For the Beady Eyed Bunch

Just a keychain - but kind of pretty I think. Only takes 10 hours to make one of these. Is odd-count peyote stitch.



And a picture from my office window - my eye on a Quiet Backyard in Southern Indiana

Birdy Conflict!

I am amazed at the sudden amount of birdy activity and quite short tempers. Boy Cardinals are zooming back and forth in my Quiet Southern Indiana Backyard, running into each other. The feeder is overwhelmed by all types of birds and I have to refill it every other day. The Red-Winged Blackbirds just batter everyone else off of the feeder when they land. The suet feeder is a big draw with Downy Woodpeckers, Red-Bellied Woodpeckers, and Tufted Titmice (Titmouses?), and others jumping back and forth between the suet and the seed feeder.
A Lady Cardinal is most upset about someone messing up the feeder!

This big fellow has been chasing the litle guys off and gobbling up their seeds! Poor little Chickadees!

Lady Cardinal is obviously getting madder. I am glad I am not a Red-Bellied Woodpecker messing up her seeds.

I believe he has gotten the hint...checking to see if she is on the other side of the feeder!


And stay out!!!

Lotus Pond Dedication

A lot of work has gone on out at the Tibetan Center creating a Lotus Pond. One of the members of the sangha (aka group of buddhists, kind of like a congregation kind of) David and his son have been working on it and stage one is finished and dedicated by the Rinpoche and other monks. Since I have been admiring the work for months and enjoyed the lilly pads and the nice pond to walk around I met Deb and George over there to be a part of it and, of course, to take pictures!









And the path around the pond looks wonderful.  I wonder how they did this?  Can I do this in my back yard?  Is it hard? Of course it is hard - it took a troop of Boy Scouts working on their Eagle Scout to do it. I wonder if they are for rent? I wonder if I could convince them that my litle backyard is really an extension of the Lotus Pond?



This is a picture taken after the monks have made the dedication, David is standing on the bridge he architected (I know that's not a word) and built. The island is to the left.

And a nice stroll past the cabins in a very nice wooded area! There are 4 of them and they are for rent should you ever get the urge for peace and serenity, very nice and kind people, and a beautiful setting....right next to a Lotus Pond in progress!

For Sybil --- On my walk today I saw!

I am now using a new photo editor and apologize for the size of the pictures! At least I think they will be bigger than usual - I think. More new learning! Now I am combining 2 photo editors to get the pictures edited and am seriously thinking about investing the time in learning Photoshop - maybe it will be 'one stop shopping'.

Sybil wrote to say she enjoyed the pictures of the walking path, stables, Clear Creek, etc. So I am posting to show her the 2nd route we often take - it's not as good for pictures, though, as this is all there is! Today we took another route....a bit shorter at about 2 1/2 miles. Across the street and into another neighborhood, a very nice subdivision. about 300 yards into the subdivision there is a path to the Middle school...where we pick up the track around the football field...We are going to sprint up those steps to the right and head over to the back of the subdivision. It looks just a bit like a prison I saw outside of Reno... Nevertheless, up the steps on the other side of the school we sprint!

Across the parking lot to a sidewalk that runs between the golf course and the houses - this is looking back at the middle school/prison after we crossed the parking lot: Golf course... A wonderful place to walk on the edge of the golf course. And a look back at the houses and the way we came. From here we cut over to the subdivision streets and take the sidewalks back to the road that we cross to come back to our little subdivision and home! Sybil - Mini says you can come with us anytime!

And on my walk today I saw....

A beautiful day and nice and cool. Off Mini and I go for a walk down the path behind my house...
House is looking good, white lilac tree to the right of the porch. So far no powdery mildew.


One house down, we take a right, and follow the shortcut to the path and here we are at the start of our walk.


Our usual stroll by the riding stables


A very fine tree house just past the stables, note the porch.


About 1 1/2 miles down to the bridge over Clear Creek, the bridge is a walking bridge that gets lots of use on a day like this.


Looking over the bridge and hoping not to drop my camera in - it is indeed a clear creek


Mini and I inspect the bridge from underneath and then head back home.


On our way back home we admired lots and lots of these! Become one with the dandelion, make it your friend!

Exotic Feline Rescue Center

Deb and George kindly invited me on a trip to visit the Exotic Feline Rescue Center near Terre Haute, IN. What an amazing place! ALL of the big cats there are rescued and are unable to live on their own, some were even chained on small concrete pads until they were adults and brought to the EFRC - they had never walked on grass and had never walked more then the short disance their chain allowed. During our tour we heard many sad stories. Here is the website and an excerpt from the introduction:
http://www.exoticfelinerescuecenter.org/home.html

Exotic Feline Rescue Center
With over 230 exotic felines calling the EFRC home, we are one of the largest rescue centers in the United States for abused, unwanted and neglected exotic felines. Our mission is simple:

We provide permanent homes for exotic felines that have been abused, abandoned or for some reason have nowhere to live out their lives, while educating the public about these beautiful cats.
We do not buy, sell or breed cats
We give big cats a home for life
We provide stable social groups
We provide enhanced environments
We provide the best veterinary care

No concrete here! No chains! These cats are done with that for the rest of their lives, they now have a safe and loving place to live where they get plenty to eat and have plenty of room to roam. George and I were busy with our cameras, of course.

First - some big views of the compound...for over 230 cats it is the big place it needs to be ....peeping through the trees you can see 3 tigers lounging on their 'tree'. The yards for the cats are really big, have nice paths through the brush, have shelters, water tanks (apparently for drinking as well as sitting in) and plenty of space to get away from each other.

Some pictures of the grounds, it is not fancy and commercial for sure but it definitely suits the needs of the cats, as it is intended to do:


So - how close are you to the big cats? Darned close!!! Really close!!! Like, a poke of your finger through the chainlink fence close!
Close enough that the staff/volunteers make sure you understand you will be hauled out by the back of your collar if you get within 3 feet of the cats and never be allowed back! So close that you can't wander around on your own, you can only go through on a tour led by a volunteer.
George and Deb, although I am not sure who is watching who here...the cats are pretty relaxed about the whole thing and seem to think the humans coming through are there for their personal entertainment..

Deb and a Tiger (they all have names and stories but, of course, I can't remember who was who and what happened to who)
I am sure Deb and the tiger are discussing weighty matters here. I am glad the tiger has Deb to talk to.

In fact, George and I were of the opinion that Deb was also discussing Yoga poses with this lioness.....I am sure of it - she has us do that same thing in our Yoga classes!
We were pretty lucky to have George with us. George is very familiar with the center and has even developed a relationship with a leopard...Rodney. George and Rodney are so close that George has a place of honor....they share the space well. You can see Rodney just above his name plate - gazing down adoringly at George who is standing under his own name plate.

Lots of lounging, sleeping, yawning, going on.

And quite a bit of roaring and rumbling!! One will start to roar or rumble and the others will join in..

And a whole new meaning to 'Tiger in Your Tank'!

Ahhhhhh.....a hot day, a cool place to splash and a little drowse in the sun....does it get any better than this?
What a place! So very cool and I am so lucky I had the chance to go with Deb and G!
If you do get to go - watch for this sign on the road - it means you are suddenly there: