The Woolly Worms Are Back!

Behold, the Woolly Worm

 

Sing a song of seasons!

Something bright in all!

Flowers in the summer,

Fires in the fall!

      As we worked around the yard this week, we came across the famous woolly worm, a harbinger of cold weather. You never see them when you are searching for them. They only appear when you aren't expecting them! Like when you put your hand down to pull a weed or pick a flower. Then they will startle you with a little "fuzzy wiggle"!  They are never in a hurry, and had rather be left alone. The old weather tale about the size of the stripes is never clear to me.  Is it the wider the band, the harsher the winter?  Or vice-versa?  The picture above was taken last fall.  You notice the woolly fellow is solid black.  We had a historic ice storm in January.  Does that mean solid black means harsh winters?  As I recall, I also saw other last fall with various size stripes.  This year I have seen several--different width stripes.  One was solid tan!  There must be a better way to predict the winter weather. Guess we will just get ourselves ready for cold winter weather and meet it head on!  The generator is ready!  Let is snow!
     The guys at Handyman Hardware in Compton say the large number of bears we are seeing now are a sign of a bad winter to come.  Jack's trail camera attests to the fact that the bears are on the prowl.  Of course, they should be since they are storing up fat for the winter hibernation.  I read that they need up to 20,000 calories a day while getting ready for winter!  Gads!  Humans don't need that much in a month!

     The mama and cubs of several weeks ago are prominent visitors along the trail and are taking a large portion of the deer corn.  They are funny to see their antics on film as they try to get into the large barrel feeder in the tree.  We are also seeing a very large bear who has found a way to get his paws into the barrel!

     Signs of autumn are everywhere.  The trees along the highway going down into Ponca are already showing a lot of color, and everyone is excited and expecting a beautiful and colorful fall.  The elk are bugling full blast in the valley. (By the way, Color Fest at the Ponca Elk Center is the last weekend in October.)  I saw two hummers yesterday and none today.  (These are the stragglers and should be headed south soon. I'll keep a feeder out until I am sure they are gone--usually about the 15th of October.)
    The cool fog outside the window right now reminds me that summer '09 is history.  And, a  beautiful summer it was too, with cooler and wetter than normal days.  We are never satisfied--now we want everyday to be a bright, sunny fall day.  Then we will want bright, sunny and snowy winter days! 

In everything give thanks!  1 Thes. 5:18

 

We hail the merry autumn days,

When leaves are turning red;

Because they're far more beautiful

Than anyone has said..

                                 Charles Dickens

Rainy Days and Mondays...

Mountain Springs Spa

     It's not raining, nor is it Monday, but we have had rainy days for most of the last two weeks, leaving the yard in a wild state that reminds one of a hay field ready for cutting--if only  the sun would appear!  Rainfall totals are in the double digits over the last month!  And, the river was 3 feet over the low water bridge at Ponca on Monday. Should be great canoeing this weekend if it drops below the bridge by Saturday.

     As I look out the window, I see the faint beginnings of fall in the trees on the mountainsides.  Thanks to the rain, the flowerbeds are looking faded and in need of some sprucing up for the last of the season.  Bright spots are the marigolds that are planted by the birds and other critters each year.  In spring the little plants appear in unexpected places, so I try to let them grow, knowing that they will out shine most other flowering plants in the wanning days of summer.  A friend at church gave me a start several years ago.  It's an understatement to say they are the hardiest flowers in the garden!  To transplant them, just pull small plants out of the soil and transfer to another bed--no need to take a clum of dirt with them--they settle into a new home quite easily with hardly a drooping leaf.  They are capable of traveling hundreds of miles wrapped only in a wet paper towel.  My neighbor can attest to that!

     The few little hummers that hang around are enjoying the pineapple sage with its red, spikey flowers.  It comes to life when other plants are going to seed. We are noticing fewer hummers at the feeders in the last part of the summer--could be the rainy season has made wildflowers in abundance.  We are hoping that it the reason, and not the herbicide that the electric company is putting out under the lines.  We were given a choice of  declining their "offer"  which we and many of our neighbors did.

     By the  way, the honeybees are also having a hard time this year.  Eddie the Beeman has lost several hives this summer (down 60%).  He attributes it to herbicide and other poisons--as well as critters.  We know that one of his hives was destroyed by a large bear visiting the neighborhood a few days ago. Jack  'caught' him as well as the mama and cubs several times on the game camera set up in the woods.  Well, all critters have to eat!  But please, Mr. Bear, save some honey for us humans!

     The picture above is one I took on a hot summer day in June.  I'll tell you my secret--I fill it up in the early morning, letting the sun warm the water all day. At the end of a long hot day, I can slip into my swimsuit, and enjoy watching the clouds float across the sky as I soak in my "Ozark Hot Tub".  It also makes a good dog bathtub! 

     The tub is one of the things I will miss about summer, along with tomatoes from the garden, early morning coffee on the porch, late night iced tea on the porch with friends, flowers from my garden, cabin visitors coming and going, birds and their babies (especially the Blue(bird) family and their antics), visits to the river with Jack Henry, all our family and friends who come up in the summer, and the list goes on... 

     

 Goodbye to summer--hello to autumn!

    

The Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime,

and in the night His song shall be with me--

a prayer to the God of my life. 

Psalm 42:8

   

    

    

    

The True Story of the Three Bears--Mountain Springs Version

Baby Bear Up A Tree

"Once upon a time there were three bears..."

       Our neighbor, Mike, called other day with a somewhat frantic tone in his voice. He needed help! A mother bear and her two cubs had wandered into his backyard, and his three dogs were, as they say, 'loaded for bear!'. He was trying to catch the dogs before Mama Bear got real aggravated at them and decided to protect her cubs. It is never safe to get between a mother and her babies (this is true for all mothers, human or other) we know.

       We jumped on our four-wheelers--somehow remembering to grab the cameras--and zipped down the hill to the scene of all the commotion. When we arrived, Mike had two dogs shut up in the basement. The other was dragging him around on a leash--straining with all her might to go after the critters! (This was Mama Dog from another story.) Mama Bear and one of her cubs were the edge of the woods about 20 yards away. We could see them ambling back and forth between the trees. The 'left-behind' cub was up a tree! There was a lot of squalling from the cub in the tree, and a lot of bellowing from mama in the woods. Now and then, we could hear a little 'snort' from the other cub who was probably a little bewildered with all the action going on around him! I'm sure both were encouraging the 'treed' cub to get on down from there! He would climb down a few feet, look at us and the dog on the leash, squall, and climb back up.

       We stayed around just long enough for a few pictures--not too close! At all times keeping an eye on Mama Bear,who was pacing at the edge of the woods all the while making an ominous snapping sound with her jaws. Obviously the bear family was not in a mood to pose for a family portrait! ( We had quickly devised a plan to run for the greenhouse a few feet away in case of trouble!) When we retreated to the house, dragging Mama Dog with us, the little cub quickly saw his opportunity and scurried down the tree to join his family. The hold episode lasted about 10 minutes at the most.

       Our cabin guests had reported that a noise from the porch had awaken them the night before, and they had seen evidence the next morning that probably bears had been snooping around. This confirmed their story! We haven't seen signs of the three bears since. We keep all animal feed and trash/garbage in sheds so they probably wrote Mountain Springs off as not worth the bother! Then, they moved on to 'greener' pastures. The picture Jack got is a sweet memory of the "Three Bears at Mountain Springs'.

       There have been quite a few 'bear sightings' in the area this spring and summer. Mostly they are just going about the business of finding a meal of bugs, berries, or whatever "smells" (garbage), and they aren't really interested in humans or any other animals for that matter, unless they seem to have the food. Mother bears can be very defensive if they think their cubs are in danger.