Scary Weather Prediction

Scary Winds

We just had a Scary Weather Prediction of a hundred-year storm with 70 mph sustained winds. It wiped electricity, phones for over 100,000 homes and business’s causing quite a bit of damage and a few deaths in our Inland North West Region (Washington). We had no utilities for 8 days here in Elk, some locations waited 2 weeks.

I drove a backroad route through the farms and suburbs to town and am surprised at how many homes are still missing roof shingles and quite a few homes with trees laying on them. The contractor and roofers are sure busy and investing in stock for the hand warmers they must be going through. Gotta get repairs done before the real cold sets in and the snowpack arrives.

Guess what? It has been raining a lot and now another storm is heading our way (60 MPH winds). It is truly scary when you know how many trees are around with nice soft ground.  Arrrgh!

When we went to town shopping last week, the stores had not even been able to restock yet what was wiped out in emergency stuff. Supplies like batteries, candles, stove fuel, oil lantern fuel/parts, propane tanks, gas cans. Bet the generators are running short too. They told me maybe next week so I better head into town in the am to get what we will need, if we have to dance the same dance again.

Doing Bloomsday

Anticipation
IMG_20150430_092734530I’m walking more and more in preparation for doing Bloomsday this Sunday. Check it out here www.bloomsdayrun.org – My son and daughter ran it with me more than once and I sure miss them right now. They always had better times than me. Oh well, 7 miles and lots, did I say LOTS OF PEOPLE! In spite of age “ing” and health/healing issues. Am hoping to just enjoy the walk and make it to the finish line in good health. Just do it! LOL!!!

A Flock of Wild Turkeys

turkeys out the windowWild Turkeys

It is hard to fly like an eagle when surrounded by a flock of wild turkeys. I was working in the studio and looked out the window. Surprise!  One leader and the others follow exactly on the same track as the one in front. Turkeys must have written the definition of the term single file.

Rushing around to get the camera and sneaking the door as quietly as I can, I start taking pictures. It is a trip to see so many wild turkeys walking in their little lines playing follow-the-leader. Who taught them that game?

turkeys outside walking in a line
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This daily trek of this feathered clan does not really make me happy because it means that my garden just got raided.

turkeys outside wildlife
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Garden Raiders

When I go down there to pick today I will find tomatoes hanging on the vine that has been mysteriously cored. All the guts are eaten out of them. All the low ripe tomatoes hang there innocent but totally empty inside. They like the seeds in the juicy insides. Ripe berries at low levels will be gone too, just magically missing when they were there only the afternoon before.

turkeys outside walking
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Guess what, my dog is just sitting outside on the deck watching them like, no problem, hi guys. He is a great guard dog, NOT!

It is at times like this that I remember unimportant information like, Thomas Jefferson wanted the turkey for the national bird didn’t he? Oh, now I got to Google that. The curiosity of the creative mind in action. Check this answer out… What an interesting story, I didn’t remember learning all of that in school. Where ever we grow up and what is being taught at that time there greatly affects our education.

outside turkeys going into trees
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I’m not sure how many turkeys are there walking up the side of our property, but it was more than a dozen.

turkeys walking outside
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Couldn’t get the camera before they were already heading up the hill so there were probably a lot more than shown in these shots.
Gobble, Gobble, Gobble!