Happy birthday!

Happy birthday to me! I like to think of it not as one year older, but as only two more years to Medicare. Not everyone could make it to the potluck. No matter when you schedule an event, the date won’t be good for everyone. Jane had the presence of mind to take pictures (Thanks, Jane!)

Here I am with Nancy.

Nancy with my birthday card

And Kate,

Another in a series (according to Kate) of Bev and Kate pictures that all look alike

And Terry.

With my dear Mr. Schmidt

Here’s everyone playing Mexican train. Kathy and Chuck are between Kate and Terry. I hadn’t seen them since before COVID. I’m not exactly who the old lady on the far left is with the gray hair and the double chin. How did she get my T-shirt??

Mexican train

Jane made chocolate cake. She found some extra cute candles for the top. Jane and Nancy had a heck of a time getting them lit without burning their fingers as the matches burned down.

Lighting the candles

They finally accomplished their goal.

Candles lit

Everyone seemed to think I should blow the candles out, and I complied even though I think it’s rather unsanitary. It was good to see everyone. We had delicious food and good conversation. I have such nice friends.

Blowing out the candles

After a few weeks of perfect June weather—cool mornings and 70-ish afternoons, it got hot this week. Really hot. Record-breaking hot. Upper 90’s hot. Insufferably hot. I could go on. The hens can hang out under the apple trees. Poor chicks. I have shade shelters for them, but they prefer to stay in the coop mostly. The first time I turned the fan on high, they were all scared. They got over it quickly, however, and were soon sitting in front of it. One of them was standing in the breeze with his wings outstretched. I never have my camera for the good shots.

As soon as the sun gets low, everyone wants to be out on the lawn. At this time of year, that’s 8:30, and I would like to be getting ready for bed. Kids will be kids. Can’t we stay up just 30 minutes more?

Bedtime, or not

This group seemed to want to perch outside for the night. So not allowed! Too dangerous.

Settled in for the night--definitely NOT!

Hilda used to get a walking stick and try to shoo them in. I prefer and Zen approach of patience, at least until most of them have gone in on their own. Neither strategy is very effective. Three nights ago, I was preparing to shoo in the last two when 5 more ran out. I got to thinking that maybe it was too dark in the coop and they were scared to go in/stay in. I put up the cool red light, since obviously the heat lamp was not required. The next night was better. I got fancy and put the light on the time so it would be on from 7:00 to 9:00. After several chicks ran out again just as I was about to shut the door, I realized 9:00 was not late enough. I set it for 9:30. Last night, they all went in on their own! Victory! The only problem was that one of the meat chicks was sticking his head out of the door. I started closing the door, thinking he would go in, but of course, he went out. Not famous for brains, chickens. I opened the door again, and a second chick went out. I got the walking stick, and soon everyone was locked down, and I could finally go to bed.

One of the Wyandottes started getting white feathers seemingly overnight. The other one is still mostly black.

A Wyandotte suddenly turning white

Our Big Red Broilers are not the same color as they have been in the past and are not the same color as each other. The females were always a lighter brown, but in past years the males have been solidly rufous, similar to the color of a robin’s breast (which, contrary to the song, is not really red). The one on the end here has a fair amount of gray or black. I’m interested to see what he will look like in two weeks.

Variation in broiler color

I’m also anxious to see what our gray Americauna will look like when she’s mature . I’ve named her Doriann Grey.

Doriann Grey

I finally got beans planted in the high tunnel. We are still battling some mysterious herbivore. We’ve had a rabbit problem, which could be what ate the tops off two of my beans.

Golden limas

The beets are an enduring mystery. They put out their first two leaves, and then one day they were got. I did not despair because it seemed like the shoot apical meristem (as we say in the business) was intact. Indeed, the beets began to sprout their true leaves. And then they were gone, removed with a surgical precision that I do not associate with rabbits. Slugs?

Terry alerted me to the grape flowers blooming. All these years, and I’d never seen it before, likely because they have no petals. Each grape ovary (girl part) is surrounded by 5 stamens (boy parts).

Grape flowers

Linnaeus referred to this as a wife with 5 husbands, which scandalized his 18^th century peers. The stamen has two parts: a white, string-like filament ending in a pollen- producing knob the anther. Seems like a lot of work to have one flower for each grape, doesn’t it?

I’m seeing red-winged blackbird fledglings around.

Blackbird fledgling

Yesterday I saw a female Baltimore oriole with a caterpillar in her mouth. She’s got babies!