Finally … back-to-back days brimming with sunshine, which made for two perfect walks in my favorite nature nook. I was happy that I could have belted out “Hail, Hail, the Gang’s All Here!” That would be for my furry friends only, because most of the walkers are still at large. I was at Council Point Park for over three hours this morning, between walking, doling out peanuts and taking pictures. So, I have decided to run down the alphabet from “A” to “Z” to tell you what I experienced today with my eyes and ears:
A is for AMBIANCE. Ahh, this venue never disappoints and I got there early enough that I had the Park to myself … just the critters and me.
B is for BIRDSONG. The first noise I heard as I stepped on the perimeter path this morning was a Red-Winged Blackbird and that was music to my ears. Once the marshy area comes alive again, the Red-Winged Blackbird is a staple among the reeds with his identifiable call. Hearing it gave me newfound hope that Spring, still eleven days away on the calendar, may actually be waiting in the wings after all.
C is for COLD. Yes, the sky was bright blue and the sun was shining, but it was mighty cold. I was dressed for the 21 degrees F (-6 C) temps, but that wind was whipping around at 16 mph (25 kph).
D is for DRAB AND DESOLATE. We have had a wacky Winter season. Last Winter we had 62 inches (157 cm) of snow and we still had snow in early April. This year, it’s not been the snow, as much as the ice and cold. It clears up nicely, bare pavement once again, and then we get more snow, but it is usually a wintry precip which causes accidents and Your Roving Reporter to venture no farther than the driveway. Winter has left its mark on the Park as well, and it looks rather drab and desolate these days.
E is for ENCOUNTERS OF THE WEIRD KIND. The first time I went around the perimeter path this morning, I had an usual cast of characters scrambling for peanuts – no, not just the squirrels, but Cardinals, Blue Jays and the aforementioned Red-Winged Blackbird. At one time, three different birds and the squirrels were noshing nuts along the perimeter path. I took some pictures, but this was my favorite of a bird and squirrel who were almost too close for comfort, don’t you think?
F is for FURRY FRIENDS. Of course no walk at Council Point Park would be complete without a few squirrel photos thrown in. I wavered on how many is too many squirrel pictures (I know … they all look alike sometimes) and settled on these. Yes, only three photos, but … there are some photos of Parker coming up later in the post.
G is for GEESE. About an hour after I arrived a huge flock of geese flew overhead, honking their heads off. They were impressive in perfect V-formation. Their signal caller said “land here!” Suddenly, there they were about twenty feet from me. They regrouped and began to graze. These are just a fraction of the gaggle. I suspect the cold ground was bothering their feet as many of the geese were standing on one leg. I tried that stance when the bus was late in the Winter and it didn’t help one iota.
H is for HAZE AND FREEZING FOG. Early this morning when I first got up, there was a freezing fog advisory. “Oh great!” I thought. I originally planned to go here as well as Heritage Park, but decided to just stick close to home. You can see the haze that remained despite the sun breaking through. The grass was coated with a light frost and the asphalt path was slick in some places.
I is for ICE. This ice is just not nice! We had frigid temps this week when the mercury dipped way below zero for the air temp, not just the wind chill. The ice on the Ecorse Creek remains frozen solid and there were no visible breaks in the ice where ducks could swim. The powdery snow from Sunday afternoon settled onto the ice and stayed there when we got the precipitation later in the day – ugh for Winter!
J is for JAY. Peanuts on the pathway for the squirrels tempted several birds to come down and snatch a few, just like what happens on my front porch. You already saw the Red-Winged Blackbird with the squirrel, but the Blue Jay was eyeing those peanuts from his high perch above. He swooped down when the coast was clear.
K is for KILL THEM WITH KINDNESS. Yesterday I was greeted with a passel of hungry squirrels and today as well. The ground is frozen and I wonder if their new benefactor is away on vacation? I was hoping to meet this person, based on the description I was given, but saw no one yesterday or today. So, as to my furry friends, I decided to kill them with kindness. By the third time around today, they no longer came to see me. The peanuts were gone – they were all filled up and tucked back in their nests. I left more peanuts on the picnic table since tomorrow is not promising for a walk.
L is for LINDA AND PARKERS’ SHADOWS. Last year since we had so many rainy weekends, for a while I’d count each sunny day as a “good shadow day” … well, from the header photo, you see it was a brilliant blue sky. The bright sun made it a good shadow day and, while shadows are not exactly stellar when you are trying to get a good picture, they are good examples of Parker dancing around me in anticipation of peanuts.
M is for MYSTERY BIRD. I can I.D. most of the common birds around the ‘hood and the Park, but a small bird alighted in a nearby tree. The sun was so strong, I was merely pointing the camera and clicking away at the Jay and this bird and hoping for the best. I couldn’t identify it, nor its song, but this fellow studied my every move and did not come to the path for peanuts.
N is for NUISANCE. I’ve decided that cold weather is a nuisance when picture-taking in the Winter, because juggling peanuts, the camera and heavy gloves is definitely not for amateurs.
O is for OMG – PAVEMENT CRACKS! This freeze/thaw cycle we’ve had all Winter has been bad for the roads. I showed you one of Michigan’s car-swallowing potholes a few weeks ago – this large crack in the perimeter path has just happened in the last week.
P is for PARKER. Of course, I had to include some photos of my favorite Park pal who rates his own letter of the alphabet. Yesterday and today Parker caught up with me on the perimeter path. I think he, and the other squirrels, came down from their nests because there were no squirrels at ground level when I arrived. It’s nice to know I still rate a personal visit with my frequent absences due to the icy walking conditions in the ‘hood.
Q is for QUIET. The first hour of my visit was peaceful. I love it when the only thing I hear are the peanuts being cracked, the Sparrows murmuring and the other birds calling. Even the Red-Bellied Woodpecker was silent as I made my way around the path. Harry the Heron was not in residence, nor were there ducks or swans. The peace of the Park was welcoming, and, as I passed the half-submerged log where the painted turtles sun themselves all Summer, I wondered how many weeks before I hear them plopping into the water, one by one, when I get too close to the Creek banks?
R is for RED-WINGED BLACKBIRD AND ROBIN. I mentioned this fellow already. He followed me around as I was dispensing peanuts and made it a point to abscond with a few while the squirrels were not watching their stash. Though I enjoy hearing his call, I’m not always enamored with the Red-Winged Blackbird who often is a bully to the other birds. Last year he tried to steal the Robin’s eggs, then the hatchlings. I watched him duke it out with Mama Robin a few times and had to intercede and chase him off. He’s picked a fight with the geese as well. There is one in every crowd it seems. As for the Robin, I think the Robins returned to Michigan too early this year. They are also a welcome sight, but I’ve been seeing them for almost two months now.
S is for SNOW. I wonder how many more times I’ll be posting snow pictures – it would be nice if this was it until late 2019, but I fear that is not the case. The dregs of the last snow were still around, even in the tree hollows.
T is for TREES WITH BUDS. Besides noticing the progress of the Snowdrops as I walked past them, it was promising to see the buds on some of the trees.
U is for UV RAYS. The sunlight was so bright, especially glinting off the snow, that I had to shoot blindly a few times, especially the birds in the trees. I’m not complaining after our consistent gray and gloomy weather.
V is for VICTORY. I did five miles today! It all helps toward my walking goal of 1,242 miles (2,000 kilometers). Onward and upward!
W X Y Z is for the WEATHER IS NOT NICE TONIGHT! I’d like to just X out the forecast – we have torrential rain, probably an inch or more, plus thunderstorms and 45-50 mph winds tomorrow. It is pouring as I write this post and the winds are quite gusty. Y are you doing this to us Mother Nature? So, I guess we’ll stay home and catch up on our ZZZs we will lose tonight when we Spring forward.
Mother Nature did a good job up until now – and therein is where the asterisk lies.
Linda Schaub
WALKIN', WRITIN', WIT & WHIMSY 
Miss linda……………………..this was a pre-spring blog…………………………look at all of the birds that were around…………………………..and i love Mr Parker and your shadows……………………………….yes I agree…………..ugh for winter!
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It was so nice to hear that Red-Winged Blackbird – that really reminded me of Summer Ann Marie. There were more Robins in the tree, but they were sitting too far apart. And two more on the ground. Bet they are sorry they didn’t stay where they overwintered!
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That was wonderfully creative Linda! esp WXYZ! I so enjoyed seeing the pictures of the robins against the blue sky and the blue-jay. I have not seen any robins here at all. Happy to see Parker is not boycotting you – he still looks fat and fluffy. When there is a wind storm like tonight, I worry about their nests being blown out of the trees? I don’t know if you have daylight savings time there, but clocks ahead one hour tonight…..
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Thank you Joan – I decided I had better not dedicate another post to just squirrels and I took my time walking around to capture some other scenes. How nice to see the birds in the trees against the blue sky. I would have liked the blue jay to look at me, but they are headstrong and shooting into the sun I didn’t even know if the blue jay or mystery bird would come out in the picture. I still wonder about the other little bird. I thought a baby jay but he was singing and it was not the jay’s screech and he didn’t go down to eat peanuts. I had hoped to go to Heritage Park, the historical village with the duck pond, but stayed away due to the freezing fog. Then I was going to to stop at this Park beforehand and use those shots today – I knew I was not going out today. We have winds gusting to 25 mph now and going to 45 mph later and a high wind advisory in effect until 4:00 p.m. Parker and his pals really don’t look any the worse for the wear for this cold and blustery and icy Winter. I’ve usually made it down there many more times that I have. I was just watching the trees across the street from me when I put out peanuts – the trees were swaying back and forth and I also wondered about the nests but I think they fasten them with mud – how they do it is amazing to me. Yes we have daylight savings time too and I slept in a little later as I knew I was not going out, but it seems to me half the morning is gone already. I usually get up much earlier. I have to play with moving around things today for reconfiguring the computer area and am hoping we don’t lose power.
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I was going to say Parker looks trim but smiley- so I am happy- how to you know this is not Impy though?
Loved the Alphabet post. The snow on the sides look beautiful, and the contrasting colours of the day reminded me of a cake with frosting just waiting to be eaten- the blue sky accounting for a good cake baking day and the ice and for the frosting. I would like to bit into a well frosted cake with a thick layer of cake, without the feeling of guilt that usually follows such indulgences.
I am glad you got your 5 miles in, Linda. Hope you got your zzzs too.
Susie
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I am skeptical all the time now Susie … the other squirrels learned that dancing around me for peanuts is going to get them more and/or following me around the Park will yield more treats. Parker usually is the first one to come up to me, but he did not do so in the parking lot today. I guess this is because there is no foraging in the ground for buried treats … we had very brutally cold weather for three days in a row and after that spell, it continued to be cold. I watched them try to dig holes for the peanuts I gave them yesterday and they could not as the ground is too solid. We have had rain since last night but even with a little milder temps, it won’t help as the wind is gusting mightily and will dry up the ground before it soaks in. We have flood warnings up and runoff problems since the rain has nowhere to go. Impy did have a blacker nose and fur but I didn’t notice it that first time. It was a good walk, though I had on the hiking boots and they are not comfortable – two years and cannot get them broken in yet but because of the frozen precipitation we had on Thursday morning, the pathway still had patches of ice on it and frost on the grass made it slick so I knew enough to wear them. I slept in later today as we lost an hour of time and I knew I would not be walking due to the high winds. The doctors here make a big deal out of the lost hour of sleep – they claim it causes accidents (car and industrial) and heart attacks and strokes and is bad for children’s concentration. I am sorry, but I cannot see that … they say it disturbs your circadian rhythm and they want to abolish daylight saving time – a lawmaker has brought it up again. Have to go around and adjust all the clocks. I won’t do the digitals until end of the day due to the high winds which may make the digitals go out momentarily and then I’ll have to reset them anyway.
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This post is absolutely gorgeous!!!!! I love doing with a – z. Z is for zany and zestful posts that Victorious and make me smile.
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I should have called upon you for suggestions Eliza – I had a difficult time thinking of a “U” word as it was.
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Unbelievable.
Unforgettable.
Upside/down
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Next time you/I have a consult before I publish a post. These are better than UV rays! 🙂
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🙂 I love helping others write for when I write myself I feel like I freak out, not when I do for others.
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Well you came up with lots of different words Eliza – I was racking my brains for “U” words. You will get a kick out of the words I tried to use to describe drivers today. I wanted to use the word “yakker” (I hope that is how you spell a person who talks a lot) and today’s blog had all pictures from last Saturday, but I didn’t have any where the squirrel’s mouth was open for “yakking” … I thought I could use an older photo instead but couldn’t find one. Sometimes they get their treats and their eyes light up. It is really sweet to watch them. 🙂
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Yeah, I’ll check it out later. I enjoy reading what you write…
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Thanks Eliza – hope it gives you a giggle. Words of advice for when you start venturing out once it gets warmer and Spring-ier.
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Delightful and fun post. I don’t like springing forward but finding this cleverness this morning makes it all better. Thanks.
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You’re welcome Ally! I didn’t like the DST switch either as it was lighter in the morning and we were finally about to turn a corner with the weather so I might get a longer walk in the a.m. – I don’t like going at night as I don’t always leave work early enough. Grrrr.
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Such a beautifully creative post ❤ Great description of the beauty to be found in nature. Loved the w, x, y and z too and hope you had plenty of well deserved zzzz’s ❤
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Thanks Zena – As I walked through the Park yesterday, I decided there must be enough at the Park to sustain a list of A-Z items and the bad weather and Daylight Savings Time made it work out well for the last four letters. I would have been hard pressed to find W, X, Y and Z words. It was so nice to see the robin in the tree, and the tree was full of buds. That header photo hardly matched the photos in the snow and ice.
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wow so much going on suddenly! Gorgeous pics
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Thanks Michael – the photo up top even looks like Spring may have sprung, until you scroll down and see the snow and ice. Hopefully it is not far off now. I can’t wait!
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You are so clever! Gorgeous pictures.
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Thanks Diane – I thought I would do something different after seeing so many things there on my long walk, plus the robins and buds made it seem like Spring! Glad you liked this post and the pictures.
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I took my client to the State Fish Hatchery yesterday and we took bread to feed the trout. We drove around the road and saw a bald eagle and a blue heron. I thought of you…lol
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You’ll be wanting to start a second blog pretty soon about all the nature places you go with your clients … like the spitting alpaca you told me about. 🙂
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Love your alphabet- you’re so creative! Yay for another five miles!
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Thanks AJ – Glad you liked it. I thought I’d do something different as I spent so long at the Park that morning – woo hoo … five miles and haven’t done that in a while. I walked again this morning – beautiful, but cold, but ice on the path from all the rain yesterday … had to do some steppin’ around it.
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That’s awesome you’re getting more miles in. I got out again today too but it’s calling for snow tonight
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I can’t “like” that – snow again for you! You are Winter weary like we are. I follow a blogger who lives in Wisconsin and it seems every day they get 6 or 8 or more inches of snow – just amazing. I knew Wisconsin got a lot of snow but never knew just how much til I saw her photos.
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Ours is thankfully melting quickly most places though I do have a couple sidewalks on my daily walk to work they are still deep in snow and ice:(
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The ice is the worst … our ice this year has halted my walking many times. I would walk in snow if the sidewalks are clear … at the Park, even when they didn’t clear the path, I just walked on the grass next to the path.
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Yes I really don’t like ice!!!
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At least I see some blue skies. 🙂
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That blue sky was promising – it makes a big difference when you’re used to it looking so dismal out there.
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Such a creative post!!! Love this. Also, how neat that you saw a little mystery bird. Are you thinking of giving it a name? Also, yay for sunshine!!
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Thanks Mackenzie – I thought I’d try something different and had some fun with that morning’s pictures. You know I should name him if I see him again. He was very cute and all puffed up because it was so cold and windy. The sunshine was great, had it today and will have it tomorrow too.
We will have 64 degrees on Thursday, one day only, like a Kmart Blue-Light Special.
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lol- “a kmart blue light special” that made me giggle! ENJOY that 64 degrees!!
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Fun post! Parker definitely deserves his own letter. I love when we switch the clocks to DST since it means that spring is ready to burst forth. I feel for those who have to go to work in the dark but, since I’m retired, I just sleep through all that unpleasantness 🙃
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Glad you liked it Janis … I thought I’d try a different twist to my usual Park post. It was great to see the robins and blue sky … that made me think Spring. Yes, with longer evenings, it tells you we are headed toward warmer days (finally). It is still light enough to get four miles in before work, maybe five if it is a sunny morning. We will have 64 degrees Thursday, a one-day event, but it will feel great!
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The ABC’s XYZ.. lol What a creative post today Linda what a great read for my Monday! M mystery bird i’m guessing is either a kinglet or a baby catbird. I’m leaning more towards kinglet because they are tiny birds. if it was bigger it was a catbird and they sound like a cat.
I’m so happy you hear the red winged blackbird that is a positive sign old man winter might be heading north!! One can hope.
I went out to Toledo area for some hiking prior to the rain. I guess there are some rare things likes plants and birds in that one spot. I wasn’t lucky to see anything but an eastern blue bird and a pileated woodpecker .. and those are some of my favorites!! but the park is free and i was 120% impressed with the area!!
You and parker seem to have quite a relationship there. Can you tell the difference between parker and the rest of the crew? if so what are the tells for you?
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Hi Pril – I just Googled for images kinglet as I’d never seen one before and I’ll bet you are right, the same coloring and the beak looks the same. It was making these dainty little noises and I think it is too early for baby birds, and the kinglet is small, so that makes sense. That was a first for me.
I’ve never seen a bluebird – ever!
I was at Lake Erie Metropark last Summer and walking along with a guy who was pushing his dogs in a covered stroller (it was quite hot and he walks there twice a day so they were on their second walk of the day). He told me someone built a lot of bluebird boxes for nesting and they were full of bluebirds and this guy placed them around the Park. So I was hopeful to see one, but have not.
The park in Toledo sounds nice … I know they have a Metroparks system in Ohio as a fellow blogger lives there and mentions going to some maybe on Lake Erie?
Parker is a real cutie … in the Summer months he meets me at the parking lot when I get to the Council Point Park. Most days I walk there and he sees me coming and I think figures he’ll get me before I run out of peanuts. He will dance around and stand on his hind legs trying to reach my pocket where he knows I keep the peanuts in a Ziploc bag. In the Summer months I hang a mesh bag off my fanny pack and stick the Ziploc bag inside the mesh bag – he will try hopping up to reach it. I had to stop him once, he was trying to scale my bare leg as I had on shorts. He is the only one who goes to that extreme, but a few months ago there was an imposter who hit me up for peanuts in the same location, but acted a little different and after I got home and uploaded the pics I noticed how dark his nose was (darker than usual) … he was an imposter. If Parker doesn’t nab me in the parking lot, he comes running when I get to the pavilion near the start of the perimeter path. Sometimes if I drive, he will wait at the car to catch me (a second time) before I go home. He’s got personality plus!
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This post is wonderful, Linda! Just what I needed!! Despite looking all the same, I know from watching the squirrels around here that they each have their own personality, move around and behave differently and yes, some have distinct markings. There’s a new squirrel visiting the garden and s/he has a completely different attitude, and a spring in it’s step. Super playful and acrobatic too. I’m glad you finally got some happy walking in!
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Glad you liked this post Sabine … I saw so many things at the Park that morning, besides just the squirrels, I decided to try a different type of post. It was so nice to see robins and I thought of your robins as there were three in the tree, and several on the ground. They must have been traveling companions. Nothing like the huge crowd you had in your yard though. The squirrels do have different personalities and someone just asked me how I could distinguish Parker from the rest, and you’re right – it is all about the personalities, The squirrel who lost half his tail has some new “fluff” growing in, so I’ll be looking to see if it reaches full length again or stays semi-bobbed. 🙂 I enjoyed that walk and today was nice as will be tomorrow … cold but clear is nice for walking. We have 64 degrees Thursday but it is a one-day deal for us unfortunately.
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Spring is definitely in the air! We had gorgeous sunshine yesterday and the forest came alive while I drank my coffee outside on the deck. I think it’s (spring) is headed in your direction! After a winter like you had, you deserve an early spring! 😉
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Thanks Sabine – I think so too. This year, the ice and cold really got to me. I deal with 62 inches of snow better last year, though I thought if I shoveled any more of it, I’d lose my mind. I like this time of year, when everything starts to come alive. It was a gorgeous day today … bright blue sky and just made you feel good.
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The sun has come out here as well, Linda. Even though we don’t get such wicked temps as you do, our grey and drizzly winters get old too. Fortunately spring is springing around here! 😊
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I just looked outside as we have severe weather forecast here until 10:00 p.m. I was unscathed by Round I (about two hours ago) but a cold front is coming through later tonight with 70 mph winds and mild possible tornadic activity. The sun is out right now. Amazing-looking sky with all different colors of clouds.
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Great post, Linda! 🙂 Our river is fully thawed, thank goodness! The roads here in Illinois are atrocious due to the severe winter weather. Taking the bumps when you are elderly and have arthritis is no smooth cup of tea. (It’s like a roller-coaster ride in many so-called paved spots!)
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Thanks Tom – glad you liked this post.
I thought I’d try something different to celebrate all the nature at the Park on Saturday. The robins and buds were great to see because maybe it is a hint of
Spring. This morning the Creek was thawed, not all the way, but the ducks were swimming around and looking happy to not be displaced any longer. The roads are crummy here and our new governor won the election last November on her campaign promise to “fix the d*mn roads!” Last week she suggested the solution was a $0.45 cent gas tax, to begin in October this year in three increments of $0.15 each every six months. People are quite upset, but a few years ago they raised our car registration fees a lot and I didn’t like that either. I work from home and don’t drive much, so the gas tax won’t bother me much, but others have balked and will continue to do so.
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So glad to read that you were able to get out into the sunshine again and see all of your nature friends, Linda. I’m sure your little guys missed you. Bill and I returned home today to 45 degrees and sunny. There is still a little snow around where it was piled up by the snowplow, but the paths and roads are all clear. What a change from 90 degrees and breezy in Costa Rica!
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Oh it felt so good to get out and just walk Laurie and I did a long walk on Saturday, even though I told myself not to go over four miles, but it was such a nice sunny day. Our weather has been nice the past two days too, cold, but lots of sun. And 64 degrees on Thursday, but just one day, then cold again. That warm and tropical-like breezes would have spoiled you to return to any snow – maybe we have turned a corner and the snow is gone for good now. Did you and Bill get some long leisurely runs in while you were in Costa Rica?
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loved the creative theme Linda! Parker looks gorgeous! He is a handsome fellow!
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I thought I’d try something a little different – I’m happy you enjoyed this theme Wayne. Last Saturday was beautiful here – cold but clear and sunny, and I kept walking and taking pictures of Council Point Park and imagined creating a post like I was a stranger visiting and noticing all the features, even in this drab part of the year. I had to give Parker his own letter of the alphabet. He is a handsome fellow and so full of personality. Our weather this morning seems okay, but will get ugly as the day goes on – we have temps in the 60s but it comes with a price, as we are in for severe storms, winds gusting to 65 mph and even marginal to slight risk for an isolated EFO tornado.
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Nice!!
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