Nine Weeks

Hmmpff! Didn't get nearly as warm today as they forecast it would last Monday. Back then they were saying mid to upper 50s. Today it only got to 35. A windy, chilly, damp 35 at that. You see, the clouds rolled in from the south and brought some rain along with them. Apparently the front associated with that rain slid just a wee bit to our south east and we got the cold side.

Hopefully they are just as wrong about tomorrow's forecast (heavy rain and snow? Seriously?).

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I had my first session of physical therapy (henceforth known as PT for "pain and torture") on Monday afternoon. Spent half the time being evaluated by the head torturer before I was given two stretching exercises to do at home and a third to do while I was still on the slab. Needless to say I felt the stretch afterwards. Sorta like being on the rack but it only affected the buttocks and the hamstrings. They were tight!

I added those two stretching exercises to the repertoire the visiting therapist gave me a couple of weeks ago and have been doing them twice a day as ordered. Only good thing about those two new exercises is that I can do them laying down.

Bright and early tomorrow morning I go back to Elite for my second session of PT. Wonder what they'll have me doing next?

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I supplemented my at home PT with a little yard work the past two days. Did a little walking across the yard to and from the burn barrel on Tuesday when the winds were calm. Our garbage mail, boxes and miscellaneous paper had been building up for a good long time and had to go. I figured the extra CO2 wouldn't hurt either since we here at the Aerie are in the cold zone of the globe. Hell, we've been colder than Anchorage all winter.

Today, I tried to make amends to Terry for throwing so many stones into her flower beds next to the driveway. Holy mother Mary! Were there a lot of stones! It's surprising that I "only" broke two shear pins on the snow thrower way back when. I cleared about four square feet and could have filled a 5-gallon bucket. Then my fingers got cold and my back and knees cried, "Uncle!"

While clearing stones I had to be careful not to step on the small, green spears of the day lilies that were just poking their noses above ground. There was some green showing on a few other plants as well even as snow remained heaped on the edge of the driveway a mere foot away.

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Yesterday and today, every time I went outside for more than five minutes I was sure to hear the honking of geese or swans high over head. Yesterday I could watch them head north at a leisurely pace. Today, with the winds out of the south at 20-30 mph with a few gusts higher, they went sailing along like a 20-meter vessel in the America's Cup. If I blinked, they were out of sight.

The feeder birds are still with us. I thought the redpolls had caught on and headed north, but they seem to like my sunflower seeds. The siskins are still here, too. Then there's the usual crew (chickadee, white-breasted nuthatch, tufted titmice, mourning dove, downy woodpecker, red-bellied
woodpecker, dark-eyed junco, and a host (horde?) of goldfinches.

I can hear redwings down the hill near the farm ponds and reeds but they haven't come to the feeders. The robins are also busy establishing dominance and territory although few have visited the lawn. Not that I blame them. The lawn is pretty much still frozen and any earthworm would need tunneling drills to emerge.

Still hear the occasional owl on the hill after dark, but I'm still waiting for my first woodcock flight at twilight.

There have been a few turkey vultures come soaring by and the ravens are still dancing in the wind--when they can get away from the nests.

I need to get out and do some birding! Unfortunately, all the lakes are still frozen as are the marshes. They are the main attractants around here until the warblers show up.