Autumn Has Fallen

Merci:  Not too long ago we mentioned the only sign of autumn we would see on our walk was one small tree.

Rusty:  Saturday Jan suddenly realized that autumn has truly fallen, as we now have signs all around us and snapped a few pictures.  Don't you just love the beautiful red of that tree?  It's almost as lovely as our red-headed Merci.

 

Cyndi:  It seems strange that last weekend we had freezing nights and this weekend we're having the same type of temperatures.

Merci:  But it is warmer this weekend.  Last Sunday morning it was 52F in the house.  This Sunday morning it was 54F.  (A little joke, in case you missed it.)  Nope, we don't have our heaters on yet.  Waiting on someone to come blow them out with a compressor so they can be started.

Rusty:  While Jan was admiring the trees, a flock of small birds flew over, circled around and headed across the street and up the hill. The flock was much larger but Jan had to zoom in to get any in the frame.  You have seen previous samples of her zoom aim.  For instance, the headless hawk.  So we're very happy she actually captured some birds in the picture.  We could be posting just a blue blank for your viewing enjoyment.

Cyndi:  We thought they were airplanes in the sky when we first saw the larger version of this picture.  That was a bit scary because why would there be a host of planes in the sky unless we were under attack.  Jan said a synchronized poop attack would be the worst we'd have to worry about from them.

Merci:  And this was their landing destination.  We hope all the flocks of birds flying over at this time of the year will arrive safely at their winter home.

Cyndi:  Let's just hope Marcus doesn't decide to invite them all to lunch.

Rusty:  Wait a minute.  That actually sounds like a tasty ... I mean, a great idea!

Micah's Gotcha Birthday

Rusty:  We don't usually post on the weekend any more, but we can't let Micah's special day pass unnoticed.  This is Micah's 4th Gotcha Day, and since we don't know when he was born, we just celebrate this special day as his birthday too.  He is about 5 or 6 years of age now.

Cyndi:  Happy 4th Gotcha 5th/6th Birthday, Micah!

Taylor:  That's quite a mouthful, Cyndi.  Let's just celebrate!



We would like to add a note regarding yesterday's post, Headless and Wing Flapping.  From the comments and emails received, we are certain the headless bird is a hawk.  We're not positive what type.

Merci:  Even though they're not the greatest pictures, after what she had to do to get the shots, Jan is pretty pleased with the end results.

Buddy:  An obvious question is, if the hawk turned around, why didn't Jan just walk around the tree where she could  get a front shot of the bird - hopefully with a head?  The answer is that in order to walk around the tree, Jan would have had to climb an 8-foot high fence with barbed wire on top while carrying three dogs.  If she survived the climb - and the fall - she would have been arrested for trespassing on private property.  We couldn't afford to pay her bail, so we're content with a decapitated hawk and ruffled feathers.

Headless and Wing Flapping

Merci:  A couple of weeks ago we watched a big bird land high up in a tree.  Jan pulled out her camera as we hot-footed it toward the tree.

Marcus:  We stopped.  While holding tightly to our leashes with one hand, Jan raised the other arm high above her head -

Buddy:  And the bird popped up and spun around with its back to us.

Merci:  Jan has a problem finding a target with one arm in the air.  (Remember when she aimed for the sky between two trees and took a picture of the house instead?  An Aiming Problem.)

Marcus: When she downloaded the pictures, the bird was missing in the first few; however, she did manage to shoot the target in two ... sort of.

Buddy:  As you can see, here is most of a bird from the rear.  We're pretty sure it had a head when it landed, but Jan decapitated it.  

Merci:  With precision timing, it flapped its wings just as Jan took the second shot.

Buddy:  We're curious as to what type of bird it is and are hoping someone might recognize the markings.  It's a long shot, but worth asking.

Marcus:  Whatever it is, the next time we see it, I'm going to invite him for lunch.

UPDATE: We are posting close-ups of the bird.  Sorry for the poor photos, but if Jan can miss the sky to hit a house, she can certainly decapitate a bird.  We would suggest you not let her take your picture - just in case!

We are joining the Pet Parade hosted by Rascal and Rocco, Basil the Bionic Cat, and Barking from the Bayou.

Flapping and Gliding

MERCI:  This is what the sky looked like when we started to walk Jan yesterday morning. 

MARCUS:  Do you see them?  They were all around us, flying low, a small convention directly overhead and over nearby houses.  They were alternately flapping and gliding.  We think they were hawks but have never seen one up close, especially not from the underside, so we're not positive.

Update:  We've been told they are vultures searching for food. 

MERCI:  Marcus was anxious to get walking but Jan just stood there gawking at the big birds circling in the sky. 

MARCUS:  We have seen these birds circling from a distance in the past but never so close.  I could have almost leaped high enough to catch one. 

MERCI:  They were low, just over the roof of our house.  Jan tried to run us back inside.  Marcus kicked up a fuss.  He attempted to run out the door when Jan grabbed the camera and closed us inside.  Did he ever holler in protest! 

MARCUS:  It served her right that when she got back outside they had disappeared. She turned off the camera and was reaching for the door knob when they returned. 

MERCI:  She turned the camera back on and discovered she had accidentally hit the button that turned off the LED screen and she didn't remember which button would turn it back on, so she just aimed the camera in the general direction of several birds at a time and clicked the shutter.

MARCUS:  I'm glad they finally flew away so Merci and I could have our walk.  Sam and Buddy missed this.  They preferred to sleep in Monday morning.

MERCI:  One day you'll be an old dog, Marcus, and you'll want to sleep in too. It must be a guy thing.  I'm older than all of you and I was up and raring to go.  I did not, however, throw a temper tantrum like a certain big-eared dog did when our walk was delayed.

MARCUS:  Well, I was starving.  We don't get breakfast until after our walk.  And I didn't throw a tantrum, I voiced my displeasure.

BUDDY:  Could you voice it a bit more quietly next time?  It was hard to sleep through all that caterwauling.