Plant Sightings – Page 19 – The Hermits' Rest

All Grown Up

When you were five, what did you want to be when you grew up?

Ha, I’m pretty sure I wanted to be a horse when I grew up at that age. I know I tried eating grass, and spent time practicing my whinnies. I also wanted to be a dog herder. I would gather up all the neighborhood dogs and try to get them to follow me (no leash laws back then).

We want to herd cattle. Or play with them.

After that I wanted to be a veterinarian or Supergirl. As you see, I haven’t changed much, except now I write all those ideas down.

Things are good here:

Monarchs are here, plus I saw a big zebra swallowtail.
Our niece is not too badly hurt from getting kicked by Big Bag Betty B**** (a cow who m, deservedly, leaves for the sale barn soon) even though she was life flighted by helicopter to a hospital pretty far from her farm. (She posted the story, so for once I can do more than vague hinting.)
I had a great session with Apache the Paint today, better than usual, even. He sure has energy and joy now.
Tarrin has a plan to get my gray horse Drew better, which involves some expensive veterinary stuff, but gives me hope for our future.
There was time this afternoon to watch the dogs play with cows (nice ones) and to hang out on the patio with Lee. We are much less stressed than yesterday!

My herd, minus Harvey, who doesn’t play with cattle, and Vlassic, who was in the garage.

I wish every one of you at least one beautiful spring day to spend with those you love, and I hope your childhood dreams came true, at least a little. I can’t BE a horse or herd dogs, but I can hang out with them!

Saying Yes to No

How often do you say “no” to things that would interfere with your goals?

Yet another item on my endless list of good things about getting older is that I finally realized that I always agreed to do things just because I was so flattered to be asked, combined with a deep desire to feel like I was a part of something. That has led me down some doozies of rabbit holes.

There’s probably more than one rabbit hole hiding in this photo.

I now realize I joined the nonprofit organization I used to work for mainly because I desperately wanted friends. I have never been passionate about the cause, though I did and still do respect it. I just never was a fanatic. So why I sacrificed my mental health and self esteem because I couldn’t say no to any of their requests is still puzzling to me.

I should have stopped and smelled the bluebonnets.

On the other hand, I did end up with lifelong friends. I have, however learned to say no to them when a request conflicts with my goal to remain safe from cultish behavior. I can help out a reasonable amount without harming myself.

I’ve also learned my friends still like me if I say no occasionally. Aha!

Recently I’ve said no in a lot of subtle ways that maybe only I notice. But wow, it feels great to go out after a long work and horse day and just relax rather than cooking or cleaning. I’m saying no to self-imposed obligations.

It’s more fun to look for verbena than count verbs in my writing.

Back to the original question, I have many interests, and to do any of them well has meant setting some aside. You can’t do it all. So I’m not starting quilting again or trying to garden. You won’t see me doing extensive meal planning , shopping, and prepping, even though I admire those who have the time. I’m not writing a book even though I could. And so on.

Why look, vervain! Who needs to garden when this stuff just shows up.

Learning your limits and narrowing down your passions to something manageable can lead to less stress. That leads to contentment and appreciation of what you can say yes to. So I say.

Don’t worry, bee happy (only that’s actually a soldier fly)

What do you think?

Speaking My Truth

What’s a secret skill or ability you have or wish you had?

I often wish I were better at expressing myself, especially in the heat of the moment, when under stress, or when surprised by an unexpected turn of events. These are the situations in which I tend to do a particularly poor job of expressing what I want to say or reacting gracefully. I also, conversely, tend to get too lax with my words when I’m feeling very relaxed or comfortable. I can then make jokes that don’t go over well or say things I intend as friendly that I later find out were interpreted as rude or condescending. Yuck.

It’s easy to be misinterpreted and also easy to misinterpret others. That’s why I attempt to assume people have good intentions when something awkward comes out of their mouths, and ask for clarification.

This Texas vervain says let’s slightly change the subject.

Speaking of misinterpretation, I may have mentioned hearing weird sounds in the woods lately. First I heard some while camping, but then I started hearing eerie sounds like a sad animal calling out.

It was a spooky day in the woods, anyway.

The sounds were happening this morning, so I bravely decided to go find the source. As I got closer, I kept seeing icky worms, tent moth caterpillars, and slimy mushrooms. The wind was also howling and it was very cloudy.

The caterpillars are jumping around in there

Eventually I got to where I could tell where the sound was coming from. And from that spot, Merlin Bird ID finally piped in and said it heard a crow. Earlier, no ID was given for the sound, which had made me think it was an animal. I looked up and saw I was under a large tree. And in that tree was a very large nest. Aha.

I was hearing crow parenting sounds! Eek! I recognized the nest, because I used to see them in Chicago between O’Hare and Schaumburg, when I worked there. There was a large green belt with a huge rookery I loved to observe.

I won’t be quite so creeped out by the sounds from now on and will leave the crows alone to raise future corvids. You just never know what’s out there.

Though today was gusty, I got to see new blossoms in addition to the creepy stuff.

Found where the baby blue eyes are hiding!

Since it was my rest day, I had time to cook a nice meal for family and friends. It was a nice end to the day.

Tomorrow, dental fun. Just a cleaning, but my insurance is messed up. My fault, too.

Extra Springy

Today was truly a spring day. The weather kept changing from intense fog to sun to cloudy to windy…warmer, cooler, you name it.

I felt much like the weather. I was extra productive, deeply tired (thanks to Goldie and all the other dogs sleeping in my bed during storms), energetic, and zonked. In between spurts of creativity I went out and enjoyed the flowers and butterflies for a while.

I managed to brave the very muddy pens to feed the horses and groom Apache, who thankfully was not all muddy or covered in burs. I have to try to get him clean by 8 am tomorrow. Wish me luck. He didn’t help when he stomped on his halter, which meant I had to wash that, too. Sigh. It’s not like I didn’t t have things to do!

The Master Naturalists had a nice, big booth at the Spring Festival in Cameron this afternoon and evening. I was on the second shift, which enabled me to get all my chores done before heading over to the Venue.

We met a good number of folks and did some excellent recruiting. Alan (left in the photo) is great at encouragement, and we got all sorts of people interested in our work. Cindy of Bird and Bee Farm talked a lot about turkeys, and I think she convinced a guy to get some for his big ranch. That would be cool.

The best part of the evening was finally introducing Lee to a couple of my Master Naturalist friends. I hope he liked them. The other part that made it a great time was just sitting around and talking to Chapter members outside of a meeting setting. They’re such an interesting group of people and so good to each other. We marveled at how fortunate we are to have found so many compatible folks in this sparsely populated county. In these times, that’s really great.

Yes, I enjoyed all aspects of today’s extra springy events. Life is pretty good in our little town.

Complimented and Content

What was the best compliment you’ve received?

I’ve had some much appreciated compliments during my life, though like so many others, I tend to discount compliments (oh, that can’t be true!) and dwell on criticism. That’s not a healthy pattern!

I took this photo before we left the state park to remember when I need to settle my mind.

So I’ve been trying to pay more attention to any compliments that come my way, soak them in, and express gratitude for them. One I loved came when I had only been at my current job for a few months. One of the subject matter experts told his colleagues how much he enjoyed my training videos, because I have such a soothing voice that it makes even project management software interesting. That was unexpected! I do think I have a pleasant professional voice, and I had good training thanks to all my singing and tips from a former supervisor who reads books for the blind.

Visually impaired people can enjoy honeysuckle because it smells so good.

One reason I enjoy my current job is that not only do I enjoy the work, but people let me know they appreciate what I create for them. Of course there is criticism, but it’s kind and helpful. I can improve! Win.

Hawthorn looked like a bridal bouquet to me. My compliments to the plant!

Here’s my big takeaway. The thing I find most important about compliments is how good it can feel when you let someone else know something that you like about them. A compliment that’s sincere, unexpected, and insightful can really brighten someone’s day. I most assuredly get more out of delivering a well deserved compliment than receiving one (though both are good!).

What I can do without are insincere compliments that aren’t even well thought out. That’s more like flattery designed to get you to do something or buttering you up for some unpleasant request. Like talking to a poor salesperson. Yuck. If you can’t compliment someone accurately, don’t try.

But I was glad to get home. I missed the horses and Fiona. (And dogs!)

And that’s my advice after a long day of work and travel down roads so bumpy that my watch gave me exercise credit for them!

It was hard to crochet, too but I finished this bag to hold my phone in Seneca. The truck cab lacks amenities like cubbies.

I’ll Take the Motorhome or Walk

You’re going on a cross-country trip. Airplane, train, bus, car, or bike?

I’m getting pretty used to traveling with my own house. Once we get the towing straightened out, we can set up Seneca to leave it as a base, and go explore any area. It’s no less expensive, but it’s comfortable and fun! Who needs planes? And passenger trains no longer go most places. Not for Nature Girl here.

Today, though, I walked. With over 22,000 steps, I think I made up for yesterday, when I was stuck indoors half the day. I realize walking 8 miles is nothing to some people, but I impressed myself. And it was all through thick, clay mud, so it was tough slogging. I regret not taking a photo of my boots, which looked like clown shoes from all the mud.

Speaking of shoes, this is an elf shoe stink bug.

In fact, when I tried to recreate the walk I was supposed to go on yesterday when the storms came, I came to an abrupt stop when the next trail marker turned out to be underwater. It rained a lot.

That stick shows where the equestrian trail usually is.

Nonetheless, I enjoyed the big hike I went on, even though there was only one new flower and not much bird excitement, either, just towhees.

I did see a lot of fungi, though. This seems to be a trip that emphasizes moisture-loving life.

Cooper Lake State Park does have lovely woods, though, and all the bright green new foliage made me feel appropriate in my St Patrick’s Day green! Who cares about the mud on a day with perfect weather and lots of nature?

I did a bunch of walking around other parts of the park, and it was mostly calm. But there was one part of a walk when some creature kept yelling at me. It wasn’t a bird, because Merlin didn’t register it, and it wasn’t a squirrel. I know all their sounds. It was creepy and loud, but I never saw it. Eek. So let’s look at butterflies, moths, and caterpillars instead.

That’s about it for this trip. We’ll still be here tomorrow morning, but I have a lot of work to do. If it’s quiet, I can sit outside, though. The change of scenery might inspire more creativity! If I was on a cross-country trip, I’d also probably still be working, like I do at the condos. I like to keep busy.

Rainy Rain That Is Wet

I had a fun day of hiking and birding activities planned for today. However, it rained starting around 1:30.

We brought everything in on time. Well, Lee did.

Luckily I’d gone out earlier, when the skies were blue and the temperatures perfect. I enjoyed the short nature trail nearby, which had signs by all the different types of trees. They’d be more interesting with leaves, but the spring season seems about two weeks behind Milam County.

Trees. Some exemplars are no longer there due to bad weather up here.

I found a few fun things, such as my favorite spring beauties and some excellent fungi. One thing I found I’m still not certain what type of organism it is.

I headed over to the equestrian camping area, where there were zero equestrians, to meet up with the quite fun park interpreter and a volunteer. There was supposed to be a guided hike. However, there was advance notice of the thunderstorms coming, so it got cancelled.

I did enjoy talking to the two women about working at the park and met another camper. But, I briskly walked back (making my exercise goal). Rain didn’t start until I had Seneca the motorhome in sight, so I got every minute of outdoor time I could!

It turned out that the rain and lightning slowed down around 3, so I donned my rain boots and got out the golf umbrella for a walk around the camping loop. I am not used to sitting around for long periods!

I did, however, enjoy a nice long nap! How decadent. Otherwise Lee worked on a photo album and I wrote up all my Master Naturalist notes and knitted. Of course, I ran out of a color. Sigh. The next skein of lime green is sitting on my desk at home.

Never fear, I came as prepared for crafts as I did for rain, so there’s more yarn here. While watching a movie, I started a boring yet practical little bag to hold my phone when we’re on the road. The truck chassis has no helpful pockets or holders other than a cup holder, in which I tend to put cups, of all things.

It doesn’t look like much, but it’s bright.

I’m glad it should be drier tomorrow, because we only get three TV channels here and the cell signal probably isn’t good enough to stream. I’ll go on that hike tomorrow in the mud!

Not So Negative Traveler

What strategies do you use to cope with negative feelings?

I’ll tell you what I do with negative feelings! I squash them down and distract myself with plants! Who can feel bad when they’ve just seen their first mayapple?

The most beautiful plant! The flowers hide under a giant leaf umbrella!

One common criticism of Past Suna was that she was sooo negative. That stung, but it led me to get to work on figuring out how to reframe how I interpreted the world around me. That, in turn, has led me to express myself less negatively. It was a lot of effort at first, but I think I’m a lot less negative, in general.

Sure, it rained this morning, which made getting ready to travel difficult, but it was beautiful afterwards, and we needed the rain.

I’ve noticed that lately, when things happen that once would have made me upset, I notice that whatever it was happened, feel angry, annoyed, or sad, but then let it go. How did I finally learn to stop dwelling on things and wallowing excessively? I DO NOT KNOW. My best guess is that all the effort I’ve put into mindfulness, seeing the good in situations, and turning away negative thoughts became second nature after a lot of repetition. Dang, I wish I could have gotten there sooner, but that’s my path!

Here’s an example. Today we were looking forward to picking up Hermee the Jeep and towing him to the Cooper Lake South Sulphur Unit State Park (quite a mouthful) behind Seneca the motorhome. Do you see a Jeep in this picture?

Yep, the towing equipment wouldn’t be done until 4 pm, way too late for us to drive 4 hours and arrive in daylight. It turned out the scheduled technician had a death in the family. Well, I was irritated for one minute, then just made sure we have enough food, and looked forward to the weekend anyway. That guy’s family is more important than having two vehicles. We will get Hermee on our way back.

It’s harder to be negative, too, when you’re looking at life from a wider perspective. Hanging around with nature so much, and working to understand horses and dogs has helped drive home the perspective I need. I remember the world does not revolve around me, I’m part of a bigger universe, and pouting or weeping won’t stop the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. It’s so much better (at least for me) to just sit back and watch the show, tending to matters that are within my ability to control (my own actions).

The fewer expectations I have of those around me, the more at peace I become. And this lets me truly enjoy the goodness and kindness that pours in from the family and friends who care. And they’re the ones that count and bring joy, even in hard times.

Um, anyway, yeah, we have driven to the park we accidentally drove to a few months ago. It’s more wintry in north Texas than at home, but I think I’ll have lots of fun walking around this weekend. The weather should be pleasant.

With no Jeep to get me to trailheads, I’ll get some good walking in. And if it rains, I have loads of knitting and writing to do. It’s all good. It’s weirdly stress free other than concerns for some family health issues. I can’t fix it by worrying, though, so I’ll keep sending out good intentions and doing whatever concrete things I can to be helpful.

And, here are some plants and vultures.

How do you deal with negative feelings? Is it easier or harder as you age?

Insights about Merlin Bird ID

Blog readers will know that I’ve been using Merlin Bird ID since last summer to identify birds I hear. I’d used it before to identify birds I saw, but once I started the listening exercise, I was hooked. It’s such fun knowing what I hear around me, and it’s great training for birding without the app. My ability to identify birds by song is hugely improved. Plus, knowing what’s out there helps you know what to look for if you want to see birds.

Cornell Labs has done an amazing job developing this app, which you can download from the App Store in whatever kind of phone you have. I can’t imagine how much work it has taken to train the listening app on the sounds of all the birds around the world (you can get Bird Packs for wherever you happen to be).

I got Europe because I keep getting those weird IDs and wanted to read about those birds. Mexico is because I go to South Texas sometimes.

I’ve learned a few interesting things about Merlin that those of you who use it or are interested in giving it a try may benefit from.

1. Merlin will not identify domestic birds. My chickens can walk right in front of the phone and nothing registers. It also completely ignores Tarrin’s guinea fowl, and didn’t pick up the turkeys at Bird and Bee Farm. However, it has identified wild turkeys, so I think the turkey thing was a fluke.

2. The app has trouble with birds who make sounds that are low in pitch. For example, it needs most doves to be really close in order for it to register them. Collared doves make a higher sound that it identifies more easily. And you have to be on top of an owl for it to be picked up. In the past week, I’ve heard entire owl conversations that didn’t get “heard,” both of barred owls and great horned owls. That’s why it pays to also be able to identify birds with your own ears!

3. Crazy things can happen after a recording is interrupted. Two things that happen to me often will interrupt a recording: the phone ringing or me accidentally starting a video rather than taking a photo while the app is running. You can usually save the recordings, though I have lost a couple.

However, I’ve found that if I start the listening function again after an interruption occurs, Merlin’s decides I am not only in North America, but I’m also in Eurasia. I will be informed that I hear a great tit or a European robin, which is highly unlikely!

So, if you suddenly get an identification of a bird you’ve never heard of, be sure to click on the map for that bird, to be sure it has actually been seen in your area. Sure, occasionally birds are blown off course when migrating or after a storm, but most European birds stay in Europe (other than our biddies the house sparrows and starlings, of course!).

Lee’s haiku: Porch sparrow drama –
fussing, fighting – very loud
What are they saying?

4. Moving around is hard on Merlin. The app works best if you are standing still (or the phone is sitting on something) and the environment is not noisy. It’s amazing how loud you are walking on a trail or around your property. I live in the country, yet I realize now that it’s loud here. Loud farm vehicles and trucks, single-engine planes practicing their takeoffs and landings at the nearby tiny airport, our six dogs, the pool pump and waterfall, and air conditioning units all contribute. When camping, screeching children on trails and boats are hazards. So are waves, believe it or not. But if you stay still, Merlin’s does a pretty good on anyway.

When I’m out walking, I usually pause if I hear an interesting bird, so the app can pinpoint what it is. My exercise app on my watch hates that.

Merlin Hints

Save fairly often. I try to go no more than 20 minutes or so before saving a recording unless there’s some great bird action going on. That minimizes your losses if the app crashes, which does happen occasionally.
Remember to report interesting birds you hear or see to Cornell Labs. It goes to e-Bird and provides useful research data. I don’t report every sighting. I doubt they are interested in the fact that I see vultures and house sparrows every single day. You can also upload photos. Occasionally I get one good enough to share.
Have some fun with the app and do your own research. I’m tracking what birds I hear at my house each month. It’s letting me know which birds are winter birds, which migrate, which show up in summer, and of course, what’s here all the time (vultures, house sparrows, cardinals, chickadees). Be sure to report each new bird you hear, so your life list on Merlin can grow. I have 192 birds since last September. Majestic that 193. A marsh wren showed up today. That includes birds I’ve seen while traveling, too.

Conserve your phone battery. To make my battery last longer when on long hikes, I don’t keep my camera open at the tame time Merlin is running unless I’m actively taking pictures (remember, I also obsessively record plants and other life for iNaturalist). If I were planning to go out for a long time, I’d take a spare battery. I tend to run out of juice after around three hours.
Don’t become annoying. I have developed the habit of shushing people who talk when I’m “listening” through Merlin. I’m sure it irritates my spouse. People are important! I also don’t even TRY to use the app when on a group hike unless I hear something really cool and go hide to try to capture it. I was hilarious at the National Butterfly Center last October, as I lagged behind the Master Naturalists trying to hear exotic Mexican birds. I also find myself trying to be extra quiet any time I’m outdoors,because it’s become a habit. I whisper answers to questions and such. I am working on fixing that before my family stope talking to me.

I hope you get something helpful out of these hints. If I’m wrong about anything, let me know. Also, if you have additional insights or hints, tell me and I can add them to this blog post. I’m still learning!

Flowers attract insects that attract birds.

By the way, I’m not claiming Master Naturalist VT hours for any of this, since it’s on my own property most of the time, and that doesn’t count. I did count my time during the Great Backyard Bird Count, since that’s approved. I don’t claim hours when I’m camping or traveling, since I’m also usually making iNaturalist observations at the same time and don’t want to “double dip.”

Break Time

Not much happened today that was exciting, but that’s fine with me. I was able to refresh the Hermits’ Rest Red on the mailbox stand and gate posts, because it was finally calm enough outside to spray paint. I also added house numbers that are reflective, which should help 911 find us in case of emergency. I feel like we might need it at some point.

Sadly, we need a new mailbox, since after only 12 years, the hinges rusted out.

I’ll eventually repaint everything. You need to do it every few years, except for the gate, which is powder coated.

I had lots of birds to keep me company. My son drove by and asked where my shoes were, because I took them off so no red paint would get on them. Of course I got red paint on my manicure, but it blends in with the flowers.

I’ve been spending lots of time with the horses, which is nice and calm these days. I have Dusty and Mabel looking pretty good in mid-shedding season, but Apache still has lots of hair left. Today he’d apparently napped in a pile of burs. It turns out it’s harder to get them off his belly than his mane or tail. He’s back to normal in every other way. We’ve enjoyed riding and he’s enjoyed his cantering. I think it makes him feel strong and powerful.

I forgot to take a picture of the King of Canter, so here’s a mama cow.

Mostly today (other than Master Naturalist stuff) I looked at butterflies while the phone listened to birds. The first scissortail arrived, as did another hummingbird. It’s not summer yet, guys! The low today was 37°! But my face did get pink from being outside in the pleasant weather. Best time of year here.