Miscellaneous

Anomalies at the Autumn bird feeder:

A cute pair of Wood Thrushes have hopped around beneath the feeder for nearly two weeks. At some point they will surely continue their migration, but for now they appear to have amble food and warmth here.  Smile.

A few days ago, two very young baby Cardinals appeared. Maybe the late season young of some of our local residents. So young there was no hint of a crest, coloring, etc. At first, they merely sat on our crab apple tree, trying to eat LEAFS. We quickly refilled the sunflower seed feeder! After other birds--parents, maybe--showed example feeding behavior, the little pair learned.    Big Smiles.

Hummingbirds continue to drift through, stopping to feed at the Zinnias and Cannas. I don't trust myself to have hummingbird nectar feeders: I could see me forgetting to re-fill it, doing it improperly, killing masses of humming birds!  Frown.  So I rely on my nectar flowers.

Miscellaneous books:

Rosamunde Pilcher's "The Empty House".  August Reading.  Vintage Pilcher, published in 1973.

Bill Bryson's "A Walk in the Woods". Once upon a time, I thought I wanted to hike the Appalachian Trail; I was about 20 then. The book is entertaining, for sure; funny. Does have some good tips for long hikes.  I read "At Home", it was a better quality read. I sense a "pot boiler" in "..Walk..". On our recent trip, we strolled a fraction of a mile of the AT at a Pennsylvania State Park near Gettysburg.

"A Perfect Spy" by John LeCarre. This is LeCarre run wild. Amazing analysis of the personality (disorders) of a high-functioning espionage agent and his ultimate ruin. I plan to read all of LeCarre's novels, if possible.

"At Home A Short History of Private Live" by Bill Bryson

The author is a popular travel writer, I'm told, though I hadn't yet discovered this books. In "At Home" he takes us on a trip, from room to room, in his current home in England. The house was built as a Rectory in 1851. So first, Bryson explains about the 19th Century English church system; notable accomplishments were achieved by some of these clerics. The book reminded me a bit of the early chapters of "The Devil in the White City" with the explanation of the Great Exhibition of 1851 in London which was as difficult to launch as the Chicago Fair in 1893. No detail of domestic life is too trivial to escape mention: construction, arrangement of spaces, materials, stairs and the changes in life style they enabled, utilities, plumbing, etc. Sounds like it could be boring? No, it is a delightful book, written in a light, amusing and conversational style. Much was familiar to me: I was a Home Economics major in college; but I learned a lot too. I will definitely find other books by this author.