NYCat Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 (edited) Success! I took my camera down to the garden and after a while the cardinal parents showed up. They seemed to focus on a specific section so I stood nearby. I was looking into the bushes when I suddenly realized it was perched in the open on a branch not far from me. So I got some nice portraits. They are not handsome as chicks. Pretty ugly with bulging eyes. When It started to move away from me I went in and let the parents take care of it. I should have time on Friday to download and see what I have really got. Lighting was not great but it never is in my garden. So lucky to have my own little forest in Manhattan. Paulette Edited July 19, 2023 by NYCat 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reimar Posted July 19, 2023 Share Posted July 19, 2023 On 14/07/2023 at 14:30, John Mitchell said: Glad to hear things went well. I had a hip replacement five years ago. I was driving within less than a month, but hips aren't as complicated as knees. Twice weekly physio really helped me recover, especially the swimming pool exercises. Hang in there. It's worth the pain. Plus, that physio must be working.... you're looking younger every time I see you! 😀 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Mitchell Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 10 hours ago, Reimar said: Plus, that physio must be working.... you're looking younger every time I see you! 😀 It's fake news... 👴 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 Our elder son bought me a copy of Paul McCartney's photo book Eyes Of The Storm, after he visited the exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London. Many of the photos are taken from contact sheets as the negatives have been lost, so the image quality is not always great, but an extraordinary collection showing the early years of the Beatles. Go see it if you have an interest and live near London. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jansos Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 (edited) 1st day of retirement (good), spent much of it arguing (not so good). 🤫 Edited July 22, 2023 by Jansos 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted July 20, 2023 Share Posted July 20, 2023 46 minutes ago, Jansos said: 1st day of retirement (good), spent much of it arguing with my other half (not so good). 🤫 I am like the police. Do not get mixed up in domestic quarrels. Sorry. Allan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jansos Posted July 21, 2023 Share Posted July 21, 2023 20 hours ago, Allan Bell said: I am like the police. Do not get mixed up in domestic quarrels. Wise move. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 On 20/07/2023 at 20:22, Jansos said: 1st day of retirement (good), spent much of it arguing (not so good). 🤫 I wish I could have bottled that Monday morning feeling when you realise you don't have to get up and go to work. It lasted quite a time, several months perhaps, but sadly now just a memory. Enjoy your retirement ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jansos Posted July 22, 2023 Share Posted July 22, 2023 1 hour ago, Bryan said: I wish I could have bottled that Monday morning Really, why? I started dreading that Monday morning feeling sometime around lunchtime on a Sunday. The feeling was always much worse than the reality of being at work. Think I'm going to feel a weight lifted and fly off like a feather in the wind. I'll let you know on Monday! 😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYCat Posted July 23, 2023 Share Posted July 23, 2023 I went down to enjoy our garden before it got too hot and I took my camera "just in case". I have been hearing cardinals in the mornings lately so have been hoping to see fledglings. The male cardinal showed up and was feeding a chick in the middle of a bush. I was able to watch and photograph it for a while. It is really tiny and seems not quite as feathered as the one I saw on Wednesday. A neighbor came to empty his trash and I asked him to hold up since he would have passed really close to the baby. He was very interested and did wait until the chick had taken a short flight into a bush. I have the images on my computer now so can take a closer look at the nest. There were only two chicks and I think I have seen both. I am having to re-acquaint myself with the Nik filters and I found tutorials by a guy I've liked before. He makes short videos on certain tools and takes his time. He is clear and enlarges sections that he's using so it's possible to really see what he is doing. His website is https://onlinephotographytraining.com Paulette 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StokeCreative Posted July 24, 2023 Share Posted July 24, 2023 On 22/07/2023 at 13:12, Jansos said: Really, why? I started dreading that Monday morning feeling sometime around lunchtime on a Sunday. The feeling was always much worse than the reality of being at work. Think I'm going to feel a weight lifted and fly off like a feather in the wind. I'll let you know on Monday! 😉 Exactly my experience, but the good news I finish end of September! Certainly looking forward to that monday morning in October! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NYCat Posted July 24, 2023 Share Posted July 24, 2023 More baby bird photos today. Possibly the last of them. The little one used a ladder (in two flights) to reach the roof of a small building that contains our trash bins. So now it is up out of the garden. There is a redbud tree overhanging that roof and it flew into the branches. I got some shots of the male feeding it there but with backlight and twigs in the way. It looks more feathered today. It had a little bald spot on its breast yesterday. I think the other, larger one, left the garden already. Paulette 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Richards Posted July 26, 2023 Share Posted July 26, 2023 On 24/07/2023 at 01:49, StokeCreative said: Exactly my experience, but the good news I finish end of September! Certainly looking forward to that monday morning in October! This guy has avoided retirement for nearly two decades.......happy birthday Mick Jagger! 80 today and still rocking. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gvallee Posted July 31, 2023 Share Posted July 31, 2023 I am super impressed by a new èlectronic system that our private health insurance has set up for foreigners. For prescriptions, we normally have to see a GP and pay $80 for the visit as we are not allowed to be on Medicare. Instead, we can now do it by telehealth. We book a tele appointment, the GP calls, sends immediately an SMS to my phone with a code. We can then either go to a pharmacy where they scan the code or even email it to them and the prescription is ready when we get there. No more queues at the GP, nothing to pay for the visit, no hassle to claim back, no parking stress. Sometimes I do like technology. Only sometimes. 1 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Standfast Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 (edited) I now have a bus pass! Hi ho silver and away! Edited August 1, 2023 by Mr Standfast 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecadet Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 1 hour ago, Mr Standfast said: I now have a bus pass! Hi ho silver and away! All you need now is a bus😉 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 51 minutes ago, spacecadet said: All you need now is a bus😉 Be patient there will be three along in a minute. Allan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Standfast Posted August 1, 2023 Share Posted August 1, 2023 58 minutes ago, Allan Bell said: Be patient there will be three along in a minute. Allan Point to Mr Bell! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Betty LaRue Posted August 1, 2023 Author Share Posted August 1, 2023 (edited) Around my neck of the woods, we’ve had a string of at least 10 over 100F degree days, with a few more ahead. The good thing is the high pressure system that’s been parked nearby causing the heat dome will move away this weekend, and the temps will come down about 15-18 degrees for awhile. I’m hoping that’s the last of it other than random hot days scattered around. I don’t kid myself that the heat’s over, just hoping another high system doesn’t park over us again. Traditionally, the hottest days around here are late July, early August. Normal highs are in the 93F degrees range, so we’re well over normal. Today will be 104F. I’m trying not to complain too much because other states are up in the 110-115 range, which would be like standing near a blast furnace. Many years ago, my stepfather, at the age of (I think) 44 years old, worked for a zinc smelter in the furnace room. Early July he got so hot he felt ill. He went to the shower room to sit on a bench trying to cool off. He was having a heart attack, so he laid over on his side on the bench & died. He was a big man. 6’3” and probably 230 pounds. Not fat but a bit chunky. The cooler weather will be appreciated by all who must work in this heat. Edited August 1, 2023 by Betty LaRue Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sb photos Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 12 hours ago, Mr Standfast said: I now have a bus pass! Hi ho silver and away! I finally applied for mine last year. So far I've only used it on the park and ride buses. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 (edited) 20 hours ago, Mr Standfast said: I now have a bus pass! Hi ho silver and away! Congrats, I couldn't be without ! Pity the English ones don't work in nearby Scotland however. I am also the proud possessor of a Tyne and Wear Metro pass, an aged person's bargain at £12 per annum. Pity it doesn't work on the Manchester trams, where our younger son lives. I've also started to use pay for coach trips to distant parts, e.g. far off Leeds, cheaper and currently more reliable than the train and both more environmentally friendly and considerably less hassle than driving. However I also have an ancient citizen's rail card, which would get more work if the trains were to be sorted. If you live in the UK and have not seen Ben Elton on the railways, get it watched, should be compulsory viewing. (Channel 4 The Great Railway Disaster) Edited August 2, 2023 by Bryan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Bell Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 51 minutes ago, Bryan said: Congrats, I couldn't be without ! Pity the English ones don't work in nearby Scotland however. I am also the proud possessor of a Tyne and Wear Metro pass, an aged person's bargain at £12 per annum. Pity it doesn't work on the Manchester trams, where our younger son lives. I've also started to use pay for coach trips to distant parts, e.g. far off Leeds, cheaper and currently more reliable than the train and both more environmentally friendly and considerably less hassle than driving. However I also have an ancient citizen's rail card, which would get more work if the trains were to be sorted. If you live in the UK and have not see Ben Elton on the railways, get it watched, should be compulsory viewing. (Channel 4 The Great Railway Disaster) Come on! You'r not THAT old. Allan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted August 2, 2023 Share Posted August 2, 2023 1 hour ago, Allan Bell said: Come on! You'r not THAT old. Allan Working on it ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan Posted August 3, 2023 Share Posted August 3, 2023 (edited) Starting with a bad thing, we lost our door keys between getting out of the car, opening the door, and unloading shopping. Becoming longer in the tooth we are finding that keys are easier to lose, so we have tried to institute a system of always replacing the keys in the lock immediately after entering the building, but to no avail ! After a thorough search and several days having lapsed we had decided to have another set cut, but being imperfect animals, nothing got done. However, this morning, my wife discovered the lost keys in the peg basket - as you do. Edited August 3, 2023 by Bryan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Rooney Posted August 3, 2023 Share Posted August 3, 2023 On 24/07/2023 at 15:32, NYCat said: I think the other, larger one, left the garden already. Paulette I hope that Cardinal is headed this way. We're in desperate need of a bird who might teach these Herring gulls to sing. They all sound like Tom Waits with the flu. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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