AN EMBARRASSING MOMENT.

        Last June a new Peavey Mart store opened here. There was a lot of promotion for the opening. For those not familiar with Peavey Mart it caters to farm products. However, it does have things that are more than farm related such as supplies for bird feeding. They also have  excellent gardening supplies.

       Well, for the opening, the first so many people were given  $20.00 cash coupons. So guess who was there early enough for $20.00? That day the Micro Manager bought a broom and I bought some bird fat with our $20.00 coupons. 

       So five months later a flier came out advertising a couple of things we wanted. A bag of bird seed for $27.00. I could use my cash coupon! 

      So the birdseed I wanted was not on display. A kid went to the back and finally came out with a bag of bird seed. At this time we thought our coupons were for $40.00 each. However , we checked and couldn't think why there was so little left on the cards. The micro manager also wanted a snow shovel. Sadly we  discovered that the coupons were worth $20.. each rather than $40.00 each. 

      So with less than half our money left we had to decide what we really needed. We were discussing this just before the check out line. We were talking about small amounts of money. All of a sudden a kind lady approached and said I'll buy that for you! We were astounded. She had obviously overheard us and thought that we were poor and had very little money. 

     So we were embarrassed that we were identified as needy. 

     I guess the moral of the story is to do your discussion away from the check out line. 

     Have you had an embarrassing situation where you were taken as needing help?

MORE FLASHLIGHTS

       Over my 37 years of teaching I had many different and interesting assignments. One of those assignments was to teach outdoor Ed. I had been going along with other Outdoor ed. teachers when they went on field trips. So I was given a couple of classes to teach. 

      We had in class instruction and then went on field trips to apply what the kids learned. We hiked, cross country skied and snowshoed. All field trips were over nighters. The kids were given a list of equipment they needed. For most overnights we stayed in youth hostels. The huts were small so kids slept on the floor.

     For one or two field trips a  year we tented. One field trip in November we tented under winter conditions. 

     Now when you take 35 kids on a 2 or 3 day field trip, the kids just don't go home at 3:30 PM to their home. We had those kids until it was bed time. Something had to be done to keep them occupied. We just didn't turn on the TV. 

    So I'm finally getting to the flashlight. One of the things they were to bring was a flashlight. Yes the flashlight was used in the tent. However, there were many games of tag or whatever they did using the flashlights. They hid from the light. They played tag. They ran all over the place.  They kept themselves occupied for an hour or two. 

     So , I'll bet the only kids playing with a flashlight were my Outdoor ed. classes. 

A GOOD PRICE

              Weaver of Grass was reminding us about an upcoming birthday. She had already been given two presents. Two torches (flashlights ) were given to her by friends. 

             The torches were to be used for emergencies. One of the handiest things I ever found was a very strong flashlight. I use it around the house all the time. I use it to connect things to my computer tower which is black. I have difficulty seeing things that are black.

             I was also reminded of how I got my handy dandy flashlight.

             I was out with my bird group and I thought I saw a lanyard in the snow. I kicked at it a bit and a flashlight came out of the snow. I had never seen such a flashlight as it was very powerful. 

           Now the flashlight was very likely dropped by a homeless person as there are many homeless in the Bower Woods. The homeless wander around in this dark area at night all night.

            So I got thinking about this poor guy/gal's loss and was about to feel sorry for them. Knowing lots of homeless people , I thought they probably got it for a very good price. Yes, it was probably shop lifted. 

            So I got a free flashlight out of the snow and I don't think I have to feel badly about the guy/gal losing it.

             

SKUNKED!

       I make an effort to do as much walking as possible. Out of the last 21 nights I've walked on 20 of them. The weather has been very pleasant so the walking is easy.

      I find that if I have a regular routine, I don't miss very many days.

      Right now I walk around the outskirts of my neighborhood. It's around 3600 steps.

      I usually start around 8:00 PM. Yes ,it's dark by then. This year has been better as there are many more walkers out at that time. 

     Now what really makes my walk is the number of deer I see. One night I saw  8 deer...4 bucks, 2 does and 2 fawns. Most of the deer we have are mule deer. They are a little bigger than white tailed deer .

     Well last night I didn't see one deer! I was skunked. 

     It's 7:27 PM so I'm going to get ready to walk. Will I see deer tonight?

      This fellow was in my neighbor's yard towards the end of July. 

FINE FALL WEATHER

      Today was one of those fine fall days that makes fall so pleasant. 

      My job today was to dig my garden. Yes, I grow a vegetable garden and yes , I dig every bit of it by hand! Now my garden plot isn't very large ... maybe 20 x 30 feet. But for an elderly person , it's a lot of digging. 

      The temperature was about 20 C . The sun was bright. Not a cloud in the sky. No wind. It was dry. It was a beautiful day to be outside. 

     We have had very little precipitation since the end of June. Everything is dry. However, it seems like a good fall day has to be dry. Farmers want dry weather to harvest their crops. 

    This would have been a great day to just sit on your deck or patio. 

    Here's one of those pleasant fall days when we were out birding. 

A PLEASANT FALL MORNING

       I finally got to go out with the birding group this morning. I can't take bird photos but I can get some scenery. There's much more color than a couple of weeks ago. 

      We also saw lots of birds. we saw 32 species. The yellow rumped warbler we saw should be out of here. There were many robins. 

DISMAL FALL SCENERY

       Scenery this fall is kind of ragged and pale. The colors are paler and many of the leaves have been damaged by the very dry summer we had. Trees shut down because of the dryness. Many of the leaves have brown or black spots which indicates damage to the leaves in the summer.

      I was out to one of my favorite places...Michael Obrien Wetlands. It's an artificial wetland developed to treat storm water before it enters the river system.

     Ordinarily it is beautiful in the fall.