…thinks he’s a cat.
We got a golden fronted woodpecker
…in good light.
Well, at least his head was in good light. 
Well, at least his head was in good light. We got a twofer
Judy and me both taken care of on the same day. It involved an early drive north to Corpus, Judy’s pre-surgical check-in (lots of paperwork, blood test, chest x-ray, and ekg) for her knee (which happens in two weeks, the day after I’m cleared to drive), fish, shrimp, and hush puppies at Snoopy’s for lunch, my follow-up appointment with the neck surgeon (I’m doing great), back to the other office to finish Judy’s pre-surgical check-in, and drove off for home at 4:30 exactly. Our timing was perfect to arrive home just as it was getting too dark for Judy to be able to see to drive. I don’t drive at all right now. She doesn’t drive at night. Timing is everything. I’m doing great; I don’t see the neck surgeon for another follow-up for another two months. I get to try sleeping without the neck brace, but otherwise I’m instructed to keep it on for a few more weeks. Nothing new with Judy, we’re still trying to fit in that same knee repair we’ve been talking about for months now. We’re determined to get it done on schedule now in early March. A long day, with much shuffling about from office to office, but a productive day. A good investment in our continuing health.
Valentine’s Day was wonderful!
We both got to be right all day long. Tomorrow is a big day. We go back to the surgeon in Corpus Christi for my 4 week checkup. If he likes my recovery, he should release me part time from the neck brace. I know I’ll need to continue to wear it in the car, so still no driving, but I should be entirely out of it in another two weeks after tomorrow. The day we got the brace on, the thought of going six weeks with this thing was imponderable. I had to switch my focus to one day. All I had to do is make it through one day and one night with this contraption on. Then we could decide what to do next. After that first day and night, we decided to make it through another day. Now, suddenly, I’ve had it on for a month. A month? If I could move my head I’d shake it in disbelief! Time flies even when you’re living in a rack.
The great ferruginous hawk hunt
That’s an unusual bird here, the ferruginous hawk, so we drove out to some agricultural land north of us to where it has been reported. (By “we drove”, of course, I mean that Judy drove while I hung my head out the window watching for birds. Think Pet Detective, or taking Henry for a car ride.) There is a prairie falcon out there too; another great bird for here; not uncommon out on the Eastern Colorado prairie, but a big deal here. With two really conspicuous birds to watch for in only one sky, how hard could it be? We started off with a long-billed curlew in a yard.
We moved on to a red-tailed hawk on a utility pole.
Annie and Henry had a chance to get out of the car and stretch their legs.
Annie still has her puppy moments.
We saw northern harriers galore.
…coursing low over fields in search of munchies. We saw a peregrine falcon atop a distant pole eating a mouse.
There were horned larks.
There was a really distinctive red-tailed hawk
Not so much for the red tail, but for the wing pattern. And a vesper sparrow.
Perched and posed.
Want to guess how many ferruginous hawks and prairie falcons we saw? Not so many. No problem. There is something enchanting about the vast emptiness of the Colorado Eastern Plains …and the vast agricultural land of South Texas. We’ll be back.
We moved on to a red-tailed hawk on a utility pole. Annie and Henry had a chance to get out of the car and stretch their legs. Annie still has her puppy moments. We saw northern harriers galore. …coursing low over fields in search of munchies. We saw a peregrine falcon atop a distant pole eating a mouse. There were horned larks. There was a really distinctive red-tailed hawkNot so much for the red tail, but for the wing pattern. And a vesper sparrow. Perched and posed. Want to guess how many ferruginous hawks and prairie falcons we saw? Not so many. No problem. There is something enchanting about the vast emptiness of the Colorado Eastern Plains …and the vast agricultural land of South Texas. We’ll be back.