DAY 118: ERNESTO THE EAGLE

                              

Well, it could be photoshopping at work, really, couldn't it?  

Things are rarely as they seem, so that is the reason we are better off not making judgements.  Unless its your own business, don't mind it, as you don't know all the circumstances.  Being human beings, we're naturally nosy, especially us ladies, but the verse 'Judge not lest you be judged' is so

important, as it's not pleasant being on the receiving end of someone else's

uninformed judgement.

DAY 117: I CAN SHOW YOU THE WORLD...

Crows are extremely intelligent, wily creatures and although eagles are pretty much predatory and have been known to kill crows, here we have a crow hitching a ride on the eagle's back!  

This may seem unusual, but there are several stories, or perhaps better to call them myths, about these two types of birds working together and outdoing each other in the department of cleverness.  More about them over the next few blogs.

DAY 116: ODIOUS COMPARISONS!

Comparisons are indeed odious  -  but if it's not about oneself, comparisons can be a lot of fun, even hilarious.  I hope you enjoy these......

DAY 115: AS THE CROW FLIES

                             

As the crow flies - In a direct line, without any of the detours 
caused by following a road.

This expression refers to the ability of crows to fly directly from A to B, without the encumbrances of roads and landscape features that restrict man. 

Crows are perhaps an odd choice as, unlike many birds that migrate over long distances, their flight isn't especially straight. Crows normally fly in large wheeling arcs, looking for food.

With the price of fuel, we all need to travel as close as possible to 'as the crow flies.'

DAY 114: A LITTLE BIRD TOLD ME.....

A little bird told me.....in other words: 

I was told by a private or secret source.

The text 'a little bird told me' doesn't appear in any version of the Bible, but the root source of this expression probably is biblical, from Ecclesiastes 10:20 (KJV):

"Curse not the king, no not in thy thought; and curse not the rich in thy bedchamber: for a bird of the air shall carry the voice, and that which hath wings shall tell the matter."

Various authors over the centuries, including Shakespeare, have made reference to birds, feathered or otherwise, giving messages.

I personally don't think the phrase can be used without adding a sly smile, or the wink of an eye!  

DAY 113: ROOSTING CHICKENS

                           

I don't suppose many of us have a bunch of chubby chickens roosting next to our beds.  They look very cute, but only for a photo shoot!  After that they need to be sent outside.

It does bring to mind a 700 year old adage:

"Curses are like chickens -they always come home to roost."

This is normally used in the context that bad things done in the past have come back to bite or haunt the perpetrator. They will face the consequences of deeds done long ago....something along the lines of 'be sure your sin will find you out.'

Chaucer is believed to have used this expression in his Canterbury Tales.

DAY 112:CAT AND CANARY PART 4

I know this is supposed to be a blog about my fine feathered friends, but there have been quite a few blind alleys lately that have detoured in the direction of cat stories.......however, I offer no apology because if you look carefully, you will notice that a bird (usually a poor little eaten canary) has in fact been in the 

picture!

So today we see Grumpy Cat once again featured in the role of the cat who ate the canary/bird.  But she seems to be justifying her actions by blaming the bird

for lying about the arrival of summer.  Here, I must confess, my sentiments are with Grumpy Cat.......it is actually a lie.  

People, it's only September, and this is Cape Town.  I can remember having snow on Table Mountain in December before now!  So, that bird lied and paid the ultimate price.   It is not summer or spring......it's still winter in die Kaap, so don't pack away your winter jarmies, hang in there!  

Day 111: CAT WHO ATE THE CANARY Part 3

Back to these two guys........

both still alive and kicking.

I've been thinking about their advantages over each other. The cat has extremely sharp claws, sharp teeth and amazing agility & instincts. 

Awesome advantages.

But the canary has WINGS! 

Enough said.

Think of your own natural predators and take stock of your advantages.......

and grow a pair of wings. 

They'll get you out of trouble every time.

DAY 110: THE LIFEGUARD IS ON DUTY

We all need to know that it's okay, there's a lifeguard on duty!

And that our lifeguard knows our name and we know His name -

which is Jesus.

Who else gives that sense of security that it's all okay, when He's in charge?

He is the Prince of Peace.

His words to us are:

'Peace I give to you. My peace I leave with you. Not as the world give I to you.'

That means that His kind of peace is different to anything you can experience

in this world.....sweet Jesus peace!

It's okay if the Lifeguard is on duty in your life.

DAY 109: ENTHUSIASM!

                                                   

It would be great to know what these three were watching with such interest and enthusiasm. But whatever it was, these two qualities - interest and enthusiasm - can take not only little kitties and little geese far in life, but our very own ourselves as well.  

Have you ever read the following quote by Henry Ford, known as his fireplace motto? 

You can do anything if you have enthusiasm. 

Enthusiasm is the yeast that makes your hopes rise to the stars. 

Enthusiasm is the sparkle in your eyes, 

the swing in your gait, 

the grip of your hand, 

the irresistible surge of will and energy to execute your ideas. 

Enthusiasts are fighters. 

They have fortitude. 

They have staying qualities. 

Enthusiasm is at the bottom of all progress.

With it, there is accomplishment. 

Without it, there are only alibis.

DAY 108: THE RETURN OF CAT & CANARY

Continuing our theme from my previous post, 'the cat who ate the canary'........here we have Grumpy cat confessing to the dastardly deed.  One look at that face tells you that she would never have been tricked into getting into the bird cage like the other arbitrary cat. Grumpy cat has what is called attitude.

Isn't grumpiness is a strange thing? We all sink into it from time to time, I guess.  And getting out of it is easier said than done. But when it causes problems in our relationships, then its time to simply take ourselves by the scruff of the neck, give ourselves a good talking to, and get over it!  Quickly!

DAY 107: CAT THAT SWALLOWED THE CANARY

Here is a turnabout.....normally the cat has the upper hand, but it's nice to see the canary in charge for a change.....I wonder how it turned out in the end?

The old saying that someone looks like 'the cat that swallowed the canary'

refers to a person who appears self-satisfied or smug, especially when hiding something naughty. Alternatively, a person who appears guilty of something

and is trying to look innocent or nonchalant. 

The earliest mention of this saying goes all the way back to 1891 when the following joke (?) was printed in newspapers in Australia, the UK and the USA:

Father:  That cat made an awful noise in the back garden last night.

Son:      Yes sir. I guess that since he ate the canary he thinks he can sing!

DAY 106: THE OWL & THE PUSSY-CAT

The Owl and the Pussy-Cat

BY EDWARD LEAR

I

The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea

   In a beautiful pea-green boat,

They took some honey, and plenty of money,

   Wrapped up in a five-pound note.

The Owl looked up to the stars above,

   And sang to a small guitar,

"O lovely Pussy! O Pussy, my love,

    What a beautiful Pussy you are,

         You are,

         You are!

What a beautiful Pussy you are!"

II

Pussy said to the Owl, "You elegant fowl!

   How charmingly sweet you sing!

O let us be married! too long we have tarried:

   But what shall we do for a ring?"

They sailed away, for a year and a day,

   To the land where the Bong-Tree grows

And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood

   With a ring at the end of his nose,

             His nose,

             His nose,

   With a ring at the end of his nose.

III

"Dear Pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling

   Your ring?" Said the Piggy, "I will."

So they took it away, and were married next day

   By the Turkey who lives on the hill.

They dined on mince, and slices of quince,

   Which they ate with a runcible spoon;   

And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,

   They danced by the light of the moon,

             The moon,

             The moon,

They danced by the light of the moon.

DAY 105: SPOONBILL SAM

The spoonbill is quite closely related to the egret and ibis, all being wader birds.  The latter two are considerably more attractive, I think!

The feeding methods of the spoonbill are quite interesting:

- they dip their long flat beaks in the water & swing their heads from side to side, to stir up the mud.

- their beaks are very sensitive so they can detect small fish, shrimps, insects etc. & as soon as they do, the beak snaps shut.

- at the top of the beak there are two slits, which enable the spoonbill to breathe while the beak is mostly submerged in water while foraging for food.

DAY 104: OWL YOU NEED IS LOVE.........

                                                       

Since my early post on our owl house, I seem to have developed an owl-lish profile among those who love me.  I have a passionate desire to see some owls take up residence in our owl house, but so far, nada!

So, in the meanwhile, I'm on the pleasurable receiving end of owl posts on Facebook, owlly books, owlly Pinterest posts, and even owlly jokes!  

It's been a lot of fun......and every day, I check the owl house to see if they've arrived.    Watch this space, peeps! 

DAY 103: CHEEKY CROWS

                         

These rather cheeky looking crows, about to eat up a delicious looking watermelon, are actually very intelligent characters.  One expects animals and birds to simply behave according to instinct. However, the more I learn about birds, the more I realize how our Creator God as endowed them with magnificent abilities.  For instance:

Crows pay attention to how the human world works, and often use it to their advantage: Some have been observed cracking walnuts by dropping them from the exact height needed to bust them open on the pavement. But in other cases, they take gravity out of the equation and just drop the nuts in front of cars, letting them do the work. These same crows also memorize the pattern of traffic lights to optimize the exact moment they drop the nuts, but also to make sure they only retrieve them when the light is red and the crosswalk sign is on, so they don't get run over. If you've ever been out driving, you know the latter is a skill that only about 10 percent of the human population has mastered!

DAY 102: BLUE CRANES

Travelling home after spending a week's holiday in Knysna, we spotted lots of Blue Cranes in the fields, especially in the Caledon area.  

I've since googled and found out that because these birds are a threatened species, the Caledon farmers grouped together to protect the Blue Cranes and to increase tourism, establishing the Caledon Blue Crane Route.  Apparently it is common to see Blue Cranes throughout the whole Overberg region  i.e. Stanford, Gansbaai, Napier, Elim, Arniston, Bredasdorp.

Of course, this is our national bird! 

DAY 101: UNDERWATER DRAMA

I have already done a post on the Kingfisher catching fish, but here is a quite amazing action shot of one spearing its prey under water.  

To have been in position to get this photo is a remarkable feat - what a photographer! 

So enjoy it...

DAY 100: DANCING IN THE SNOW

So beautiful and elegant....
You can almost hear symphonic music playing as these lovely creatures dance together. 
In fact, they look to me like two beautiful ballerinas in fluffy snowy white tulle dresses!  

DAY 99: YOU AGAIN?

For those who read my blog yesterday.....we checked up on the Egyptian geese family today, and were quite thrilled that they allowed us to get quite close without Papa goose kicking up a big fuss.  They obviously recognized us from yesterday and realize we are relatively harmless - ok, totally harmless!

So, today Papa was off on his own mission, foraging nearby for food.  Mama was relaxing very close to the footpath.  All six kids were lying quite close in one big heap, but scrambled up as if they had been looking for an excuse to escape being made to have a nap.  Most enjoyable little interlude.....

DAY 98: ONE BIG YAWN

Nobody looks good when they yawn, so don't laugh at Mr. Owl!

Most people try to hide or at least cover a yawn, but when they don't, it's not in the least attractive!

I remember my sister's experience - she was sitting in her car, stuck in traffic on her way to work.  A guy sitting in his car, going in the opposite direction, gave out a massive yawn while she watched, fascinated.  He caught her eye and  by way of embarrassed explanation, said 'MAN, AM I TIRED!'

DAY 97: BOSSY BOOTS!

                                        

I don't have a picture of an Egyptian goose, but as we were walking on the footpath along the shore of the Knysna lagoon (where we are spending a week's break in our hectic retired lifestyle, LOL) - we came across a little family of them
and had some of nature's finest entertainment.

Papa goose was perched on the roof of a little building, overseeing the activities of Mama goose and their 6 goslings, who were foraging down below.  He was honking instructions to his family, and honking to warn us not to get too close.

On our return, we found the action had moved out onto the waters, but Papa goose was still loftily shouting his orders from the edge of the jetty, while the family had paddling lessons below with Mama Goose.  

Nature is endlessly fascinating to my heart......

DAY 96: NATURE'S COMEDIANS

He looks quite the comedian, doesn't he?  

Makes one wonder what he would have been saying at that moment, if he could talk! 

But whatever it was, I'm sure it was funny....

The bible says 'a merry heart is like a dose of medicine' - and isn't that true.  

When you're feeling down or not well, and someone comes along with a cheerful attitude 

or amusing story to tell, it lifts you up and cheers your spirit.  

DAY 95: BIG FEET

                                

                                                  

I guess there must be advantages to having big feet.......

But of course, if you are a water bird, there are indeed advantages - 

because their feet are their paddles to get from A to B.

These particular birds are called boobies!  Yes, they are!

They are the ordinary ones; their close relatives are more glamorous as they have powder blue coloured feet, and are called blue-footed boobies. They have another more familiar relative with which we in SA would be more familiar- the gannet.  They are mainly found on the Galapagos Islands.

The other advantage these birds have over those of us humans with big feet is that they never have to try and find shoes that fit!

DAY 94: CHEEKY CHOPS!

Sometimes we bite off more than we can chew.

Sometimes we think we can pick on someone bigger without consequence.

Sometimes we should just play safe.

But sometimes we don't!

I would so so love to have seen the consequences of the little guy's cheeky action.  Did the big guy simply treat him with contempt, or did he turn around and work his case.  Who was the victor? 

Sorry - we'll never know!

DAY 93: WHOSE IDEA WAS THIS ANYWAY?

Of all the birds featured in my fine feathered blog over the past 92 entries, the pigeon is probably the least popular and the least tolerated.  But they are apparently very intelligent creatures, endowed with many amazing abilities, like:

- an internal magnetic compass, able to use landmarks, travel along roads and change direction at junctions.

- remarkable perception.  Two researchers studying pigeons in a park treated them differently - one was hostile towards them, chasing them away, while the other one ignored them.   When they returned later the results were amazing. The pigeons ran away only from the person who had previously chased them. They even tried switching clothing, but it appears the pigeons recognized their faces.  

As can be seen in this picture, pigeons are highly social creatures and move In flocks of 20-30 - even if it means lining up and clinging to the side of a wall, like these are doing.   I wonder if even one of them thought to itself:

WHOSE IDEA WAS THIS, ANYWAY?

DAY 92: WORDS OF WISDOM

The owl has long been a symbol of wisdom, but the many words of scripture are a much better source of dependable advice for every facet or circumstance of life.  

Then you come to the lives of those who are actually putting the word of God into practice in their lives.....these are those to whom one should listen, and from whom one should accept counsel and instruction.  And as the proverb (19vs20) states: in the end you will be wise.  

DAY 91: A REAL ORIGINAL ANGRY

I don't know much about the Angry Birds game, except that there is a lot of attacking and fighting pigs who stole the birds' eggs or something like that....

(I said I didn't know much about it) .... But here is a real life original angry bird.

What a priceless expression on his face....  

Irresistible to add captions:

- what are you staring at?

- yes, I am a one-legged bird!

- no, I'm not...I just enjoy balancing on one, ok?

- you're in my space, dude.  

Any more?   Put it on my Facebook....no prizes!