Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
The Birds and the Bees and the Flowers and the Trees
It’s been a stormy and rainy first week of spring, but the azaleas are blooming,
attracting bumblebees
and mason bees.
The snag out front is a hit with the birds;
flickers are excavating and will likely move in soon,
juncos sing their hearts out on top.
Meanwhile in the backyard, house finches are busily courting, the handsome male in a rust-colored tuxedo.
The towhee, not quite as red, but perhaps more handsome, is also looking to attract a mate.
Just another week in the spring garden.
~ Susanne
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Rainy Days and Gardening
We’ve had a soggy start to spring, but my garden beds are in need of serious renovation. So despite the rain, I headed to the garden center yesterday and found water pooled in the parking lot, forming interesting designs,
including a giant cockroach! (Not to worry, just the reflection of a shopping cart.)
I bought an assortment of plants to replace the overgrown, woody ones, including catmint that didn’t come up this year. Not only do the cats love it, but it’s an attractive herb in the garden.
I also got catnip – a smaller, less attractive plant but more potent – and hoped I could get it into the ground before it was eaten.
The boys were happy to be outside while I worked, and I was happy to have them.
Today, I woke to sunshine and clear skies (hooray!) and went outside to survey yesterday’s handiwork.
Tiger came with me and found the catnip.
There’s still much to be done but I’ve learned the best way is a little at a time. Spring isn’t going anywhere.
Sharing with Sunday Stills.
~ Susanne
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Supervised Visits – Benji and Tiger in the Garden
Spring has arrived and the boys are getting restless, begging to go outside every morning.
We are cautious, since a bobcat was spotted in the neighborhood.
This morning, I went outside and surveyed the land, while making lots of noise. Then I let the boys outside, enjoying signs of spring while they wandered.
The azalea is blooming,
and birds are looking their best, serenading potential partners.
Tiger is old and cautious and never leaves the fenced backyard.
Benji knows the way of escape and disappears for a time.
I see him in the distance, outside the confines of both front and backyard.
I call his name; he’s startled but comes running
looking every bit as wild as the bobcat we seek to protect him from.
Still fast, but with only 3 legs, he’s at a serious disadvantage. And the bobcat is twice his size, probably bigger.
It’s a dilemma.
Benji’s spirit would be crushed if he could never go out again. He’s a born hunter and explorer, so we do what we can to indulge him.
After a morning constitution, we all come back inside.
Perhaps that will do for today.
~ Susanne
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What’s For Dinner? Inquiring Minds Want to Know
I’m really not a bad cat parent.
We were gone a few days and the boy must have taken liberties in our absence. I’ll whip him back into shape.
After dinner, that is.
~ Susanne and Benji
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Happy St. Pat’s Day from the Coulon Walkers!
Unlike me, they are all dressed up with no place to go!
Sharing with Sunday Stills.
~ Susanne
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Please, Can we play, Sue?
“I’m busy right now, Benji.”
“Please?”
“Maybe in a few minutes.”
“Okay, I’ll wait.”
“Still waiting, Sue.”
“Okay, okay, I’m ready, Benji.”
Happy Caturday from Susanne and Benji!
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Happening in the March Garden – Birds and Blooms
Blooms first
Not many blooms yet, except for this faithful rhododendron.
dappled with raindrops.
The azalea is just starting to flower and should be in full bloom in a week or two, attracting pollinators, these pictures from last year.
Birds
Birds of all sizes are looking for places to nest, including this chestnut backed chickadee.
It remains to be seen whether additional excavation will be required.
If so, the flickers will take care of it.
Sharing for Sunday Stills, Spring Flowers.
~ Susanne
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What Kitty Doesn’t Love a Window?
Not Benji.
#WordlessWednesday.
~ Susanne
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Tacoma Narrows Bridge
We have many bridges in Washington State, some unique and one of a kind. The one below is perhaps the most famous, infamous describes it best, not this one, but the first one, years ago.
We love crossing the bridge on our way to the Olympic Peninsula, though maybe not on a windy day.
The original bridge became known as ‘galloping gertie,’ when a few months after it opened in 1940, it began a wild dance in the wind before crashing into the waters below.
Engineering lessons learned, hopefully.
~ Susanne
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A Walk Into Spring at Discovery Park
Granted it comes and goes this first week of March, spring that is, with some warm and sunny days, followed by cold and rainy ones. Fortunately for us, we picked the best day earlier this week to visit Discovery Park in Seattle, heading north on Highway 99 and through the new tunnel.
On the other side, we went through the quirky neighborhoods of Fremont and Ballard, before arriving at our destination.
We chose the south entrance to the park and walked the trail to the bluff.
on the way enjoying the budding foliage of flowering currant,
and the open meadow where old parts of Ft. Lawton remain,
and happy doggies played in the field, charming even to a cat person like me!
“Discovery Park is a 534-acre natural area park operated by Seattle Parks and Recreation. It is the largest city park in Seattle, and occupies most of the former Fort Lawton site. Situated on Magnolia Bluff overlooking Puget Sound, Discovery Park offers spectacular views of both the Cascade and the Olympic Mountain ranges. The secluded site includes two miles of protected tidal beaches as well as open meadow lands, dramatic sea cliffs, forest groves, active dunes, thickets and streams. The role of Discovery Park is to provide an open space of quiet and tranquility away from the stress and activity of the city, a sanctuary for wildlife, as well as an outdoor classroom for people to learn about the natural world. Maintained in its semi-natural condition, the park will continue to offer a biologically rich and diverse natural area for urban dwellers and an unmatched opportunity for environmental education.” Seattle Parks website
Honestly, I found the park to be a bit of a puzzle, as you couldn’t drive to the beach below, and Bob remembered the trail down being pretty steep so we didn’t take it. Then again, we got a late start, and were hungry for lunch, so headed out to Ray’s Cafe on Shilshole Bay, and that is my delicious salad with shrimp and scallops.
It was a fun day and we promised we’d be back to explore the beach (we’ll look into getting the parking permit,) the Visitor Center (currently closed,) and the Daybreak Star Indian Culture Center.
~ Susanne
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 