A Full-time Life

SIUSLAW RIVER

 

We drove to Florence on a recent day trip.  It's on the Oregon Coast, but the prettiest views there (in my opinion) are of the Siuslaw River that flows through the town.   This is the beautiful art-deco bridge over that River, which is pronounced, as best as I can reproduce it, "Sigh ooh slaw."

 

 

 The flowers below are in a little pocket park with a great view of the Bridge.  

The rest of the text in this post is taken from an explanatory sign there.

 

 

 

 This River is named after the Siuslaw people ("Shaiyuushtla" in their language.) They lived along this river sustainably for thousands of years.  Carbon dating traces the oldest recorded site within the Siuslaw River area to around 8,000 years old.  

 

 

 

Descendants of the Shaiyusshtla people still live in this area within the Confederated Tribes of Coos, Lower Umpqua, and Siuslaw.

 

 

Grateful for the great gifts Iktatuu gives us all.

 

 

LINKING TO:  MOSAIC MONDAY; OUR WORLD on Tuesday; NATURE NOTES; and WEDNESDAY WATERS, 

 

Thank you to the hosts of each of these wonderful sharing opportunities. 

LEASH YOUR CHICKENS?

Bill first noticed this sign in front of a Feed Store on the busy highway we take when going into the City (Eugene).    He read it to me and we laughed thinking it was one of those sign typos.

 

 

 

We thought they had left out some punctuation  -- that they probably had chickens for sale and a harness and leash for some other reason.  (Our daughter and son-in-law have bought chickens and farm supplies at this store.)  We didn't have time for a photo-stop just then.  

A few days later, I was going in to town again -- with our daughter this time.  She needed to stop for chicken scratch and I told her  'Great.  If that sign is still there I'm going to get a funny picture.'    BUT ....  

 

 

.... while I was taking the sign picture and she was inside paying, she found this.

 Yes, believe it.  This old-fashioned Farm Store that has been there forever now sells Chicken Harnesses and leashes.    The guy taking her money shook his head and said  "City people raise chickens now.  What can I say?"

Here is a picture from the archives of a chicken that decidedly does NOT get walked on a leash:      

 

 

But she and her sisters and/or offspring -- or possibly some new chickens that our daughter and son-in-law bought from that very store -- do lay wonderful eggs!

 This one, Cyndi said, was a triple-yolk!   

 

 

 

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LINKING to Eileen's SATURDAY CRITTERS and (next Wednesday) Lesley's SIGNS SIGNS  .  Thank you both very much!!  

BIRDS OF THE WEEK

 

 

In spite of the smoky air this week, the birds put on a good show doing what birds do.  

 

 HUMMINGBIRDS were humming.

 

 

 

SWALLOWS were swallowing ... wait, well, maybe they were, but all I could really tell was that they were perching.  Which was a good thing.  Because they are usually flitting and flying and soaring so fast that I can't even think of getting a picture.  On this particular evening, there were eleven of them perched along this one wire.

 

 

And this rather scruffy LESSER GOLDFINCH was very definitely molting and grooming.

 

 

And for no reason whatsoever, except that I almost never get a picture of one, here's another shot of the same beautiful little hummer, who turned his head slightly before he flew away.       

 

 

SHARING WITH Stewart's WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY and RATHER B' BIRDING (hosted by Anni).    THANK YOU BOTH!!!

 

THIS WEEK AT THE LAKE

 If you should be planning to move to Lane County Oregon any time soon, it is important to know that picking your share of wild blackberries is practically the law here.  

 Of course I have been known to exaggerate before -- and this just might be one of those times.    But there really are a lot of these berries around.  And pretty much everybody who lives here does pick at least a handful during the season.

 

 These are Himalayan Blackberries and they are actually an invasive species here.  But I don't think they are ever going to go away entirely.   The ones here are growing along the Lake front where our RV is during the summer.   Oregon is also famous for growing Marionberries, a domestic offshoot of the wild berry -- those berries are bigger and far less seedy.    But the wild ones are free!  

When we lived in this area and had a houseful of growing children, we  used to pick tons and tons and tons of them (see exaggeration statement above).   They do freeze well -- and of course there was jam and ice cream syrup ....   but we don't do those anymore for just the two of us.   I take a little dish with me sometimes on morning walks and bring back fruit for our morning cereal.   That's all.  But that's fun too!  There is something wonderful about using the fruits of the land!  

 

 

The other and infinitely sadder thing about  our area is that we are living in a smoke-filled world this week.  We are completely safe, but the many many fires in the Pacific Northwest and certain weather conditions are sending smoke into the Valley where it is expected to hang around until at least mid-week.  

So it isn't a very nice time to be outdoors (they are advising that nobody walk outside and that older people  stay indoors).   

It is very much -- very very much  -- worse for other people in other parts of the Pacific Northwest.   (And that is NOT an exaggeration at all.)    We count our blessings and hope for better news on the fire and weather front.

(The sailing regatta pictures above were taken from our yard early last week (with a long lens) before the smoke moved in to the degree it has now.   These races are held on the other side of the lake near the local yacht club.  The water there is a bit deeper than it is on our side. )  

 

Linking this post to:   OUR WORLD (thank you to the team:  Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy, Arija, and Gattina); to MOSAIC MONDAY (thanks Judith);  to NATURE NOTES (thanks to Michelle); TREES and BUSHES (thanks Monica);  and to WEDNESDAY WATERS (thank you Gemma).  

BLAZING SUN/BLAZING SUNFLOWER

 

From our kitchen window, there's a great view of the next-door neighbor 's dark red sunflower.  I've never seen one  this fiery red before and its been fascinating to watch as the flowers turn their faces to the sun.   On many days,  the flower seems the brighter of the two.

 

 

 Instead of the golden sky that sunflowers usually remind me of, this plant reminds me of blazing sunsets -- such as we've more often in other places.  ...  Like the one below from the archives -- and a visit to the Florida Keys. 

 

 

 Blazing sun -- Blazing Sunflowers!

 

 

 

 

THANK YOU to the hosts of the following lovely memes:     SKYWATCH FRIDAY (Yogi, Sylvia, and Sandy);  TODAY'S FLOWERS  (hosted by Denise);  Gemma's MACRO MONDAY,   and Laura's I HEART MACRO.  

SWEET CREEK FALLS

A cool pool and a small waterfall were the reward at the end of a short hike to Sweet Creek Falls.

 

It's been so dry, we weren't sure there would be any falls at all at the end of the hike.  It's not as glorious as it would be if we'd had rain, but on a hot summer day, I'll take any waterfall at all! 

  

 

There was still some green, but lots of dry stuff underfoot.

 

 

 

The trail was kind of gnarly and dusty -- but it was worth it.   

 

 I like gazing at the tall trees  but it is good to stop when you look up (especially if, like me, you have trouble walking and chewing gum  taking pictures at the same time).  

 

Sweet Creek Falls is near Mapleton, Oregon.  

 

LINKING to NATURE NOTES; OUR WORLD; NF TREES ; and WEDNESDAY WATERS.

 THANK YOU to the hosts of each of these wonderful sharing opportunities!

 

Almost wordless WEEKEND COLLECTION

     

Just a few recent photos for a few favorite weekend memes.     

 

 

 

For  SCENIC WEEKENDS this view of the Pacific Ocean cliffs -- near Yachats  

 

 

 

For SATURDAY CRITTERS, this Western Grebe reflecting in what's left of the water in our nearby wetlands. 

 

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For TODAY'S FLOWERS another view of these wild beauties blooming profusely at the edge of the Pacific shore.    With wild flowers, there are no bad color combinations!

 

 

 

 

 And for RATHER BE BIRDING this California Gull surveying his Oregon kingdom (also near Yachats).  

 

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Thank you to the hosts of these fun sharing opportunities.  You are appreciated!!

THE LATCHSTRING IS ALWAYS OUT...

 

While at the Coast last week we had lunch at the charming Ona Restaurant.  The food was good.   And it was a lovely bonus to have a glimpse of ocean and blue sky from one window at our corner table and, from another, the garden where the restaurant raises some of its own herbs, greens, and flowers.   (It always gives you a good feeling about a restaurant when there are fresh flowers on the table.)

 

 

Bill was looking out the garden window when he said "oh, it's been a long time since I've seen a latchstring."    Although I'd  heard the saying ("Come on over, we'd love to have you visit -- the latchstring is always out"),  until that moment this town-raised girl had absolutely no idea what a latchstring actually was. 

 

 

So I learned about them from Bill (who was a country boy) and when we finished our delicious meal I went out to the garden to see for the first time how one worked ... and  took some more gate pictures.

 Here is a brief explanation from the Internet in case I'm not the only one in the world who didn't know:

" In the days before locks, doors were opened and closed with a latch mechanism. In order to ensure privacy and safety, the latch could only be lifted from the inside. If someone wanted to allow people to enter from the outside, a length of string was fastened to the latch and passed through a hole in the door so that visitors could open the latch from the outside. Leaving your latchstring out was a sign that all people were welcome in your home. " 

 

 

 There is always something new to learn in this world ... and, even when you've been eating meals together for over half a century, there is always something new to learn about each other and always something new to talk about over a good lunch. 

 

 

 

Linking to:  GOOD FENCES (thanks to Theresa of the RunAroundRanch)  

WE WENT TO SEE THE SEA

Last Tuesday, we drove over to the Coast.  It was our first visit to  the Pacific Ocean this year, and of course we found it  as beautiful as always.  Being close to the ocean was one of the best parts of living in Oregon all those years.    

 

 

It was a pretty day, but quite breezy.  The Central  Oregon Coast, as a rule, does not have the kind of beaches where you want to "lie out"  ...   On most days, you would probably turn blue before you got a suntan.

 

 

But it is so beautiful and untamed.  And on a Tuesday -- even in August -- fairly quiet.  It was hard to decide which view of the wild waves was my favorite.

 

 

On the Oregon Coast, the greenery grows right down to the edge of the Sea -- right down to the sand or rocks.

 

 

This is the path down to the shore at Cook's Chasm and Thor's Well.  It is between Florence and Yachats (pronounced YAhots).  

 

It was a great day at the Coast and we hope not our last visit of the season.

 

LINKING TO:  OUR WORLD on Tuesday (thanks to Lady Fi, Arija, Gattina, Sylvia, and Sandy); NATURE NOTES (thanks Michelle); Nature's Footsteps TREES AND BUSHES (thanks to Monica);  and to WEDNESDAY WATERS (thanks to Gemma).  

QUEEN ANNE'S LACE

Free for the taking, Queen Anne's lace marches in neat rows along our country road almost as if it had been planted.  

 

 

But this is a wildflower -- or a weed -- I'm never quite sure how to tell the difference.  At any rate, I don't have to feel guilty about (photo) 'stealing' these beauties from any of our neighbors.  They really are free for the taking.   

 

 

 

Easy to overlook, because they are so common -- just so 'always there.'  But see how delicate they are when you look closely.    This is the underneath side.

A reminder that even if  the sky is a bit gray and the birds refuse to pose (or even to show up) there is still always something lovely to see on a morning nature walk.

 

LINKING TO:  Denise's TODAY'S FLOWERS; to  MACRO MONDAY, hosted by Gemma and Magical Mystery Teacher; to Laura's I HEART MACRO; to Judith's MOSAIC MONDAY; and to Monica's (Nature Footstep) DIGITAL ART.   Thank you ladies for these fun memes.

COLORFUL MOON

 

It was a lovely warm evening 

 

 

 Perfect for sky-watching over the Lake.

 

 

 

 

So many colors.

Reds and golds ... 

and, because the moon rose early, we could still see the green bushes and trees.

 

 

But blue.  Blue was definitely the color of the evening!  

The sky still blue, the moon cast silver light making the water look bluer at almost dark  than it ever does in sunlight.

 

 

 

 And on this, the last night of July, even the moon itself was blue.

 

(When there are two full moons in the same month, the second one is known as a blue moon. ) 

 

Linking to SKYWATCH FRIDAY (thank you Yogi, Sylvia, and SCENIC WEEKENDS (thanks to Gemma).  

 

 

 

 

MORNING MOODS

 

Friday morning wetlands walk:

 

Other early risers:

 

 

Sunday morning,   just outside the door:

 

 

 

 We've been busy.

But morning walks start each day serenely.

 

Linking to:  MOSAIC MONDAY (Judith);  OUR WORLD (Lady Fi, Sylvia, Sandy, Gattina, Arija, Jenn);  NATURE NOTES (Michelle); WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY (Stewart); and WEDNESDAY WATERS (Gemma).  Thank you to all of the hosts.