Frankie Update

My partner and I have had debates about whether Frankie, the
Friendly Marsupial, is male or female.  The last time we got a good
look at him was when he trapped himself in the cat trap--since
then, it has been only shadowy outlines.  Late last night, I got a
really good look at him, and he has really grown.  The bird
feeder that sits on the ground is where we put his food--I don't
think he could get inside of it--it is a covered one--that is why
we never see anything but his face.  But last night he was eating
from the front; he is definitely far larger than the feeder, which is
a large feeder.  He is taller than the feeder--and his fur has changed.
It was kind of shaggy--now it has evened out, and it is a lovely
shade of silver.  It made me feel good to see him  flourishing.
It's obvious that he is not the little scrawny possum we first
started feeding.

All for tonight.

Kate Thorn

Chilly Temperatures and Hungry Critters

The temperature has dropped down to the 20's.  Not good weather
for possums, birds, or squirrels.  My snake plants accidentally were
left on the front porch, and I know I'll lose parts of them; I am hoping
I am able to save the majority of the plants.

It was so cold Frankie didn't come out to eat one night.  And he is
mighty fond on his "meals on wheels", so to speak.  He likes his/her
delivery service.

The squirrels are eating bark off of trees.  So we put out bread and
seed for them also.  They were happy to get it--the blue jay was
ready to fight them over it.  He got a half of a slice of bread and
flew off with it. 

The chickadees, wrens, and tufted titmice are eating hearty. They
tease Daisycat mercilessly.   They know she can't get to them.
They fly up to window where she sits and I believe I heard one
saying "Neener, neener, neener--you can't get me!"  and Daisy's
response was crackly meows combined with circular tail motions
that reminds one of a helicopter about to take off.

I think of how warm we are--and worry about the critters out in
the cold.  If Frankie was even more friendly, he'd probably have
a place in the garage to sleep.  But his issues with the being
fattenened and the pot.  The more we feed him, the more he worries.
I try to reassure him, but his Mama drilled it into him well--there is
no such thing as free food.  I haven't been able to convince of
otherwise.

All for tonight

Kate Thorn

Frankie and Thanksgiving

Frankie's Thanksgiving feast was interrupted by a feral cat.  Even though
the cat took off, Frankie did not return that evening.  But the plate was
clean this morning, so I guess he did finish it off.  It's foolish in a way to
care about a possum, but he sort of goes with the house, along with the
birds.

The birds have a new and different kind of feeder--It has a round bar
through the middle and hold fresh fruit--right now only apples and
oranges.  I haven't seen them eat at it yet, but that doesn't mean they
haven't found it.  Orioles in particular love oranges.  There is a nectar
feeder colored orange especially for orioles.  It's on my list of things to
buy before spring comes.

Thanksgiving was well, just another day here.  My grandson had a cold
and an ear infection.  Temperatures dropped and my Raynaud's flared
making me quite uncomfortable.  On the bright side, one of my beading
friends was released from the hospital, so that was very good.  I think
all holidays are blown out of proportion so there is always a feeling of
let down.  Of course, this is the first year ever that we have had others
living in the house with us, and that difference is huge--especially for
people who don't seek out others for interaction.

I bought a few Christmas platters for the Christmases to come--and I
bought a bathing suit.  I am planning to go to the Y and swim--as soon
as this latest Raynaud's attack is over.  I was doing well on the treadmill
until today.  I think I will use it tomorrow regardless of the mood my
feet are in.

Daisy, on the other hand, enjoyed Thanksgiving very well and went back
for seconds and thirds on the turkey!

All for tonight.

Frankie, Brownies, And Turkey Day Preparations

Last night Frankie was served a heaping plate of food.  My partner told me
this morning that Frankie was out doing a dance with his sombrero on.  I
looked confused--who wouldn't?  He further explained that "Frankie had
nachos, and he put on his sombrero and was dancing around,  It was
Mexican night and all you could eat, and he was one fat happy possum." 
I started laughing; I can never tell when he is embellishing until he gets
to the end.  He then said that he heard Frankie say, "Lord have mercy, I am
plumb fattened up.  And tomorrow's Thanksgiving.  It's the pot for me for sure."

Later he said that he didn't know who ate the brownies.  I asked, "What
brownies?"  He replied, "the lonesome ones no one wanted.  I froze them
but finally put them out for whomever wanted them--and they're gone.  If
Frankie ate them, he's really worried now."

Preparing for Thanksgiving is difficult here.  My daughter is a strict vegetarian.
My grandson is autistic and has severe eating issues.  I am ambivalent about
turkey--I eat one small serving a year--and that is it.  Just not a turkey fan--
rather have fried chicken!  I don't even know what we'll be having.  I am
sure some of the meal will be a surprise.

All for now.

Quiet

Finally.  The house is quiet.  Grandson is asleep.  Partner is asleep.  Only
Daisycat and I remain awake.  I think both of us crave the quiet.  I know
my partner craves the quiet also.  It isn't as though we do not enjoy one
another's company; we both have very busy minds.  I pursue my interests,
and he, his.  Speaking of his:  he has received all the worms-200 red
wigglers and 500 Europeans--and has them all set up in their new homes.
Compost and worm tea here we come!

Speaking of changes, all the walking he has done has really paid off.  He
has lost weight and his blood pressure is 114/72.  He power walks 3 miles
5 days out of 7.  This has made an amazing difference.  It's my turn now.
The treadmill is set up and ready to go.  I may start tonight--if not, first thing
in the morning. 

Frankie and the birds are doing well.  The back has had its late fall clean-up.
We only have the front yard to go. 

I have a bonsai ficus tree that I may have killed.  I really hope not.  It was dying
back at the end of the fall when I brought it in.  Apparently, I haven't watered it
enough.  I have been watching it.  Tomorrow I turn it over to my partner--
he is a genius with green growing things.

All for tonight. 

Mail for Seniors and Frankie

Frankie did not come to eat last night.  Nor did any cats, which was good for
Frankie.  When I saw his food still completely untouched, I was worried, so
I went in search of him.  I am so attached to the possum that if he was hurt, I
would take him to the vet!  I like most all critters and watch out for them as
much as possible.  This evening when I stepped out onto the porch to see
if Frankie was about, I heard the familiar crashing through the leaves as
Frankie made his way though the yard and away from the porch.  He knows
my voice, but runs anyway.  My partner states that it because his Mama
taught him that anyone who fed and fattened him was planning to "cook
and eat him."   The way he talks about Frankie's upbringing and culture,
you'd think he was a possum expert. He has me laughing with his tales of
Frankie, all fabricated,  "But if you're at the bottom of the food chain,
then you gotta be a little suspicious of someone trying to fatten you up!"

A discussion ensued regarding prehensile tails of possums.  The possums
can hang by their tails from tree limbs and sleep.  I knew that.  I didn't
know they used their tails to grasp objects, food.  For a possum, having
an extra hand, so to speak, is a great advantage.  No wonder he was able
climb down the tree face first so rapidly.

Tonight Frankie wiped his plate clean--and we, the worriers about a
possum, feel relieved.

Seniors get different mail.  I am sure I am on every mailing list in the country.

Today, along with at least 3 catalogs and 1 magazine, I got the following
cards to order more info.  Here is my list of cards to entice:  Windbells,
OK--I'll send off for that one.  "get the complete 12 coin set!"--No,
thank you, I'll pass.  "Finger Fit"--no to that one.  Incandescent Rope
Light"--OK, I'll bite.  Sunsetter Awnings--Only have one window
that would be needed--and that is only for an 1-2 hours--I'll pass.
A do-it-self yourself metal building--oh yeah, I keep a list of things
for my partner to do.  Doesn't every woman? 

Speaking of, he is going into the worm business--we're expecting the
worms to arrive tomorrow or the next day.  He'll raise 2 types for fishing,
the European and the Africans.  And 1 (the red wigglers) to keep the
garden healthy--and all 3 kinds for their compost and "worm tea".  Sounds
yummy--right?  Only if you are a gardener or a garden.  It is very "green", very
recycled, and packed with nutritious microbes that keep a garden
flourishing.

And my Birds and Blooms magazine had a ticket in it where you could
renew your subscription for only 14.98 AND give a gift subscription
to a friend for only 10.00.  And I know just the person to give that
gift--she loves to garden!

All for tonight.

Late at Night

Late at night when the house is rocked by sleep, I am awake, thinking and
sometimes doing.  I woke up at 0100 and decided to cut my hair.  I couldn't
locate my sissors, so I used my kitchen shears.  Before you think I'm nuts--
I end up going to get it cut twice.  I have very fine and extremely thick hair.
One cutting is just getting started.  I thought I would save myself about 25.00.
I left it shaggy, uneven--but one could tell I was desperate for a cut.  So when
I told what I had done, getting worked into her schedule was easy.  So now it
is precisely the length I wished it to be.

Last night, Daisy paid me back for disturbing her sleep.  She woke me at 0330.
I had slept just long enough to feel rested, thirsty, so I got up with the cat, who
promptly curled up in her bed under the desk and went back to sleep.  I was
wide awake.

Last night was our first frost.  The begonias died.  I am going to get more
next spring, but in large pots that can come in in the winter--and plant them
in full sun.  I will find some colorful shade plant to plant in the planters on
the front porch.  I was walking in the front yard with my daughter, talking
about the hemlock trees at the edge of my front yard.  She told me that
they had  woolly adelgid.  (This killed 80% of the hemlocks in the
Shenandoah National Forest after its arrival in the 1980's.)  The woolly
adelgid takes only 5 years to completely kill a full grown hemlock.

From Wikipedia is the following:

Hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae), commonly abbreviated as HWA, is a true bug native to East Asia that feeds by sucking sap from hemlock trees (Tsuga spp.). In eastern North America, it is a destructive pest that poses a major threat to the eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) and the Carolina hemlock (Tsuga caroliniana). The range of Eastern Hemlock extends north of the current range of the adelgid, but there are fears that the adelgid could spread to infect to these northern areas too. Accidentally introduced to North America from Asia in 1924, HWA was first found in the eastern United States some decades later. In Pennsylvania, for example, the earliest record is from 1967.^[1] The pest has now been established in eleven eastern states from Georgia^[2] to Massachusetts, causing widespread mortality of hemlock trees. As of 2007, 50% of the geographic range of eastern hemlock has been impacted by HWA.^[3]
The presence of HWA can be identified by its egg sacs, which resemble small tufts of cotton clinging to the underside of hemlock branches. Hemlocks stricken by HWA frequently shift to a grayish-green appearance rather than the dark green of healthy hemlocks. In North America, the hemlock woolly adelgid reproduces asexually and can have two generations per year. (In its native habitat in Asia, there is a third winged generation called Sexupera; this generation requires a species of spruce not found in the Eastern United States to reproduce, so it does not survive here.) Between 100 and 300 eggs are laid in the woolly egg sacs beneath the branches. Larvae emerge in spring and can spread on their own or with the assistance of wind, birds and/or mammals. In the nymph stage, the adelgid is immobile and settles on a single tree. ^[1][4]
The hemlock woolly adelgid feeds on the phloem sap of tender hemlock shoots. It may also inject a toxin while feeding. The resulting desiccation causes the tree to lose needles and not produce new growth. In the northern portion of the hemlock's range, death typically occurs four to ten years after infestation. Trees that survive the direct effects of the infection are usually weakened and may die from secondary causes.<sup>[5]

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For now, I wait.  Even trimming off dead branches needs to wait until early spring.

All for tonight.

Possum Adventures

Frankie, our friendly marsupial, was startled a few nights previous.  My
partner was taking his dinner to Frankie--scared Frankie and he took
of, forgetting the fence between him/her and the road.  He ran into that
fence 3 times before my partner could get back inside.

Tonight, 10 minutes after he put Frankie's dinner out, a large cat came
and ran Frankie up a tree.  Apparently, possums are better climbers
than cats.  He was clean to the top of that tree when my partner
checked on him and ran the cat off.  We watched Frankie climb down
that tree, going down face first, and moving rapidly for a possum in the
dark.

We stayed on the front porch while Frankie ate; my partner thinks
he doesn't know we're here.  I know he does; he is familiar with
my voice.  I talk to him all the time--he doesn't run from me.  I am
the first one to feed and the one that let him out of the cage intended
for the feral cat.

And Daisy is having trouble napping.  Too many birds to watch.
They flit by the windows, even lighting on the screen, watching me
on the computer--and Daisy can't get to them.  When they light on
the windows in front of her, her tail goes from twitching back and
forth to moving in a circular motion.  I've never seen anything like
it.  She definitely loves this house; she was so bored before that
she had started watching TV.  And I am serious.  She didn't like
any violent programming however.

All for tonight.

Temptations

I bragged too much on Daisy's self control.  Two days later she the lunged
at the feeder with its whirlwind activity from chickadees, titmouses, and
nuthatches.  And, once again, slid to the floor.  After that, she confined
herself to watching and twitching her tail incessantly.

My partner cleaned out the remains of the old garden.  It was really a mess.
The garden had not been tended for over a year when we purchased the
house.  This spring it will become a garden again.

The weather continues to be perfectly lovely.  Gorgeous blue sky days.
The time changed last nite; my body does not change so easily.  So I
was awake and moving at 0500--but the clock insisted the time was 0400.

I purchased this great garden book from Thiftbooks.com.  The title is
Terrific Garden Tonics by Jerry Baker.  Here is the recipe to ward off
aphids--1 small onion, finely chopped--2 medium cloves of garlic, finely
chopped, 1 tablespoon of baby shampoo, and 2 cups of water.  You place
these ingredients in an OLD blender and blend on high.  (You can find an
old blender at a thrift store or yard sale--need a designated only for garden
tonics blender.)  Let the mixture set overnight, and then strain it through a
coffee filter.  Pour the liquid into a hand held spray bottle and apply
liberally at the first sign of pest problems.

There are 100s of such recipes.  I love this book.  I know it is going to make
a huge difference.  The recipes are cheaper to make than to buy
commercially prepared products--and they make sense.

All for today.

New Feeder, New Birds, and Daisy

I purchased a new feeder--one, that with the aid of suction cups, attaches
itself to the outside of the window.  For three days the birds seemed not
to be aware.  Since there is a feeder on the deck, not far from that window,
I thought that perhaps this feeder was too much.  I was mistaken, as usual.

On day four of the new feeder's existence, it had 4 visitors.  Two nuthatches
and two tufted titmouse came to feed.  And right in front of Daisy.  I was
proud of her--she didn't launch herself through the air as before.  But her
entire body quivered with the desire to do so.  The 4 birds spent about an
hour flying from feeder to tree, eating.  The tufted titmouse was the first to
visit.  I stayed quiet in my chair so as not to alarm them.  They put on a show;
I am looking forward to see if they re-appear today.

Weatherwise, Sandy did give us 3 nights of cold--down in the 30's.  The
succulents I had brought inside did not fare well.  The jade plant and one
other one died, so I apparently did not bring them inside early enough.
The others fared well outside.

I went to Park Seed and planned my shade garden for the front of the
house.  There is partial to full shade in the  front yard--making the
planning of a flower garden difficult to say the least.  My partner nixed
the buying of flower seed this soon--I wouldn't be planting until Spring.
but saving 10.00 seemed an incentive.  So I printed off my Shopping
Cart, so I could return later and buy the seed.  My plan is to buy 3-4
packs of seed a month.  About 10.00 worth.  By Spring I will have it
all.  I can see the whole front yard where the trees are ablaze with
blooms and a riot of color.  And the blooming will last from early Spring
until Fall.  I can see Spring inside my head--and it's not yet Winter.

I did wander to to some other sites and picked up a pair of winter/fall
boots for a total of 19.30--which included the shipping.  I found them
on BradsDeals--a great site for penny pinching deals.  The boots are
Mukluks and they are at Kohl's.  I next went to Boscow's, and found
cozy comfy bedroom shoes. 

I spent the rest of the day unpacking boxes and bags of shoes and clothing--
that project is still not completed.  I have clothes destined to be do-overs,
or up-cycled  clothing.  When I finally find my sewing machine!  (I have 3!)
Two were intentional purchases--the sewing machine and the serger.  Both
are still in storage.  The third was a result of being ill--and wandering to
ebay--I found the cutest blue 3/4 size Singer sewing machine.  Being of
unsound mind and body, I bought it.  I was still a travel nurse at the time,
so the last thing I needed was a sewing machine.  I already had a mountain
of jewelry supplies and no place to put them.

It's good to have a house, a home finally, and unpack treasures and find places
for them to finally rest.

All for today