Joshua Turns 40!

 




This is another of those kinda personal posts. But it was totally clouded in this morning, so no sunrise and no precise Kitchenhenge. Therefore, you get to share in the other big event of the day. Joshua's 40th birthday. (Well, unless you want to call the fact that his refrigerator died the big event.) We took him to Ponderosa for lunch to celebrate (the birthday, not the dead refrigerator).



Josh is the middle son, although he was the last to join the family. Here we all are, on February 4, 1977, when we first met him. He came to us with basically what you see here: the clothes on his back, a cat in a carrier, a huge cookie that his foster family helped him make for us, one paper grocery sack of toys (not pictured), and one suitcase of clothes. Oddly enough, the suitcase in the picture is not his. Funny how I just noticed that anomaly. I guess this one must belong to the social worker that traveled with him on the airplane.

Here is my all time favorite picture of Josh. In true grown-up guy fashion, he hates it, but that's ok. I'm the mom, and I get to like it anyway. It was his school picture in the fall of 1977, just about 7 months after joining our family.

We were going to buy him shoes today, but given the appliance issue, gave him the option of a used refrigerator. That was his choice, so we spent an hour hunting the area for a used one. No luck at all, but we've put in his name with all the charities, and asked to be called if any of the stores get one in. So after all that, we took him home with no shoes and a bar fridge from our storage shed.

Oh, the little munchkin being held by dad is Steve. We pick him up at the airport tomorrow night, so you might get to meet him in the next few days, if he doesn't object. Sam is on the right. We don't really see him any more.

The Path to My Kitchen Door

In summer the grass
Is worn down to the earth;
That sandy, brown scar
Makes the lawn lose its worth.

In fall, broken sticks
Dropped by dogs can be found:
A hazard for mowing
Or walking around.

In winter my lovely
Ski path's full of dents.
Large "post holes" from boot steps
Cause me to lament.

In spring, that brown stripe
Just refuses to green;
No matter the season
It always is seen.

I foolishly wish
For suburban green lawn.
But if that were mine,
Oh! What would be gone?

"Hi Mom, I just came
For the phone," or "I locked
Myself out again; Where's
The spare key? I forgot."

"Hey, thanks for the help,
Mom, I love you, you know.
Shall I bring in the paper,
Or shovel some snow?"

Should I trade a hug
For green carpet galore?
No. I'll cherish that path
To my kitchen door.

by J.H. Young (sharkbytes)

See My Low-Budget Black Taco Ad See The Point of My Quality Day for more pictures of Josh

A Joyful Singer

I would have had a pretty amazing video for you if the batteries in my camera hadn't died. Isn't that the story of so many great shots? So I'll have to try to describe the joyful singer to you.

At the end of the church service today, all the little kids were brought in from the other room. I know you know where this is going... Yup, the kids sang a Christmas song, in fact, "Joy to the World." They actually did a good job. The children knew the words to three verses by heart, and they weren't just singing along with a vocal track that covered their voices. So that was impressive. But, I'm here to tell you about the little guy in the front row.

He was about 4 years old, wearing neat black pants and a white shirt over a red turtleneck. His black hair was cut in long bangs, but did not obscure his eyes, which were dark sparkling buttons in a pixie face. We haven't been attending this church for long, so I have no clue whose child he is, or his name. He gets this press coverage based totally on his merits, not because I know him to be a cute kid in another setting.

Well, the kids began to sing, and they all were focused and singing and smiling (as opposed to some such performances where the kids stare in all directions and occasionally sing a word or two). But even in this group, our little fellow was a standout. His face lit up in a smile as big as any you will see on Christmas morning over a new toy. His eyes sparkled and he waved his wand with the word "Joy" emblazoned in glitter in time with the music. He knew every word of every verse, and could barely contain his enthusiasm for the singing. This was a boy who personified joy!

I am reminded of a pin-back button that I used to display on the dash of a vehicle we owned. "If you feel the joy of the Lord in your heart, please notify your face."

For someone who tends to be Scroogeish during this season, the lesson from this small boy was much more powerful than the sermon. If there is truly "Joy to the World," then I should act more like it.

Tomorrow: if we are lucky, Kitchenhenge. However, if it is as cloudy as this morning, I won't be able to get a picture of the sunrise. We'll see! But if I can't get that, it is a special day for another reason too...

Tails or Heads?

Pigeons on the Space Station

OK, it's not really a space station, but that's what I call it. It's a cooperative grain elevator, and it's just one field away from me. With all the towers and guy wires and the noise of the motors, it's just a bit too futuristic for the landscape I would prefer. I know this is inconsistent, since I'm really a fan of local agriculture, but... it's weird.



So, that is why I have a flock of pigeons. Now, I just looked up the life span of a pigeon on Wikipedia, and it is 35 years! I guess the unusual ones that I have been seeing for a few years are probably the same individuals. I know that wild animals rarely live as long, but these birdies are very well fed, so they only have to watch out for my hawk or perhaps a fast fox if they aren't paying attention when on the ground.

Yesterday I asked you to look for the birds that were different. Most of you noticed that there were a couple of birds that were a different color. And there you have it. This wasn't supposed to be a tough quiz! Here's your first peek.



When this flock wheels in the sunlight those two birds with the mottled brown color just stick out like golden coins in a tub of lead slugs! But I don't usually carry the binoculars on walks out my back door. The new camera did a fine job though- aren't they gorgeous?!



I had no idea that they were mottled like this. And look at their tails- it seems to me as if they are like negative and positive images of each other. I tried to find out more about brown pigeons, and did find one other picture, but that bird is all brown. I've linked to it below.



I did get a couple more interesting shots of the one with darker brown- I think I'll call this one Dusty, since his wings are speckled. The one with the all brown wings will be Rusty.



I'll try to get some more pictures of Rusty and Dusty. The group seems to live permanently at the grain elevator- not a big surprise. Meanwhile, I'll just end with an image I altered for fun, but I like the way it came out.

See Through the Fence See My Brown Pigeon Friend from Wichita Falls, Texas

Through the Fence

I'm tired. I stayed up all night again last night, and grabbed 3 hours of sleep this morning. But let me take you to Pigeon City. At least that's what I'll call it today. Tomorrow I'll tell you what I really call it. Now pigeons aren't very exotic. If you live in a city, they are probably one of the birds that you can see all the time. But I just have one little flock.

My pigeons live next door, and just to point out that one has to find the right perspective to get nice pictures, above is the first view I had of them yesterday. Not so attractive.



But they were so focused on gobbling up the excess grain that is thrown in the field by the grain elevator operators that they ignored Maggie and let me walk around the end of the fence without flying away.



Now, let me tell you something about this flock. There are a very few pigeons that are different from the others. I've been hoping to picture those special ones for about two years, and with the "new" camera I might be able to. So, I'll join the flock of pigeons bloggers who are posting games this week and ask you to find the different birds in this picture. Tell me what you think makes them different in a comment.

Tomorrow, I'll show you! G'nite.