Laura seems to think this whole issue is caused from an event a long time ago. She brought the dog to a kennel for a short retreat. The kennel person thought it would be nice to give the dog a bath and then put her outside…during a thunderstorm. Well, that’s one theory. My theory is that Holly is just scared of the thunder and that’s that.

Holly dog in bathtub

One thing we can always count on about half way through the storm is that light “tat tat” of Holly pulling herself into the bathtub to hide. It’s actually a relief when we hear that because it means that Holly will be away for a while and not under our feet. She eventually falls asleep and lets herself out after a while, when the thunderstorm is over.

We asked the vet if she had any advice on what to do about this. She said to give the dog two benadryl when we first hear thunder. That will bring her “to another place.” We did that a few times and it seemed to calm her down, but it’s kind of easy to forget to do.

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This is round two of the squirrel proof bird feeder videos. I am pretty sure I can’t get better footage than this, so this will (thankfully) be the last one.

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Well, it just so happens that I was looking out the window today when I noticed a big, bushy gray tail wagging around on the porch. I quickly turned around to get the video camera so I could show all you people.

I turned the camera on and totally forgot how to use it. As I got situated, the squirrel was doing his/her thing, but luckily nothing near the squirrel proof bird feeder yet. As I started getting him/her on video, he/she made a small attempt at learning more about the feeder. He/she didn’t jump up on it, but you can see how he/she went to grab the perch.

I am sure I will get more, but this will have to do for now.

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We thought we caught a break. We have had a cylindrical bird feeder with a cage around it hanging off the porch for a few months now. It hasn’t even been noticed by the squirrels. Then, we placed two more bird feeders in the front of the house and the squirrels brought the hammer down. It’s like they are trapeze artists on these things. I knew we needed to break down and buy one of those squirrel proof bird feeders.

A few days ago, Laura did some research on the internet to find a good squirrel proof bird feeder. She found a pretty good site that had a bunch of them, but they were pretty expensive. I mentioned that we should look at more websites and maybe read some reviews on Amazon or something.

As it turns out, I happened to by in Home Depot the day after she did her research when I passed by the bird feeder aisle. I saw two different types of squirrel proof bird feeders. The first type was the cylindrical shaped feeder that we already had, but when a squirrel jumps on it to get to the food, the whole outer cage slid down to block off the food openings. The only problem is that it seemed like the squirrel needed to weigh a heck of a lot to make that outer cage slide down.

The second type of feeder I saw was the typical shaped feeder house, but had a front stoop that drops down to cover the food tray when the squirrel jumps on it. It had a weight adjustment, so you could actually stop the larger birds from getting to the food as well.

I decided to buy the second feeder, along with some more bird food and a pole set.

Squirrel proof bird feeder on pole set, mounted to the porch.

Front of squirrel proof bird feeder with drop down perch.

Squirrel proof bird feeder showing drop down perch and weight adjustment.

I really hope this does the trick. I think these types of bird feeder offer similar promises as all those gutter guards. They all claim to be the best and offer 100% protection. Since I installed it, we haven’t had the pleasure of witnessing what happens if a squirrel decided to make a visit, but I am sure we will. When we do, I will try my best to use my video camera for the occasion.

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Take a look…

Photo of a hydrangea with a section that will be enlarged in the next photo.

The cut-out section of the hydrangea photo.

Next, I tried out the “Burst shooting mode” on Michael the cat. There are two sequences here. The first one is where he is pretty much laying there and the second one is where he is biting me.

Photo sequence of a cat biting a hand.

I would say that both the quality and the “Burst shooting mode” are very good.

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Today, I decided to venture outside into the wall of humidity to dig up and re-plant some rhododendrons. We had a few here and there that needed to make their way up the hill for a nice rhododendron line in the front. I think it will look very nice, come Spring.

Anyway, enough about that. Upon digging my second hole for the rhododendron, I discovered about four while oval things sitting approximately six inches beneath the dirt. I thought they were bird eggs. I left them there and went inside to tell Laura about my find. I knew she would get up and research what they were for me. She enjoys that kind of stuff.

I went back outside and took a few pictures of these things and then covered them back up. I had a feeling they weren’t bird eggs, but turtle eggs. I planted all the rhododendrons and then went back inside.

After I showed Laura all the sweat on my face, she revealed to me that I had just stumbled across Black Rat Snake Eggs. For photos of these creatures, click the link above. For photos of Black Rat Snake Eggs, look below…

Me holding a Black Rat Snake egg in my fingers.

Showing the size of the Black Rat Snake eggs compared to my hand.

Good thing I covered these eggs back up. I did have a strange feeling something was peering out from the woods…straight at me…

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The whole hillside is almost fully in bloom. I had no idea there was such a variety of flowers. It is so exciting to watch what blooms next. Every morning, I wake up and do my thing. Then, I go outside with the camera. Today, I was just standing there on the hillside looking at everything. There was a cricket chirping and a bee going from flower to flower. It was pretty cool. Sometimes it’s nice to just watch things. There are even baby bunnies living under one of the bushes. I almost stepped on one the other day when I was trimming around the Blue Spruce that I planted. It ran and scared the heck out of me.

This is another prize winner from the same garden as my last prize winner.

This is what I am talking about. There are Roses upon Roses. They are all different colors too. There are pink, red and white so far.

Pretty neat, right?

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Yesterday, I was sitting here doing some work when Laura ran in telling me there was a turkey running through the back yard. I got up and grabbed my camera. I thought this would be great to catch on “film.” I stood up and looked out the window, and wouldn’t you know it, there was a turkey walking through the back yard on its way to the woods. It was a big sucker too.

I held the camera to the window and shot. Here is what I got…

I am really sorry about that.

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I took a nice picture of the birds living under the porch this morning. Tell me if you like it.

That’s an up-close nature shot. I kept thinking the momma bird was going to dive bomb me from behind, but it never happened. I wouldn’t have been scared if it had.

Just a few weeks ago, these little birds were much smaller. I could hardly even see their heads. One time I saw all of the beaks wide open, sticking straight up in the air. I said to them, “No little birdies, I don’t have any worms for you” and I walked away.

That’s a “Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey” line if I ever saw one.

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There are a few good reasons. The first is that I don’t see myself shooting hoops outside all too much. I don’t even own a basketball. That’s not to say I’m not in peak physical condition, just not for basketball. The second (and last) good reason is that my brother would like the whole set up for his two young boys to play with. They will get much better use out of it that I will. They will enjoy it and know that Uncle Jay treats them right. Jeff is going to come get it in June and bring it down to Virginia to plant near his driveway. We will handle the hoop with loving care.

I was wondering how easy, or difficult this was going to be. I knew the pole was stuck in some cement, but I had no idea how much. I began picking at it a few days ago with my pick-ax. I had a little luck, but nothing compared to today.

This afternoon, I went after the cement ball in earnest. It took about a half-hour, but I got it loose and down on its side. One thing I did notice while taking it down was a bird that flew out of the top of the pipe.

After the whole thing was down on its side and the cement ball out of the hole, I began taking the net and backboard off. About half way through this, another bird flew out of the top of the pipe, which was now really low to the ground. Again, I didn’t think too much of this. A few minutes later, a little baby bird fell out of the pipe. My heart sank. What have I done? The baby was about the size of a baby hampster. I got a flashlight and looked down the pipe and saw about four more baby birds.

I thought about it for a little while and came up with a solution. I finished taking the backboard and net off and then stood the pole up again, similar to what it was like before.

I was pretty much done bringing my tools back in the garage when I looked back at the pipe. I noticed a bird (that had been on a branch right above me the whole time), fly into the pipe. Then, another one did. They were obviously the parents going back to see how their kids were doing. I felt very good about that. I think we’re back in business.

Jeff is coming down in June to grab the setup. This gives the birds about a month to grow up and fly away. I am hoping they can do it by then. If not, Jeff will have to wait a few more days.

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