The Dog Days of Spring

Wikipedia says the dog days of summer are the days in July and August that are characterized by the warmest summer temperatures.  The Old Farmers Almanac thinks the dog days are the days from July 3rd through August 11th - the days with the least rainfall.  The Dog Days originally were the days when Sirius rose just before or at the same time as sunrise. The Romans sacrificed a brown dog at the beginning of the Dog Days to appease the rage of Sirius, believing that the star was the cause of the hot, sultry weather.  There are many definitions of the dog days of summer but they all mean the same to me - the bad days of summer.  If that's true then surely there can be bad (or dog) days of Spring and I think we're in them right now.

We all think of spring with such poignant longing.  We dream of the fragrant flowers on trees, shrubs, and flower beds, the green grass, and the tender little leaves bursting into full beautiful green trees.  Its surely the most gorgeous time of the year.  That's the Spring we dream of.  And this is the Spring we get.

Everything is the same color and it's not green, it's brown.  Or, too often, white.  And it's cold outside and we're all tired of it and discouraged and we all remember that a year ago we had a really warm day.  But what we seem to forget is that this happens every single year.  We go through this stage when our expectations far exceed reality and it's so hard waiting for reality to catch up.  Once it does, we get the Spring we know and love.  The warm temperatures, the lovely colors, and the sweet fragrances.

In the meantime we have to look for signs of things to come and the good news is that they're out there. 

The koi are starting to stick their noses out of the never frozen pond and nibble at the algae collected on the edge.
 
The boy birds have become very interested in the girl birds.

The daffodils and helleboros are sporting buds.

 And the crocuses are abloom.

Even the robins are back which is a sure precursor of Spring.  I can't include their picture though because for some reason the robins are blurry this year.

Anyway, it's all proof that Spring is coming.  I've been comforting myself for weeks now with this theory that our expectations are just too high.

And now Harry announces that he just read that it's official.  Spring is running about six week late this year.  sigh

You Capture - Inside

Beth's You Capture theme this week is Inside.  Once again I was at a loss....at first.  Then Eli gave me a hint when he sat inside this box.

I also looked in the backyard for inspiration and saw a bluebird inside the bluebird feeder with another on top waiting his turn.

Finally the waiter lost his patience but the insider warned the intruder away.

 After waiting a little longer and a little more patiently.

 There was a switch and for just a second there was nobody inside.

Yesterday I turned to the birdbath where one bluebird was inside, one waited on the perimeter and another arrived on the scene.

The bluebird inside wasn't budging despite a lot of grousing from the other two.  In fact he appears to be talking back.

 But the insider held his ground (or his water).

And finally I looked at the koi pond this morning and saw all these residents inside.

For lots more insider views, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry.

You Capture - Summer

Beth's You Capture subject this week is Summer and it's one I've been excited about since she announced it last week.  Everybody knows I enjoy photographing our backyard birds and I determined that I would re-double my efforts to catch some good shots.

But first I had to think about the koi pond.  It used to be my all-time favorite hobby before the birds took over.  I still enjoy these guys but I spend a lot less time watching and photographing them than I used to.  They are, however, definitely a summertime source of pleasure.

And here's an overview of their summer time home.  Of course it's also their winter home but it doesn't look anything like this in the winter.  


Next I turned to the birds.  Like almost everywhere else in the country, we've just gone through an incredibly hot spell.  One day I carelessly allowed the bird bath to go completely dry.  I hate to say such a terrible thing, but it was almost worth it to watch the parade of birds that visited as soon as I filled it with fresh cool water.

The first one was this rather prissy little bluebird.  She landed on the edge and looked it over carefully.

Before she stepped in to begin her toilette.

But once she was in, she bathed with relish.  And I'd like to say she emerged looking refreshed and beautiful, BUT

Not so much.  Poor girl.  I wonder if she knows what she looks like after her bath.

I think she might because as soon as she saw me taking her picture, she flew off.

Then I watched this interesting fellow.  I'm not sure of his breed so if anyone knows, I'd be grateful if they shared.  Anyway, he landed at the bath with his lunch in his mouth but first he apparently had to wash it.  I could post a dozen or more pictures of the steps he took to either wash it or beat it up, but I'll settle with two just so you get the idea.

This little goldfinch was a colorful visitor.

Also a colorful addition but not a very pleasant or desirable bird to have around was the blue jay.
 
And sometimes things even got a little crowded.  Here two fledgling bluebirds tried to get their baths in but were intruded on by this female cowbird.  (A cowbird is also a most undesirable feathered visitor.  Would you believe they don't even build nests or take care of their babies?  They lay their eggs in somebody else's nest after removing some of their eggs and allow an unsuspecting bird to not only hatch the eggs but raise the young.)

And speaking of undesirable, these blackbirds are not only unpleasant but I don't even think they're pretty with their beady yellow eyes and cantankerous ways.

So just to get back on an even and pleasant keel, we'll finish the birds segment of our post with this most desirable, delightful, and beautiful little bluebird singing in the sunshine.

 And finally, nothing says summer like fireworks.

 

For more 'Summer' shots, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry!

You Capture - Fun

Beth's You Capture subject this week is Fun. At first I pondered when I could get together with some of my grandchildren to take Fun pictures but since a relaxing visit wasn't on the horizon, I thought about what I do on a day-to-day basis that's fun.

One things that's always Fun is feeding our koi. Unfortunately it's a little early in the season to get great shots so these will just give an idea of how fun it is.

Right now, though, my go-to fun activity is photographing the birds in our backyard. I try to capture them in flight or in quirky poses or just going about their day-to-day businesses.

Or sometimes in a series. Starting here, the guys at the lunch counter must surely feel like somebody's watching them.

Soon he joins in - unobstrusively.

Then he takes over.

For see more Fun shots, go to Beth's I Should Be Folding Laundry. Or join in, what could be more Fun?

You Capture - Chilly

Beth's You Capture subject this week is Chilly. That sounded easy enough when I first read it but as our snowless, iceless, week wore on I started to realize I had to look for less obvious 'chilly'.

So I looked in the koi pond first. When the pond starts to freeze the fish begin to hibernate. They kind of lay on the bottom - not doing anything but, I guess, sleeping. And prior to that, when it gets 'chilly', they start practicing. Here they are - feeling chilly, getting ready for winter.

And then there was this vacant house. You can tell it's chilly by the bare branches and the fact that it's vacant.

My hydrangea blooms are chilly too.

And the fruit on the ornamental trees in back? Definitely chilly.

These lonely leaves are chilly.

But what could be more chilly than a boy in a refrigerator. Of course it's not all that chilly because it's not plugged in - but the idea is there. He's just chillin' in his new refrigerator.

For more You Capture Chilly pictures, visit Beth at I Should Be Folding Laundry.