Hummie trumps waxie

I woke up in a funk today. I think the reality of moving is hitting me because when I sat out on the deck having my tea this morning, I was feeling very sad. Which is silly, of course ... but also real. Anyway, I decided that I needed to give myself a break today and so I spent much of the day out in the garden with my camera. And, as usual, nature rewarded me with many wondrous things.

I heard the distinctive high zeeeee of waxwings today when I was in the garden. And I eventually spotted the source of the calls - they were in a carefully cultivated patch of wild pokeweek wolfing down berries as fast as you can say "waxie!" I got some relatively good shots of them and had decided that my blip today would be a waxwing - after all, they are one of my favorite backyard birds, even though I only see them in spring and fall when there are berries in the yard. Then, as I watched, I saw a whole group of waxwings high up in one of the maples, hawking insects. This is something I have never actually seen before and I confess that I stood there and just watched for the longest time. I managed to get a few (heavily cropped) photos of this interesting behavior - including one where the insect being pursued is visible in the frame.

I did post 10 other shots on Flickr, starting HERE with the hummer and concluding with a pair of arguing blue jays. Several waxwing shots and chippie shots included...

But, just when I was thinking that the Blip was in the bag... a hummer showed up. And you know how I feel about hummers. I will hope that the waxwings hang around for a few more days, giving me another opportunity to blip them - but for today, my pick has to be this juvenile male ruby-throated hummingbird. Last year I saw my last hummer of the season on Sept. 24. I wonder if today's will be my last this year?

Gave all my houseplants to our neighbor today - several of them were so big that we had to use a hand-cart to get them over to their house. Glad they wanted them! But the house is looking emptier and emptier as things go and/or get packed.

I find that I am missing hubs fiercely this weekend. Maybe partly because the end of our separation is finally in sight. In only 5 more sleeps, we will be living together again. :)

Thanks for stopping by, and for your patience with my lack of commenting. Once the move is behind me, hopefully I will become a better member of the Blip community - in the meantime, thank you for sticking with me.

xxoo
Debbi