The Summer of the Raptors

I don’t know what it is about this summer but its been all about the raptors. Of course, the Red-Shouldered Hawks have been my daily smile. Although, on Wednesday, there were no RSHAs in sight when I drove by. Instead, an American Kestrel was perched there looking cutely fierce. Okay, I’ll take it.

Another fine example of 35 mph birding — taken through the sunroof of my car! Safety First!

Today, while the staff and students were playing a rip-roaring game of soccer on the field, one of the Red-Shoulders flew into a nearby pine tree. Was he looking to get a good view? There was no way any prey would be coming out with the soccer game — complete with third grade girls cheering at the absolute top of their lungs. A couple of my students saw it and pointed it out and knew it was a hawk so . . . yay me! 🙂

Tonight, when I was watering my roses with Ruby, I heard this awful screeching noise. It sounded like a raptor but I was confused when I heard it moving. Then I looked straight up. There were 6 raptors of some kind flying VERY high up. One of them was screaming it’s fool head off as they all headed north in loose circles. They looked lazy about it as they went but by the time I grabbed my camera and binocs, only one was in sight and I could not id it. Way too far away with the sun behind it. I’d love to know what that story was though. Interesting.

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Blogger’s Guilt

Oh, sure Blogger’s Guilt has nothing on Mommy Guilt and therefore I can ignore it pretty easily. Remember the old Charlie Brown line . . . . Love means never having to say you’re sorry. Well, I ‘m here to tell you that being a Mom means ALWAYS having to say “I’m sorry! I didn’t mean it! Oh, how could I do that!” Moms + Guilt . . . it’s a beautiful thing.So, it’s really not hard for me to ignore Blogger’s Guilt. Blogger’s Guilt doesn’t really come with the possibility of lifelong ramifications. It’s so unlikely that one of my readers will send me screaming ALL CAPS comments about how I drove them into therapy. Still, given the guilt load of the average mother, it’s best to avoid any additional guilt if at all possible.

So, despite being horrifically busy, recovering from illness, and generally uninterested (!), I am going to share 8 random things. Henceforth, however, all additional ‘tags’ for this type of game will simply be pointed to this post . . . guilt-free!

8 Random Things About Me

1. The first bird on my bird list is a Bald Eagle. Before I started birding, it was a bird memorable enough to remember when and where I saw it. 🙂
2. I was 33 when I had my first child.
3. I married my high school sweetheart.
4. I am a hideous, lazy slob who has never had a clean AND tidy house except when we were selling our house because the cleaning service came weekly and I had to tidy every night to keep up with it all. I loved the results and hated the work. I need to be wealthy enough to have a “staff” — either that or pixies who come at night and tidy up for me. Neither seems forthcoming.
5. I hate the sound of whistling. It sends me right round the bend.
6. My first labrador was named after a Led Zeppelin song — Kashmir. My second labrador was named after a Led Zepplein song — Misty Mountain Hop. (Someone once asked me if I was going to name my next Labrador The Crunge.)
7. I saw one of my Red-shouldered Hawks flying over my car today while I was on the freeway — I watched it through the sunroof. Forget about people talking on cellphones or eating while driving . . . watch out for birders!
8. I love Disco!