Nap Time!

  It was gorgeous today!  The sun was shining, the temperatures were warmer and I was able to get outside to work in the garden.  Here it is mid-January and I am planting cabbages.  In November, I planted nigh on 150 cabbage plants in the garden but, as luck would have it, one frost killed a good many.  I have learned a lesson.  Do not trust a weather report!  Go out and cover your plants if your gut instinct tells you that it is going to get colder than what the forecast says.  I did not. The plants that were out in the open, met with problems.  They might still have pulled through their stunting by frost but with nearly a hundred little seedling plants still waiting to be transplanted, I opted not to wait and see.  Today, I pulled out all of the frost-burned plants and replaced them with fresh ones.  The gardens, once again, look happy!

  While I was out digging in the dirt, I kept hearing a bird call off in the distance.  It sounded as if it was in one of the pines near the edge of the Bayou.  The call was not one of distress nor of urgency but rather a calming, soft call.  Hmmm?  Well, there was just one thing to do....investigate!  I figured that this was either a hawk or an osprey but usually their calls are a bit more screeching and high-pitched.  This was more like cooing if a bird of prey could coo.  Grabbing the camera, I headed down behind the greenhouse.  My curiosity got the best of me, I guess!

  Sure enough, an osprey sat in a pine tree across the Bayou.  This tree had been struck by lightning last summer and was quite dead.  Nary a needle could be found on the branches.  The bird did not seem to be hunting,   It appeared to be more like....sleeping.  I do suppose that birds (even ospreys) need to nap now and again.  I watched as the bird's head nodded occasionally.  Perhaps it was basking in the sunshine and the warmth made it groggy!  Since the bird was not doing anything exciting like catching a fish, I decided to let it doze in peace.  

  Chores called.  I pushed the wheelbarrow down to where Michael was splitting firewood.  It was my job to load the thing with the nicely cut logs.  From here, I could keep an eye on the osprey.  I wanted to make sure that the bird was indeed napping and not ill nor hurt.  Toting the wood to the woodpile took a while and just when I was doing the last haul, I saw the osprey leave its perch.  Out over the water, it flew.  The bird was fine.  The hunt for supper was in full swing.  I guess the bird was refreshed and hungry once again!