birds and rain and more weird food

I saw a rose breasted grosbeak! It was sitting facing me in the photinia on the other side of the little backyard across from my window when I happened to look up. It was so striking with that white breast and the brilliant red collar with a black head and wings though I couldn't really see the body, facing me as it was. But I'm sure that's what it was being the right size and after doing a google picture search, it is the only bird that fits what I saw. I looked it up and sure enough, they migrate through here in April. I was hoping it would come to the bird feeder so I could get a better look but it didn't, just flew off. So that was my excitement for Wednesday morning.

image via https://www.animalspot.net/

I finally got mulch spread under the tomatoes Wednesday afternoon. Took me about 30 or 40 minutes. Wasn't particularly hot, upper 70s, partly cloudy sky so the the sun wasn't beating down relentlessly but it was so humid that by the time I finished sweat was dripping off my face. You'd have thought I had been standing out in the rain.

Wednesday night had a different excitement. A big storm with lightning and thunder, a couple of which flash and boom happened almost simultaneously, and bouts of hard rain came through about 3 AM and lasted til 7 AM just when I had to get up to have my coffee and breakfast and get to SHARE. Consequently I did not get any sleep between those hours because the neurotic little dog was in constant motion trembling and panting. This side, that side, on the bed, off the bed, up by my head, down by my feet, under the covers, not under the covers and mostly trying to lay on my pillow above my head which pulled my hair, panting in my face. I was not a happy camper. Tremble and pant, just be fucking STILL. Threw her off the bed several times, tossed her out of the room and closed the door for less than 3 minutes while she scratched at the other side in a panic. I'm sorry to say I yelled at her a lot. Poor little dog. I know she can't help it. Why do these storms always come through at night!

When I went out to check the rain gauge this morning which showed we had gotten 2 inches, I heard a strange chirping/whistling, looked up in the pecan tree and there were four whistling ducks.

Spent my morning at SHARE, very slow today, only 14 or so clients for food so a lot of standing around. One of the other volunteers bags up instant oatmeal packets and granola/snack bars three to a bag and she brought them around to me as that's one of the things I deal with. So here's another item from the Department of Ridiculous Food.

What, pray tell, is 'seasonal flavor'?

And because I just really like this view of the queen anne's lace with the clasping leaved coneflowers and the big old native pecan tree, here's another picture of it.