuff but maybe she didn't like the taste of the last one. Flowers are really pretty and I have never seen a red dragon fly very interesting.
ReplyDeletecouple of things...I also loved the tags on the dragonfly wings...since you are so adept at painting, bring a brush, I still have some stairs and porch to paint :-).
ReplyDeletethose views of Emma she looks just like Riggs, but he's no stalker, he's one of those full bore ahead.
My beloved Duke was the stalker, he could stand perfectly still for minutes and then you'd see him very very slowly lift one leg, put it out and down, then the other 'til he got close then it was a
full speed ahead.
"those red and blue tags on its wings" made me think of the marker lights we have on airplane, semi trucks, and RVs.
ReplyDeleteStop painting posts NOW. Repetitive Stress Injuries are to be taken seriously. My Worker's Comp evaluator gave me a permanent partial rating for my elbow injury. Did you SEE that word "permanent"?
Emma is very good at her job! So are you. Loved the dragonflies. can't wait to hear what the next chore will be!
ReplyDeleteYou'd better stop all that painting post haste! (pun intended). Don't want to see you unable to lift your arm to take those great pictures.
ReplyDeleteI've never seen a red dragonfly, either. Are you sure you didn't spill some paint on it? ;c)
I am breathless with anticipation.
ReplyDeleteWEll I have seen a red dragon fly before in fact when I was a little girl in Alberta they used to come in all colours and now I just see blue ones. I am not sure what happened to all of the other coloured ones.
ReplyDeleteTake care of that shoulder Judy. I had to have a shot of cortisone for that last year.
Don't know which is the best, the dragonfly or the ground squirrel. Both are so beautiful. Be careful with that shoulder!
ReplyDeleteGo Emma!
ReplyDeleteI've always said, I would give my right arm to be ambidextrous.
That would be one lucky Ground Squirrel around here. Take it easy on your shoulder..how many posts do you have left...we need a post report! That is a beautiful Dragonfly:)
ReplyDeleteCan't they find someone of a "lesser vintage" to paint those darn posts???? Repetitive actions at our extended years can tear up ligaments for a lifetime....If you have a yen to paint, get an easel and a palette and paint the beautiful sites Mother Nature laid out for you...Who knows, you could be an aspiring artist????
ReplyDeleteGorgeous dragonfly. I think you've done enough posts. Way to go Emma. Keep up the good work girl.
ReplyDeleteJust a note Judy to say Thanks for all you do on the refuges. It is really appreciated, and Kay and I know the significance of your contributions. Again, thank you very much.
ReplyDeleteWhen John and Jojo were working on her Koi pond and Pergola, a red dragon fly came to visit the pond. First we had seen and I never could get a photo.
ReplyDeleteThat red dragonfly is beautiful. I wouldn't have noticed the red and blue marks on the wings if you hadn't pointed them out. I don't see a lot of dragonflies, but they are always blue and always moving fast. I've not even been close to getting a photo. I'll keep trying. :)
ReplyDeleteWith my shoulder replacement, I had to use my other arm and have become ambidexterous and can actually write with my left hand and it is legible. I did have some pain in that arm, especially turning on lights. Almost all of my lights in the MH are on the ceiling and were challenging for several months, but I'm almost back to normal.
ReplyDeleteGreat dragonfly photo
ReplyDelete