Wednesday 19 October 2022

Porcupine, Oregano, Coyotes

Here we are settling into Autumn. I'm making progress on 🍂Fall Chores. I am getting old and forgetful, so a list was crucial! I am comforted by all those with similar issues with insomnia. We are not unique, and being retired we have realized that it's not so bad as we can sleep in. No alarm clock to worry about, or having to be nearly human for a work day.

Well, we had snow in Ontario on Monday! We only had rain. I am glad I mulched the leaves the day before. The water fountain is cleaned and once it dries out I will cover it. 


We've had frost. Once it warmed up I did some garden work. Bye bye flowers!

I gazed out back, and spotted a critter on a rock. It turned out to be Cinnamon. He was looking for mice friends. He came in shortly after.



It was necessary to take leaves out of the rain gauge, in preparation for the incoming precipitation. We had a total of 21 mm (0.83"). It was a long, rainy day. 

I've taken the top off of the swing bench. Yesterday, I covered the bench and furniture with a tarp and put away the table and chairs. During COVID you know store shelves had issues. JB had brought me a 6 x 8 m white one (20 x 28'). I was so tired after wrestling with I had to go indoors and rest! 


The leaves are quickly falling. Enjoy them while you can!

There was graupel in south eastern Ontario. Actual snow up in northern Ontario. Us, just rain. 

Just before the rain, a young porcupine!

porcupine from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

In the night, strange cat 😼Oregano popped by the trailcam. I thought he might be feral, but I really don't know. There is lots to eat here: shrews, field mice, forest mice, voles, moles.  Our cats were safely tucked in bed. We don't know where he is from, but he is an intact male who likes to visit. I called him Oregano, since we have twins Nutmeg and Cinnamon, also tabby cats. I found the name following Janis Irwin, a very cool Edmonton MLA with a cat named Oregano

 

Oregano from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

Not to be outdone, Coyotes appeared!

coyotes from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

There were two coyotes for sure, but I think another was trailing after them. What do you think? They are healthy pups. We never see them in the day, thankfully! They know lots of humans around here have guns, with lots of farms and farm animals who need protection. 

It's a lovely mixed community, with landowners (some with 600 acre 150-year-old farms) who have cows, sheep, chickens, goats, and two horse farms, including Ian Millar's. The nearby lake has cottages, a mixture of seasonal and full time residences, as well as AirBnBs and rentals. Some people commute into Ottawa to work. I've found a couple of people who have moved here for the peace and quiet, like us. 

13 comments:

Tom said...

...I only see porcupines lying along the road.

Patio Postcards said...

I don't recall ever seeing a live porcupine outside of a reserve - lots of dead ones :(

Oh I am nervous for Oregano & the coyotes on the same trail.

We haven't had a hard frost as yet, but I know it is just days away.

Jeanie said...

I'm not ready for frost but it's very good for making beautiful photos! Coyotes? Yikes!

Yamini MacLean said...

Hari OM
BBrrrrrrrr...yeah, we had something almost approaching sleet the other day. Brief, but full of the threat (promise) of winter! YAM xx

Barbara Rogers said...

If we didn't have a freeze the last two nights (I know 31 when I woke on Tues) I am sure we will tonight. Insomnia! Yee-gads. My trusty chronic care consultant (if you have lots of chronic issues, Medicare insurance provides a monthly phone check in) gave me a list of sleep hygiene things. Then he suggested when I woke around 4 or 5, to just get up. Perhaps I'd had enough sleep. I'd never tried that, so at 5:45 I turned on lights, had 2 cups of coffee and breakfast, looked at blogs but didn't feel right about commenting when it was so early. By 8 I was so sleepy I went back to bed till 9:30. Nope, at 5:45 I wasn't ready to start my day...I couldn't believe I could fall asleep after 2 cups of coffee!

Elephant's Child said...

I have taken similar photos of frost edged leaves. And also need lists. Lots of lists. No coyotes or porcupines here. Sigh.

RedPat said...

Oregano is a survivor.

Nancy J said...

Coyotes, I did see another pair of eyes at the end. Oregano, he hasn't been there for a while, maybe with winter approaching he is getting back to his usual haunts.Frost, and a huge tarp, they are SO hard to manage.

William Kendall said...

It was cold last night. And fog this morning.

Anvilcloud said...

Oh, you really did have a nice frost. We missed that one, or at least I wasn't aware of it.

Now, what is this 'sleeping-in' thing of which you speak. No can do.

Red said...

Keep at those fall chores. they are what keeps you young.

Divers and Sundry said...

Porcupines! I'd be sooo excited!

Bleubeard and Elizabeth said...

We had a hard freeze two nights in a row. Now it is so hot, I am back to shorts and sleeveless tops. I enjoyed reading about your mixed community, too.