Another strip pit discovery!

I have been noticing every evening that the sunsets are just beautiful, but I have not had the chance to try to capture them. As I mentioned before, I have also been trying to get a good shot of the Northern Harrier.

I thought I would kill two birds with one stone this evening...I waited and headed out there soon as the football game was over. Still light enough till I should have plenty of light to capture a hawk, but late enough till I should be out there when the sunset came.

I seen hawks, but I could not get close enough to get a good capture. The first time I was out there and saw them, they did not seem to mind the vehicle and it didn't seem to bother them if I pulled to the side of the road and got out. Now, they must feel my desperation and will not stick around at all.

At first I became totally occupied with watching the geese...just unbelievable numbers. I took a lot of pictures but nothing close up. I went on and left there to run on over into Illinois to check out some of the cornfields. I was hoping they would be close to the road in them, but did not see a one in the normal place I see them. So, I turned back around and headed for the strip pit area again.

I made a new discovery--owls! Numbers of them! I bet I saw at least 8 or 10 of them, but I really think there were more. I think from the one of the books one of my daughters got me that it is a Short-eared Owl. And from the description of its flight and living area, it all points to that being what it is. Not to mention the yellow eyes.

These were take really late in the evening. I had the ISO set at 1600, and I had trouble and could not seem to get them in focus. I have probably two dozen shots with these being the best. I seen more owls this one time than I have seen in my entire 53 years!

I leave you with one that was taken really late--I used fill-flash to lighten it and hope I got it light enough for you to see.

How about a goose?

Monday, the day before Bubbie came home hurt, we had went for a short drive. I don't care much about shopping or going places where there are people, but sometimes I just have to get out to see and observe nature a little bit.
So we headed to the strip pits--the one pictured here is so close to the Indiana-Illinois border I am not sure which side it is on. But I absolutely love to go out there and drive the roads. This day was no exception.
Geese were every where. And when you enlarge the one above, notice the white geese. A couple of them have bands on their neck I didn't know they banded the neck...in the original size you can make out the number of one of them. I think it is 68C...if I remember correctly.
It was soooo cold that day...I do not see how they take the cold. I know they are made to withstand the cold, but I do wonder if they feel it at all.So we left there and headed on west...just a short distance. There is a farm that has cows and horses and I always feel from the horses and cows reactions that they are someone's pets like ours were. The horse especially raise up and look if I stop, just to make sure I am not bringing them a treat. And one day one of the cows started mooing softly...just so much like home.
Anyway, I heard this noise and looked and it was all these geese...you could actually hear their wings and they were a good distance away! Kind of like when you hear a storm moving in..
These are not great pictures, but it does show just a little inkling of what we seen. I would love to know how many there were. There were hundreds and hundreds in flight I felt like, and about as many on the water.

The strip pit(s) is really long...I don't know if it is two strip pits or if the road is built over it I am about positive the north half is at least a mile long, and the south half is almost as long. And at the far ends on each side, the water was almost solid with them. I do not know how to describe how it makes me feel to see so many...it is always thrilling for one thing.

And I don't ever really want to leave, I just know I have to. I do not know who owns the land, but I would dearly love to have permission to walk the land and walk the edges of the strip pits. At all times of year.

Out there are all these Northern Harrier Hawks...I have yet to get a good picture of them. I want one so bad of one hovering...I consider them the helicopter of hawks. They have the ability to hover over one little spot and it is fascinating to watch. Maybe one of these days I will get one.

As for Bubbie, have not heard a word today...Rachel wants me to ask if we can go visit him...and I really would like to. I just don't know if they will allow it...and it might get his hopes up. I am wondering though if it took him so long to get back to normal after the other, how is this time going to effect him

Be careful what you say...

Remember the post I did the other day of Bubbie watching television?

Remember me talking about him being at the vet and that he was just then really getting back to his normal self?
Then remember me saying that I didn't want to leave him out there again unless it was a desperate situation?

That desperate situation came the very next day. It was a warm day, especially if compared to the days that had just passed. I had been refusing to leave and leave a cat outside for fear we would end up getting detained and it was miserable cold. I just didn't want them left out in the cold with no way of getting inside. But Tuesday morn arrived and it was not to bad. We had to run and pick up a few last minute items at the grocery. Bubbie wanted out and I thought he would be okay. We were only going here in town, about a mile away.

We came home, got the groceries in and in a few minutes Roger went to let Puss Puss out, only to discover she was staring at the door because Bubbie was on the other side wanting in. He came in with one of his back legs useless. So to the vet we went. Our vet thought he had a broken leg, but no other trauma. No blood, no temperature. Nothing. And we could not see any other mark on him.

So he wanted to keep him and x-ray him later and would call us. Well, we (Roger, Rachel and I) talked that night, and basically decided not to invest too much money in him. When the vet called, it was with the news that it was a bad break. But he could fix it with a pin...the price of this operation he figured would be about $775. Roger looked at me and Rachel, and I shrugged my shoulders. If it had been $500 even I would have said do it. Oh, and there was other things I would have said do it.

So Roger told him we didn't want to do it for that kind of money...to put him down and not let him suffer. Well, doc says he wants to watch him over night and see how he does. With him being a young cat and cats being so resilient. He said he would call us before he did anything. I cannot tell you the thoughts that went through my head. If I was working, I would not have hesitated. Just a bunch of ifs...

I couldn't be at peace with that decision though...I kept thinking how if it was this or that pet that I have had that I would give anything I own to be able to have them again. And I thought I would regret the decision we had made. So we tried to call him the next day--the day before Christmas and no one was out there. Did not hear anything from the Dr. Christmas day, either. Didn't hear anything this morn, so we called--by now I was convinced that he had been put down and the Dr. just didn't want to tell us till we were past Christmas.

When we called this morn and he is still alive...and the 'nurse' said doing okay. Doc was going to call us back, and has since I started this. It is not too late to have him fixed right, and that is what we are doing. He thinks he will come through it fine. He will call us this weekend and let us know how he is doing.

I know some will think that is crazy to put that much money in a cat, and some will wonder why we ever hesitated. I actually wonder the latter part...I know me. My mom always said I was foolish about animals and she was right. Personally, I feel like my cats are worth their weight in gold.