Bird Sightings – Page 27 – The Hermits' Rest

Things of Note, Sedona Edition

What notable things happened today?

Do they mean in history or in 2024? I’ll answer for today. Notably, I was surrounded by bushtits, an unfortunate name for a tiny and loud bird. They are a total hoot as they flit from tree to tree eating whatever it is they eat.

Here are two of them, one flitting and one sitting.

That was notable to me. They make such sweet sounds! As you can see, these scruffy bits of bird are quite entertaining.

I also saw my first Arizona Tan Mantis and enjoyed watching the Gambel’s quail again. That was plenty for around the condo.

We did leave the property today. Since I started work so early, we were able to go back to the Native American museum, the Verde Valley Archeology Center, which featured amazing finds from a nearby cave dwelling. No photos, because I was busy looking.

I enjoyed driving through the Verde Valley again.

We also found the historic downtown of Cottonwood, which we’d missed yesterday. It was a cute place that would be fun to visit sometime. We were told some of the restaurants are good and not so expensive.

After that, we went into Sedona to eat at Anita’s favorite restaurant, the Coffee Pot, which is next to the Coffee Pot rock formation. This is an OLD establishment beloved by locals, and serves 101 kinds of omelette. Mine came with grits and a really nice buttery biscuit, which was really a dinner roll but was good. I got Anita a new shirt from there, because her old one is wearing out.

Not too exciting in the outside, but great inside.

Then we braved the Uptown Sedona experience. It was nowhere near as bad as I’d dreaded. We looked at lots of rocks, crystals, and t-shirts. Sadly, the camera shop we were hoping to go to is no longer a camera store. But it’s named after my son’s partner! Or they have the same name.

We came back and I worked more, then the maintenance dude came to fix our televisions. He turned out to be nice and fond of birds, so we chatted away. And now the TVs work. I guess we didn’t need them earlier in the week!

Crow conference. They and the ravens are very busy every morning!

Tomorrow I hope it isn’t rainy. I have a bucket list item to check off!

Nature Girl Reigns Supreme

It was a good day for seeing nature in all its glory. After work, Lee and I went on a tour of Sedona and the surrounding area. Wow, was that fun.

By the time we did two of the stops, the tour guide figured out that we were way more interested in scenery and nature than shopping and that we were more to the New Age end of the spectrum than traditional folks.

We ended up going off script because we turned down going into a church. Instead we drove around and looked at all the different terrain and natural beauty around here. I was pretty excited to find some water-carved rocks.

Nice church. Great architecture. Didn’t want to go in.

The highlight for the early part of the trip was driving through Oak Creek Canyon, which has huge trees in it. We even got to see the creek that made the canyon.

We went through town, which was fine, then out to the hills to the west. There were lots of fancy houses, but also places with horses. Then, ah, wilderness. Well, empty land anyway. There was much evidence of the powers that be working hard to shew away campers and people parking on the roadside. I sorta get it.

Our tour guide decided to take the minivan off road and show us some more remote areas. It was fun and very quiet. I liked that. It was fun to find interesting plants out there.

Our final stop was the airport mesa, which has a great lookout. You could see nearby towns.

We were thrilled to find out our tour guide also likes tarot. She also identifies with the Hermit, like Lee. It was sure lucky to get such a compatible guide and to not have any more people than us.

After a wee rest I went for an evening walk to get the rest of my Exercise and Move points. I got bonus adrenaline points when I ran into a guy who said they had just seen some javelinas. Well, of course I wanted to see some (AKA collared peccary). So I went in the direction they were headed (also the way I was heading anyway), and soon saw the whole group of them nonchalantly making their way across the edge of the golf course. It was a big family!

I missed getting a video of them arguing, but here’s one where a wet one shakes off water.

That wasn’t even the end of my nature excitement. I finally got to see the Gambel’s Quail I’d been hearing. I watched them play around in the bushes. And I got to get a photo of a desert or mountain cottontail. I’m not sure which it is. The bonus photos are pollen on the sidewalk and a male Anna’s hummingbird. I do enjoy them.

What a great day. Now I gotta sleep so I can get up real early to work.

Rocks, Crystals, and Stones

Today was excellent. I got lots of work done AND enjoyed Sedona. Waking up at my normal time, which is 5 am here, lets me have a lot of time left over for fun, so today I enjoyed all things rocky.

The fun started when we went to the condo place and got help booking some tours for tomorrow and the weekend. This way Lee won’t have to drive and can actually see the Grand Canyon and Antelope Canyon. There happened to be some lovely women selling jewelry and I got some small things there.

We drove around Sedona and stopped to get some views of the red rock formations all around us. The drive between Oak Canyon and Sedona is breathtaking.

One place we stopped was the trail head for an equestrian trail. I hope to go hike it, since it’s probably not too steep. I was happy to find out that our National Parks pass covers the entry fees for the hikes. I’m glad I went into a hiking shop to figure that out. I also got the ideal Texas hiking pants: long but weightless. That will keep bugs off but breathe.

In Sedona, we had dinner (Texas time) in a place with delicious fresh food and a wonderful view. We met some other diners who it turned out lived near me when I was raising my kids. We then saw them at the nearby crystal shop. I love me a good crystal shop. No, I did not get my aura read.

Finally we went to a store with real Navajo rugs, which made me swoon. The big Two Gray Hills ones were very impressive. Someday…

Lee talked to this guy so much he froze.

We drove through the fun touristy shop area, found some not-wealthy people housing, then went to the western part of Sedona where there are banks, grocery stores, and non-woo woo establishments for people who live there. Still, very pretty. Lee met someone in the bank who knew where Cameron was! This whole visit has been full of things like that.

And after I finished reading my novel (report tomorrow) I went on another bird walk. My only new bird was a Scrub Jay. Note: It sure smells good here with so many trees blooming. I took one of Lee’s allergy pills, so now I’m fine in the sinus department.

Birds, Birds, Birds

Today of course I was up extra early, since I’m two hours ahead in my body. So I took off a walked through the pretty neighborhood adjacent to the resort. There is also a pretty golf course here.

This combination meant for a lot of birds. I couldn’t have had more bird fun if I tried. There were six new ones, many of which I saw, too. So, here are my new birds so far. Note how many are described as “dull.” But some are pretty spectacular!

But the highlight was this: I heard a flock of House Finches screeching and went to check it out.

I saw what was making the fuss. It was a spectacular Cooper’s Hawk noshing away on a finch. It was so preoccupied that it let me get decent photos of it. I had a great time watching it. Wow!

I also got photos of other birds and beasts today. I’ll just dump them here. Sadly, the rodent I saw hid too fast.

The other thing I enjoyed were plants. The neighborhood I walked through had beautiful xeriscaped yards with all kinds of native and other plants suited to this climate. Combined with excellent weeds, I had a lot to look at (sorry if you already saw this on Facebook but I wanted to share with others). I can’t ID them all.

Sorry to once again not ID, but I have to go to bed early to get up and work. Well, I’ll have a lot of time in the evenings to do stuff.

We did have a nice brunch and get some groceries. Driving all around Sedona was confusing. Too many roundabouts and New Age shops. I mean, I’m new agey, but there are so many places to get your aura photographed.

I didn’t get any city pictures due to our dirty windshield. But here’s the fancy CVS pharmacy.

The views, though, are spectacular. I can’t wait to go hike.

Spending Time on the Road with Lee

Who do you spend the most time with?

For sure the person I now spend the most time with is Lee, my spouse. When he lived at the ranch and I spent weekdays in Austin, I may have spent more time with Anita, who shared a couple of dwellings with me. I now only see her once or twice a week and Lee every day. Good thing we get along 90% of the time

Yeah, we both get grumpy sometimes. Lee is easily frustrated and snaps. I’m conflict avoidant. But we manage. And we know when to give each other space.

Anyway, we embarked on one of our periodic road trips today, going west this time. We are headed to Sedona, Arizona, where there’s now a condo we can go to. I’m pretty excited about all the nature I can see.

And small towns. No Interstate monotony. That’s tomorrow.

Today we got as far as Clovis, New Mexico. the drive over was filled with oil wells, windmills, and cattle. There are many mega-dairy farms that have to generate massive amounts of methane gas and poop. I feel sad for the cows who never see grass or get to walk around. At least our local beef cattle get to be happy before they get harvested.

More fun was getting to see many big quarter horse ranches and some beautiful horses. Just like at home, we also saw lots of horses in trailers, all saddled up and ready to go work. Modern cowboys work that way.

One of the prettiest towns we went through was Post, where Cameron’s former City Manager went when he got frustrated. It’s quite pretty and has a big lake. Clovis is also pretty, probably because we went through the nicest part of town to find the hotel we are in. They are like oases in the desert.

I didn’t get photos of any of the things I described.

We did see some pretty geological formations in the hilly area we went through before it got REAL flat. It may be flatter than east-central Illinois (the flattest place I ever lived).

I did go outside and find two new birds, even though it was very windy outside. But hey, I was NOT covered with sweat! Dry heat! The birds were Say’s Phoebe and the Curve-billed Thrasher. Both are common here but not where I live. Cool!

I’m looking forward to seeing more new terrain and plants tomorrow.

Me by Any Other Name?

If you had to change your name, what would your new name be?

I’d go for something matrilineal. Suna ní Brighid in Irish Gaelic would be my first choice. That’s vaguely in my heritage. Daughter of Brigid.

I could be some Spider Woman, Arachne, since I know how to weave.

I’m not sure if Sweden, another background ethnicity of mine, still allows matrilineal names anymore, since they have strict naming rules. If so, I could be Ada Edwinsdottir. Uh. Anyway, I also like Maeve. That’s Irish. And Ada.

Here’s a prickly poppy. That’s its name.

I could also take on my spouse’s name like a good little child of the patriarchy. I’d be SueAnn K Bruns. But I’m not. So anyway, I’m not changing my name.

And I’m not telling long stories, since I just used my blogging time being Facebook Technical Support for my 78–year-old friend who wanted to make a page. Just like when I’m at work, I realize that things are only easy for me because I’ve practiced. Most software is mystifying when you first try to do anything. I’m sure my friend will be just fine!

So, here are highlights:

I saw three kinds of swallows at the Walkers Creek Bridge.
I also watched a very large raccoon ambling along the creek bank.
Farther back on the creek bank I saw the bobcat again! It was drinking from the creek. Aww.
Next I heard a very loud Yellow-crowned Night Heron who then swooped right over me. That is a lot of creek action.
When I went to the tack room to feed the horses, I discovered Butternut the hen had been locked inside. She had plenty to eat, since she loves horse food and there was spillage.
This all balanced out a couple of sad things around here, so all in all, it’s fine.

Tomorrow we go on a trip! Somewhere hot but less humid! Kathleen will carefully go outside to take care of horses and chickens. Luckily, Apache now takes his medication like a pro as long as it’s buried in sweet feed.

Here’s the Temperature Blanket up to May 29. You can tell it’s warmed up.

New Grass Is Delightful

It was a fun day for both Lee and our equine buddies. Lee got to shred (that means mow using a shredder pulled behind a tractor) the two pastures the horses haven’t been on, since the grass has seeded.

Ready to shred (no, the hay forks have nothing to do with shredding)

It was time for the horses and Fiona to switch pastures anyway, and I wanted the extra annoying giant cockleburs mowed down before they made seeds this year. I’ve learned a lesson with them! Lee loves to shred, so once he got help attaching the shredder, off he went.

To get there, I had to open the gate, do of course everyone went out to see their old pasture with new grass in it.

Where the round bales had been, lots and lots of Johnson grass had grown up (indicating that was not the greatest hay). It was taller than Dusty!

Dusty demonstrates the height of Johnson grass. Note that all horses look fat.

Everyone started to go to town on that dang grass, but I knew it wouldn’t be there long enough to hurt anyone, because Lee was shredding away.

He says at first, every time he went by the horses they’d run around and kick up their heels. By the fourth time he had to encourage them to move. Typical!

It’s funny but after the initial thrill of seeing their hill and the hay bale locations, they went back to normal. By feeding time they were all in their pens looking for their feed and supplements.

Vlassic says he also appreciates regular meals.

Other than that, today’s excitement included seeing a bobcat cross the road right in front of me (my son saw it in the same spot last week, holding a rabbit), watching barn swallow fledglings on their first flights, and being visited by some purple martins while we were sitting by our pool. Their song is so lovely—I can see why my friend Donna loves them so much.

Suna, Stop Being So Hard on Yourself, You Doofus

Oh, Self, you are still listening to a long-ago admonition you think your dad made. You think he expected you to excel at everything you tried to do, and at least be in the top 10% (whew, that excused that B in PE and Algebra 2 that made me not the best in high school—I was not athletic or mathematical until much later in life).

This volunteer portulaca also doesn’t like math. It interrupts the grid.

I’ve always felt literal shame if I got a bad review at work (my interpretation of “bad” was anything other than world’s greatest employee). I just never took criticism well, for no good reason. I just was screwed up from childhood. I’ve gotten better, but when people I care about give harsh criticism, I still fall apart. Nonetheless, honest, I’m way better. I do realize I don’t have to be perfect to be valuable and lovable. In fact, some/many people like me just the way I am, and I BELIEVE it!

Still, I let myself fall into old patterns over the weekend and was all disappointed that Apache and I didn’t rank well at the horse show. At the time, I told myself I was being ridiculous, because we did the best we could, considering our health.

I’m glad Tarrin finally got to use some of her 4th and 5th place ribbons. That means lots of entrants!

Well, I was really being a doofus (just gently ribbing myself), because when I took the time to look at the results, I actually got my best scores with Apache in all the areas except the last one , when I was just trying to survive without passing out. And that was as good as the last show.

I have to remember that Apache really didn’t know how to run properly without a rider, much less with a fearful, bouncing old lady on him!

So, this just presents a confirmation that comparing yourself to others is not at all good for you. The other riders were simply better than me, and on their own path to improve their own skills. As Sara said to me, I’ve come farther than she ever thought I would. I agree. We aren’t talented or young, either of us, but Apache and I keep at it!

I’m proud of our spirit and grit, even if we’re not going to be the “best!” We’re our best.

(By the way, Drew and I are getting along much better.)

Book Report: The Backyard Bird Chronicles

Yes, I read another bird book. The Backyard Bird Chronicles (2024), by Amy Tan (yes, THAT Amy Tan), is very enjoyable for any bird watcher or wannabe bird watcher. It’s absolutely beautiful, too, with many detailed illustrations by Tan, who didn’t start taking art lessons until she was getting on in years. You’d never guess it. She’s a keen observer of our avian buddies.

Yes, the foreword is by THAT David Allen Sibley.

Tan based the book on her bird journal for a few years, including through COVID. She is a dedicated suburban bird feeder with the funds to give them the best a bird could want. I enjoyed reading about how hard she had to work to thwart squirrels and rats from getting all this fine food.

I learned a lot about songbirds of northern California, of which I wasn’t very familiar before. There are lots of similarities to the birds here, just Western versions. Tan’s charming and sometimes a bit naive observations are quite fun to read, even when you know some of her ideas aren’t entirely accurate. But she has so much fun thinking about what birds are thinking, that you just want to roll along with her.

Even though I observe birds differently (no way I’d feed them and encourage even more mice, rats, raccoons, etc.), I got a lot out of her close observations, which I rarely get out in the woods or pasture.

Most of you would probably enjoy this book, both for the writing and the art. And you get insights into Amy Tan’s life. I have loved her memoirs before, and this was sharing her memories on a topic we both love.

Honestly, even non-bird folks will be charmed by this book. Maybe it will inspire others to look closely at the nature around them.

I’m Too Cautious, or Was

Have you ever broken a bone?

This is an odd question. I thought most people had broken a bone before. Not me, though, other than a cracked rib I suffered when a rotten baseball bleacher collapsed under me when I was a kid. I’ve always been rather cautious, you see, and not fond of potentially bone-breaking activities.

I always try to stick to the trails and not court danger.

Like today, since I’d been dizzy yesterday, I took my hiking stick with me when I went out. I did find it helpful when going up and down hills. But I didn’t get dizzy again, thankfully.

I sat at this bench and attended the Church of Gaia, where the birds preached and sang.

Only since I started riding horses did I begin to play dangerously. Oh wait. I drive a car. Never mind. Still, so far so good, even in a couple of accidents.

Anyhow, today was another day of fun in the outdoors, other than mosquitoes. I took off in the morning and did the only trail I hadn’t done yet, plus most of the others. There were more clouds today and a bit of breeze, so I figured I better enjoy it while I could!

There were many birds to see, and I was gratified to encounter a whole flock of white-eyed vireos who hung around long enough for me to get recognizable photos.

Other than that, I was surprised that Merlin heard many kinds of flycatchers, but I’d just learned from Kenn Kaufman that this isn’t unusual (see earlier book review post) so I didn’t start questioning Merlin’s pattern recognition.

They were in there, somewhere. Look how many trunks this tree has.

I pretty much checked all my to-see items off the Palmetto State Park bucket list, too. I found a cute little green tree frog that I’d missed yesterday, I saw a flying parula (warbler), and I found a venomous snake. Check!

After all my walking, Lee and I drove around some and walked in downtown Luling, Texas, home of the Watermelon Festival and a lot of oil wells. When we used to always go to Yorktown to see Lee’s dad, we drove through but never stopped. It’s a cute but smelly town. We enjoyed window shopping.

On our way back to the campground, Lee suddenly stopped, and I soon saw why. A huge black vulture was sunning itself on the roadside. It looked so regal. For once, my photo through the windshield did the subject the justice it deserved. I love the images!

Not a bad day at all! And no broken bones!