How to be A Happy Lite

      These dark days of winter certain test our patience and fortitude. I've heard it said that maybe we should hibernate in these soggy, boggy days.  No gardening available at the moment. Can't even dig in the dirt, it's so wet and dismal outside. But inside, it is  bright and happy.
     Bo  has the right idea. She loves to sit under the Happy Lite.....I use it for quilting, music, reading, whatever.....has a wonderful, natural light. The Lite shop people said it would make everyone quite happy in the dark days of the winter , by "providing natural sunlight, and Vitamin D". Hmmmm,not sure about all their claims, but it does make it easier on the eyes. 
       Bo sits under the Happy Lite as much as possible, her eyes squeezed shut, purring and purring. I started to worry, though, when this week she began swaying back and forth.......as if in a trance. The Lite Shope never warned about that side effect. But,if the cat can figure out what makes her happy, I guess I will have to steal a piece of it. Problem is, she's sitting on all my quilt patterns, and shall have to find a way to make her move. Hmmm, cat treats should do the trick....here, kitty, kitty......

Closeups

Finally, at long last......I have waited and waited, for weeks, to get a couple of really good close ups of the varied thrushes. There are about a dozen twerping all over the yard, but only have managed to get a few of them sitting still. Pudgy little things....all that good sunflower seed food they've been stuffing into their little beaks.

I was doing some reading on these guys and found that they tend to wander awayvfrom Pacific Northwest forest to find bird feeders and hang around where there is a steady supplie of "eats". They can be so territorial. They will actually go after another thrush who tends to get too close to a particular patch of food, but they don't seem to bother the little junkos, chickadees and finches. And they seem to be quite smart. I swear they wait for me to put out the seeds in the morning, then all of a sudden they are all over........and they are polite at the feeding stations, never pushing out the other birds, but pushing out their Thrush cousins and nipping at their tail feathers.

A "Zoothera naevia" ( Varied Thrush, eating, and eating, and eating)

In the Snowstorm, in the Dark in Flannel City.....

"The moon about the eastern wood shone at its full; the hill range stood transfigured in the silver flood, its blown snows flashing cold and keen,

........... dead white, save where some sharp ravine took shadow." (J. G. Whittier)

Snow storm in the dead of night in "Flannel City ". Very true at this time of year........lots of flannel worn.

"No hawk hangs over this air,the urgent snow is everywhere....." (Emily Dickinson)

Dale's hands in the snow..............

Is there anything so wonderful as a dark night and white snow........so quiet you can hear the snow fall like kisses on the air.......

Birds of a Feather

Varied Thrushes gathered today with the junkos, and finches and an assortment of others, just as the snow storm started. They stuffed themselves with as much see as possible before daylight fell.

THere seems to be a flock of Thrushes that comes every day to stare at me, just like in a Hitchcock movie. Some of them are getting fat. They aren't too adept at sharing, but they all seem to cram in as much as posssible before the night comes.

Birds gather on the grape vines. You can see a couple of thrushes behind the vines.....great ground feeders, they even chase off the annoying pigeons.

Sunset over Mt. Washington

This was the other night....just happened to catch it, before it all disappeared into the cold, dark night. Reminds me of the phrase "heavenly light", for some reason.

The other half of the sunset, strangely enough was this shot.....clouds opening up to sky, with the mountains in the distance. Winter makes for some great pictures.