67: Sunny Day

(Today’s view of the pond.)

The wild gander leads his flock through the cool night,
Ya-honk! he says, and sounds it down to me like an invitation:
The pert may suppose it meaningless, but I listen closer,
I find its purpose and place up there toward the November sky.

~ Walt Whitman, Leaves of Grass

We had visitors come to the pond this morning.  I heard them flying in just before sunrise.  They didn’t stay long but managed to leave a bit of a mess before moving on (without our help, I might add).

(Visitors.)

I’m glad they left on their own.  I was worried that we might scare off the ducks at the same time we were shooing away the gaggle of geese.

It’s a lovely, sunny day.  Still cold but the sun makes a big difference, as does the lack of gusty winds.  There is a breeze, as you can tell from the above video.  I enjoy the sound of the cattails rustling in the wind.  Some days it sounds as if they are murmuring to each other, passing their secrets along to the back of the pond and into the woods.

(Opposing forces:  Sun on ice.)

Without the wind to blow the water, there is a 6-8 inch border of ice around the pond.  It won’t last.  We’re going to have a warm up over the next few days, something that will further confuse the poor plants.  After that there is snow in the forecast once again.  I think it may turn out to be one of those baffling winters, going back and forth between warm-ups and cool-downs.  I wonder what that will mean for the flowers and buds once spring arrives?

(It looks like an owl face to me.)

My dule of doves have found the bird seed I’ve been leaving for them.  Yay!  The other piles of bird seed that I’ve left in various places remain untouched.  Hopefully the birds will find them soon.

I’ve noticed — as have others — that my blog is slow to load.  Have you noticed it too?  I can’t decide what the problem might be.  The theme I’m using has always been somewhat slow to load.  I’ve been using larger file sizes for the photos so folks can click on them and view the larger version.  And my posts have become more photo-heavy since I began the outdoor commitment.

(Mushrooms.)

I’m going to start with reducing the file sizes on the photos.  If that doesn’t work, it may be time for me to switch themes.  I’ve been wanting to do that for a while now, but have been unable to decide on a theme.  If things don’t seem to be working, bear with me (and, if you have time, please let me know if you’re having difficulties so I can try to fix it).