Friends Make Every Day Better

  I will say one thing about the winters in the Deep South.  There are none.  Sure, we get an occasional freeze but mostly we have rain and fog and heat.  The temperatures for the past few weeks feel more like June than February.  The days fluctuate between rain and fog....most of the time...both at the same time.  This makes for a sticky mess when it comes to wading through the ankle deep leaves that you wish you had raked back in November.  I literally have to de-leaf the old dog after his potty stroll and use a brush to rake the leaves matted in Ms. Nycto's fur.  Word of warning....never let a long haired cat out in this type weather unless you want her coming back inside with about a bushel of leaves stuck to her.

  This lack of winter and the pea-soup thick fog has one good thing about it.  The critters are out and about making for some interesting sights.  When I do manage to take a break from caring for the old dog, it does not take long to find some critter friends.  The fog muffles the footsteps so "sneaking" up on these friends is quite easy.  But, then again, they can probably sneak up on me just as quickly.  

  This afternoon, I ventured to the pier to find my good friend, Moe, the heron.  This great blue heron has been coming regularly since he was a youngster and always wants a handout. Today, however, I had to tell him some sad news. "Sorry, Moe.  I have no net handy to catch your supper.  You will have to fend for yourself!"  In the photo, you can see just how foggy it was.  When I took the photo, I was a mere six feet from the bird but fog still blurred the vision.   Although Moe was not pleased with me being empty-handed, he lingered on the pier making my short outing a pleasure.   Sometimes seeing an old familiar face can make things seem so much better.  Thanks, Moe.  It was good seeing you!