Old Glory to the rescue to thwart the robin!

It’s been way too long since I’ve sat down and put together a blog post, so one of my goals
for today is to do just that. Now it’s time to catch back up with what’s happening here as spring is in full force once again.

And springtime means yard work and getting everything that we dismantled (deck and patio furniture, planters, decorative ornamental hangings, etc.) and put away back in late fall dusted off and back in their proper places.

Now, as the days and weeks wear on through April, things are shaping up nicely around here. The grass all around is healthy and relatively free from various weeds and those persistent dandelions. The first applications of crabgrass preventer and early spring weed-n-feed have been applied.

We’ve mowed five times already and have added mulch to our backyard “triangle” that has the tall evergreen in the center. The colors of the daffodils and the tulips (that survived the rabbit assaults!) have been spectacular for the last couple of weeks.
When all of the yard tasks are finished, I enjoy sitting on the deck in the late afternoon with a cold drink, or in the early morning with a hot coffee, and watch the birds come and go to our two feeders and our neighbor’s finch feeders.

Those mornings when the sunshine is magnificent (which it has been for the past several days), there’s simply an overall feeling of nature coming alive and all the vestiges of winter cold eradicated.

Which brings us to the saga of the industrious robins who, for the last couple of springs, have built a nest in the tall evergreen out back. It’s a perfect spot, offering protection from the weather and other nosey creatures.

I’ve watched the nest-building on those mornings when I’m on the deck, and I find it cool how organized the robin “nest builders” are. While one bird goes out and forages for nest materials (grass, mud, cloth, etc.), another one–some distance away, yet on alert–watches to chase away any intruding bird who might have ideas about disturbing the nest in some way.

One morning a few days ago, I happened to notice one of those robins hanging around our deck several times. When I went out with coffee in hand, the bird flew out low over my head. I looked over to where it had come from and saw that it had been starting a nest on the top of our gas fireplace vent on the side of our house. The nest was pretty far along, too, so I knew I needed to get rid of it before Mama robin moved in to lay her eggs.

It is a perfect spot for a nest, I realized, as it’s surrounded on three sides and out of the way and protected from strong winds. The problem, however, is that we don’t want a bird building a nest so close to the deck where we’re going in and out. Also, we don’t want grass, mud, stones, and other nest materials clogging up the fireplace vent.

I figured I could remedy this quickly in its early stages by getting the broom and sweeping away the grass and mud that our industrious little friend had placed there. I even wedged an old shovel handle through the deck privacy wall in hopes that it would deter the robin from returning to build its nest.

All seemed satisfactory until the next morning when I checked it out, and the bird had re-started the nest, having deposited a good amount of grass once again. So, I repeated my earlier sweeping and put the handle back over the vent top, thinking that this time I’d surely discouraged the little red-breasted birdie!

Not so!

The robin was persistent, though, doing the same thing as before the following morning. Something more had to be done to deter the robin from nesting on our fireplace vent, and my creative juices were in overdrive.

What I came up with is as follows: Inside a coffee can I placed a heavy stone for weight and then punched a hole in the plastic lid just enough to fit a miniature American flag through. I hoped that the waving of Old Glory would keep the eager robin away, and the lid and can would keep the top of the vent covered and inaccessible to the robin. So far it has worked.

Each time I go outside, I check to make sure that the little flag is waving and no grass has been placed in or around the can on the vent.

I still see robins out and about, bouncing and bobbing right along on the green, green grass of home, and I’m pretty sure that one is nesting in the big evergreen as before.

But wherever they are, I wish them and their babies well–Just not next to our deck and on our fireplace vent!

Photo: learner.org

My yard work season opener…

Yesterday marked the beginning of that time of year which means that it’s time to break out the “tools of spring/summer” once again, and pick up right where we left off back in the fall: Yard work!

To some, it’s something to be dreaded, or at least not something one eagerly looks forward to. I guess I’m just happy to be outside again, doing “summer-y” things in late March, even if it’s nothing more than getting the mowers ready and tidying up the garage from winter’s debris.

A week ago, I put down the first lawn fertilizer/crabgrass preventer, which actually signaled the beginning of the yard work season. Yesterday, with the grass having grown enough, and the temperatures hovering around 60, I mowed our palatial estate.

Riding along on the bright green John Deere, I basked in the sunshine and realized how great it felt to be doing this all again—this being out in the fresh air and doing good things for the lawn!

I also realized that there is a lot more to be done in the days ahead: All of the chicken wire we put up around the bushes to thwart the bunnies this winter needs to be taken down and rolled up and stored away. There’s lots of edging to do along the driveway and sidewalk. And the trusty weed trimmer will need to come out of mothballs very soon in the days ahead.

But these are all wonderful “problems” to ponder while easily cruising along my course of cutting the grass for the first time this year.

Yep, there is something special about the start of a new season, even if it’s yard work! Anyone else agree with me? Disagree?

April in the wings, an elusive ending, and Deep Down Dark…

Roused from my work on my novel, I just realized that the blustery month of March is just about finished, which means that the annual guessing game as to what kind of weather we’ll be having around these parts is soon to begin. Will we be able to have morning coffee on the deck before much longer? This is critical, you know!

Yep, the calendar says that it’s officially spring, but we in northern Illinois know better than to put much stock in April’s arrival ushering in warm days full of blooming flowers and trees and lawns magically greening up. Instead, we can be sure that heavy jackets and hats will be necessary at times, which makes it rather difficult to become inspired to get out there and spread the first treatment of weed-n-feed or tend to the cluttered garage. But I’m steeling myself to get my spring tasks completed despite what Mother Nature will throw at us.

But, hark! April is waiting in the wings to give us at least an illusion that we’re through with the brunt of winter’s wrath and that those shorts-and-tee shirt-days are on the way. How soon, though, is the real question. The common saying around here is that the one thing that is predictable about spring weather is that it is quite unpredictable!

Now, I’ve done enough harping about the weather, so I’ll let it go and get back to work on that elusive conclusion to Birchwood’s Secret (originally titled Sandbar’s Secret). I’m resigned to the fact that a massive rewrite is in order for the conclusion to develop. And so it goes…

* * *

My writing struggles aside, I’ve also been reading a very stirring non-fiction book about the thirty-three Chilean miners who were trapped in a copper mine over 2,000 feet below ground in 2010. Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, October 2014) is one of those books that is good—yet challenging—for a claustrophobic such as I to read. Knowing that the outcome is a good one makes it a bit easier, yet author Héctor Tobar has created a good deal of nerve-racking tension throughout as he brings to light the stories of these unfortunate brave Chilean miners and their families. I recommend that one not read this book prior to going to bed, although it’s hard to put down.

How about you? Is there a book you’ve read that you’ve enjoyed, but yet made you squirm a bit?

We’ve turned the corner…

Hello, all. Time for only a quick post to wish everyone a “happy spring.” I’m happy to report that there is no more snow around here, and we have truly worked ourselves out of the throes of winter’s relentless grip. The robins have been bouncing and flitting about for the past week, and they are a wonderful sight, indeed!

I will be off for a “Mom visit” to Ohio tomorrow through Tuesday, and it should be pleasant driving. I always look forward to the drive out of Illinois, across the top of Indiana, and on to the northern coast of Ohio. This time of year, things are just beginning to spring to life once more after being buried under winter’s heavy blanket these past months. 

And speaking of travel, our next little sojourn is going to be in a couple of weeks when we’ll head down to the mountains of Waynesville, North Carolina, for a few days, then up to Elkins, West Virginia, to see a cousin, and then back to Athens County, Ohio, for a return genealogy “exploration” where we spent a few days snooping about a couple of years ago.

Lots of miles, but fun miles!

Now, without further delay, I’m off now to pack and to get the car washed and gassed up for tomorrow’s trek to Port Clinton, Ohio. Enjoy your weekend wherever you are! 🙂