February 22, 2018

Not so mundane oatmeal

February 22, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

I’ve eaten oatmeal all my life. I probably ate it before I can remember. But I doctor it very differently now that when I was growing up when I pilled on the butter and brown sugar. Yes – I still start with some butter in the bottom of my bowl but not as much and earlier in my life.

And I don’t put just oatmeal and water in the pan (I’ve skipped the salt for a long time). Now I add raisins and orange peel too….sometimes cinnamon.

Recently, I decided to clean out the refrigerator – cranberry orange relish (using it up) as the topping. Yum!

It was a good feeling to make something that tasted so good…and was very different from the same old oatmeal!

February 21, 2018

Snow Days

February 21, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

The schools didn’t have to make a decision…the snow was on the weekend! It started last Saturday and by mid-afternoon had flocked seedpods

And tree branches….and it was still snowing.

As it got dark, we had a winter wonderland.

Sunday morning, the sun came out and the melting got underway – slowly. The Tulip Poplar seed pods were still holding a lot of snow at mid morning.

The squirrels came up to the deck to dump the seed from the feeder. I never saw them do it! After the snow got slushy in mid-afternoon, one visitor left some very nice tracks.

The snow and ice on the skylight of our covered deck always slides down the slope. It reminded me of the ice shelf discussion in the HoLLIE sessions from the past to weeks. This ‘shelf’ didn’t have sea water underneath but it did demonstrate that ice and snow can bend without breaking!

By the end of the day on Sunday there were only patches of snow in shady places left…and we had a warming trend for the early part of the week.

February 16, 2018

The Great Backyard Bird Count

February 16, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

Are you participating in the Great Backyard Bird Count? It starts today and continues through Monday (i.e. February 16-19). I am doing it from the comfort of my home office window that looks out to our deck with a birdbath and feeder…and then forest. The forecast for my area is rain and snow…with only Sunday being sunny. It will be interesting to see which birds are out and about. I’m ready with the binoculars on the window ledge.

Recording the birds I observe in my backyard in eBird is about as easy as it can get: through a window, most of them already familiar, and not during a busy time of the year for me. Earlier this week I observed two different kinds of woodpeckers in our yard within about 10 minutes: Two pileated woodpeckers and

A downy woodpecker at the feeder.

I hope they come back during the event so I can include them in my sightings during the event!

February 15, 2018

Spring Cleaning (in February)

February 15, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

During my winter lull in volunteer activity, I always try to do some major cleaning out of the house. It never works out to be as major as I want it to be, but I try again every year. I’ve already had a charity pick up one front porch full of ‘stuff’ late last year and now I’ve accumulated another pile that is big enough. It was a real mess at first because I didn’t have boxes to put things in….then I had a box of ‘stuff’ that ended up being trash and decided to donate some luggage/backpacks – hurray! Containers to hold giveaway stuff.

Two questions that I ask myself about each item that help me decide:

Have I used it in the last year?
Do I want to take it with me when I move from this house?

If the answer to both those questions in ‘no’ then the logic becomes:

Does my husband agree (if it is an item that has anything at all to do with him)?
- If so – Is it something that could be used by someone else?
  - If so – Do I know someone that I wants it?
    - If so – Deliver the items as soon as possible to that someone.
    - If not – Put it in the giveaway pile
- If not – it goes in the trash or recycle for the week (or spread out over a few weeks if it is a lot of stuff or some items must be taken to the landfill directly in our area)

Of course – when we do eventually move from this house, there will be a lot of effort to clean out stuff to avoid moving ‘stuff’ that we don’t need (or want).

February 09, 2018

Winter Flowers

February 09, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

My husband bought roses for our January wedding anniversary…and the baby’s breath and greenery that lasted longer than then the roses prompted me to buy a general bouquet of flowers last week at the grocery store. I’ll probably buy another two or three before some of the spring emergence begins with the trees and bulbs in our yard.

Adding color to the breakfast area table is something to savor in the winter when the dominate color outside is brown…and the days here are mostly cloudy. Color lightens my mood – whether it comes from flowers on the table or birds seen through the window!

We have so much growing around the outside of our house that I’ve never grown houseplants. They would fill the gap in color I am feeling right now….but I’d also have to care for them for the rest of the year. I’m sticking with the purchased cut flowers for January through mid-March!

February 08, 2018

Instant Pot

February 08, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

I have finally replaced my 45-year-old Crock-Pot even though it still functions. It was a very popular wedding present in the early 1970s! Over the years, it’s gotten quite a lot of use, but I’ve always complained that it was hard to clean (it couldn’t be immersed in water since it was all one piece). It also had no way to seer or brown meat so I rarely did anything with hamburger meat in it. The knob cracked on the inside; my husband glued it back together and onto the metal stem. My daughter is checking with the grad students in her department to see if anyone wants it; otherwise, I’ll put it in the donate pile I’m accumulating.

I replaced the Crock-Pot with a 6-quart size Instant Pot – a lot more function

And a stainless-steel pot that comes out for cleaning…can even go into the dishwasher.

The first thing I tried was the Sauté function – making taco filling. It occurred to me that I might not ever use my electric skillet again. The down side is that the height of the Instant Pot makes it awkward to stir the contents of the pot for very long. I’ll probably still do most of my sauté (and stir fry) cooking on the stove top or move my cooking area to the kitchen table (lower than the cabinet) if I use the Instant Pot.

The next experiment used the Pressure Cook function using a spicy beans recipe in the booklet that came with the Instant Pot. I cooked presoaked pinto beans…set the Pressure Cook feature for 10 minutes. It takes longer to build up the pressure and let the pressure out than to cook! The beans were very soft and I added some cut up arugula to make a dip for corn chips….a very good winter lunch right out of the pot; my husband and I are enjoying the leftovers.

Overall – I have decided I like slow cooking rather then Pressure Cooking. I ordered a glass lid, so I can see what is cooking and reduce the bulk of the lid required for pressure cooking. Because it is so easy to clean, I am anticipating I will use the Instant Pot frequently and replace some of my oven and stovetop cooking in addition to the foods I traditionally made in my old Crock Pot. Maybe eventually, I’ll build up a repertoire of Pressure Cook meals too.

February 07, 2018

Icy Day

February 07, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

Earlier this week we had about 24 hours of icy coated trees (and streets were impacted enough that schools closed for the whole day). I was glad I had no reason I had to be out and about; I could enjoy the ice through the windows of the house – or open doors to get a clearer picture. I noticed how different the types of trees looked with the ice. The pines droop over very quickly from the added weight of ice coating their needles. The tulip poplars develop little icicles on their more horizontal branches, but the seed pods didn’t seem to accumulate any ice.

When I first looked at the maple, I thought it hadn’t accumulated ice as much as the other trees. When I zoomed in with my camera I saw that it did have ice accumulation and the buds were already dark red. I don’t think the buds will be damaged by the ice since they are still closed.

The sycamore had a thin coating of ice and longer icicles. I was surprised that the lone seed ball from last summer does not appear to have ice on it!

I worried the most about the plum tree in our front yard. It has a lot of small branches that are almost horizontal and tends to be coated with ice rather than icicles forming. It glistened in the morning sun (that didn’t cause very much melting because it was so cold). Fortunately, there was very little breeze so I don’t see any breakage.

February 04, 2018

Bluebirds Bathing

February 04, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

Last week, we had extra drama at our birdbath. It started out with some bluebirds coming for a drink – not unusual. A finch and junco joined in but left after a sip. There were three bluebirds around the birdbath – with the female appearing to eye the water rather than getting a drink while the males watched. Then one of the male bluebirds jumped into the water…and splashed around. It was interesting to see how the bird seemed to put its head down and maybe used it beak as a third ‘leg’ while it bathed. The female bluebird flew away while this was happening. Just as the first bird seemed to finish up, the second male bluebird stepped in but waited until the first one flew away to get serious about his bath. Meanwhile the female bluebird came back and was waiting. She got into the water as the second male finished but waited until he flew away before starting. She took the most time with her bath – completely turning around in the ‘tub’ before she flew away. All this action happened in about 2 minutes!

February 01, 2018

Zentangle® – January 2018

February 01, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

I created 101 Zentangle tiles in January! The number surprised me so now I am thinking up reasons that I created so many. It was probably a combination of things:

I was at home more and creating tiles is something I enjoy doing when I have time.
There were new pens involved. I had bought a package of 24 Ultra Fine Point Sharpies and was trying to use up the last of the old set…which I did toward the end of the month. Then I was keen to use the new set. What a luxury to have pens full of ink…no skips!
The cleaning out of office supplies resulted in a lot of materials that could be made into tiles (via my paper cutter). I am overwhelmed with a variety of tiles at this point and a pile to of sheets still to make into 3.5 x 3.5 inch squares.

With the 101 to choose from – picking 31 was a challenge. 10 are from old business cards and 21 are from recycled materials (card stock, file folders, Seltzer water boxes).

The Zentangle® Method is an easy-to-learn, relaxing, and fun way to create beautiful images by drawing structured patterns. It was created by Rick Roberts and Maria Thomas. "Zentangle" is a registered trademark of Zentangle, Inc. Learn more at zentangle.com.

January 31, 2018

Ten Little Celebrations – January 2018

January 31, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

This month was mostly cold…mostly spent at home…but I easily found lot of little celebrations!

I celebrated the model trains at Brookside…on the very last day of the exhibit – January 1. I enjoyed volunteering to help the exhibit run smoothly…and experiencing the trains through the eyes of the children.

I made a lot of progress on the collection of botanical prints eBooks area of my website. I am adding to the list of links as I work back through the annual lists of books I read/browsed…picking out the ones that contained botanical prints. So far, the books I found from 2013-2017 are listed – each with a link to the free eBook and a sample image. I celebrated the beauty of the botanical prints the whole time I worked on the collection…and may have the ones from 2012 ready later today.

We had some very cold days early in January and I celebrated my well-stocked pantry, freezer and refrigerator – as I stayed warm at home!

The were three Winter Wellness sessions this January hosted by Howard County Conservancy for their volunteers. Each included a lecture and hike…worth celebrating.

Conowingo was not as scenic for birds as it has been at times in the past…but the ice on the rocks and railings was worth seeing. I enjoyed being out and about….maybe that was more what I was celebrating.

I had a cold earlier in the month – so of course I celebrated as soon as a started feeling better.

In November I got my box of Foldscopes and was so busy I didn’t put one together until recently. I was pleased to finally do it…celebrated my origami-type success with the pieces and my initial results.

My area of Maryland has been very dry. We’ve only had dustings of snow…but we had a day recently that is rained gently for most of the day. We needed the moisture….and I celebrated that it came in an easy-to-handle form.

I had a dental appointment as was pleased that I had no cavities! It’s been a long time since I’ve had a new one and I celebrate after each appointment.

I started out on my weekly grocery shopping drive and notice the sunrise over our CSA buildings. I pulled off the road to take a picture. It was a good way to celebrate the day’s beginning.

January 30, 2018

Zooming – January 2018

January 30, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

I’ve been at home observing birds a lot during January and my camera works as well as binoculars for me…so why not go ahead and take the picture too! My favorite is probably of the flicker – savoring the drink of water from our birdbath.

There were some other reasons to use the camera’s zoom – the full moon in early January (there will be another one the last day of the month),

Ice crystals in a stream (better to use the zoom than making a mistake – taking a very cold step),

A stump that was on a slope of boulders (to hard to get close), and

In camera cropping of the morning light on the trees behind our house.

It was a good month with my Canon Powershot SX730 HS with 40x Optical Zoom!

January 26, 2018

Birding through a Window January 2018 (2)

January 26, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

Continuing from yesterday….

The goldfinches come to our bird bath frequently. They are still drab in their winter plumage. Maybe it is wishful thinking but sometimes think they are looking a little more yellow.

The house finches keep their color even in winter. They seem to like the sycamore and the maple more than the bird bath.

Northern Flickers visit our yard during this time of year. They are hard to see with a back drop of pine needles or fallen leaves….but stand out at the bird bath. The amount of yellow in their wing and tail feathers can be seen sometimes.

The dark-eyed juncos are winter visitors to Maryland…and come in groups to our feeder and bird bather. They explore the gutters too.

The pileated woodpeckers are infrequent visitors to the woods behind our house. If I added a suet feeder maybe they would come….but I’m content to see them in the forest. I got a fleeting glimpse of a red-bellied woodpecker this month as well….but was not fast enough to get a picture.

There is a red-tailed hawk that visits the edge of the forest – watching the open area between the trees and our house. Typically, the small birds leave the vicinity when the hawk is around.

The Titmouse always seems to have bigger eyes than other birds of its size.

January 25, 2018

Birding through a Window – January 2018 (1)

January 25, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

I was at home more in January than December…and saw a lot more birds through the window. I posted about the bluebirds back on the 16th but they have continued to visit our bird bath and deck; most of the time I don’t have my camera but I did manage to photograph one just yesterday – perched on the old weather station pole.

The blue jays are regular visitors too. They come to the bird path, the maple, the sycamore and the tulip poplar…staying still long enough for good pictures.

The cardinals alert me to their presence with their chirps. Both the male and female come to the deck for seed and I often see them in the trees around the yard and into the forest.

When we had the very cold days, the Carolina Wrens were entirely missing; I didn’t see them or hear them. But they have returned now that it is a little warmer. They are heard more often than seen.

The doves were missing during the cold days as well but now they are back and frequent visitors to our deck.

More birding through the window from this month in tomorrow’s post.

January 24, 2018

Downy Woodpecker

January 24, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

We have a pair of downy woodpeckers in the forest behind out house – at least, I think that is where they come from. I’ve seen then closer than the forest and photographed them over the past month: At our heated bird bath where they stop for sips of water on very cold days (frost forms on the rim when it is very cold),

On the deck railing where they seem to pay attention the knots. There is one know that is now a hole…must have been some goodie that the bird was keen to eat there, and

At the bird feeder where the bird managed to extract a sunflower seed.

I like these little birds. The little patch of red always is eye catching.

January 21, 2018

Neighborhood Walk

January 21, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

A few days ago, I took a walk down to the storm water retention pond in our neighborhood. It was my first time out of the house after some exceedingly cold days and a head cold/ear ache. It felt good to be bundled up and crunching through the light coating of snow on the sidewalk. The pond is still rather barren looking after it’s refurbishment but there were a few dried cattails at the edge that were surrounded by ice. They had caught some of the snow. It was the ‘artsy’ image of the walk.

Across the street, the gutter is labeled…whatever goes down, is on its way to the bay. I was surprised at how rusted and cracked the cover for the gutter looked. It’s probably the age of the neighborhood – about 25 years.

I noticed some of the limbs that had been cut off our street crews by the county to reduce the possibility of equipment damage if fire trucks had to come down our street. The tees have healed in most cases, but I noticed at least two trees where the wound resulted in part of the tree rotting; that’s not good. I’m glad our oak was not one of them.

January 17, 2018

Soups for Winter

January 17, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

Homemade soups are my winter lunch favorites. I like Root Soup: easy to make with fresh beet, potato, and carrot…seasoned with onion, garlic and basil. I let it cook long enough for the vegetables to become soft enough to mash a little. The pumpkin seeds on top provide just enough crunch (and protein too).

I’ve already had a cold (and ear infection) this year and Homemade Chicken Noodle soup tasted so good. I made it several different ways. This one started with chicken bouillon with orange peel, dried onions and garlic, soba noodles and canned chicken. The soba noodles only take about 5 minutes to cook. While the soup bubbled on the stove, I use the scissors to cut up some arugula into the bowl. At the end of the 5 minutes, I poured the hot liquid over the greens – gave a stir. The arugula was part of the soup but not overcooked! So good… and just what I needed to get better.

January 16, 2018

Bluebirds at our Birdbath

January 16, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

We have a group of Eastern Bluebirds frequenting our birdbath on these very cold days. The first time I saw them there were 6 birds gathers around the rim. By the time I managed to get my camera there were only 3 left.

I was taking pictures through a window, but one seems to know exactly where I was!

The bird’s attention was a little diverted by another bird flying away.

Then it returned to me.

The last bird seemed very comfortable at the birdbath. Its feathers were fluffed and it was savoring the bit of warmth from the heated rim. Its colors were muted – a female. It was the last to leave.

I’ve seen groups of bluebirds at the bath several times since on very cold days. I’m glad we can provide a source of water for them. Bluebirds are in our area year-round. Their numbers are the result of an aggressive nest box program … dedicated people that help maintain the boxes.

What a joy to see these little birds on a cold day!

January 15, 2018

Winter Tracks

January 15, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

We are getting another round of very cold weather now and I’m remembering some tracks I saw from my front door during the cold just at the year began. I took pictures through the narrow windows from either side of the door – it was too cold to open the door. The tracks stayed for days until the snow sublimated rather than melted! The ones on the front sidewalk include deer…not sure what the rounds ones were.

The ones on the front porch were smaller but came right up to the front door! Maybe a squirrel? I thought of a chipmunk at first but haven’t seen any recently. We have lots of squirrels.

We are well supplied with food and have no appointments for the next few days…so we are staying warm inside and recovering from colds until it warms up. Our forecasted high for today is 30 degrees and cloudy. A good indoor day!

January 14, 2018

Moon in the Treetops

January 14, 2018/ Gwen Morrison

Earlier this month, I noticed the moon shining through my office window like a spotlight from the sky first thing in the morning. The first time – on January 2 – I didn’t wait around for it to sink into the treetops.

But on the 3rd I was more patient. The tall tulip poplars behind our house were catching the moon before the sky brightened.

By the 6th the morning was already well underway before I took my picture.

Catching the moon is a great way to start the morning.

December 21, 2017

Birding through a Window – December 2017

December 21, 2017/ Gwen Morrison

The high-point of ‘birding through the window’ this month happened too fast for me to photograph! I was working at my PC and looked up to see a bald eagle fly over and then down into the woods behind our house! Awesome…but fleeting.

I’ve seen red-trailed hawks more frequently at the edge our woods – surveying the scene. This month there was a smaller bird – a red-shouldered hawk. Its feathers were fluffed from the cold. While it sat in our tulip poplar, the smaller birds kept their distance.

Even the crows gave the hawk wider birth. The crows seem to enjoy sorting through the gutters of our neighbor’s house looking for tasty morsels. Their numbers have recovered from the low when West Nile Virus arrived several years ago.

We had a frustrated chickadee on one of the very cold mornings early in the month. I need to get our heated bird bath out so that this won’t happen again.

The cheerful song of the Carolina Wren lets me know when the bird is around. I think he stays nearby all through the year.

The juncos are here for the winter and seem to be the most frequent birds at our feeder although they don’t seem as numerous as in previous years. We have had a small flock that use our feeders (and those of our neighbors) as their winter feeding ground.

The finches have not been as numerous either. I see them occasionally but not every day.

I am savoring the comfort of bird watching from my cozy office on these cold days.