A Full-time Life

I'M NOT REALLY A POLLYANNA ...

..... but I play one on this blog.    I do try to stay positive and  part of that is keeping this blog my "happy place."   That's harder to do some weeks than in others.

 

 

One thing I can do is  focus on is finding joy in the small ordinary beauty that can easily be  overlooked.   

 

 

 

 We are fortunate to live where we can walk safely in our own neighborhood (which has been OK since the beginning of "lockdown") and where we can see at least some of our family at a safe distance.   

 

 

But last week was one of those when maintaining my happy place really does feel very Pollyanna-ish.    (Does anyone else these days even know where that term comes from?)   Pollyanna was the ever-cheerful  title heroine of an old book -- written in 1911 (that was when my mother was a year old).    She was a happy girl through all her many travails.  She was meant to be someone to be admired, but because of her never-changing optimism, today the word has come to mean somebody who sees the good in everybody and everything--no matter what. That's not a good thing these days. We have to be aware of what's going on (and  do whatever we can to change it for the better, including voting!)  --

 

 

 

 

--   but still I do want to try to see the good in this world.   This picture is a screen-shot from a web-cam our oldest grandson and his wife have set up.  The robins have decided the top of their garage door is a great place to live.   So until the babies arrive, he says the garage door is currently off-limits for humans.  It delights me that my grandchildren care. 

 

 

Grateful that we are together in a safe place -- that we can get out in nature  and that we can  keep  in touch with family, if not in person then through texts, phone calls and pictures ...

... especially photos of the great-grandsons who are at the age where we're really missing a lot of changes.  Here is one of them texted by his mom, our older granddaughter.  

 

 

 Here's a picture of the Oregon coast from our younger granddaughter.  She writes that they are social distancing at the beach during some time off.  I was especially happy to receive this today (as I put this post together)  because I didn't get any of my own pictures of the sky last week.  

 

SHARING this week with the following:  Thank you to the hosts.

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;   ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;   THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS;  and  SATURDAY CRITTERS;   

UNDER -- AND AROUND -- THE OREGON SUN

 

Something new under around the sun this week!   

 

Well, new to us anyway!    Bill spotted this halo around the sun  while we were sitting outside talking to our daughter and son-in-law.   Then we all saw it  -- but were careful not to stare  directly. 

Here's a link to the Wiki article --  after we looked at the real thing, we all immediately went to our phones to learn more.    (I'm old enough to still marvel at the ability to do just that!)

    

 

It was a lovely week.   Light rain on and off, but lots of sun too.    We   had a wonderful time on the day we drove out to the country -- doing nothing much but the four of us sitting outside chatting.    The kind of thing that would have been an ordinary good day last year (or a few months ago, for that matter) -- but the kind I don't think I'll ever take for granted again.     

 

The main color scheme in their yard this week was centered around red. The pink dogwood I showed a couple of weeks ago is completely bare of flowers now  -- the petals on the ground have even disappeared.    

 

There was at least one stunning pastel rhododendron still in perfect full bloom!   Many of the rhodies around town have already lost their blossoms, making us again grateful that we got to tour Hendricks park while they were at their peak.   In C & J's yard, right next to this perfect one there was a bush that had completely faded:

 

We once met some people who moved to this part of Oregon from Southern California in late summer.  They asked us why every single yard here seemed to have  these big rather ungainly bushes.    We just told them to wait for next Spring!    They agreed later -- definitely worth the wait.   

 

Besides strolling around the acreage out in the country,  walks were in our own neighborhood.

 

 

This is actually the name of a development  in the neighborhood but it's an appropriate sign because unless we get rained out before we get there all our walking paths eventually lead to the Willamette River trails.

 

 

 

 This time of year, the walks along the trails TO the river are actually more scenic than the river itself.   

 

 

 

But it's good to have a goal on an everyday wander and getting to the river provides a good one.    I'm grateful to have these neighborhood trails close to the water.   And always happy for sunny spring days. 

 

And as always thankful to the hosts of these sharing opportunities where I'm linking this week:

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;   ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;  SIGNS SIGNS;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; and FRIDAY  BLISS   

RAINY WEEK IN OREGON

 

 

Both May showers and May flowers this week in Eugene.  Walks have been in the neighborhood.   Not even all the way down to the River.

Sticking to the city sidewalks is better in this weather -- fewer puddles  (and closer to home if -- when you get caught in a shower.

 

    Lots of purple and gold going on in our neighborhood --- 

 

Cyndi's photo

 

--- and out in the country.  The golden chain tree above is in our daughter and SIL's yard -- she texted it to us; we haven't tried to visit  recently because of the weather.  It will be nice when it warms up (and dries out)  so we can go talk to them outside and still maintain distancing.   

 

 

It was so wet around our neighborhood that this Mallard pair didn't even need to stay near the water.   Honestly when I saw them just off the sidewalk (top right photo) I thought they were yard ornaments.   As I got closer, the male raised his head to check me out.  I returned the gesture and got a portrait before walking on.   Neither bird even moved.   

Changing the subject completely below to a recent indoor activity:

 

 

 

Because of the recent press and controversy  about Vote By Mail, I thought I'd share a picture of our "voting booth" for Oregon's primary election this Tuesday.      Oregon has voted exclusively by mail since  1998, but  since 1981 at the discretion of each county.  HERE is the Wiki article with the history and a lot of other good information (it saves the state money, for one thing .)    I've never heard a thing about fraud.    I won't get into politics here any deeper than to say I have trouble understanding  why this system should not be OK in every state especially now when it could be a choice between voting or becoming ill.   Grateful to live here where we don’t have to make that choice,

 

VOTE! 

 

When they were ready to go, I put our ballots  under a magnet so we wouldn't forget to go to the box with them.    I was suddenly struck by the juxtaposition of the magnet's message and our ballots.   

Back to our usual programming for this final nature shot also from our daughter:

 

 

She sent  a picture of the birdhouse, with a resident!  ...
(one of these days .....)  

 

Linking this week to the following sharing opportunities.  Thank you to each of the hosts:

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;   ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;  SIGNS SIGNS;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY  BLISS;  and  SATURDAY CRITTERS; 

 

 

 

 

 

ccc

 

 

SERVING LEFT-OVERS THIS WEEK

 

We stayed at home last week.  But thankfully our photo archives have some fairly decent leftovers to fill up a post.   Or maybe I could call them planned-overs.  (That always sounds better when I'm talking about filling up with what remains in the refrigerator.)  

 

Hendricks Park, earlier this month

Although City Parks are open, the Parks Department has asked families to forgo the Eugene tradition of visiting Hendricks Park on Mother's Day.  They have a virtual tour on line.  We didn't even know it was a Mother's Day tradition and were glad we visited during an earlier and quieter week.   Since it is the height of the season, in normal times it would certainly be a perfect spot for  the day however.  So this turned out to be a  pretty good week to serve up the rest of our rhody tour.  Happy Mother's Day!  

Below are some leftovers from last month -- still good to go I think:  

 

Along a Missouri highway, April 2020 Road-trip

This Road Sign seemed appropriate not only for our April road-trip, but also for the times in general.  

There's actually more than just a street -- Peculiar is a City in Missouri.   The town motto is "Peculiar, where the 'odds' are with you."   I like it -- and its too bad that our peculiar circumstances didn't allow us to explore the area a little more!  

 

Burns RV Park, Eastern Oregon

A large covey of quail kept us entertained at one of our overnight stops on our April trip.     It's always nice when there are natural areas right near an RV Park.  We didn't even have to walk out of the Park to visit  this brambly area, where we saw (and heard) quail and   songbirds.    A relaxing way to end a day of driving.  

Now back to earlier this month: 

 

I thought that all the "not-rhododendron" pictures I took at Hendricks were  from the Native Plant Garden, but I wonder now about the top left picture!  Those look like Japanese Iris to me.   They do grow wild around here though -- there are some in the Pond area near our daughter's and also in their yard.   

 

 

I did take a lot of pictures of yellow rhody shrubs  -- because I had never seen them in that color before.  And because yellow flowers are always favorites for me.  Like spots of sunshine!!  

But who could ever grow tired of rhododendrons in their more traditional color palette:  

 

 

The glory of Spring  in Eugene!

 

 

 A paler shade of yellow

 

 

A  little blue sky peeking through behind this home in our daughter and son-in-law's neighborhood (really their backyard).    These neighbors were social-distancing last time I was there because they didn't even poke their heads out.  I'll try again next time!  

 

LINKING THIS WEEK to the following sharing opportunities.  Thank you to the hosts.  

MOSAIC MONDAY;  NATURE NOTES;   ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS;  SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; SIGNS SIGNS; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; FRIDAY  BLISS;  and  SATURDAY CRITTERS 

TWO GREAT WALKS IN ONE WEEK!

We certainly don't take simple things for granted these days!  Nature walks have always been a pleasure, but now just getting outside and away from home seems like a small miracle.  

We  took advantage of a couple pleasant days last week.   Wednesday (or maybe Tuesday -- they all kind of blend together) Bill and I drove to  Hendricks Park -- a  City Park that is famous (at least here in Eugene)  for its Rhododendron Gardens.   The Park is in the City's South Hills.  The picture below is looking down on the University of Oregon campus from a viewpoint in the park.

 

 

I played around a little with this picture because it was the kind of day where the hills and the sky all kind of blended together.  And I wanted to highlight the way our City is surrounded by hills.    I couldn't stop taking pictures of the beautiful flowers in the park -- here are a couple of them:

 

 

April and May are the best months for these showy flowers.  It was special to visit the Park during the peak season.  (We haven't been home this early in years and couldn't remember when we last visited the Rhododendron Gardens.)  

 

 

 

Most people in this area who garden have at least one Rhodie bush in their yard.  But the Park has varieties I don't ever remember seeing -- and it's beautiful to see so many of them in one place.       

   

 

There is also a Native Plant Garden and I have pictures from there as well as more Rhododendrons for another post.  But today I also want to remember last week's second "expedition" outside of our own neighborhood:               

 

The close-up of pink Dogwood blossoms above and the rest of today's post are from a walk out in the country.  Since we'd been self-isolating for three weeks (plus the time in the car/trailer on the way back to Oregon), our daughter said she thought it would be safe for me to go with her for a walk in the country.  I wore a mask (as both Bill and I did on our walk in the park earlier in the week).  And on this walk, my daughter and I practiced acceptable social distancing.   

 

 

I stayed outside in their yard and snapped pictures while I waited for Cyndi to get ready to go on our walk.   This is another view of their black walnut tree which, on this blog anyway, is becoming as famous as Eugene's rhododendrons.   

 

 

 More flowers from their yard --- wisteria, white tulips, the same Dogwood tree (which is actually in the neighbor's yard at the end of the driveway, but close enough to be in theirs for picture purposes.)   I think the wild growing bleeding heart and the wild iris are from later in the walk. 

 

 

We walked  to Kirk Pond on Fern Ridge Lake and on the paths through the wild area.   Lots of Spring wildflowers ...

 

 -- and  when we got to the Lake I spotted Grebes, Canada Geese (not shown), and this pair of Redhead Ducks.    The lower center picture is Cyndi with  Parker going into what looks like a longer tunnel than it is.  

 

 

It felt more natural to maintain acceptable distance while walking than it did when we talked to the kids from a distance back when we parked the trailer.     And it was even easier to maintain that distance toward the end of this five-mile walk.   I was lagging further behind than absolutely necessary by that time.   

 

 

The last part of the walk was along the top of Fern Ridge Dam and then back to their house (and the car to go home to mine).     We used to spend summers on Fern Ridge Lake but it has been a while since I took a "Dam Walk".    As always I enjoyed it.   

 

I'm so grateful that both these Parks are open -- and that the few other people we saw were also being careful.   And of course I'm always thankful for beautiful Spring days.    

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Thank you to the hosts of the following sharing opportunities, where I'm linking this week:

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;   ALL SEASONS;  MACRO MONDAY ;   NATURE NOTES;    THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;   SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;   FRIDAY  BLISS;   and   SATURDAY CRITTERS 

I FORGOT ABOUT OREGON RAIN

 

Spring rains in Oregon are different.   You KNOW when it's raining in Florida -- its noisy and the sky  darkens dramatically.  Here at home in Oregon the sky may still be light and, from inside, you might not even hear or see the rain.  

So you might step outside and get halfway down the block before you realize that the gentle sprinkle  has completely soaked through your light jacket and, worse,  your camera is in danger of drowning.

 

 

Another difference:  That dramatic rain in Florida will be over and done in a shortish  time (at least during the part of the year when we're there) and the sun will come out.  But -- as you walk  through the "Oregon Mist" you remember, from all the years you lived here,  that the rain here can last for hours and hours.  Maybe days.   And you need the walk, so you go on.                                       

 

 

And you remember that it's the rain that makes everything green and beautiful.  

 

 

There's a unique and wonderful special Spring Rain aroma that I'd almost forgotten about.   

 

I'd noticed the interesting blue flowering shrub above and the  perfect Bleeding Heart plant below when I took quick evening walks earlier in the week -- without a camera.  (And when it wasn't raining -- as it was on Saturday morning when I'd planned a long "photo-hunt" walk.)   Reminder to self:   take advantage of sunny hours whenever they arrive.

 

 

I  played with various zoom positions  focusing on this beautiful Bleeding Heart.  It's always been one of my favorite flowers.  It took a while because I was trying to shelter the camera and not leave it out for too long at a time.    I wondered if the person in the house would look out and wonder about the masked person standing in the rain staring at his/her home.  But nobody seemed to be there.   ....   well, no human anyway.  Because all of a sudden, I noticed a little motion :  

 

 

 A Hummingbird makes everything worthwhile!  

 

 

Flowering Plum Trees are out, but the bloom won't last much longer.   As soon as it rains, the ground all around the trees  is carpeted with the fallen blossoms.

It really was a great walk, in spite of the misty day.  My camera survived (although my paper CV mask was a little worse for wear).   I got some decent pictures -- and I remembered that rainy days are definitely not all bad!     

 

It's good to be home!

 

(Admittedly though, interesting skies  were a little scarce last week.  The above picture with a glimpse of blue is from our first day back -- two weeks ago now -- and was taken at our daughter and son-in-law's.  )

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THIS POST is linked to the following sharing opportunities:  Thank you to all of the hosts.

 

MOSAIC MONDAY; NATURE NOTES;  ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;    OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;    SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD;  WILD BIRD Wednesday;  THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;  FRIDAY  BLISS;    SATURDAY CRITTERS;  and RATHER B' BIRDING

 

 

ACROSS THE COUNTRY IN A PANDEMIC

Last morning walk of the season in Florida

We traveled 3,359 miles pulling a 13-foot travel trailer to get home to Oregon this month.  We did it in 12 nights -- the fastest we've ever driven across country.   It could have been a risky thing to do, but we thought it was our safest bet during this pandemic (and ultimately our decision turned out well.)

Getting from one place to another as quickly as possible is really not our thing -- we'd rather take time to smell the roses.  But taking our time was not an option this year. Fortunately we both like road trips, even just the 'on-the-road' part of them.  And this time, the trip itself at least gave us some challenges and new things to talk about during this time of isolation.      

 

(click to enlarge)

 

We drove from North Fort Myers Florida with these overnight stops: 

Ocala Florida, Elko Georgia, Jasper Alabama, Jonesboro Arkansas, Harrisonville Missouri, York Nebraska, Sidney Nebraska, Rawlins Wyoming, Declo Idaho, Burns Oregon, Blue River Oregon, and  then HOME!   

"We" didn't drive long days (Bill did all the driving) -- The longest driving day was 426 miles (going from Wyoming to Idaho).  The shortest was  the last -- 54 miles just because we didn't want to arrive home tired after a long day,  (The trailer had food in it!   And dirty clothes!  We had to unload it as soon as we got home.) 

  Here are some of the places where we stayed overnight:                                    .

 I don't usually take pictures of the RV Parks where we stay, but some days, especially toward the beginning of the trip, we didn't really  see anything else that was picture-worthy.   We had almost no problem finding open RV Parks and mostly saw nobody else while we were parked.  (This is unusual for RVers who are a friendly bunch as a rule.  We were glad it was different this time.)   Most of the parks handled registration  completely over the telephone.     

 

 

We didn't do any sightseeing, other than what we saw from the car window.  And we were on major highways all the time on this trip.  (In a normal travel year, we like to go off freeway as much as possible  --   the trip might take longer, but you see more.)   Some of the time it was just us and the truckers on the road!  Lots of trucks.  We are grateful that they are out doing their job  -- it is certainly an essential one now as always.

We did see interesting things through the windows sometimes though -- and occasionally I was even able to get a quick picture.   

 

Car window picture somewhere in Wyoming.

Wyoming was hard on both of us because we usually drive through it on our way to or from visiting our son and daughter-in-law in Colorado.   That was not to be this year, since at that time none of us knew for sure if we were virus-free.   We did appreciate the blue skies -- and that the roads were clear of ice and snow (we were lucky in our weather) -- and were glad that we were getting closer to home.

 

 

We were back in Oregon before I was able to get my 'first-mountain-of-the-season' picture.  Taking that picture is an annual tradition when we return to the West from the flatlands of Florida.   (In most years, that picture has  been taken in Colorado.)  On this trip, we began to see nice elevation on the horizon well before we hit the Oregon border, but this lonely road between Burns and Bend Oregon was the first good opportunity for a decent picture.   I don't think about missing mountains while we're in Florida -- but as soon as I see them when we come back I realize that I did!

The Mountains are always there whenever we return, but Spring flowers are usually gone by the time we get here.  So seeing them is one good thing about this year: 

 

All these lovely flowering trees and bushes were in the little RV Park where we stayed on the last night of the trip --- Blue River Oregon.  

And here's the first picture I took after we got home:

 

One of the gardens in Cyndi and Jeff's yard 

 

We'd already unloaded everything out of the trailer at home and then driven it out to the country to stash it on our gracious kids' property.    We talked to them at the prescribed safe distance and of course haven't yet been back as we're just ending our first week of self-isolating at home.     So we're communicating electronically just as if we were over 3,000 miles away instead of 20!    But at least we can do that. 

It's good to be home.

 

Linking this week to the following -- thank you to the hosts:

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;   ALL SEASONS;  THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS;  SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; SIGNS SIGNS; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY; and FRIDAY  BLISS;   

HOME

We arrived home safely early Saturday afternoon.   The rest of the tiny-trailer-trip went well.  We were careful and feel well and are now self-isolating in our town-house-type apartment, which feels quite large after the trip.  

Internet's not hooked up at home yet, so this will be short as I'm eating up data minutes using the phone as a hot-spot.

 

 

 

We had this view on the last night of our trip.  It is only a little over an hour from home on the McKenzie River, but we didn't want to arrive on Friday evening all tired out from too much traveling.    Especially because we had to unload the trailer at home before taking it empty out to the "storage space" our son-in-law and daughter kindly let us have at the back of their place in the country.   

It was good to see them as we unloaded -- and to talk to them at a safe distance with our masks on.   (Well, it would of course have been nicer to have been able to hug them hello, but under the circumstances I am grateful for what we got.)   

Now we'll keep busy for a few days sorting out all the stuff we unloaded -- and doing laundry.  Wow does that pile up in a couple of weeks!  

I look forward to having time to catch up with blogging soon and don't expect to be bored at all staying home - - at least for a while. 

 

LINKING to:  

  OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY  and  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD   

The Journey Home

The long long shakedown cruise with the short short trailer is proceeding without any problems that really matter (we forgot a few things, but we improvise).

 

Social distancing for sure ...  I haven’t spoken to anyone in person (besides Bill) since we left the Canal Cottage.   He wears mask and gloves when getting fuel.  We haven’t needed anything else (yet)

We’ve been able to walk around at RV parks without even seeng anyone else.  Most registrations have been handled by phone.  If not, Bill masks up.  

Some of the slow-to-accept-reality States are “shutting down”  behind us as we go .... Florida, Georgia, Arkansas and Missouri all just as we left (heard on local radio as we drove).   We are in Nebraska tonight.  

We are traveling faster than we ever have, but still not overdoing.  We reminisce as we drive past places we enjoyed years ago —  back in the days when we full-time RVed .  We are happy this time just to be getting home.

 

Comments are closed for this post.

 

 

HOPE and GRATITUDE

 

We have decided to head for home (in Oregon) a couple of months early, practicing social distancing while on the road.    It's actually hard to know what the best thing to do is under the current circumstances -- but when we weighed the options, this is what came out on top.   So we've been getting ready to close up the Canal Cottage -- a routine we go through every season, but usually not this early and usually not working this quickly.   Obviously, none of the pictures in this post are new.    

 

 

The sign is on a back-road in Big Cypress National Wildlife area.  We did NOT turn around then and I hope we will not wish we had on this trip.     Usually just keeping on works out pretty well for us.   

 

These Spring Flowers are blooming in yards here in the Florida resort where we spend the Winter/Spring season.  The pictures are from another year, but the same flowers (even the same potted plant) are blooming right now.     Spring is different here, but we enjoy it.  Most snowbirds go home  in late March or early April.  We enjoy the people, but also (in better years) the quiet after they leave.   We'll miss that, but it will be good to be closer to family after this trip.  I'm grateful we are able to travel between states.

 

 

These were  two neighborhood baby eagles a couple of years ago.   Actually, I guess, teenage eagles by this stage -- shortly after I took this pictures, they flew the nest never to return.   This year, the adult pair lost their first hatch and they now are incubating a second pair of eggs.    If the first hatch had been successful, the young ones would be flying away right now.  This pair has never had a second hatch before and like approximately a million other people worldwide, I'll be watching the webcam and hoping for success.  

 

 

We usually do some Florida exploring in April and May.  These are some of the birds we've seen on those trips in other years and were looking forward to seeing next month.    I'm quite sure the lack of audience won't bother the birds one bit .  Still,  I hope we get to be among their fans again -- in person --  next year.

 

Sunset over the wetlands that border our neighborhood 

 We'll be practicing  social distancing while on the road with our new (and very small)  travel trailer.    I hope to be able to keep in touch with other bloggers as we travel.   It is comforting in the midst of all this to touch base.   And to see the beauty that still exists in nature no matter what.  And to read about  how everybody is dealing with the social isolation and all the changes.   Reading your blogs makes everything more "real" than the news stories. 

(not my picture, not our trailer)

 

 I'm grateful that we have a relatively safe way to cover the distance  between here and Oregon (3,184 miles).  And, as always, I'm beyond grateful to "the travel planner" for making it possible.)  

 

And I'll really be grateful if that planner and I are still speaking to  each other by the time we get the Canal Cottage closed up and hit the road!   (We're definitely not practicing social distancing from each other right now as we work together  in two small spaces! ) 

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THANK YOU to all bloggers for keeping in touch with posts and comments -- and as always thank you to the hosts of the following sharing opportunities (which I hope to be able to link to on the appropriate days):

 

MOSAIC MONDAY;   ALL SEASONS; THROUGH MY LENS;   OUR WORLD ON TUESDAY;  TRAVEL PHOTO SOUVENIRS;    SAY CHEESE;  MY CORNER OF THE WORLD; WILD BIRD Wednesday;  SIGNS SIGNS; THANKFUL THURSDAY;  SKYWATCH FRIDAY;   FRIDAY  BLISS;    SATURDAY CRITTERS;  and RATHER B' BIRDING