Replaced

Hummingbird Feeder Replaced

I've been feeding hummingbirds for 3 years now. Exposure to the weather, and especially direct sunlight, has taken a toll on my feeder. It worked well, but it's time for a new one.

Here are a few photos taken during the last 3 years while using my first hummer feeder.

Female Anna's Hummingbird

Lucky capture. Hummers don't like to share a feeder.
Occasionally they will and it's unusual to see 3 at once.

My favorite photo snapped at sunset.

And now, my new feeder ...

In use now for about 3 weeks and it does seem to
be popular with the little birds.

How do you like the looks of the new feeder?

Linking up with Saturday's Critters ... check it out.

Power of Nature - Tides

 Power of the Tides

Looking out my window, in the morning,
 I see a ship anchored in Puget Sound.

Looking out again, mid-day, the ship has
 turned about 90 degrees. What moves a big
ship around like this? There isn't much wind.
Answer: the tide.
Looking at a chart, I see the tide is falling and the
water is flowing out of Puget Sound.

One more look ... late afternoon.
The ship has turned 180 degrees.
The tide is rising, the water is flowing in
 and moving the ship around the anchor. 
Just another example of nature at work.

For orientation, here is a map of the region. The tidal flow
is from the Pacific Ocean into the Strait of Juan de Fuca and
then into Puget Sound. It all reverses when the tide flows out.

With and Without Clouds

Which do you prefer?

With clouds ...

Clouds are pretty but no mountains.
October 3rd
(First picture in my previous post.)

No clouds ...

Looking west over Puget Sound
to the Olympic Mountains
October 5th

A little of both ...

Clouds and mountains ... October 6th

Colorful

Last night's sunset.

Looking west from Seattle over Puget Sound
October 3, 2023  6:58PM

A neighbor's tree.

Driving by, I thought this tree to be a real beauty.
Had to go around the block, stop, and snap a pic.
October 4, 2023

Downsizing

 Keep it or toss it?

I've got a stack of 45RPM records.
Remember these?
This one is a favorite. 😊

Back in the days, this is how it looked.
Maybe she is listening to 
The Wayward Wind
by Gogi Grant

It's hard to just toss these old records in the trash, and it's time consuming to try selling them online. The decision is even more complicated by knowing I can simply use a few clicks to listen on YouTube. Any suggestions?

Full Harvest Moon

 September 29 - Full Harvest Moon

Breaks in some thin clouds allowed this snap
of the Full Moon this morning about 6:30AM.

The Full Moon this morning was almost due west when
I snapped this photo, about an hour before moonset.
Moonlight is reflecting off Puget Sound. In the lower part
of the image is the Ovation of the Seas cruise ship which
arrived at Pier 91 moments earlier. The red beacon tops the
86 meter (282 foot) mast of the M5 Yacht

In the days before the Internet the Old Farmer's Almanac
provided moon watching info.

Power of Nature

 Cottonwood Tree Experiment

While John's Island has been on break, John continued the Cottonwood Tree Experiment started in our last post, June 21st

Here's the story of how a Western Cottonwood Tree grows ...

Handful of Western Cottonwood Tree Seeds

One tiny Cottonwood Tree seed

Seeds planted May 28th

Seedlings appear ... May 30th

About 3 weeks later ... June 22nd

July 3rd ... Already a couple thinned out
(36 days after planting)

About 2 weeks later ... ONE tree transplanted into
larger container ... July 18th
(51 days after planting)

August 13th ... 77 days after planting.

Today, September 26, 2023
after a nice refreshing rainfall
121 days after planting
(or almost 4 months)

Watching this experiment, I have been most impressed with realizing ALL the information needed, for nature to create the plant you see in the image above, is in that one tiny seed that was planted almost 4 months ago. That is the power of nature!