Birds & Books

October 22, 2020 This fall leaf photo, delicate with rain droplets, was laying on the steps as I entered the Town of Lee’s Library. It was so unexpectedly striking that I turned back to take a photo, for no other reason than it felt like the season was turning and this moment should be captured before it was somehow too late. The Library is surprisingly large inside, although the historic building looks very unassuming from the outside. I have driven by many times and finally was inspired to go in by my quaint Little Free Library experience. It has been decades since I’ve had an actual library card, and the stamped return date inside the cover is a complete throwback in time (remember the pockets?). I was especially interested in their large collection of books on the history of the town and surrounding area. What a nice treat, and the staff could not have been nicer! They noticed my address when I filled out my card application, and asked about the “tower house”…. people do seem more than a bit curious! We’ll probably have to have an open house when (if) the house is ever done, and invite everyone in town who has wondered what it is like inside. 🙂

Late afternoons and early evenings we often hear the owls in the woods, and occasionally see one. There are many deer and assorted wildlife in the woods (Sydney could spend hours sniffing). But at the moment, it is the birds that are making a statement. All at once it seems they are everywhere…

Here’s a (slightly boring, but I am trying my youtube skills) link to an unending flock of black birds in the backyard, taken from the apartment bedroom window, they reminded me of the movie “The Birds” which freaked me out as a kid. https://youtu.be/AyHUsuSancw Later, as I was driving up Sheep Road, my attention was caught by a huge bird which flew in and landed on the railing of the tower. (We always are looking at the house from the road, marveling at how cool it looks, and that it is ours!) I actually stopped in the middle of the road and jumped out with my phone to try to get a photo, but it was hard to see through the trees and I had to zoom in – it is funny how much more dramatic things look in real life as opposed to through the camera lens. Anyway, my guess it that it was a hawk, but possibly an owl, and I really hope it was not a vulture (ugh) but we have not seen any of those near the house before. I really hope the hawk comes back, because it’s a great birds-eye view from up there…. (And hopefully checking out our mouse and chipmunk population, fingers crossed!)

The last bird story of the day is about woodpeckers. From the ground you can see a number of round holes in the face of the tower, maybe the size of a bottle cap. We were fearful that they were woodpecker holes, and had asked the painters to check it out for us when they got to that part of the tower. Woodpeckers can do terrible damage to a house and are almost impossible to make go away. So today, lo and behold, I came out the door, glanced over and saw a woodpecker flying through the oak trees and LAND on the front of the tower! I swear, anyone watching would have thought I was demented – I ran up those rocks, hollering at the top of my lungs and waving my arms like a crazy woman. The woodpecker wisely left the scene! Now I am obsessed with watching the tower for more woodpeckers…. hopefully they will just go out in the woods and find a tree, like a normal bird.