Skewered by the Squirrels

It has been a continuing battle here at the lake trying to keep the squirrels from snarfing up all the birdseed while they also simultaneously keep the birds at bay. Two years ago, I put a baffle on the post to stop them from climbing up to reach the feeders. That worked reasonably well, but then they started climbing the adjacent trees and leaping onto the roofs of the wooden feeders. From there, they would grab the roof with their rear feet, drape themselves over the side, and eat merrily away.

Last year, I bought a feeder made entirely of metal and with a perch that allowed birds to eat but which would shut off access to the seed when the weight of a squirrel was on it. I also thought the squirrels would not be able to grab the metal roof and would slide right off if they tried to leap atop the feeder.

In addition, this morning, I got the bright idea that if I "studded" the roof of the wooden feeder with nails, the squirrels would find that jumping onto the roof would be unpleasant. So, here is the newly "squirrel-proofed" feeder after introducing the nails.

Here is how well that idea worked out.

And here is how the "slippery" all-metal feeder works.

In both cases, I have been thwarted. The squirrels still seem able to grab the roofs with their hind feet, drape themselves over the sides, and feast away.

I guess it is time for Plan C, whatever that might be. Squirrels are smarter than humans, I guess.

Lake Happenings

We are at the lake once again. I don't have lots of exciting news to share, but since I haven't posted anything for awhile, this will have to do. Since arriving, we have experienced quite a range of weather conditions, with snow and decidedly chilly conditions on the first two days followed by a number of very nice days, including one above 70º. Some rain has arrived now and then too, and that is OK, because we are concerned about the very low level of the lake. Presently, it is about 3' below where we would expect by this time in the spring. This is surprising, because snow fall levels were reported to be "normal" this past winter. Fishing season opens on May 2nd, and a "full" lake would be welcome, unlikely though that now appears to be for this year. (Remember that our "lake" is actually a flowage or reservoir behind a dam managed by Xcel Energy. Sometimes, they don't seem to appreciate the recreational and environmental aspects of the flowage but only the energy-producing potential.)

One of the first things I did was to clean and rinse the hot tub and then to refill it. So, we have been enjoying it and the beautiful star-filled skies at night. We have also done a bit of cleaning–window-washing and the like.

Wildlife is beginning to show up in greater variety as spring progresses. We have seen bear paw prints in the mud out along the road, and lots of varieties of ducks, geese and songbirds are appearing. Loons too! Yesterday morning, I was awoken by a gobbling sound in the yard just back of the house. I got up in time to grab my camera and get this shot through the window. Window screen and glass detract from the quality of the shot, of course. A tom and his hen were working through the yard, and he seemed to have lots to say. Hence all the gobbling. This was the second or third time we have seen turkeys in the yard this trip.

The next two pictures won't be very exciting, but we hope future pictures of these same spots will be. There is a greenhouse and nursery nearby that we love, due to the variety and quality of their stock. This time of year, they always have a "bare root" sale. Lots of trees, shrubs and other woody stock is available in bare root form. The plants are found in plastic bags with lots of wet straw to keep their roots moist. Two years ago, we planted a mountain ash, a birch cluster, and a green ash in the yard, using stock from the bare root sale. This year, we bought a pussy willow (not pictured), a white Japanese lilac tree (below) and a flowering plum (2nd picture below). These should all add nice color and variety to the yard, assuming they do well. Because our "soil" is so sandy, we have to mix dirt from the woods with composted manure and peat moss to make an appropriately rich base in which to plant such things. So, it takes a fair amount of work to do these plantings. Nevertheless, it is fun and gives us a lot of satisfaction.

Finally for now, we also made improvements along our shoreline. Kathie and Josey went rock hunting one evening. That is, they scoured the woods looking for rocks and then tossing them out along our roadway. I suppose it is not fair to assume that Josey did very much of the work. Right now, she seems better at collecting ticks. Anyway, after that, we took the pickup and collected all of these rocks–some quite large (basketball size) and then in varying smaller sizes. We ended up with a significant quantity, which I then moved to the shoreline, often two at a time. After they were carried down there, Kathie and I shored up the shoreline, so to speak. It looks lots nicer, and we believe this will also stop the erosion that was gradually working away at the edge of the lake (that is, when the lake is up where it is supposed to be!!). Lots of work, but worth the effort.

Finally! Essentially done!

At last, we seem to be at the conclusion of all of our major home improvement projects. Last year, as you will recall, we had a new sunporch constructed and replaced our old, tired siding and shingles. Last month, as you can learn from recent postings, I completed building a deck just east of our sunporch. Two days ago, a landscaping crew arrived to repair the yard, which was damaged during last year's construction and also by the preparations I needed to do prior to building the deck. This was a crew that Rob had recommended to me. They did a very nice job. First, they smoothed the area near the sunporch.

I had relocated quite a bit of earth from the deck area to just south of the sunporch, so the yard had been "shaped" pretty much as I wanted it to be, but the process of granulating and smoothing the surface required equipment like that you see here.

I was amazed at what a nice job the tractor's attachment did. It is called a gill or harley rake–I don't recall the exact terminology.

We also had them add some dirt near the entrance to the driveway. I had previously added extensions to the culvert on each side. I put up reflectors to try to discourage people from turning improperly, dropping off the asphalt, and gouging this new edging. It remains to be seen how well that works. Too few people are good at nice "square" turns.

Last week, Kathie and I took down the smaller of the two blue spruce trees near the turnout in the driveway. I rented a stump grinder and took care of that part of the job too. So, the landscapers smoothed this area and added some dirt to help stop the pooling that frequently occurred here when we had heavy rain. We hope that the lawn will grow better here now, since more sun can reach the ground under the nearby pin oak and the remaining spruce.

Then yesterday, I completed the deck by building a set of steps down to the yard. I used concrete patio blocks to create a landing. The drainage tube extension on the downspout is a temporary solution to the erosion that would occur if we allowed rainwater to drain directly onto the yard while the grass is coming in. You can see that I've started watering to try to get the new seeding to sprout. Warm weather and gentle rains would be welcome now.

Here is what the steps look like up close.

Side Benefit

Helping to celebrate Will's birthday was good in and of itself, but then there is the side benefit of some "Anders time." When we arrived, Anders looked like this.

He likes his bouncy chair, since it seems to allow him to stretch up on his legs. At the moment, most of his toys seem to have less to do with entertainment and more to do with chewing. Me thinks teeth can't be far off.

When we had to leave, Anders looked like this.

A Prime Birthday

Well, I did it again. I failed to get this entry posted prior to the event. On Saturday, Will celebrated a prime number birthday. I'll leave it to you to figure out which one that might have been. In spite of the weekend weather troubles, Kathie and I were in Minneapolis to help with the celebration.

As before, I just don't know why time seems to go by so much faster for me now than it once did. How did Will so rapidly get to be the successful, grown-up person that he has become? Whatever the case, I don't want to let the moment go by without saying how much I admire the man he is. He can be serious, studious and creative. He never shies away from hard work, though he is often concurrently fifteen projects ahead of the time he has available. His values are sound, and he lives according to strong beliefs and principles. He may have inherited a certain amount of the stubbornness that some of us have, but then some of us don't think that is altogether bad. I always enjoy the time I can spend with him and with his family. I love watching him as a new father to that delightful grandson of mine, and I believe him to be a good partner in his marriage to our beautiful daughter-in-law Sandy. I am very proud of him and wish him many more years of happiness.

Likely not in chronological order, here are some favorite photos of Will. Many of you will recall stories and moments in time that lie behind some of these pictures. Happy Birthday, big guy!

Children Learn What They Live

While looking through some old items the other day, I came across a small, framed poem that we used to have hanging in our house years ago. The version I have has a 1972 copyright notice. The poet is Dorothy Law Nolte, but on the web (click here), I found a discussion of how she may have written this in 1954 as Dorothy Law. Anyway, it is a wonderful poem that speaks volumes about the way children should be raised. I comment about it here, because I'm so impressed with all of my grandchildren and the terrific jobs I think my children and their spouses are doing in raising these four little persons. They must be paying attention to the poem, whether they are aware of it or not.

Here is the poem:

Children Learn What They Live

If a child lives with criticism, He learns to condemn.

If a child lives with hostility, He learns to fight.

If a child lives with ridicule, He learns to be shy.

If a child lives with shame, He learns to feel guilty.

If a child lives with tolerance, He learns to be patient.

If a child lives with encouragement, He learns confidence.

If a child lives with praise, He learns to appreciate.

If a child lives with fairness, He learns justice.

If a child lives with security, He learns to have faith.

If a child lives with approval, He learns to like himself.

If a child lives with acceptance and friendship,

He learns to find love in the world.

– Dorothy Law Nolte –