Chillin' in the Shade

Bouquet Park is lovely! My grand daughter and grandsons enjoyed playing in the shade there. This location has become standard for visitation while my grandsons visit from New York. Even in 100 degree plus weather, it is always shady and almost always breezy.

Took this shot, on right, today, at the same park. Sparrows (I think) with a Goldfinch in the background found some refreshment.

I had hoped to capture another shot of the Western Bluebird, but they were very elusive today. I did see them, though, in addition to Black Phoebes and various fly-catchers all securing winged nutrition.

chillin' at the water hole

Took this shot, today, of Sparrows (I think) and a Goldfinch in the background. I was trying to get another good photo of the Western Bluebird which I saw but was too quick for me.

Weather today is actually nice, with the high temperature only 89 degrees. Bluebirds, Black Phoebes, various fly-catchers, Sparrows and Finches were all actively hunting down their meals.

This particular park is where I've been taking my grandsons to play on the playground equipment and ride their scooters. It's beautiful and full of shade. The perimeter of the park is corraled in Elm, Sycamore, Pine and Pepper trees with a clearing in the center. Grass covers the area except where sand covers the playground.

Breezy conditions made for a pleasant sound of leaves fluttering softly and the happy voices of children playing. Speaking of children, the other photo is of the grandsons, taken on a different day, in the same park.

Heat

I find high temperatures (90-100+ degrees) very oppressive. My energy and inspiration are in limbo in this climate. I should probably live somewhere in Northern California to avoid this heat extreme, but then I wouldn't be near family. So, one gives up one thing for something more precious.

Western Bluebirds

Several days ago, while my grandsons, grand daughter, daughter and I were at a local park, we were lucky enough to spot some Western Bluebirds! I had difficulty taking clear photos because my hands shake a little (caffeine) and my camera doesn't have a stabilizer for focus. My daughter was able to get a fairly decent shot, though.

Yesterday, the outdoor temperature reached 109 degrees! All of the birds that I observed were staying in whatever shade they could find, some with their beaks open and wings slightly vented. Poor things!

summer

I'm enjoying my grandsons who are visiting from New York. Today, the temperature in the Santa Clarita area reached 106 degrees! It was definitely too hot to go to the park, so I took the boys to an indoor play place where the air conditioner ran well and they had lots of fun.

I have noticed that the birds that visit my feeders are trying to stay in the shade as much as possible. The poor things! In the future, I hope to plant some good, shade trees and shrubs--for me and my family and the birds!

Rescuing Wild Birds

The day before I began Moments in Time, late in the afternoon, I heard a strange sound coming from the backyard pool but the filter was 'off.' I went out to investigate and found a blackbird fledgling trying to get free from the water. Happily, I was able to get it out of the pool and release it in the front yard, away from the pool, since it wasn't an expert flyer yet. Later, I saw its parents nearby, feeding and keeping watchful eyes upon it. Today, Dan saw a yellow bird in the rosebush. Because of the sun's glare, it looked 'tan' to me. About an hour later, as we were leaving the house, I opened the door only to find the yellow bird on the porch, resting, after flying into a window. Of course, I picked it up and was amazed at its beauty (although it squawked and threatened to bite me). I petted it, under much protest, and soon it flew up into some Italian Cypresses and eventually flew from there in a northerly direction.

Beauty in Simple Things

Amazing how the simple things are wiped out of our everyday lives due to perceived lack of time! When I retired from teaching a year ago, I was grateful that beautiful moments, like these birds at my backyard feeder, had patiently waited until I had decompressed from a stressful career and perceived that I now had time to just "be."