April Fools

Ferguson Saw the Bunny — *Ferguson saw the Easter Bunny!*

I missed posting in March…by one day! Anyway, I’m going to pretend it’s still March. My cat, Ferguson, had a busy month as he now his own Instagram account. He’s the most cooperative of all our cats but they are featured sometimes, too. Yes, I got caught up in Crazy Cat People Land…amazing the number of cats on IG. Check him out if you’re into IG @fergusonthephilanthropist. I might be a little too involved in social media. Here are a few of his activities of late:

NCAA Purdue Basketball, Final Four! — *Watching Purdue (one of my alma maters) in NCAA basketball*

Ferguson and I worked on a little local fundraiser to help other kitties and there was a small write-up in a community newspaper. However, his photo was not included, much to his dismay, even though the editor said he was very “handsome.”

And this is the neighbors’ cat, Misty, on a fine spring day, surveying her realm:

It has been raining the last couple of days but there have been a few harbingers of spring in Phoenix.

Giant Swallowtail on Lantana — *Giant Swallowtail*

Fiery Skipper on Lantana — *Fiery Skipper*

The lantana brings them in. And, while the birds have not been as plentiful as I would like, they have been around:

"I'm almost iridescent!" — *Rosy-faced Lovebird, immature*

I have not seen my Gilded Flicker couple lately, unfortunately. Nesting season has begun so they may be elsewhere. I did see our local Greater Roadrunner a few weeks ago but he did not wait for me to get my camera…same for a Harris’s Hawk that briefly flew into our pine tree being harassed by 2 mockingbirds.

And that is just about it for March…hope to be back before April passes me by and I hope you are all having a lovely spring if you are in the same hemisphere…and a lovely time if you are not.

Leap Day 2024

Ferguson Looking for a Valentine — *Ferguson was looking for a date for Valentine’s Day…*

Robert Indiana sculpture at Scottsdale Center for the Arts

Whew, it’s a good thing there is an extra day this month or I would not have made a February post. Those 29 days have just slipped away into oblivion. But we had a little fun this month where Ferguson decided to become a fundraiser for a local cat rescue group (chelescatcare.org). He had some headshots made of him looking his professional best and offered to mail one to anyone who would give at least $5 to Chele’s nonprofit. We had a decent response and matched some of that money so he is encouraged to try further philanthropic endeavors. If you want a photo, let us know…(continental US only)…

Professional Shot

The Taste of Money. — *He loves the taste of money but all for good…*

Head Shots of Me! — *Checking out the goods…*

We’ll see how his career unfolds. Of course, his siblings helped out some, too, Bouche and Torti.

We were happy to see our friendly Greater Roadrunner drop by after a 2 month absence but, of course, it did not wait for me to go get my camera. Hope to see a little more of him/her from time to time.

Birding in our yard has been slooooooow but here are a few shots from the last few days.

Abert's Towhee on Gloomy Day — *Abert’s Towhee*

He's Judging Me — *Curve-billed Thrasher as Angry Bird*

Curve-billed Thrasher — *Peanut for a Thrasher*

Verdin in Pine — *Verdin in Late Afternoon Sun*

Anna's Hummingbird — *Anna’s Hummingbird*

Rosy-faced Lovebird on Agave Stalk — *Rosy-faced Lovebird…time to stock up on seed bells again*

So that just about wraps up this short month that was a little longer. Hope it was a good one for you. And here is a shot that I took back in 2016…so this is its third time around…

And It Became 2024

Happy 2024. We’ve had some cold-for-Arizona days and nights with rain. Then it cleared up for a few days but tomorrow we are heading back into a few more days of rain and cooler temps. So I’ve really not been anywhere much but the yard…and finally a few migratory birds showed up but they haven’t really stuck around long. I don’t know why they haven’t stayed longer, there is plenty of food for one and all.

White-crowned Sparrow, immature — *White-crowned Sparrow (this is an immature one but there were adults, too)*

The young Cooper’s Hawk is often closeby:

You don’t want him looking at you that way!

My old standbys are around, of course:

Just a House Sparrow... — *House Sparrow, male*

Mockingbird and Star — *Northern Mockingbird*

Thrasher in the Pines (Explored 3.27.2024, thanks!) — *Curve-billed Thrasher*

But it’s a good thing that I have kitties around to amuse me and take photos of. Ferguson is the most cooperative of the bunch so here he is amusing me in various ways:

Prepping for Valentine's Day — *Prepping for Valentine’s Day*

Goin' Birdwatching — *Getting ready to go birdwatching with me*

Yo soy El Gato Supremo. — *Proving that he really is El Gato Supremo, trying to be their spokescat*

That Darn Santa... — *Playing with his educational Christmas toy*

And these 2:

*Torti and Bouche whiling away a rainy day*

Representing the outdoor cats in this post is Sadly, a sweet semi-feral boy with dreamy seafoam green eyes:

So I hope your 2024 is going well for all of you and that we all have a fun, glorious year ahead!

Adios, 2023!

1 of 3. DBG Christmas Tree — Now that it’s almost 2024, I’d better finish up this year…hope you had some holiday fun. We did a few fun things. We went to the Desert Botanical Garden twice in December and they had some beautiful decorations.

Self-Portrait of My Husband and Me — *Self-portrait*

We didn’t see many birds or other critters there, I think there were too many people around:

Of course we had some holiday festivities at home.

Willing and Not So Willing Holiday Cats — *Bouche, Ferguson, and a not-very-cooperative Torti modeled holiday collars*

Ferguson, as usual, was the most cooperative:

Sort of, haha…and there were a few birds in the yard looking for exposure…

Inca Dove with Firestick — *Inca Dove against fire stick plant backdrop*

And what are the holidays without sparkles?

Anna's male — *Anna’s Hummingbirds, male*

Form Follows Function — *Form follows function with a Curve-billed Thrasher*

One of our outdoor kitties, Sadly, was stalking the neighbor’s cat, Misty, in the holiday spirit:

And now on to New Year’s Eve, where there will, hopefully, not be endless fireworks scaring all the outdoor kitties, dogs, birds, and other wildlife. It’s always a very loud night in Phoenix so I’m dreading it but hoping that 2024 will be a good year for all of us!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!

November 2023 (Revised)

I saw a beautiful Wood Duck at a nearby park I used to frequent all the time. It’s been a few years since last seeing any. So gorgeous.

And everything else in this post is from our yard. I keep saying we have to get out in nature soon again and…we don’t. We have been busy with social engagements, though, this time of year. It’s the perfect time of year to be out in the greater Phoenix area so I hope we do that soon.