Terry went out to one of her EGA (Embroiders' Guild of America) picnics yesterday. This one was up in NY state on one of the western Finger Lakes. She says there were half a dozen women there all working on the same project so they got to help each other over some of the more difficult parts.
While she was away, I had the weed wacker out and cleared more of the goldenrod and other weeds from under the power line . We had a note from the Co-Op that they had contracted out the job of spraying the power line and I just want to clear enough of the weeds away from the gardens so as to make it clear where they should and shouldn't spray. It's still going to cost me some lovely blackberries if they come to spray before I can harvest.
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The weather the last few days is a lot closer to "normal" than it has been. We've had highs in the afternoon close to the 80 degree mark and lows over night around 60 degrees. Rain, however has been somewhat elusive. We have had showers in the forecast for much of the week but it wasn't until late last night that they actually materialized...briefly.
Earlier in the week, the wind was blowing from the WSW and the line of storms looked like they should sweep over us and bring the forecast rain. Then, about 20 miles west of here, the line first broke apart and then disappeared completely. Yesterday morning a strong line of thunderstorms lay to our west over the Allegheny running from north to south. It stayed there much of the day and we even saw lightening out that way after sundown. Another system blanketed the entire eastern seaboard from Maryland to Connecticut. If you were east of I-81 you were getting wet. Of course, the wind was blowing from the south and we were between the two systems. Not one drop fell here at the Aerie. At least not until around 2 AM this morning.
Which figured since we had a date to go birding this morning.
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Deb K. had promised her four granddaughters a birding outing last Easter. She let it slide through May and June when it would have been good birding. (The girls were busy at school.) So, today was the day. They would join Terry and I and the other members of the Tiadaghton Audubon Society at Ive's Run on Hammonton Lake to see what we could see. Late July and early August are usually very slow times for birders. And, with the number of species losing their breeding plumage and/or having lots of immature birds about, identification can be a challenge.
Still, we did pretty well:
Location: Ive's Run-Crooked Creek
Observation date: 7/23/09
Notes: Overcast morning after a late night rain. Little wind and the temperature in the mid to upper 60s.
Number of species: 24
Wood Duck X
Mallard X
Great Blue Heron X
Turkey Vulture X
Osprey X
Killdeer X
Mourning Dove X
Eastern Kingbird X
Red-eyed Vireo X
Tree Swallow X
Bank Swallow X
Cliff Swallow X
Barn Swallow X
Eastern Bluebird X
American Robin X
Gray Catbird X
Common Yellowthroat X
Chipping Sparrow X
Song Sparrow X
Swamp Sparrow X
Red-winged Blackbird X
Common Grackle X
House Finch X
American Goldfinch X
This report was generated automatically by eBird v2(http://ebird.org)
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The string beans continue producing like crazy. At least a quart a day. The raspberries along the power line are producing enough fruit for morning breakfast or a topping for some vanilla ice cream. The onions are about ready to be harvested and some of them are the size of softballs! We're getting one or two cucumbers every other day. No zuchinni...yet. I'll be pinching the tomato plants tomorrow to force them to ripen rather than produce more fruit. (The goal is to harvest tomatoes before October 1. Anything after that will be a bonus.)
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Did I mention that Terry has another EGA picnic tomorrow (Friday)? Between the EGA meetings and being the national president of SAGA (Smocking Arts Guild of America) (and dealing with their national convention in September), she's been as busy as a one-armed paper hanger.
Then there's the cousin and aunt coming up from Carolina in early August, the trip to Carolina with her Mom in late August, two weddings in NJ in September and October, the SAGA Convention in September, the EGA convention in October... Let's just say Terry's social calendar is pretty packed.
Why doesn't she join me at the Bolt Hole? See the above two paragraphs and add three cats that really, really hate to travel and you'd have some idea. When she's on the road, I babysit the cats. When I'm at the Bolt Hole, she does the same. (While still being able to get to Curves and which ever EGA club is sittin' and stichin' that day.)
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