My World is a Yellow Promise

Yellow bee on yellow Acacia Blossoms 3-2-09 by kathiesbirds

My World is a yellow promise of spring. A sunny golden wave that is moving slowly northward with the days to a waiting white world where winter is making it's last desperate gasp.

In My Yellow World the Dandelions play in glorious sunshine during the day...

And desert marigolds laugh at the blue sky vaulted above them...


...with a lesser goldfinch perched on the bare branched mesquite tree...

...and front yard bushes bursting with the golden promise of spring.

All of these photos were taken by Kathie on *Monday with the 35mm lens as the snow storm raged in the east. I couldn't help but wonder at the contrast of our weather and I well remember that feeling; like spring would never come. Well, here is the promise of spring. It is coming. By the time it reaches all of you up North, we will be into our "Dry Summer" in Arizona. It was amazing to me to learn after I moved here that Arizona actually has 5 seasons with Winter, Spring, Dry Summer, Monsoon and Autumn. We are entering the springtime now, but dry summer starts in May. June will be our hottest month and then, the Monsoon excitement will begin. For now I will enjoy these perfect days of spring with cool nights, warm days, and spring migration about to begin. It's going to get exciting around here really fast!

Click on the link to see more of MY World!

*desert marigold taken 2-14-09 by Kathiesbirds

Where've You Been

Male Gambel's Quail on Fence in Sycamore Canyon 3-2-09 by Kathiesbirds

As I sit here writing this post today a male Gambel’s quail is watching me as I watch him out my den window. The sun is shining brightly and I have the windows open to the warmth of the day. Our current temperature is running 20 degrees above normal. If it hits 91 today, we will break another record. The title for today’s post comes from a song I vaguely remember from my youth. I went searching on the internet and found the lyrics, but could only find it sung by Kathy Mattea. Does anyone out there know who sang it originally?

It’s been two years since Gus started at his new job down here in Tucson. He came about 3 weeks ahead of me as I stayed behind to help sell the house. With all the excitement of moving to a new place there is also the frustration of finding new doctors, dentists, and hairdressers. Gus and I put off this task for as long as possible, but finally we succumbed and started our search. For me, the dentist is always an anxiety ridden search. Having grown up poor during the 1960’s, my experience with dentists has been unpleasant to say the least. Most of my memories of dental work from my youth involve drills and lots of pain coupled with a distinct memory of being slapped in the face by a dentist. That would never happen now, but it did happen back then. As an adult I have had much better experiences with dentist and slowly my fear and anxiety have subsided. I loved my Utah dentist, and learned to trust him with my teeth. However, since moving to Tucson, the search for a new dentist has been a bit difficult and after trying one, I deiced to try another that Gus had gone to and liked.

On February 12th I went in for the replacement of 3 crowns. I knew it would be a long day, but I was looking forward to getting all the work over and done with in one visit. This dentist has a new procedure where they make Cerec crowns on premise with no temporary crown or return visits required. Sounded good to me! (Note: The dentist mentioned in the link is not the dentist I went to and had nothing to do with my experience!) However, my ordeal quickly degraded into a nightmare. The dentist who worked on me was just training on how to make these computer generated crowns. He, like most dentists, did not understand how quickly the Lidocaine wears off of me. Plus, he had another dentist training him on how to make these new fangled crowns. This so called “expert” was the one who jammed the new crown up into my exposed tooth pulp causing me such intense pain. After he left, my dentist continued to work on my other teeth. The end result was that I spent 8 ½ hours in the dentist chair in intense pain. By the end of the day my mouth was so sore I felt like I had spent 8 hours in a boxing match. I would have walked out, but they had 3 of my teeth out and I could only wait for them to be replaced. I left the dentist that day vowing to never go to another dentist in my life! Since then I have been in constant pain for over 2 ½ weeks. Anyone who knows me knows I do not like to take drugs of any sort, but I have not been able to get through a day without Advil. I did not know where to turn for help, but finally spoke with a friend whose husband is a dentist. He told me that in spite of my anger and fear, I needed to let this dentist repair the damage he had done. So, I swallowed my pride and fear and called them up and made an appointment. I took Gus with me as my advocate. The dentist readjusted my bite and wrote me a prescription for Ibuprofen. After being on that medication for 3 days I finally woke up feeling better yesterday. Though I am not pain free without the medication yet, I finally have hope that I will be soon. My new crowns look beautiful, but I paid for them with the most intense pain I have ever felt in my life.

My grandson, Xavier 10 months old 2-21-09 by Kathiesbirds

The last 2 weeks have been a blur of pain and other activities. I did babysit my new grandson for two days, during which we had long walks and lots of cuddles, but I couldn’t get anything done. Now I am playing catch up on house work and other necessary activities. The warm weather makes me want to garden. And the birds are starting to migrate. I saw my first Turkey Vulture of the year here in Sycamore Canyon yesterday, which means it just missed making it to my February yard count. It may have been here the day before, but I was not as Gus and I have spent the last 3 days of February running errands. My final count for the month was only 17 bird species, but I must say I was a bit distracted towards the end.

Gus points to the new light he installed 3-1-09 by Kathiesbirds

After living in this house for two years, we are finally making a few fixes that we wanted to. In the last two weeks Gus installed a new Ceiling fan in the den, and on Saturday evening he and I installed a new light over the dining room table. My next big project is to start landscaping the backyard and possibly the front yard. I hope this will provide more cover for the birds when the hawks come hunting. I hope to add plant species that will attract the birds and perhaps even entice a few to nest in my yard.

I will be writing my new MY World post right after this and hopefully I will be around to visit all my favorite blogs in between loads of laundry, washing the floor, and doing dishes! Oh, and I am also watching that Big Snow Storm on the East Coast and being grateful that I am wearing shorts and a tank top instead of snow boots and a parka today!

Skywatch Friday: Sunrise and Silhouette

Sunrise as seen from my backyard 2-26-09 at 6:44 a.m. MST by Kathiesbirds

Silhouette of a Say's Phoebe on my neighbor's rooftop 6:45 a.m. MST


View more amazing sky by clicking on the button above.

click on any photo to enlarge for the best view.

Sunny and 58 degrees Fahrenheit at 8:15 a.m.

I've been up since 2:30 a.m and unable to go back to sleep. Outside the night skies were charcoal black and peppered with pinpricks of starlight. Now the sun is up and a cool breeze is blowing through my window here in the den and with it the merry chirping of birds is mixed with the inquisitive sound of Gambel's quail talking to each other as they search for food. The seed block has long since been devoured and it's my task today to head off to the stores and purchase some seed to feed these ravenous winged creatures! I haven't seen any new species of birds in my yard since the pyrrhuloxia I spotted on the 17th, but spring migration is about to begin and life will get exciting here once again!

My World: Redhead or Canvasback?

Redhead and Canvasback at Reid Park in Tucson 1-5-09 by Kathiesbirds

My World is a world where shapes and silhouettes matter. When I am trying to identify a bird one of the first things I look at is the size and shape. Each species has its own unique profile as well as a different beak for a different purpose. I took this photo of a Redhead and Canvasback male ducks back in January. It wasn't until I was home that I realized what a perfect opportunity it is to show the difference and similarities between the two species. We see most of our ducks here in the wintertime at local lakes, ponds, reservoirs and Sewage Treatment Plants. We often get both of these species of duck. This photo shows the male of each species. The Redhead (average length 19") has a more rounded head, a gray back, and a gray bill with a black tip. Note the yellow eye also. However, the larger Canvasback (average length 21") has a more whitish body with a redhead that fades into black near the face. The canvasback also has a red eye. What is most distinctive, however,is the shape of that bill and forehead. Both species of duck are classified as diving ducks, but the redhead is known to dabble in the shallows at times.

Soon the spring migration will start and these two species will be flying north to their nesting grounds on wetlands and prairie potholes, but for now I get to enjoy them right here in the desert of Southeast Arizona where it is 85 degrees and breezy today. I have my windows open wide and I can hear the birds singing like crazy under slightly overcast skies. I think the refrain they are singing is, "Spring is coming, Spring is coming! and it's starting right here!"

Skywatch Friday: Downward to Darkness

Sycamore Canyon Sunset June, 2008 by Gus or Kathie

Deer Walk upon our mountains, and the quail

Whistle about us their spontaneous cries;

Sweet berries ripen in the wilderness;

And, in the isolation of the sky,

At evening, casual flocks of pigeons make

Ambiguous undulations as they sink,

Downward to darkness on extended wings.

From Sunday Morning by Wallace Stevens stanza VIII, Lines 114 -120

View more beautiful skies at

Skywatch Friday!













Gambel's Quail in Sycamore Canyon 2008 by Kathie

My World is a World of Wonder

Gambel's Quail 2-16-09 Corona de Tucson by Kathiesbirds

My World is a world of wonder. A world where birds greet me with merry chirps in the morning and sweet twitterings drift through my open window letting me know that I am alive and life is good. I smile to see the quail at the seed block, jockeying for position in their own version of King of the Mountain.

My World is a world of color where red Cardinals...

...and yellow Lesser Goldfinches come to the feeders,

...and where pink apple blossoms open with the promise of spring.

In My World of Wonder a Red-tailed hawk soars over the Santa Rita Mountains scooping my spirit up in its wings and carrying it high into the steel blue sky.

In My World of Wonder the amazing thing is when wonder creeps up on you unexpectedly, like it did on Saturday in Rio Rico where Gus and I scoured the countryside counting birds for the Great Backyard Bird Count. On the slopes of the San Cayentano Mountains, at a place we call Hawk Hill, the only birds we counted were two ravens and a Red-tailed Hawk. Every time we come here it seems there is one sitting on the utility pole, which is why I call this place Hawk Hill. It is late in the day as we arrive and we watch as the shadows deepen and fall across the valley only to swallow the hillside in darkness around us. We drive into town for a restroom break, and then, we return to watch the city lights from the mountainside as darkness descends.

As we drive up the dirt road in twilight our headlights illuminate the gravel road before us. I am still looking out the windows for birds when I see a thick shape at the top of a utility pole. I tell Gus to stop the car, because I think there is a Great Horned Owl up there, but at first he doesn’t believe me. He thinks it is the hawk. He stops the car so I can look through the binoculars at the large mass of feathers perched above us. Its thick head and neck with ear tufts reveals it to be just what I thought it was, a Great-horned Owl. I pass the binoculars to Gus so he can have a look, and as we are both watching through the windshield of the car the owl raises her hind end as if to vent when suddenly like a ghost another owl appears out of the dusk. Its wings form a massive canopy over the female as he lands on top of her fluttering. I think he is trying to get a foothold on the same pole as her before it dawns on me that I am witnessing the mating of two Great Horned owls! It is all over in less than 20 seconds and he is gone like the wind in the night. The female lowers her rump to the pole and assumes her upright perched position again. Gus and I sit there in wonder as we realize what we have just seen.

Though we try to get a photo of the owl on the pole, by now the darkness has deepened and she is too high up for even the flash to register her shape. We put the car in gear and continue up the mountainside to our favorite lookout spot. High on the side of the mountain the Rio Rico valley sparkles below us. We can see the lights all the way to Nogales and I must say the city lights have never twinkled so brightly. No wonder those owls had romance on their minds!

On Sunday I count birds in Corona de Tucson. I count birds at the schoolyard where I find a flock of Lark sparrows and one sweet-faced bird hops up for a look. Across the street I hear Killdeer call and then watch in awe as four white-bellied birds fly overhead, but it is the memory of the owls that lingers in my mind. So, I drive up the road to a steep dirt bank where I find another Great Horned Owl in a little cave.

Last year she nested here and raised a brood of 4 little owlets. Can she be sitting on eggs again already? What a Wonder that would be! I will check back on her again in a week or two, but as I drive away I am recalling the events of the night before and the wonder I felt as the phantom of the night flew in on silent wings to woo his mate.

GBBC Update: All of today's photos we taken during the GBBC and were birds that I counted and submitted on checklists. I missed counting most of Friday due to Doctor's appointments and other errands, but I counted Birds all day long on Saturday, Sunday and Monday. In the end I submitted 1 checklist for Tucson, 1 for Sahuarita, 8 for Rio Rico and 18 for Corona de Tucson. Last I checked I had submitted the only count of a Fox Sparrow in the whole state which I found scratching in the leaves under a tree near the Rio Rico ponds. I didn't get a photo because Gus had the camera and was photographing the ducks in the pond. It was a red variety and the first Fox sparrow I have seen in Arizona so it went on my Arizona Life list!

I'm Out Counting Birds!

Lark Sparrow, Corona de Tucson 2-15-09 by Kathiesbirds

The laundry is waiting to be folded. The sink is full of dishes, and the mail is waiting to be sorted, but I am out counting birds on this last day of the GBBC. I've been all over Corona de Tucson and Rio Rico counting birds. If you go to the GBBC website and click on Explore the Results you can check on results from all over the USA, including AZ and Corona de Tucson. Last I checked I was the only one counting in my area so all the birds listed are the ones I have counted!

Gotta go! I'll be around to see you all soon!