I've Had Enough Of Multitask Birding !

December was a busy month for me so I tried to squeeze birding opportunities in between various tasks on my to-do list. I stopped at Westmore Park on my way to a meeting. I've had good luck there in the past finding warblers in the spring, swallows in the summer, and an Eastern Screech Owl last winter.

This time the best I could manage was a mockingbird, farm animals, and a few starlings.

I stopped by Lyman's Orchard for a deli sandwich and did a quick scan of their man-made pond. I found Mallards, Canada Geese, and Ring-billed Gulls.

This is a nice stretch of power lines I found on my way to do some Christmas shopping. There was plenty of food and a lot of bird activity there. I  found Winter Wren, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Juncos, goldfinches, sparrows, and Eastern Bluebirds. No time to track them down for photos though.

On my way to the dump I stopped by Great  Hill Pond and found some Hooded Mergansers.

 It was a relief to stay home during a snow storm this weekend. I could stay in one place and watch birds at my feeder (when I wasn't shoveling snow).

  Multitasking seems to be a popular term these days. Many people take pride in their ability to complete multiple tasks simultaneously. I think that it's a little overrated. If  I'm trying to do a number of things at once I'm less efficient than if I were to focus on one thing at a time. I know that I wouldn't want to text while I'm driving, deliver eggs while on a pogo stick, or read a newspaper while riding a bike. Birding in between tasks isn't all that satisfying either.

 I'm looking forward to the next time that I can focus all my attention on birding. At least I was able to finish this post about multitask birding (while watching NFL football and eating nachos)!

Voluntarily Stranded

I've been hearing that warning sound you get when your break pads are getting low for about a week now. I decided to drop my truck off at a garage this morning to have the brakes fixed.You can do some birding just about anywhere. The truck was to take about four hours to be fixed but I didn't bother getting a ride back home. I decided to do a little birding within walking distance of the garage. The nice thing about birding is that it's a portable hobby.You can do it just about anywhere. My first stop was a little breakfast at a place called Momma Roux's.They have a whole Cajun theme going on there.The food is all made from scratch, and it is delicious!
I had the Eggs Florentine. They stated in the menu that the Mornay Sauce is real, and therefore must be kept at room temperature.Why is Canadian Bacon called bacon?It's really just round slices of ham, isn't it? Anyway, I enjoyed this tasty little breakfast. I washed it down with a little high test coffee.-Good to go!
I investigated the land along these railroad tracks, but not much was going on there. I decided to ease on down, ease on down the road.
I investigated a series of fields along the river in Cromwell Connecticut.The area is called Deadman's Swamp. This field seemed to be filled with the same type of grass. Is this a particular type of grass?
Here is a close-up of the grass which has golden seeds at the top. Can you tell me what it is?
While your at it, here's a couple more. I see the top ones all the time. They look like miniature daisies to me. Are they related to daisies? How about the bottom ones?
There's not a lot for me to report as far as birds go. I saw a lot of Common Yellowthroats and Woodpeckers, like this Northern Flicker. I had a nice view of Eastern Bluebirds and a Great Blue Heron. I enjoyed seeing nesting Baltimore Orioles and American Robins. My favorite moments came when I saw 4 Red-tailed Hawks patrolling one field. I get a little tired of seeing these hawks on the top of telephone poles along the highway, but they're beautiful to watch in a natural setting. They were screeching out their calls continuously. Even the one in the photo can't keep its mouth shut. I wonder what they were saying?-Maybe-Intruder! or Get The Out Of Our Field!
Much time had passed, and it was time to check on my truck. They were supposed to call my cell and update me. It was now 11:30 am and I hadn't heard from them-not a good sign. When I arrived at the service desk, I noted that there was a new guy in charge that I'd never seen before. I asked them to replace my brake pads which were supposedly guaranteed for the life of the car. Some how they came up with a list of repairs, and gave me a rough estimate of $2,300 to fix all of the problems (which is slightly less than the value of the truck). I had about two things to say.-Give me the keys please and goodbye. The only reason I went to this place, is that they were the ones who had put the lifetime warrantied pads in. In all fairness, I didn't give them any chance to explain. I felt the need to leave stat, before I lost my cool.

I immediately dropped the truck off to another mechanic, that I new well. He was unable to detect most of the problems that the other garage found. He informed me that it would be $150.00 to fix my brakes. He suggested that I have the other garage put the free pads in. I asked him to just go ahead and fix the brakes himself. It's kind of like when you're at a restaurant and complain about the food. I'd rather just not pay for a bad meal, rather than have them cook me a new one. You never know what the chef might do to your food after you've complained about it.

Should Dogs Be On A Leash At Public Parks?

I'm sure there are much more pressing issues to worry about these days but I have to make mention of this. Lately in Connecticut I've been noticing that dog owners who keep their dogs on a leash has become the exception and not the rule. Signs that state "All dogs must be on a leash" are routinely ignored.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mind a friendly Labrador Retriever approaching me while I'm birding, but I get a little annoyed when I see a Pit Bull coming. Many owners have very well trained dogs--but there are exceptions. I've had dog owners respond- "No, he's not"- when I've asked them if his unleashed dog is friendly. I've also seen one dog attack another. I've seen dogs run up to kids and growl.

Recently, I went to a beautiful park in Meriden CT. for the first time. I encountered twelve dogs that were allowed to run around without a leash. The dog owners all knew each other, and said that they do this every week. Maybe there should be special parks just for people who want to let their dogs run loose.

What's your opinion on this subject?