Out My Window « Featherstone Quiltworks

Archive of posts filed under the Out My Window category.

The Hummers Are Back!

19 August 2011, 12:13 am

It sure would be fun if they could tell me all the places they’ve been! We’ve had at least three of them hanging around the crab tree. Well, actually the one male is very territorial and guards the feeder.

It was pretty close to sunset and there wasn’t enough light to get a really good picture, but I like how his ruby-red throat glistens in the direct sunlight.

Gee, it’s fun to have them back!

–Sue

Good News: I got a Grandmother’s Flower Garden block almost completed tonight while watching totally stupid TV.

Bad News: I think I’m allergic to chocolate!!! That’s so depressing, it makes me want a piece of … apple? Oh, this is going to be tough.

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Sunset

7 July 2011, 7:30 am

Last week we had a very hot day, followed by some very menacing clouds and some rain. After that front passed through, we were treated to a beautiful sunset.

A tip when photographing sunsets. I’m sure my camera probably has a sunset setting in one of its menus, but I didn’t want to take time to hunt around. I took several shots of the sunset using different camera settings that were easy to adjust. I used an automatic mode, an “intelligent” mode, and a mode that’s supposed to get truer colors. I got dramatically different photos from the three settings, but I loved the rich color I got in this picture.

Moral of the Story: It pays to play around with your camera’s settings if your first results are disappointing.

–Sue

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Telephoto Tuesday

24 May 2011, 10:54 am

Here is Dancing With The Stars, my style. I usually catch the dancing segment on Monday nights. One thing I like about DWTS is you don’t have to be glued to the TV set; just pay enough attention to catch the star dances.

I watch by my kitchen window, and I started watching at 7:15 (missing the first 15 minutes). Then things got shakin’.

7:20 Dancing the Argentine Tango was a Cardinal and a Cow bird:

The costuming was magnificent:

They finally agreed to stay on opposite sides of the dance floor:

7:43 Dancing the Viennese Waltz was a beautiful Monarch butterfly:

7:45 The action was hot and heavy from this point on. Dancing the Salsa (hey, they’re both red) was a male House Finch:

7:46 Dancing the Quick Step to The Flight of the Bumblebee was, well, a Bumblebee:

7:49 Dancing the Paso Doble was a wasp:

At this point, the TV show was officially over, but one more dancer showed up a little late.

8:09 Dancing the Cha-Cha is a Downey Woodpecker:

More DWTS tonight. Hope the lighting is good again in my crab apple tree!

–Sue

Filed under Out My Window, Photo Posts.

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Telephoto Tuesday

17 May 2011, 9:24 am

(or…any excuse to post bird pictures!) Our skittish cardinal has been a regular at the feeder. He just doesn’t hang around very long:

Jim made this board with partially drilled out areas to load with Bark Butter (a product that’s part peanut butter / part suet). The squirrel LOVED it! Since the association “took care of” the squirrel (he was naughty — chewed his way into the neighbor’s eaves), this downy woodpecker actually has a chance of getting some. I like this picture that shows that great foot-hold.

And a cute little goldfinch. They have become much more plentiful at the feeders.

Yes, spring has finally arrived in Minnesota. Our crab blossoms have started to open. The tree should be gorgeous in another couple of days.

That’s it for today. Hope you have a great Tuesday, and some springtime sneaks into your life today.

–Sue

p.s. Book Club today. I finished The Three Weissmanns of Westport, and should have a new selection posted in the upper right-hand corner soon in case you’d like to read along!

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Telephoto Tuesday

3 May 2011, 10:01 pm

It’s always fun to see a bird I don’t recognize. We’ve been enjoying the company of white-throated sparrows the last few days. Apparently they are migrating to their summer homes further north.

White-Throated Sparrow

I love these birds because they clean up a lot of the seed spilled to the ground by the bigger birds. Everybody loves somebody that cleans up after themselves — and even better, when they clean up after other people!

We’re also seeing some Goldfinches drop by, but the bigger birds (blackbirds and cowbirds) are kind of intimidating.

Goldfinch

The House Finches are so pretty..

House Finch

And we also had a female Cardinal come dine.

Cardinal, Female

–Sue

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Telephoto Tuesday

26 April 2011, 9:35 am

Some pix of visitors to the tree out my kitchen window.

Doesn’t this red-winged blackbird make you think of Heckle & Jeckle? Or maybe he reminds me of the Windex commercials.

We’re seeing way too many blackbirds and brown-headed cowbirds at the feeder this spring. I think it’s my new feeder. I may have to switch out to a finch feeder when then weather warms up a bit. Hopefully sometime soon…

This guy makes me think of the State Fair…House Finch on a Stick:

A pretty little chickadee:

Another Red-Winged Blackbird. They puff out their wings when they sing. It really makes them look bigger than they are with those big red shoulder pads!

And a female Red-Winged Blackbird. The blackbirds are really obnoxious diners, scattering seeds all over the ground as they dig for their favorite seeds.

And we see the occasional Cardinal. They don’t spend much time at the feeder. They just grab a bite and run. Just like teenagers.

– Sue

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Cooper’s Hawk

5 April 2011, 7:30 am

We saw this Cooper’s Hawk in the wooded area behind us. This handsome fellow is definitely on the small side for a hawk or falcon, and his back feathers are a blue gray. It’s his tail feathers though that give away his identity — long tail with broad stripes and a rounded tail end with a slight touch of white.