My Winter Storm Follow-UP is for the birds!

Yesterday was the day after the snow storm in NYC. I got up very early with the intention of making sure the bird feeders, as well as the bird saucers, that I have placed in my rooftop garden, were not covered with snow, and, that they had food in them.

I was especially on the look out to see if the American Robin, as well as the Northern mockingbird, who had dined here during the blizzard, returned. I was fairly sure that the European starlings, sparrows, house finches, blue jays, dark-eyed juncoes, and mourning doves, who had also visited my place during the storm, made it through the night; but I was not as confident about the robin's or the mockingbird's ability to survive the cold temperatures. Yet I was hopeful that they were able to do so. I replenished their saucers, and made sure that there were still suet cakes in the bird feeders. I also had my camera ready to take their pictures.

I was concentrating on my anticipation of their arrival, when I felt as if someone was watching me. I went to the window, and did not see anyone, or any creature; including European starlings, sparrows, house finches, blue jays, dark-eyed juncoes, or mourning doves; nor did I see the robin or the mockingbird; but I felt an intense stare upon me.

It was at that point when I noticed an unmistakable splash of vibrant red within the Ailanthus Trees (which are in the courtyard of the building where I live). Instantly I knew that the red had to belong to a cardinal! My camera's long lens confirmed my guess, and I took the photograph that is atop this blog entry, and as you can see, he did appear to be staring my way.

Thankfully I was able to take a few photos of him, besides the image atop this entry, a couple more can be seen directly below, and, as you can see he is very puffed up in an effort to withstand the bitter cold.

It has been quite some time since I've seen a cardinal in my immediate vicinity, although I have seen them in Central Park. As I mentioned in a recent post here on Blogger, the nearby construction has deterred cardinals from coming here, but I had gotten a quick glimpse of one in my garden, a little over a week ago. Unfortunately his stay was for such a brief moment that I missed a chance to get a photo-op of the brilliant red fellow!

In any event, when a chaplain that I am well aquatinted with, heard about that quick visit from the cardinal which I just spoke of, he told me that the presence of a cardinal at this time could be a sign.

He felt this way because the soft cover version of the digital book, Words In Our Beak Volume One,

that I wrote with Cam, is on the brink of being reproduced. I've hit a few snags with each of the production companies, but they are ones that can be remedied, in a relatively short amount of time — HOPEFULLY.

Meanwhile, I'm very grateful to report that the robin and the mocking bird weathered the bitter cold night after the storm, and came to nosh from a suet-basket in my garden during the afternoon hours (as seen below),

on the day I saw the cardinal in the tree tops!

ADDENDUM FALL 2018: 

The non-hardcover version (or versions)  of Volume One within the Words In Our Beak book series that are mentioned in this entry may only remain available for a limited time, but hardcover versions of Volume One, Two and Three can now be found wherever books are sold. Please click here to go to my blog post that provides details as to where you can get these books.

MY BOOK SERIES

Additionally, I have rendered some images from these books into other formats and they are available via Fine Art America (FAA). Some of my other photographs (Black & White Collection, Kaleidoscopic Images and the famous Mandarin duck who visited NYC) can also be found on my FAA pages.

LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW!

As I once said here on Blogger, the quote,"The best thing one can do when it's raining is to let it rain," is attributed to Longfellow. And it seems the mourning dove seen in the image above, applied that wisdom in coping with yesterday's snowstorm.

He/she closed his/her eyes and took a nap, as if saying, since I've no place to go: LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! Mourning Doves are such sweet birds! I'm pleased that Cam agreed to share a lot of information re this bird type in her book, Words In Our Beak Volume One. This book makes a great gift for Valentines Day, which as of this posting is only four days away!

ADDENDUM FALL 2018: 

The non-hardcover version (or versions)  of Volume One within the Words In Our Beak book series that are mentioned in this entry may only remain available for a limited time, but hardcover versions of Volume One, Two and Three can now be found wherever books are sold. Please click here to go to my blog post that provides details as to where you can get these books.

MY BOOK SERIES

Additionally, I have rendered some images from these books into other formats and they are available via Fine Art America (FAA). Some of my other photographs (Black & White Collection, Kaleidoscopic Images and the famous Mandarin duck who visited NYC) can also be found on my FAA pages.

Ground Hog Day: One Week Later

It's been one week since Groundhog Day; and, as you may know dear reader, on that day, the NYC creature, a groundhog named Staten Island Chuck, did not see his shadow! Hence, this fact meant that he predicted an early onset of spring; as seen in the You Tube video which is posted atop this blog entry.

However, on this one week anniversary of his early spring prediction, nine inches of snow fell in Central Park, which is near to where I live in my studio apartment. I have a terrace garden (on a rooftop) at my home, and, it is a place where I grow a variety of flora. It is also a place which is visited by an array of fauna.

The following images show how three of my bird feeders (one of them, a "wreath style" feeder is indicated by an orange arrow in the first image, which includes one of my "house-style" feeders...

THE STORIES IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK" ARE SET IN MY GARDEN

THE STORIES IN "WORDS IN OUR BEAK" ARE SET IN MY GARDEN

... looked after the snowstorm. As you can see, it appears that my place received close to the same amount of snow as the nearby park. I'm very happy to report that the heavy snowfall did not deter birds from visiting my place, nor did it stop them from partaking in nourishment!

Wednesday's Wisdom: Go Fly a Kite?

Today, February 8th, 2017, is the second week, of the second month, of the new year. I confess that re this fact, I'm finding myself more than a little bit overwhelmed at the passing of time; and my inability to fulfill my goals as well as to make the accomplishments that I had hoped to achieve at this point in my life. Therefore, last week's comic strip from Peanuts (posted above), truly hit a chord!

Tuesday's Truths WK 28: GOOSEBUMPS (What's a goose got to do with 'em?)

I've seen members of the Canadian Geese (such as the guy/gal picture top this entry) family, when tandem cycling on the portion of the green way that runs parallel to The Hudson River in NYC.

And I've also seen them in Riverside Park as well as Central Park, which is where the image posted above, as well as those posted below were taken.

The last time I saw a goose hanging out in NYC, I let my mind wander and found myself wondering how the term goosebumps came into being.

According to Wiki, "the phrase 'goose bump,' derives from the phenomenon's association with goose skin. Goose feathers grow from stores in the epidermis which resemble human hair follicles. When a goose's feathers are plucked, its skin has protrusions where the feathers were, and these bumps are what the human phenomenon resembles."

And now, I know, and so do you, dear reader, just how this bird type became associated with the term, goose bumps. If you would know more, I recommend that you check out the aforementioned Wiki link.

It's Lame Duck Day!

Once upon a time, on February 6th in 1933, the 20th amendment to the U.S. Constitution went into effect. This amendment addressed presidential succession and this, dear reader, is the origin of one of today's holidays: Lame Duck Day.  Here's what Holiday Insights (HI) has to say re this event: "Okay, so you are probably thinking that a 'lame duck' is a duck with some sort of injury," which this female duck seems to have on her right foot. I saw her the other week in NYC's Central Park, and I've made a number of queries as to what might've happened to her foot. As of this posting I don't have an answer re this duck's health, but, I do have some information re Lame Duck Day.

HI states that, "'Lame Duck,' by human, definition is a person who is in a position of some kind, and will soon be 'shown the door.' (And that) "the best example is an incumbent politician who lost in the November elections. They usually remain in office until the beginning of January. It also applies to leaders, managers, etc, who are retiring or whose term of office is up." 

Moreover, they proclaim that "During the interim period, a Lame Duck is usually far less effective, and frequently ineffective. After all, loyalties will soon shift. It's impossible to rally the troops to one more cause or project."

We have had a very contentious times surrounding the pre-USA 2016 presidential election, and they continue to so. Therefore, certain mallard ducks and I'm not naming names (but one of them can be seen in the picture below),

do not appreciate their creature's type being associated with the term, lame duck! As you can see, this one, went so far as to give the sign of giving the finger upon hearing the terminology!