A glorious time of year

 

At 5:30 I stood out on the back deck and listened for the birds. This is what Merlin told me. I've photos of all these, except for the Wood-Pewee. 

I remember standing under a tree trying like heck to find it. The other App I used said it was a Robin. Pfftt. 

We've cool mornings and warm days this week. Pretty ideal conditions for all the critters nesting and borrowing.

The Merlin App has been really helpful. 

  

songbirds from Jennifer Jilks on Vimeo.

  I figured out where the blackflies are: my front garden. Only one bite on Wednesday. I woke up at 4:40 Wednesday, slept in until 5:30 Thursday. That is a good thing. The night before I was awake from 2 - 4 and man, the mind chatter and brain festering with problems. This morning, Friday, I slept until 5 a.m., which isn't bad.

The butterflies are fun. This is a Canadian Tiger Swallowtail, according to iPhotos. It is going after the Goats Beard.

Busy yard!

I've been wrestling with the lawn tractor. I'll recharge the battery, take the heavy sucker down to the shed, pop it into the tractor and it won't start. I had to get some lawn done. I pushed the durn thing across from the shed to the garage where I started it with the recharger, kept it running, and did the deed. 

I was interrupted by a phone call from the OPP Fraud department. I explained what happened. Got all upset again, and put the tractor away. It wouldn't start without the whole routine again. I didn't have the heart for it. I mow in sections so as to not get rid of the various wildflowers the birds, bees, deer and Fred like. There is a No Mow May effort by some. I like that idea. There are others who only leave an inch of grass. It is an old fashioned notion. Especially with droughts and the like.

First poppy:

Since I was lathered with bug spray, I transplanted the Marigold elsewhere, and added the Basil I'd picked up on Monday just before the storm and the tornado watch. (We didn't get a tornado!) This activity makes me happy. 

The trailcams have been fairly quiet. Here is our doe, sniffing at the camera. I think she is pregnant and has been wandering around, trimming the 'grass' for me. 

🎾 Distractions...

Tennis have been great, except for the rainouts! We taped both Shapovalov and Auger-Aliassime, and watched them one after another until the rain fell. The electronics are interesting. I was out back, checking the bank accounts (yes, I'm checking them hourly), and checked the tennis activity. With all the rain they've had to rejig schedules. We've several tennis players doing well. 

🎥 AFTER THE FLOOD

JB went out and brought me a pizza, a new library book, and a bottle of wine. My hero, trying to calm me down. We like to escape to the TV at night. I've a funeral to attend Saturday, and what with worrying about the banking crap, it just sets us both on edge. (You know how it is, many of you!) Watching this murder mystery has been great.

I've been chatting with fellow bloggers about the setting of this UK TV series. We were wondering about the set. There is a YouTube video for everything! This was fascinating for me.  A long drone video, gives the overhead view.

An overhead drone video

This helps some:

Garden flowers and 3 bucks

Oh, good grief! We are a week away from summer! Normal temps are lows of 14 C.

I've whinged about my cataracts a lot. I am sorry. It helps to vent. They do explain why I am not reading well, or easily. The laptop helps, as I can enlarge the text. In terms of photography, what I did was put on the zoom lens to photograph the flowers. That, and autofocus, stood me in good stead. 

Poppies

The hosta are doing well! Soon the deer will chomp it. What the heck!

Jack-in-the-pulpit

Giant allium and clematis

My hosta are coming along... for now!

My planter box is filling out. 

The weigela bush is lovely! The lilacs are done, but other flowers are popping up.  

Saturday morning, 7 a.m., speak of the devil! Three bucks! 

This is who I saw first. I grabbed the camera. Ran back to the deck door and slowly, quietly opened it. They were bothered by me, but the cats slipped out behind me. The bucks watched them closely.

Kitties, birds, ticks, rainfall, flowers: it's JUNE!

cats to walk– Dorah takes a rest

Tick Report July 8th: 80
Dorah: 35; Daisy: 38; Buster: 4; Sadie: 1; Jenn: 2.
I've found 3 fleas.

It's been a heck of a week for us. I'm glad it is nearly over. We like our road trips, but we've been busy with one thing and another.

This retirement isn't for chumps!

The backyard calls me. There is lots to do.

There's been much rain lately. I am happy it fills up the dry wetland. There is no joy in the swamp without moisture.
We won't mention how prolific the mosquitoes

Robins to watch

are, as I can't complain about the cycle of life!
Mind you, I've harvested 80 ticks in the past three months. We check the cats, and ourselves, very carefully. I grab a piece of tape for the ticks that aren't yet attached, roaming around Dorah's face looking for a place to purchase. Dorah is the winner as she seems to be a tick magnet.
A friend paid her vet $200 to remove a fully-engorged tick. We know you have to get them out fast and early. You don't want them putting the Lyme Disease bacteria into its victim. You don't want to put goop on them, either, as they may discharge or throw up stomach contents on you.

The woodpecker was upset with the jays, grackles and red-wings on the feeder and chose the hummingbird feeder, instead!


Rainfall Data
There was 120 mm of rainfall in May.
This month we are doing well, too. The June 7th rain was remnants of Hurricane Andrew.

2013 Date rain in mm 1-Jun 9 2-Jun 1 6-Jun 4 7-Jun 30 9-Jun 1 10-Jun 49 11-Jun 9 16-Jun 37 26-Jun 16 28-Jun 44 TTL 200

Cosmos is blooming, too

poppy in full bloom