The Edge of Empty

After posting the picture yesterday , I decided to check out whether a mate could be purchased and introduced to "Swanee". It appears that Swanee's future is bleak since he is a Mute Swan  and many states consider mute swans to be an invasive species making it illegal to introduce them to the wild. Invasive or not, they are expensive. I found one site that sells them for $1180. So Swanee will be staying single unless a mate happens to fly by and stop in. I did read that sometimes mute swans are used to discourage Canadian Geese from sticking around. I wonder if the homeowner's association invested in a little "goose proofing."

SWM seeks SWF for lifetime monogamous relationship. Must love nature. For at least the last four years, the swan pictured below has taken up residence in a pond in our neighborhood. There is something so stately, and yet sad, about him. Knowing that swans mate for life, I have often wondered if something happened to his mate.  I also wonder how he will ever find a new mate when he is the only swan living here. Of course, like so many others who grew up in the 70's, I read  The Trumpet of the Swan by E. B. White . This may be why I assume that the swan is male. I have no idea, and it could just as easily be a female I suppose, but it wouldn't change that fact that he/she is alone. Although he often can be seen swimming near the Canadian Geese and the ducks that also inhabit the pond, does he feel like the ugly duckling ? With a new road that runs in a more direct path to the highway, there is no reason to drive by the pond these days. Nevertheless, I find myself taking t...

A E likes to view nature from the safety of the screened in porch.  Here he is watching the neighbor's puppy.  Our cat died about the same time as their dog.  We got our new pets the same week.  Ours is much cuter : )

I do not have a green thumb.  In fact, I consider it a success if a plant survives for a month under my care.  However, there is one plant that I cannot kill no matter how hard I try.  Since moving to our current home, I have discovered a plant that will grow under the most extreme conditions.  It will grow with the most hideous neglect. It will grow where nothing else will grow.  If I remove it from one flower bed, it will happily occupy a different one.  It comes back year after year with no action on my part at all.  In fact, it seems to grow just to taunt me.  The plant seems to be as happy in shade as it is in full sun.  In early spring, the cute tiny leaves are a beautiful red which changes to green in summer.  It can adapt to its environment by becoming a climber or a freestanding shrub.  Although I try to be as earth friendly as I can, I have resorted to chemical warfare to render my yard safe from this pestilent plant....

The story of the deer that caused power outages last week was on my mind yesterday when I ran the alarm calls for the weekend.  Imagine my surprise when the cause of a false alarm at a retail store was purported to be a snake.  It is believed that the snake entered the control room for warmth as temperatures dropped.  The snakes movement set off the motion detectors and thus the alarm.  I believe that this is the first snake on record for my unit, although we have plenty of alarms caused by other animals.  In fact, many alarms at warehouse stores are caused by birds that have entered and not been able to exit.  What is the strangest animal that you have heard caused a false alarm?

Spring is a time when hope pops up in the form of flowers.  As summer comes creeping in and stealing away the beautiful colors of spring, I thought I would share one example of what makes spring my favorite season. I saw this pink dogwood tree across the street from a training symposium I attended back in April.  The colors were so intense that I had to cross the street and take a closer look.  We had pink dogwoods where I grew up, but the colors were much lighter and in the pastel end of the spectrum.  I love this version even more. As a child, the dogwood was one of my favorite trees.  I was so excited when we dug one up from my grandfather's woods and transplanted it in our yard right outside my bedroom window.  I have often wondered what that tree looks like today. For some reason, I despised Crepe Myrtles as a child.  Our current home has several crepe myrtles. I now recognize that they are a useful food source for the birds that I love to w...