If we were having coffee, I would tell you that the temperature is in the 90s F today. I am able to walk outside in this weather. I hadn’t seen any roadrunners lately and thought that they were avoiding the heat, until today. I spotted a large roadrunner and he spotted me. I got pretty close, and he made a whirring sound. I wasn’t sure if he was saying ‘don’t come any closer.’ He hoped up onto a tree and made his way up through the branches until I couldn’t see him anymore.
Click on the photos twice to enlarge and get a better view.
If we were having coffee, I would tell you the temperatures are going to be in the triple digits until Friday. Hot weather for June even here in the Coachella Valley. We are maintaining our cool with the AC and my husband has the fans going all over the house. It puts a crimp in my walking goals. I have been walking at least 30 minutes a day. Have to see if I can get up real early to walk before the heat sets in.
We’ve had a couple more visits from the roadrunners. I spotted one hopping up the branches of the grapefruit tree. I don’t think they like grapefruit but are probably using the branches like a ladder up to the back wall.
I’ve been doing the Spelling Bee in the daily newsletter from the New York Times. You have to see how many words you can make out of 7 letters. The words have to be at least 4 letters in length. I knew the word zigzag, but did you know you that ‘zigged’ and ‘zagged’ are words all by themselves?
The roadrunner zigged and zagged to avoid detection by a couple of big ravens.
Are those ravens over there?Maybe if I hunker down they won’t see meI think it’s workingRaven by Natalie Maynor on Flickr.com
If we were having coffee, I would tell you I had almost given up on seeing roadrunners in our yard. But during breakfast this morning I spotted a roadrunner on the patio. I hurriedly grabbed my cell phone and went to the patio door. That’s when I discovered it was a pair of roadrunners. One of them was making some dance moves on the other. The recipient of the advances did not seem too interested. They moved from the top of the wall into my neighbor’s yard. I did manage to get a few quick photos before they left.
Boy watches girl Beginning movesMore moves but girlfriend is distracted
If we were having coffee, I would tell you I haven’t seen roadrunners around our yard lately. I did see a couple down by the front gate of the complex one evening. It looked like a mother and a youngster. The mother flew up to the top of the fence and called the smaller one with a rapid clicking sound. I hoped to see more roadrunners, but I haven’t been outside walking as much. It has been a bit too hot for walks. So, I was happy to find a place that the roadrunners regularly visit. It is our local restaurant. Seems like they like the bacon that one of waitresses gives them. She told me she can feed one of them, that she has named Charley, right out of her hand. I wasn’t able to get a photo of Charley. He shied away when I tried. But another one came up close enough that I was able to get its picture. If you click on the photo below a couple of times you can enlarge it and see the roadrunner even better.
If we were having coffee, I would tell you I can’t believe it’s April already. The months have sped by but felt like a crawl. Is it coming out of Covid, which we haven’t completely come out of yet? The Spring is all about new beginnings, growth. We really do need new beginnings.
April 1 aka April Fool’s Day here in the US.
‘The Fool’ tarot card by Midnight Believer on Flickr.com
The Fool tarot card says, ‘let go of preconceived ideas and remain open to change, new beginnings.’
Featured image of California desert poppy wildflowers titled ‘Let’s go there’ by Rennett Stowe on Flickr.com
If we were having coffee, I would tell you we’re out of town for the weekend. We’re visiting Marley and Caesar again, along with my son, daughter-in-law, and little grandson. Marley did not wake us up last night. He was sleeping with his parents in their room. I heard a loud bang during the night. Caesar had managed to open a bureau drawer and dropped something out on the floor. He meowed a couple of times to get in and out of his bedroom, the guest bedroom. Otherwise, all was well. He even let me pet him this morning.
See you next week.
Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer
If we were having coffee, I would tell you I am not feeling optimistic about the book club I joined. One problem is there are times when the book I am asked to read feels like a penance. That is how it is with the latest book. To call it wordy would be an understatement. It smothers you in a mudslide of metaphors. It’s like the author feels he has to give you a paragraph of metaphors for every statement he makes. I have been dutifully trying to finish the book, but I ask myself if my life may be too short in my later years to take the time for it. There was at least one book last year that I stopped reading at the beginning. I did belong to a book group at the local library a few years back that focused on mysteries. I think I would enjoy a group with that focus more.
Do you enjoy book groups? What type of books do you like most?
If we were having coffee, I would be drinking herbal tea, and I would tell you I have several pairs of eyeglasses around the house. Some glasses are for reading and others are for watching TV and driving. As I move back and forth between activities, I find that I am constantly looking for the right glasses. I did not want to get bifocals yet. I am wearing my reading glasses as I write this post. It’s been terrible to watch what is happening in Ukraine and listen to the news commentators debating about what we should do about it. At least I can turn it off and take a break. The people in Ukraine can’t do that. But even when I’m not watching, I still think of them.
If we were having coffee, I would tell you that herbal tea is losing its appeal. But I haven’t found an un-caffeinated substitute yet. Things remain pretty quiet here. Maybe quiet is good. We have to start thinking about when we will feel safe to take off our masks. Next week the State of California is ending some of the mask mandates. California counties can make their own decisions about it. The infection rate here is still high but starting to decrease. The weather is a bit hot for February. It’s supposed to be 93 F today. I had to put on the AC the past couple of days. I hope it cools down again before Spring.
I continue on with my book list. I’ve almost finished ‘The Dark Hours’ by Michael Connelly. He remains one of my favorite writers of detective/crime fiction. This book has a steady pace and does not get boring. It stars two great characters, Renee Ballard and Harry Bosch. They team up to solve not one but three cases.
On PBS streaming I have been watching Vienna Blood. In this series Detective Inspector Oskar Rheinhardt teams up with Max Liebermann, a psychoanalyst protege of Sigmund Freud, to solve murders in 1900s Vienna. Max helps determine the psychological profile of the murderer to reveal clues missed in the initial investigation by the police. We learn about the society in Vienna during those times as well.
You may think that I only like detective stories, but I also like science fiction. I have enjoyed ‘The Book of Boba Fett’ on Disney Plus. The season finale was this past Wednesday. Hoping for a Season two.
Thinking about Valentine’s Day coming up next week. The Washington Post had an article this morning by Donald Liebenson which asked several different actors, including Miss Piggy, what were ‘The best movies for Valentine’s Day.’ Miss Piggy likes ‘Breakfast at Tiffanys,’ with Audrey Hepburn…”not only because it stars the incomparable Audrey Hepburn and her fabulous little black dress, but any movie with a meal and a jewelry store in the title has to be an instant classic! ”
So, I started to think about what my favorite romantic movie would be. There is probably more than one that I will remember after finishing this post. But one that came to mind right away is ‘Moonstruck’ with Nicholas Cage, Cher, and Olympia Dukakis. The acting ensemble is terrific. It is romantic and very funny.
What is your favorite book, movie, or song about love?
Weekend Coffee Share is hosted by Natalie at Natalie the Explorer.
2022 Weekend Coffee Share
Featured image ‘Cup of coffee in a cafe bar in Madrid’ by Gvjekoslav on Wikimedia.org (cropped)
If we were having coffee, I would tell you I turned over a new leaf, tea leaf that is. I’m having a cup of honey chai turmeric this morning. I do have coffee available if you prefer.
The weather continues moderate here and good for walking outside. We did have some wind the other day which kicked up quite a bit of sand into the air. But none of the extreme weather like I read about in other parts of country and world. Life here continues mostly indoors.
Our book group is starting up again this month. I had already purchased three new books and I am in the process of starting to read the third one. We will meet on Zoom but the plan is for in person in March.
The three books:
‘The Sentence’ by Louise Erdrich
‘State of Terror’ by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny
‘The Dark Hours’ by Michael Connelly
The book group book for this month:
‘The Vanishing Half’ by Brit Bennett
Of the two books on the top list that I just read; ‘State of Terror’ is the page turner. ‘The Sentence’ centers around a haunted bookstore in Minneapolis. It includes current events like living through the pandemic lockdowns and protests after the killing of George Floyd. The bookstore is able to remain open and sell books by curbside pick-up and sometimes home delivery. I picked up a couple of books curbside, but now I order them online for delivery. I did have a book arrive damaged recently and had to go to the local Barnes & Noble to exchange it. I didn’t expect to see so many people in the store, all wearing masks. Like in the book, bookstores are a balm during these times.
Maybe we’ll turn the page on Covid soon.
‘I’m feeling a little prickly.’But Spring is on the way
Notes Tied On The Sagebrush 