Onto August!

Im still reeling from seeing the painted bunting, it was a highlight for sure..The dogs are back to good....whatever made them sick is gone now...they were both up to snuff one day after returning home..Now they are spending their time snoozing in the living room all day staying out of the heat, while Im at work.  July will be August come Wednesday so SOON maybe the tempts will go back down to those "sweet", go outside and enjoy tempts. 

A large flock of house finches arrived in my yard the week I returned and so its standing room only at the feeders

These shots are through the window so a bit fuzzy...Unfortunately some of the finches that arrived have that dreaded conjunctivites! IF I can catch her I can cure her but she has ONE good eye so far I have struck out!  But Ill keep trying!

This young one looks good...

And the large swallowtails seem to be all around the yard lately...caught this  on the phlox flowers..



AND the newest member of our family is Oreo!

                   

 

He used to be a stick  pony...but I found him and decided to repurpose him to a cuddle pony for the sofa!!  He is a sweetheart for sure, I removed the broken stick, sewed up the hole and put him in the washer, he came out so pretty and clean!

I am currently looking for a new job...maybe back to a simple retail job..wish me luck.

PEACE

3 DaYs in the SuN

IT got hot at Edisto Island, but we survived.  Thank goodness I took a fan with us.  The girls both got sick and I had to cut my trip a day short, but they are both on the mend now...I think it was the water! They didnt like the Ocean at first but before we left they enjoyed a nice trot through the surf!

                    

They did enjoy sitting under the beach Umbrella tho...

It broke my heart that they got sick...ITS like when in Mexico dont drink the water, well when at the campground dont fill your dogs bowl from the faucet! Its the only thing I can think of, but I tossed out the brand new box of treats just in case it was that. Happy now they are on the mend as I said..!!

However one good thing did come of their Gotta Go RIGHT now experience we were already up to greet the sun!

AND the dogs werent the only thing that kept me from getting  sound sleep...5 of these came calling on the limb above my van..

Annie let me know right away that we had company, Flossie could care less but she barked at every human, and there were LOTS of them...I have to say the girlz had a hard time with no less than 100 men, women, and children rushing over to pat their heads...everyone loves my dogs, and thats what they all said "I LOVE YOUR DOGS"

NO wonder they got sick with all that attention and the posing too...here they are showing off the sunset over the Marsh.  OKAY enough of them...what about me?

WELL I walked them, fed them, cleaned up after them, tried to protect them from all the paparazzi and in between times I took photos, swam in the ocean, sat under the umbrella with them, saw this shrimp boat go by....

Followed by a pod of these:

IT is a pod or a school? Anways...

   had nice conversations with people I met on the beach, enjoyed looking through piles of shell, 

READ an entire article in my fav Arizona Highways mag, only started over 3 times, almost got relaxed, and bird watched! 

Lots of long lines of Brown Pelicans swooping over the water...

They fly in perfect sync...

It was so nice to watch them...the shadows they make as they go over are just as cool to see..

Meanwhile the view was nice...and over behind that rope is loggerhead turtle nesting area...so it was off limits...

Each nest is marked so we can see it and I am happy to report NOT One person (or dog)violated this space!!

Some turtles did however lay their eggs on THIS side of the rope....so They have marked  LOTS of nests and hopefully they will have a good number to make it..they check the nests EVERY DAY!

...here is my campsite the ocean if just over that brush barrier on the left...NICE to hear the tide crash again, I lived this close to the water for almost 6 yrs and I didnt realize how much I missed that great sound of the changing tides!

all THAT was on day ONE...Ive got the rest of the week off so Ill work on a post about day 2 and 3, it'll give me something to do..HA!!

 



PEACE

THE Week before the WEEK

Do you ever get that feeling that every where you look there is a:

Snake in the bush? 

On the personal front I have this feeling that Im about to be swallowed whole.   The job is not going too good my boss has turned into...well this photo says it all

...and today I had a lawyer meeting again  I found out there will be 2 more hearings before IM officially divorced that really made my DAY---NOT!! The only way that news could be worse is if I had received it this Friday the 13th...

There is only one way to deal with such threats....and that is to put as much distance between them and YOU as possible! SO Im leaving on Monday.

...life gets fuzzy like this unsteady shot of the yellow billed cuckoo who had to stoop to drinking water out of my little water garden when it was so hot... this is thru the double paned window.. normally they stay hidden in the deeper woods. IM glad he didnt go diving for my wee fish that live in the other section of this water garden. I think I shared this previously...

 Im trying to keep my mind on the upcoming trip....planning, plotting, mapping, day dreaming, and Ive got all the necessary stuff I will need at the beach campground stashed in the van already..A FAN....Beach Umbrella, Bathing suit...a COOLER, maybe I should toss the GRABBER in too JIC another snake shows up?

NOW you tell me how am I going to swim in the ocean with 2 dogs on leashes that cant be any longer than 6 ft?  IF I tie them to my beach chair, well that could end up BAD..lol  I guess I will be surf walking--

 I cant wait to see how the girls like their first look at the ocean, we normally head to the mountains for hiking,  but this time its the Atlantic..and flip flops.

Don'tcha' wish life was simple as black n white?

                                                           Black n white warbler

 OH last Sunday there was a 250 lb black bear spotted 3 blocks from where I work!! RIGHT In the middle of town!! They darted him and
"relocated him in the country"...hmmmm I wonder how FAR into the country they took  him?

ILL be in touch!!!

wistv.com - Columbia, South Carolina |

PEACE

Once in a LifeTime...

BOY I thought I was in Arizona this past weekend....The weather is def changing...felt like Arizona! HOT n DRY..like 106 hot and with humidity in the low 20's THAT'S unheard of for us,,,, in JULY??? The second set of numbers is the outside tempts...check it out. Never mind the time and calendar I cant be bothered resetting that every time I change the battery in this unit...

                                 106 Degrees

...but the humidity did arrive and some T & L storms too..then I drove into town and DANG, did I take a wrong turn????????? I was gassing up the car, looked across the street and saw this! IT was sticking up over the roof of the old John's Welding building. LIKE WAY TALLER than the building!!!!

              

AS the bell on the pump charmed me and soaked up the dollars, I was mesmerized by this sight and saying out loud, what the hell is that??? I knew it wasn't there before.... I pass this building every single day!!

                   

SO when my thirsty Chevy was satiated I crossed the street to see what was growing on, I mean going on....I KNEW there was a large succulent agave plant in the "courtyard" of this old building, Ive admired it for years...and THEN I realized what this plant really is...

A Century Plant! THIS one looks to be at least 25 ft (maybe more) tall.... IVE seen them blooming in Arizona but in SC? I didn't realize this huge agave  plant Ive been admiring for yrs was a century plant...and the sad part is once it blooms---- it dies! You can see the plant has already started to sing the death song..Ive heard they live about 25 yrs...reach maturity at about age 10....I know this one has been here LONGER than 10 yrs...more like 20.

                     

 

THE bugs and bees are loving the blooms  I hear they can sometimes stink....I didn't smell anything..

after the blooming stage pods will form, I HOPE to get a seed from one of these pods...This old building has been for sale for a LONGGGG time, so I should be able to trespass and get a few seed pods..

Pretty amazing eh? So....is it hot enough for ya?

ENJOY YOUR 4th!!



PEACE