Whoowee! The wind has been howling all day here at the Aerie. We had rain last night (although the severe thunderstorms traveled to the northwest of us) and then the wind kicked a little after midnight. We lost power for a short time (long enough to screw up the digital clocks) at 3 AM and again around 10 AM. The TV service went down separately around 11 AM. But then around 1 PM we lost everything for over an hour. Considering how strongly the wind is blowing I'm surprised there hasn't been more interruptions. The temperatures stayed in the mid 30s much of the day and, with the wind gusting up to 50 mph, it felt raw.
The wind upset the tray feeder that stands in the side yard tumbling a full 270 degrees. I didn't bother to set it upright again as the wind would have just knocked it over again. The hanging feeders were really rocking. One spilled its seed all over the ground when the top popped off. That meant more food for the squirrels as they seldom get to hang on that particular feeder and they can't reach it from any pole or tree. What the squirrels missed, the Pine Siskins worked hard to find.
I put together one of the Screech Owl birdhouses this morning between power outages. I used Richard's suggestion made in the comments yesterday to widen the hole into a more oval rather than circular configuration so the little owls can get their wings in and out more easily. I forgot to rough up/score the inside of the front leading up to the hole to make it easier for the little ones can get out, but a few minutes with the Dremel tool will fix that tomorrow. This is one huge birdhouse!
Terry and I went out to dinner at The Wren's Nest in Mansfield. We sorta treated one another for Valentine's Day. The place was pretty empty but there was a pair of women in one corner having dinner out because they had no power back home. (Terry and I would have done the opposite. If the power went out before we left, we were going to stay home.) Apparently they have Penn Elec service while we have Tri-County REC. Our cooperative is smaller in size, friendlier in demeanor and much, much better in service.
The dinner service was excellent and the meals we had were superb! We shared an appetizer of Clams Casino consisting of 6 very tasty clams topped with seasoned bread crumbs and crab stuffing. Terry had a bowl of Onion Soup au Gratin while I enjoyed a cup of Crab and Corn Chowder. Again both were very, very tasty. After a mixed green salad and an interlude of lime sorbet, Terry had baked Barramundi coated in a pecan breading with garlic mashed potatoes and string beans. I ordered the Cajun tuna (medium) with a rice pilaf and string beans. Both fish dishes were out of this world. The tuna had just enough kick to it due to the Cajun spices to tingle the tongue. We ended with tea (Terry) and coffee (me) to go with our Lemon Meringue Ice Cream Pie and Fruit Cobbler.
We thoroughly enjoyed our meal and will be looking forward to our next visit to The Wren's Nest.
Best of all, when we got home, the lights were still working.
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