Birds du jour

Weather west of the Mississippi is heartlessly rolling over us.

It's cold.

Without gloves or hat I took the camera and tripod out

to discover useful things about photographing these birds.

Today's results, in the order they came out of the camera:

A chickadee, taking away a seed from the ground.

A tufted titmouse. There were several of these today.

They were very, very wary.

A finch, eyeing me from above.

Another chickadee, on Laura's favorite feeder.

The feeder was presented free, a nice gesture after we made their day at the bird store.

Laura could select from red, green or blue.

She took the blue bird feeder.

She says bluebird feeder.

The titmouse. I'm too close, he left.

My wonderful little flying pigs.

They look like so many piglets. I count eight.

Finches, that is.

Three more flying pigs, waiting a turn.

I heard doves, and an obnoxious blue jay sat in a tree across the street, crying danger, danger, danger most of the hour I sat and froze. It certainly did not add to the titmouse's comfort level.

I expect we also will have several varieties of woodpecker, juncos, nuthatches, cardinals. Already I've also watched fat chipmunks and squirrels filling their cheeks with seeds from the ground. I believe we have a going enterprise here.

We fed the birds for several years, long ago, but quit because our indoor/outdoor cats took advantage, as they would. Now only old Purrl is an outdoor cat, a mighty stiff legged old cat who brings home the occasional mouse, and is no longer a terror to the increasingly fat chipmunks hurrying about on chipmunk business.

Only the robin worm feeder is a disappointment. I'll have Laura put the worms in the compost pile and we'll begin again with orange slices, to see if there are any takers. And, for tomorrow I have a story about worms and Laura's  mother.