Yesterday while I was talking to my brother on the phone I saw this spectacular hummingbird. It was exactly the color of a new copper penny. I'd never seen one like it and, of course, I wasn't prepared to take a photo. After we ended our conversation I got on line and discovered it is a Rufous Hummingbird. It returned today and I got one fairly good shot...
Here are some shots I got off the internet...
Sorry, I didn't write down where I found these or the name of the photographer. I also printed off a bit about these particular hummingbirds. It says they are "by far the most aggressive of the three" hummingbirds being discussed in the article and noted they "...sound like buzz bombs as they swarm at the feeder, fanning their tails and trying to drive off competitive Broad-taileds, as well as other Rufous." This one was true to form. I had on a bright hibiscus pink tee shirt yesterday and all of the hummingbirds, including this one, seemed particularly attracted to it, so I flung it over my shoulder today when I went out to try to get this guy's photo. He must have thought this was one big flower because he stuck around as long as I was out there, keeping a certain distance except when he had to come in close to run off any other hummingbirds that tried to get to the feeder, which I was standing by. I had some real aerial fights going on above my head and right in front of my face and wish I had better camera equipment and was quicker. I could have snapped some real great shots like the three above.
We had another major rain this afternoon. It has really been a challenge to get the things spray painted that I brought up here with me. I tried to capture the intensity of the rain and set my camera to capture movement, which I'd had some success with last winter with snow, but it doesn't work the same with rain. All of my photos that I took with that setting look as if big white worms were falling from the sky. This one is not too strange...
The ox-eye daisies are loving it, but the door that leaked snow all last winter is now leaking rain...
...I've been using pieces of drop cloth and an old towel to sop up the water, but nothing gets dry before the next rain comes...
I'm not complaining. It is such a relief not to have to worry so much about the cabin burning down.
This morning I took all of my recyclable trash to the town dump. When I got back I gave a couple of the things I'd been spray painting another coat.
Then it started to rain and I had to bring everything inside...again.
While I was waiting for it to stop raining I washed the windows on the inside. Sort of got that backward since I put up the new curtains first, but they needed washing so badly. I could hardly see through the soot from the smoke that belched out of the wood stove all last winter. Last week I cleaned this dove print that I had hanging over the bunk all winter and this will give you some idea of how bad the smoke issue was in here...
That was just one swipe across the glass. I hope my lungs don't look like this.
I've got to be back in Boulder tomorrow for physical therapy on my shoulder so I have the car mostly packed. I'll dismantle the computer in the morning, pack it up, along with some tools I brought back up here that I'll need at the apartment, and I'll be off.
Check back in in a couple of weeks. Hopefully I'll be back on line. Teddee
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