FIVE SECOND STORIES

In the Neighborhood:

Chuckettes, chuckettes, chuckettes:

C put out some old beans on the Giving Stone:

Evidently, everyone likes our exotic offerings:

Another beautiful afternoon in the neighborhood-we had some rain and the temps are in the 70's:

 Nutkins

 

Earlier, we had a visit from the Turkey Bros! Mating season is over so the Gang of Four are back together! Two investigated the Diner before joining their buds at Johnny's:

Meanwhile, mating season continues for the Purple Finches. A couple had supper at the feeder with the male feeding the female who responded by fluttering her wings:
 

All six of the Chuckettes together on their front porch:

Some ventured out:
 

Their Mum came out as well. One of her kids stays very close to her:

His Lordship in his castle tower keeping an eye on things at the Diner:

And, hanging out next to a Chipper hole dug under the deck:
 

The big road lilies have begun blooming:

The view from the couch:

The East Garden:

I saw a curious event: I was passing through the kitchen. Buddy was lounging on the upper deck when I saw MamaC approach him coming within 3 feet. What was this about?

a. Mama, sensing that Bud was hurting and driven by maternal instincts to check up on him, offer some solace

b. Mama, sensing that our apex predator was not in tip-top shape, decided to take the opportunity to have a chat: please don't hurt my children.

His wound is slow to heal as he continues to lick it. He is still on the antibiotics. He has been wanting close-to-you time with both C and I. Deck yoga belly-rubs!

6/10-our first 90° day of the year with matching humidity. The pool hasn't been opened yet and the Watergirl was in the mood for a swim. We hesitated about driving up to Motz Lake, north and west of St. Johns, not knowing how warm the water would be. So, we tried Lake Lansing-C has been there before with friends. Once we got situated, I went to lunch and she swam for a good hour and a half. Summer has begun!

Fun Stuff:

Cuing up the old Nancy Sinatra hit: 

click to enlarge

~ 

The Indo-Gangetic Plain, where 1 in 10 of the world's population lives, approximately 800 million people!

 

~ 

Size matters: adult human next to adult orangutan:

Quetzalcoatlus northropi model next to a 5'9" man. The largest known flying animal ever exist:

The head looks familiar:

The Atlas moth, endemic to Asia:

Diver swimming with blue whale:

 

~

I came across a couple of pix about rapture pranks people did on their family.

Hmm, consider this-if the rapture comes without much warning, how is such a picture made? Even if they know the date, what? they stand around with their iPhone on a tripod? And who is going to see the pix? Presumably, their devout family will go with them. Oy-Whole different culture, there. 

 ~

We came across this saying while watching Downton Abbey: "I can feel it in my waters". C was unfamiliar with it while I had heard it somewhere, probably in one of the many Brit shows I have seen.  A British expression very much akin with "I can feel it in my bones".

~ 

6/11: In memoriam:  British artist David Hockney dies at age 88. As an important contributor to the pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists of the 20th and 21st centuries. I loved his later work when he moved back to his native Yorkshire to paint. One of my favorites: Arrival of Spring, 2011 made up of 32 canvas panels with an overall size of 12 x 32 feet.

 Garrowby Hill, 1998 60 x 76 inches

~ 

FUBARland: Ben Meiselas's hyperbolic opening statement in a latest post:

"All hell is breaking loose all over the world".

Ayup, as you have said dozens of times in the past. Truthful, though. 

The other night, the Orange Cockroach, who fancies himself as the King of New York City, inconvenienced residents by showing up in person to watch the New York Knicks basketball game at the famed Madison Square Garden. His elitist action fucked up both pedestrian and vehicle traffic and caused major delays and headaches for both security and ticket holders.

So when his ugly mug turns up on the Jumbotron (is this term still used?), the entire joint erupts with ear-splitting boos.

Whattya expect pal? This is New York. Fuck you.

The Roach reacted by woofing down several portions of cheeseburgers and pizza, then falling asleep.

How humiliating for the emperor who thinks everyone loves him especially in his hometown. 

~

A couple of vids from Robert Reich, Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration.

Our Republican doom loop:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIoEbmltMIk&t=6s 

Is Elon Musk's Space X IPO a Ponzi scheme? 

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/mbwAYMun5Vo 

 

FIVE SECOND STORIES

In the Neighborhood:

Our friends enjoying some slices of bread:

BigTail always partakes:

MamaC as well and her children-what's yours is ours, Mum!

Buddy-roo enjoying some Dad therapy- he likes to snuggle along my thigh to have as much contact as possible. His wound is slowly healing-probably would do better without his constant raspy tongue licking-but, it is what they do.

Beautiful day outside-here the light is just right highlighting GF Birch's leaves against a dark shed:
 

We had a special and rare visitor at the Diner: Mr. Pileated Woodpecker, the largest woodpecker in MI! I have seen them a handful of times over the past 15 years-I suspect that he prefers a different environment than what we have here.

 

I was surprised to see him imbibe at the feeder as they are known to be mostly insectivores.

This gives you an idea of his size. 

It also shows the value of positive reviews on Avian Trip Advisor to attract new diners!

He meets MamaC and relations were cordial with each focused on their main mission: feeding.

With his big crest, he certainly bears resemblance to his ancestors:

~ 

Fun stuff:

We were watching Downton Abbey and saw on a playbill advertising a carnival coming to their village the words Helter Skelter. What is this we wondered? 

In the United Kingdom, "Helter Skelter" is the traditional name for a classic fairground and amusement park attraction. First appearing in the late 19th century, it features a tall spiral slide built around the outside of a tower, which patrons climb to the top and slide down in a chaotic, winding descent.

The phrase first appeared in the late 1500s as a rhyming compound, likely stemming from the Middle English word skelten, meaning "to hasten" or "scatter hurriedly". It is used as an adverb or adjective to describe something done without order or in a confused, chaotic manner.

For most of us, the term refers to the title of a Beatles song and a subsequent, horrific mass murder. In 1969, cult leader Charles Manson misinterpreted the song's lyrics as a hidden, apocalyptic prophecy. He used the term "Helter Skelter" to describe an impending race war, which he believed his followers could trigger and survive. 

~

Hand-carved wooden front door, Copenhagen 1930. The beak is the knocker.

Cat shaped kindergarten school, Germany:

Wood fence casts checkered shadows on path:
 

English designer Benjamin Bowden's 1946 bicycle, later dubbed the Spacelander. Too expensive to produce, only 500 were made:

 

1930's stork embroidery scissors by french master scissor maker Jean Marie Roulot, Nogent, France.

FUBARland:

2017 Time Magazine cover, as relevant as ever: