Happy Birthday Dad

You would have been 96 today, quite an accomplishment for all the health issues you had considering most of the men in your family never lived past their 60's.  I am sure grandma is baking you a pineapple upside down cake your fav and hers as well.  I will be by later to see you and spend a few minutes with you.  I miss you and I know we would be eating cake and you would get lots of chocolate today.  You always loved that your birthday was 2 days after Valentine's Day cos there was half price chocolate.  I know you had a goal of 104 and I have no idea where that came from, perhaps that was the longest anyone in your family ever lived?  Sorry you did not make your goal but you gave it a good try.

Happy St Gobnait's Day

Last year I helped with the Irish Center Kid's Camp.  On my name tag was my name in Irish which is Gobnait.  So today is my day.  She was known for her keeper of the bees.  I am very allergic so I will plant flowers for them but will keep my distance. 

https://www.catholicireland.net/saintoftheday/st-gobnait-6th-century/

Eagle Repository

We have heard that when someone finds a dead eagle it is sent somewhere in Colorado.  I found this article.  What a great job they have. 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-50089990?fbclid=IwAR2biVrj1FtVTE76Edac-QcXKYbAVCd2QyqXO40MlanIwHym4oU5BH_gZaA&utm_content=115005161&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&hss_channel=fbp-1575858736016260

Almost Egg Time

Decorah parents are building up the nest like crazy cos if mom is on her usual schedule she should be laying that first egg in a couple of weeks.  The crib rails are up the grass and corn husks are being brought and DM2 is trying out the nest cup to make sure is room for the keep the eggs warm and yet be comfortable.  Eggsciting times are about to arrive, how many eggs will we have this year.  I sure hope we won't have that black fly problem and have the fledglings leave the nest too soon like last year.  Stay tuned.

Dear CNN:

I don't watch your channel, never have, and never will.  However while watching FOX I saw the part with Don Lemon and the 2 guys making fun of people like me.  You know we don't care what you think of us cos frankly we don't watch you and like Hollywood you do not live in the real world.  So keep on making fun of us and calling us names and think we are all stupid and cling to our guns and Bibles.  When it comes down to who will win in the end it will be my side, not yours.  If your side wants to believe the lies that you spew, go ahead, we know better.  Instead of us watching you we are preparing to do battle because your side can't stand that we stood up against you.  We are ready to fight to keep our Republic, unlike your side who thinks Socialism is good.  Have you taken a good look at Venezuela, do you not know that your cushy lifestyle will consist of you sleeping on the sidewalk lucky  to find a crust of bread?  Keep on living with your head in the sand.  Meanwhile I have a life to live which is pretty darn good that does not include being concerned about the names you call me. 

Why do Eagles Lay Eggs When They Do

From Raptor Resource Project

Why do the Decorah and Decorah North eagles lay eggs in ice and snow? A lot of you – especially those of you who also watch the Florida eagles – are curious about bald eagle egg timing. Wouldn’t it be better to delay egg-laying until mid-March or early April? We’ll unpack the question by starting with a few facts.
- Bald eagles don’t all nest at the same time. In the southeastern United States, especially along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts, bald eagles may begin laying eggs as early as mid-October, while bald eagles in Alaska don’t begin laying eggs until early April. Curious about when eagles in your area lay eggs? Take a look at the map with this post! Note that egg-laying can happen later than the early dates listed here. These dates mark the earliest recorded nests in each region.
- As the map shows, birds at higher latitudes tend to nest later than birds at lower latitudes. But latitude can’t be easily untangled from weather and geology, which both influence food availability. Eagles in the southeastern United States cope with heat, humidity, and food scarcity during the summer, when temperatures and humidity soar, fish sink lower in the water column, some species of birds migrate north, and most animals, including bald eagles, reduce activity to keep cool. Eagles at higher latitudes cope with freezing weather, snow, and food scarcity during the winter, when ice forms over water bodies, some species of birds migrate south, and most animals, including bald eagles, reduce their activity to conserve energy. Even mammals that don’t hibernate are much less active in January and February, historically the coldest months of the year. We can't easily separate daylight length, weather, and food availability in the real world, especially in northern latitudes.
It’s easy to understand why bald eggs in Iowa don’t lay eggs in mid-October, but why don’t they wait until April or May like so many other birds? The answer may lie in the length of their nesting season. In the nests we watch, eggs are typically laid in February and juvenile eagles disperse in early September. It takes eagle parents about 116 days to lay and incubate eggs and bring nestlings to fledge. How do other altricial birds compare?
- Peregrine falcons take about 83 days to go from first egg to fledge.
- American kestrels take about 63 days to go from first egg to fledge.
- Barn Swallows take about 41 days to go from first egg to fledge. They can produce up to two broods per year.
- American Robins, Goldfinches, and Dark-Eyed Juncos take about 32 days to go from first egg to fledge. All three species can produce multiple broods per year – up to three for robins and juncos and up to two for goldfinches.
If an eagle laid eggs in mid-April, its young wouldn't fledge until mid-August, which means that parents would be trying to keep eggs and eaglets cool in hot, humid weather. It's a lot easier for bald eagle parents to keep eggs and young warm in cold, dry weather than to cool them in hot, humid weather. If the eggs and eaglets survived summer’s heat, they would be learning to fly and hunt in mid-August, when prey is starting to become a little less abundant in many territories – not a big deal for skilled adult hunters, but a little tougher for newly fledged eaglets learning to fly and hunt. If the eaglets still dispersed in September, they would have less than a month of flying and hunting under their wings before striking out on their own.
In short, what works along Florida or Alaska's coasts might not fly in Iowa's Driftless region! Adult eagles vary egg-timing in response to local and regional variables, including changes in daylight length, food availability, and weather. Nestling eagles also have very long 'childhoods' relative to other altricial birds, which means that adult eagles need to lay eggs as early as they can. What appears counter-productive to us - laying eggs in ice and snow(?) - has been shaped by thousands of years of evolution and adaptation to the environment. Trust the eagles and remember: It's all good in the oak and cottonwood!
Here are some things that helped me learn and write about bald eagle egg-timing.
Bald Eagle Management Guidelines: https://www.fws.gov/…/NationalBaldEagleManagementGuidelines…. Map data was taken from the nesting chronology on page six. Note that regional behavior grades more than this map indicates. I suspect but don't know that regional geology (mountains, the great lakes, and oceanic coastlines and bays) all play a bigger role than is indicated here.
How will bald eagles adapt to climate change? Peregrine falcons in the midwest are laying eggs earlier than they did in the late eighties and early 1990's. Bald eagles might begin laying eggs earlier or change in other ways - Florida and Arizona eagles are smaller than their northern counterparts, for example - to cope with extreme heat. More information on peregrine nesting can be found here: https://raptorresource.org/pdf/AverageNesting.pdf
Cornell's Birds of North America website is an excellent place to learn more about the life histories of North American breeding birds! However, it's a paid service for most people. Check out All About Birds for an excellent free resource. Bird behavior is a lot more diverse and interesting than we often realize!
Birds of North America: https://birdsna.org/Species-Account/bna/home
All About Birds: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/

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Papillon

One of my friends at one of my knit groups showed us this beautiful shawl.  I was in awe and thought that is beyond my skill set.  And yes I make Alice Starmore sweaters so I thought it looked extremely complicate. She wanted to do it and I thought why not try it and see.  Well it took me less than a month to finish mine. It is just knit knit knit every row. HOwever there are 1698 rows which sound worse than it is however each row has many many many short rows so that is what takes so many rows.  It really is an easy pattern because if you can knit you can make this. HOWEVER, you need to count every stitch and pay close attention because it is easy to get off when doing the short row parts.  So mine is done but the weaving in ends and blocking and I am ready to start my next one.  I have at least 2 more planned.  THey are stunning no matter the color used.  So my first one.  BTW I love black, white, and red as a combo.  I wanted a black and white one but wanted a pop of color.  I will come back and post a completely finished one of this. Off to start my next one.

D27

D27 sent us an airmail this week! As Brett said, she in engaged in typical meandering around her natal area. Her farthest point north this month was up near Bluffton: less than a mile from Bob’s old farm/breeding project and nine miles distant from her natal nest. Her farthest point south was down near Eldorado, 13 miles distant from her natal nest. D27 spent most of her time in and around Decorah and passed near the nest three times: once on January 3, once on January 16, an...

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Decorah Mom

DEC Mom has a irritated eye

Raptor Resource Project

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We know that everyone has some concerns about Mom's right eye. We first started getting questions on January 20, when sharp-eyed watchers noticed that she appeared to be keeping her right eye mostly or completely shut. We took a look and noticed the same thing, but couldn't determine the source of the problem. Her eye wasn't bloody and she was behaving like a normal territorial adult eagle. She got some rabbit fur stuck in the upper outer corner of her right eye on January 14 and appeared to have ice building up on her 'eyelashes' or rimal bristles, which could have contributed to her eye irritation.

Our camera operators finally got an opportunity to get good photos of Mom's open right eye today and we sent them to Dr. Laura. She confirmed that there was some kind of issue, although she doesn't have a way of diagnosing it or determining its severity without an exam. Whatever the cause, Mom's eye is clearly irritated and she's reacting in the same way we might: closing her outer eyelids, blinking her eye, and sometimes rubbing her head on her shoulder. Keeping her tender eye closed will aid in healing and help protect it from wind and cold, while her nictitating membrane will keep it moist and help swipe any material that may still be stuck.

Given that Mom is still behaving normally and spending her time at the tops of trees, there is nothing we can do. As the videos below shows, Mom is capable of using both eyes and can fly, land on the nest, hop-flap up to and perch on the Skywalk, and move materials around the nest. We'll continue to monitor her and collect reports from local observers while we wait to see what happens moving forward.

You've Got Mail

I love this movie, yes it is cheesy but it makes me think and laugh and smile.  I am working on my Dodgers Christmas tree because I finally found Dodger blue ornaments. 

One scene Meg Ryan mentions a bouquet of sharpened pencils.  OH I know that feeling, I collect pencils, (my fav aunt gets me pencils all the time when she goes somewhere). I probably have over 500 and yes I use them. I love school supply weekend, and I rush to get mine, not that I need them but there is the excitement of new pencils, spiral notebooks.  A notebook is 70 double sides of a new adventure for only a quarter.  I use them to write out the rows of a pattern I am working on.  Then i have the notes if I ever want to make it again or someone needs some help on that particular pattern.  I have a notebook full of designs to work up someday. 

This movie has you look at life in a different way and that is what my dad did with his dementia.  He would sit in his chair, look at the birds and watch people come and go and make up stories about what they were doing. He would tell me about things that he witnessed during the day or thought he did and he looked at life in a whole nother way.  Watching the movie makes me realize dad lived in a world only he understood and was often too funny. 

I often just stare out the window to check on the birds and squirrels and see things I never saw before even though I have been here since 1996.  What did you see today in a different light. 

Christmas Cookies

We just had our Cookie/Candy sale at church. We had more candy than ever and even had an overflow table stacked with duplicates to be filled in slots as needed.  It was a very successful 5 hour sale. We also serve chili for lunch.

When my dad worked, on Black Friday mom and I would spend all day making cookies, decorated sugar cookies, spritzes, any kind of Christmas cookie we wanted to make.  We would take a box and cover it with paper and decorate it.  That next Monday dad would take it into work and the guys he worked with enjoyed the benefits of our day.  It was so much fun and the guys enjoyed the cookies so much. 

My last year of working I did this for the guys I worked with. It was a lot of work but it was worth the effort.  The cookies did not last long though and when gone, well I was not making any more.

Make a batch of cookies and take them to someone, it will be one of the best gifts you can give.

The Dollar Bill

Do your children know this? – Do their teachers? – Do you?
Who Was Haym Solomon?
Read this fascinating history of the $1 bill all the way to the bottom to know about Haym Solomon. You may be in for quite a surprise!

On the rear of the One Dollar bill, you’ll see two circles. Together, they comprise the Great Seal of the United States. The First Continental Congress requested that Benjamin Franklin and a group of men come up with a Seal. It took them four years to accomplish this task and another two years to get it approved.
If you look at the left-hand circle, you’ll see a Pyramid.
Notice the face is lighted, and the western side is dark. This country was just beginning. We hadn’t begun to explore the west or decide what we could do for Western Civilization. The Pyramid is uncapped, again signifying that we weren’t even close to being finished. Inside the Capstone you have the all-seeing eye, an ancient symbol for divinity. It was Franklin's belief that one man couldn't do it alone, but a group of men, with the help of God, could do anything.
“IN GOD WE TRUST” is on this currency.
The Latin above the pyramid, ANNUIT COEPTIS, means, “God has favored our undertaking.”
The Latin below the pyramid, NOVUS ORDO SECLORUM, means, “a new order has begun.”
At the base of the pyramid is the Roman numeral for 1776. (MDCCLXXVI)
If you look at the right-hand circle, and check it carefully, you’ll learn that it’s on every National Cemetery in the United States. It’s also on the Parade of Flags Walkway at the Bushnell, Florida National Cemetery, and is the centerpiece of most heroes' monuments.
Slightly modified, it’s the seal of the President of the United States, and it’s always visible whenever he speaks, yet very few people know what the symbols mean.
The Bald Eagle was selected as a symbol for victory for two reasons:
First, he isn’t afraid of a storm; he’s strong, and he’s smart enough to soar above it.
Secondly, he wears no material crown. We had just broken from the King of England.
Also, notice the shield is unsupported. This country can now stand on its own.
At the top of the shield there’s a white bar signifying congress, a unifying factor. We were coming together as one nation.
In the Eagle's beak you read, “E PLURIBUS UNUM” meaning, “from many – one.”
Above the Eagle, we have the thirteen stars, representing the thirteen original colonies, and any clouds of misunderstanding rolling away. Again, we were coming together as one.
Notice what the Eagle holds in his talons. He holds an olive branch and arrows. This country wants peace, but we will never be afraid to fight to preserve peace. The Eagle always wants to face the olive branch, but in time of war, his gaze turns toward the arrows.
An (untrue) old-fashioned belief says that the number 13 is an unlucky number which is almost a worldwide belief. You’ll almost never see a room numbered 13, or any hotels or motels with a 13th floor. But think about this:
America, which relies on God (not a number) to direct and lead, boldly chose:
13 original colonies,
13 signers of the Declaration of Independence ,
13 stripes on our flag,
13 steps on the pyramid,
13 letters in “Annuit Coeptis,”
13 letters in “E Pluribus Unum,”
13 stars above the eagle,
13 bars on that shield,
13 leaves on the olive branch,
13 fruits,
and if you look closely,
13 arrows.
And finally, notice the arrangement of the 13 stars in the right-hand circle. You’ll see that they are arranged as a Star of David.
This was ordered by George Washington who, when he asked Haym Solomon, a wealthy Philadelphia Jew, what he would like as a personal reward for his services to the Continental Army. Solomon said he wanted nothing for himself, but he would like something for his people. The Star of David was the result. Few people know it was Solomon who saved the Army through his financial contributions ... then died a pauper. Haym Solomon gave $25 million to save the Continental Army, money that was sorely needed to help realize America's and our freedom and independence from England.
Therein lies America's Judeo-Christian beginning.
Most American children do NOT know any of this. They aren’t taught because their history teachers do NOT know this. (They were not taught!)
On America's Freedom:
Too many veterans gave up too much to let the meaning fade.
Many veterans came home to an America that did not care.
Too many veterans never came home at all.
They served, they died for you and for me.
I hope you will share this page with many so they can learn about the UNITED STATES DOLLAR BILL, and what it stands for.
America is at a critical juncture. Let's do whatever we can to save her while never, ever forgetting:
It is God in whom we put our trust!

The Sky is on Fire

Sometimes the sunrise only lasts a few minutes but oh is it gorgeous.  This morning for about 5 minutes the sky looked like it was on fire.