Tractor Daze 2016 and Some Bird Pictures

Friends, we are coming into BAR week... the Blogville Awesome Retreat that I will 

be attending at Brown County State Park in Indiana on Friday and Saturday. 

On Thursday, Jester and I will leave for Iowa, and we will 

pick up good friend Deb Long and her pug Stella Rose Long

I have a confession to make.  I have never driven so far by myself. 

I have never traveled with a dog!  

Jes and I will be joining a group of other bloggers and their dogs 

at the state park, where we will visit and have some fun activities 

for a couple of days.  Deb must be back to work on Monday, 

so we will leave early Sunday morning to drive her home to 

Keosauqua (Iowa) and then Jes and I will stop for the 

night in Bloomfield, Iowa. 

Did I say I was scared?  I AM. 

But, I'm going. 

Yesterday was Tractor Daze and Touch a Truck 2016 at the Ag Hall.

We had a beautiful day for it! 

There was a lot of train-riding going on. 

The Ag Hall geese were non-plussed. 

Artist Mark Conrardy was in residence again... he is very charming and watching him paint 

is very interesting. 

I don't know how he concentrates with everyone coming by. 

Here he was painting the train depot. 

Old and young were having fun. 

This morning, I got up early to go to church, and took my camera along. 

I always look in this field, there are often birds and animals in it.  I saw a small flock of geese feeding. 

There were two turkeys out there, too... these were about a half-mile from me. 

When I came out of church, I decided to stop and get a root beer at the Sonic in Tongie.  I stopped and got out of the car to take a picture of this giant flag being hung by members of the Tongie City Fire Department.  I am guessing it might be for the Tongie Sesquacentennial, which is this week. 

I started up a gravel road and saw a bird in the way and slowed down.  It flew up into a bush, and by some miracle... it stayed there and let me take pictures of it. 

It's a Brown Thrasher. 

The Blue Heron was back in the pasture pond. 

This is an Eastern Kingbird. 

This is a different Heron from the one above.  This one was in the big cow pond near our home. 

What you are looking at is two of the three fledged hawklets.  The third was in the tree to the right, I saw it going from branch to branch.  

I am so glad they all lived and appear to be very healthy.  Of course... their survival will 

depend on how well they learn to hunt that first year. 

Some More Pictures Seen Along the Way

The other we were going the long way around to the park to walk (as we usually do) and I had to stop for something. 

This is what I could see: 

There is a long line of Bradford Pears along Leavenworth Road there. 

Here they are, closer.  As of this morning, almost all the blossoms are gone, because of all the winds we have had this week. 

I miss my daffodils at the old house.  These are near the park where we walk daily. 

I'm planting some this fall. 

Cresting the top of a hill, I saw this. 

And this. 

This little guy was along the way today. 

And his partner was in the next tree over.  He posed for me... the sunlight was glinting off his whiskers. 

I got out of the car to take this near the little pond.  I know the people over there think I'm nuts. 

But.... I had a funny end to my afternoon. 

This morning, I was thinking about the Coopers Hawk.  I have not seen him 

for three weeks... either in our yard, or on one of the telephone poles over on Dempsey road, to the north of us. 

I was wondering if he were gone away, or dead. 

So, I'm be-bopping along, because I had decided to get a Fish Filet after church, 

and had to drive 15 miles from Tongie to KCK to McDonald's to get one. 

I had the camera tucked away in my purse. 

I drove home the "back way" from McDonald's, listening to a CD I had made.  I 

came up our block, and pulled into the driveway, and glanced to the left and noticed there 

were no birds at the feeder in the side yard by the patio. 

AND THEN THE COOPERS HAWK JUMPED OFF THE MIDDLE PILLAR OF THE PORCH, AND DOWN INTO THE YARD... AND THEN INTO THE BRADFORD PEAR CLOSEST TO IT. 

Duh. 

I'm usually a little more observant. 

I grabbed the camera, but honestly thought he had gone out the other side. 

I took a chance from 10 feet away and snapped pictures. 

I snapped about ten, even though I was less than ten feet from it, because I couldn't see anything. 

Duh. 

That's as good as it gets, folks. 

Can you even see it?  Upper right quadrant. 

At this point, it flew across the street low to the ground and into a pine tree. 

So, I came in, fed the dogs, and then fed myself my fish filet. 

I was in the tv room and thought to look out and see what birds were at the feeder... and...

THERE WAS THE COOPERS HAWK ON THE DOGHOUSE ON THE PATIO. 

Waiting for a Cotton Rat to come out to eat. 

I grabbed the camera and ran downstairs and realized Keith was in the bathroom (he had been napping).  I got to the far end by the windows JUST as the hawk lifted off, and at that point, he disappeared. 

Darn it! 

I'll keep my eyes peeled from now on. 

Look Who's Back

Saturday, I showed you a terrible picture of the hawk on the nest. 

Here is a better one. 

I meant to take the long lens, hopefully, tomorrow, I'll 

have a chance to run over there in the afternoon when the light is good. 

There are two birds in the nest.  I am guessing that's the male on the right. 

I pulled forward a little. 

See them now? 

I am taking the long lens tomorrow... they are far away across a field. 

Even as far away as I was, the male took off. 

Leaving mama guarding the eggs.  

I'll remember that, and park farther down the road. 

Spring is coming to the Stranger Creek bluffs! 

The Truth Will Out

I know you are all wondering why you are seeing pictures of the dogs walking at the parks daily now. 

Why there are so few pictures along the gravel roads. 

Here's one from this morning... at the bluffs on Stranger Creek.  You see they 

are turning red now in the fall. 

I took this on the way to church this morning, I leave early so I can go 

the slower way and take pictures. 

This rather disgruntled looking hawk was just around the corner from the house... and he looked thoroughly cold.  He was all fluffed and clinging tightly to the cross arm.  

It was in the forties this morning, and the high seventies, by evening! 

This guy was on a pole further down the road. 

And another flew away as soon as he saw me coming. 

Even though there isn't much color on the road sides.... there is still beauty. 

And today, for the very first time, I had a frisson of fear when I snapped these pictures of plants in an overgrown pasture... I had not realized there were two men talking at the top of the pasture, and they yelled something at me, after having (I think) come down the hill toward me.  

I do get scared sometimes when I get out of the car to take pictures. 

I was in the car in this instance. 

There was a jack o'lantern on both fence posts here.. it is the beautiful drive, with the deer and turkeys. 

I didn't see ONE this morning! 

It looks scary, doesn't it!  

Now, why we are not seeing pictures of the old place... 

we have leased it out. 

Yes, our beautiful Calamity Acres is leased to a young 

family, father, mother and 3 year old daughter.  A tiny chihuahua 

(who thinks he is a big beast) lives there with them. 

They have the chickens. 

It has been a long month for me, because my attachment is so 

great.  You notice I say IS.... I am purposely not going by there, even 

on the highway... I just can't bear seeing it for a while. 

I did talk to good neighbor Troy by FB messenger today, and 

he reminded me I could bring the dogs out to run around the pond any time I want. 

I just can't, right now. 

Someday I will be able to... just like the first Calamity Acres.  

I did go take care of the Ag Hall chickens today, just to keep my hand in! 

(laugh). 

Today, my youngest son Jeff, turns 45... and it's All Souls Day in 

my church.... we remembered all those who have passed away 

this morning, and every day this month.  

I've decided to name something every day for which I'm grateful...

and... the first day: 

1. Puppy Butts.  My dear husband knows why.  

Welcome, November! 

(from the web) 

Up, Up and AWAY????

Well, as events go... it was leaving a lot to be desired. 

It also wore me out. 

Friday, we had high winds all day.  Balloons cannot inflate in high winds. 

At 3, there was a big meeting of all the pilots in the theater at the 

National Agricultural Center and Hall of Fame 

There was to be a "glow" that evening, when the balloons 

inflate while tethered, and then the pilots burn their burners in succession... 

creating this effect: 

There was a tent in front of Angry Bird. 

That's just an example. 

Before all this... 

There were  200 people at a time in the line to ride the train... and 

people marching back and forth all day.  There were vendor tents set up to the right. 

Free hayrides were also being given. 

People had to be directed to portable potties, as the septic system 

could not hold this many. 

People had to park quite a distance away. 

There was not enough signage.  The event planners learned from all this, 

and I hope the Ag Hall did, too. 

It was chilly, cloudy and breezy, and it ended up 

that the balloons could not inflate.  They burned the burners, 

but people were (to put it mildly) very disappointed, and 

vocal about it. 

Saturday morning, this was going on, and I had a chance to 

go out and take some pictures... I loved them!

I never did understand if it was balloon crews flying these, or whom. 

Jellyfish! 

They were beautiful, even though skies were still cloudy. 

It was also breezy, at 14 mph... and again, the pilots met. 

They had had to cancel their competition for Saturday morning because of the winds, so they 

decided if it went down to 10 or under, they would inflate and do the glow. 

Dusk fell, and the wind cooperated. 

And the balloons began to inflate. 

The crowd grew and grew and grew.  

And grew. 

I got better pictures of the trees and sunset than I did of the balloons, I was 

behind so many and they were uphill. 

So, they inflated and were something to see. 

The pilots take turns burning their burners, so that the glow 

hops all around. 

It was beautiful, but the crowd... surging and pushing. 

I left at 7, worn out... and as I inched out of the circular drive, 

there were hundreds of people trudging up the hill. 

It turned out that some of those people trudging up in the dark were turned away... the grounds were filled. 

Yesterday morning, I was worn out.  

I did get up and get the paper, and sat at the dining room table to 

read it.  From time to time, I looked up at the horizon to the south. 

It was a clear, beautiful morning. 

Pretty soon... I saw two balloons in the distance, about 7 miles away. 

I needed to be at church at 10:30, but it was only 8:50, so I went about 5 miles 

to take some pictures. 

It was fun to think of the pilots we had seen for two days up in the air, going where the wind 

(in this case S x SW) took them. 

They drifted, one after the other. 

Until they were disappearing. 

I decided after all to run down to the Ag Hall. 

Only one balloon was left, and it was inflating. 

But suddenly... something was wrong. 

They ended up deflating it and rolling it up.  Sometimes, discretion IS 

the better part of valor.  This is the beautiful balloon pictured glowing above. 

I stopped on the way to take a picture of the beautiful bluffs along Stranger Creek. 

And of this beautiful bird on a wire above me. 

I'm worn out, I admit it.  

I was glad to get home from church, and walk the dogs, and then 

rest during the afternoon. 

I have some nice pictures from early this morning that I'll share with you 

tomorrow.