Rare Opportunity!

      Six of us gather regularly for dinner Friday nights at the OFH, that is if I'm not at The Little House, when they meet without me.  Last night we gathered for a special occasion, a birthday party. One of our regulars has a birthday very soon and we got to have the first party for her. MonaMae will be 102 on June 9! So, naturally we needed to celebrate. It's a rare opportunity to celebrate a person's 102nd birthday. 

    MonaMae is blessed with a good memory and a large and attentive family. The family is planning a series of events to honor her. It was fun to be a part of the first one. She lives two apartments from me so we often meet in the hallway. In the card we all signed I wrote, "I want to be like you when I grow up." It happened once that it was only the two of us at dinner. It was a fascinating conversation as we discussed politics in complete harmony. 

Takk for alt,

Al

MonaMae, blowing out her birthday candles.

What day it this?

     Jim, the food service director for the OFH is a real gem. He retired from a successful career in commercial food service. Hanging around home too much his wife said "Go find a job!" So the OFH is the beneficiary of his talent. About four times a year he puts on a gourmet dinner. It's a themed multi-course meal with many extras. 

   So, what day is this?  It's National Donut Day!  It's also an illustration of Jim's creativity. Tables were set up by the continental breakast and inmates were invited to select a free donut. There was a wide variety but I quickly selected an apple fritter. It want will with coffee as I read the morning paper. This is one of the ways that Jim and the OFH spice up life for the inmates!

  So what day is this?  It's June 6, 2025 and 61 years to the day since Joanne and I were married. The service was at First Lutheran, Sioux Falls, SD. Pastor Marcus Gravdal Presided and Joanne's father, Pastor Oscar C. Hanson did the homily. The Augustana College Choir sang. Joanne's maid of honor was her sister Mary, and attendants were Jenine Peterson nee Jordahl and Maxine Kellany nee Amundson. My brother David was my best man, and the only survivor of the attendants. Attending me was my brother, Richard, and David Halvorson.

   Two very different days each special in their own way.

Takk for alt,

Al

Yes, we were young then.

Twice!

     Tom joined me for lunch at the OFH. Every meal there's a special in addition to fourteen menu items. Today's special was spaghetti and meatballs with mixed vegetables.  Portions are modest size suitable for old folks. The meal includes a starter of soup, salad, cold slaw, or fruit, beverage and dessert, which today was peach pie.

   After lunch Tom continued cribbage lessons. For the second time ever ever ever I won a game of cribbage...twice now! In all honesty I do occasionally ask for a bit of coaching. Tom also ascertains that my point counting is accurate. Too often I miss some points and counting them is one of the most complicated aspects of the game.

   It's a good game, accompanied by good food and good conversation.

Takk for alt,

Al

Meteora's (Greece) unique rock pillars and monasteries were built over centuries, with the rocky spires themselves being the result of geological processes over millions of years. The monasteries were constructed by monks who faced considerable challenges in building on these high, inaccessible rocks, utilizing methods like nets, buckets, and ropes to haul materials.       How would you like to be the bricklayer?

Enough About Birds, already....

     No more birds for awhile, I promise. This dude and his faithful dog are in the OFH for a few days. Why? Inquiring minds ask. To attend a family even on Sunday.

    Entering the metro area after 6pm I thought would avoid traffic. Traffic screeched to a halt and then oozed along  at a crawl. in the west metro. When finally reaching a dozen emergency vehicle with lights blazing the only issue visible was a highway patrol car stuck in the ditch. It had sunk to the floorboards yet someone was trying to dig it out with a spade. That's not going to work, and only a tow truck will get it out.    

Takk for alt.

Al

Well then...

       While my intention was not fulfilled it wasn't a total loss. Brown Thrashers appear regularly in a tree belt by some grassland. Consequently, it's most likely that they are nesting there. Activating the Merlin Recording App in the area I hoped to record their beautiful song. That was not successful but I did discover two species new to me.

     Those new to me species were a Clay-colored Sparrow and a Warbling Vireo. Also on the recording were these birds; Baltimore Oriole, Yellow Warbler, Brown-headed Cowbird, Robin, Yellow-headed and Red-head Blackbird, Grackle and Canada Goose.

Takk for alt,

Al

   

"The Clay-colored Sparrow's buzzy song is a signature sound of the vast shrublands of the northern prairie and Great Plains."  All About Birds

"Warbling Vireos are fairly plain birds with gray-olive upperparts and white underparts washed with faint yellow. They have a mild face pattern with a whitish stripe over the eye. They stay high in deciduous treetops, where they move methodically among the leaves hunting for caterpillars." All About Birds

Skunk birds!

      Boys make up names for things of which the don't know the nomenclature. That's what we did for the little striped birds that sang to us from the fence lines. Their stripes reminded us of skunks, with which we were very familiar, so we called them 'skunk birds.'  Have you guessed their real name?

   Out in the grassland this morning I saw a 'skunk bird'. They're much  less common now than previously because much of the grass has been plowed under. It pleases me that Bobolinks inhabit my grass. Pulling out my phone and switching on the Merlin Bird recording app I hoped to record it. Yes, it's song soon registered on the app, naturally it was not alone.

   This is what was recorded; Bobolink,  Marsh Wren, Willow Flycatcher, Red-winged Blackbird, Sedge Wren, Pheasant, Common Yellowthroat, and Yellow Warbler. The recording was 90 seconds long to capture all these birds.

Takk for alt,

Al

"The Bobolink is one of the world's most impressive songbird migrants, traveling some 12,500 miles (20,000 kilometers) to and from southern South America every year. " Cornell Lab

"The bobolink is a small New World blackbird and the only member of the genus Dolichonyx. An old name for this species is the "rice bird", from its tendency to feed on cultivated grains during winter and migration." Wikipedia

Bird Obsession!

    The recent blogs about recording birds brought back a memory that may be worth sharing. In October 2024 I travelled with a group to Greece. Much of our time was on the mainland where we visited Athens, the monasteries of  Meteora,  Thessalonica and other places. The trip also included the islands of Santorini and Crete.

   Part of our time on Crete included a farm stay. My accommodations for the farm stay was an outdoor compound. The compound was my reward for being the oldest person in the group. The setting was beautiful but not the best situation for a creaky old man. (See pictures below.)

   Staying in the compound exposed me to birdsong. The trusty Merlin Bird App that I use frequently here is an American product. It is from Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.  The question in my mind was if it would work in Greece?  There was one way to find our so I set to recording while in my open air compound. 

  Yes, it worked in Greece!  This is what I recorded;  Great Tit, Eurasian Blackcap, European Robin, Willow Warbler, Common Chatfinch, House Sparrow, Eurasian Magpie, Eurasian Tree Sparrow, Eurasian Nuthatch, Gray Wagtail, Eurasian Blue Tit, Spotted Flycatcher, Eurasian Blackbird, and Hooded Crow. A great feature of the app is that the birds sounds can be replayed.

Takk for alt,

Al

Inside my compound, with the shower (cold) and soaking tub in view. 

The bed was comfortable but it was very cold at night.