Where have I been?!?

I was tossed off Blogspot two years ago for an unnamed reason (perhaps my photos of birds and bees were the problem). At any rate I haven't been able to even sign in for two years. Suddenly tonight my blog showed up on my MSN toolbar--apparently Blogspot has decided that my posts were pretty benign. So this is a test to see if I can get it working again!

Garden Misc.

This is my pink house finch. Definitely a male, but much paler in color than the vivid reds of the normal male house finch. Can't decide if this is just because he's a juvenile or if he's just this pink color! (Need to try for a clearer picture.)

Jays Enjoy a Challenge

I've been putting peanuts in the dead vine on my big tree so the jays have to look for them, not just get them from the birdfeeder.
Coneflowers aren't looking great thanks to earwigs and/or slugs (many holes in the leaves). I put out a couple of bowls of beer but only managed to trap two earwigs and one slug before the dog found the bowls and slurped up the beer.

Jeni and Jason

Jeni the Scrub Jay has found a friend/boyfriend/sibling?? She's bringing someone with her to the garden now. This photo is of Jeni--she has a slightly scrawnier neck and is brave enough to get the peanut off the table close to me. Jason doesn't dare do that yet, but I'm sure he will in time. I put out some suet for the black-capped chickadees but so far the scrub jays are the only things eating it!
I admit I'm not sure which one this is.

Tiger Flower

Mid-August

Garden's looking a little scraggly as the heat and high winds of the past week or so have made everything struggle. Can't decide whether or not I like the tiger flowers. The blooms themselves are very pretty and interesting, but the leaves are really a mess--they fall over in the wind and just don't look very nice.


I planted this annual in with a geranium last year and when I brought the geranium inside for the winter, the whatever-this-is managed to hang on through the winter too. It's now really doing well, with interesting tiny white blossoms.

Jeni the Scrub Jay

Named this one after my funny niece, Jeni. (I would have named her Jason after my equally funny nephew, but somehow I feel this one's a girl.)


She joins Bruno as the only other named critters in the garden at the moment. I love his dangly feet!