By Merle Lee Ann Pratt – Merle Lee Ann’s Kitchen, author of “A Baker’s Dozen”

Senior's Scene

Birds of a Feather and the Weather

Jun 13, 2024 | 11:42 AM

“The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the position of Pattison Media and this site.”.

First off let’s have a weather report – rainy, sunshine, cool, cloudy, repeat. This seems to be what the month of May / June has been bringing us thus far. Warm weather days have been few and far between. Instead of wearing sandals and showing off pretty painted toes – it has been socks, shoes, rain boots and maybe an umbrella. I have no idea if any of the garden I have planted is up – as it is too muddy to take a walk out there.

The garden has been down-sized from previous years. But one must always have potatoes when you have a garden space. And, of course, some carrots, peas, lettuce, and I have one lonely tomato plant. I transplanted cucumber plants, but it looks like only one is going to make it. I put a few cucumber seeds in the ground but as mentioned it is too wet to check and see what is going on out there. Maybe this weekend. However, my rhubarb is crazy big, and I have had to pull many stocks out as they are just too large and have become “woody”. The new stocks are coming along great and make delicious desserts – especially a rhubarb custard pie served with cream (a secret recipe within my family).

We know it’s coming and oh how we dislike it! Do you know what I’m talking about? It is the dreaded day in June when summer solstice arrives, and we start to see our days getting shorter. And oh, how we miss our long days of summer. Yes, it is harder to sleep late in the morning during the month of May and June. I have to wear eye pads over my eyes in order to sleep past 4:30 am and these long days make it a lot harder to go to bed early at night. When the sun is setting at 9:20 pm it just doesn’t seem right to be heading for bed. We patiently wait for the summer solstice to happen and dread when the winter solstice starts setting in on us. I don’t know of anyone who is excited about the shortest day of the year.

For years, my husband and I coached ball. I would end up wearing my winter gear to many ball games. It seemed like the coldest days of the year were when we were coaching or watching ball. This year was no different. We watched our granddaughters play ball in Saskatoon during the last weekend in May and yup – out came the winter gear and blankets to cuddle up in while we cheered their team on.

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Earlier this spring / late winter people were concerned with the lack of snow / moisture that had fallen over the winter. Many were afraid we were in for a drought and a very dry summer. That has changed over the last month. The greens are definitely greener this spring than they have been in seasons past. Our lawn is the greenest it has ever been. And the different varieties of tress – all have different shades of green. A remarkably interesting palette of greens.

And for some trivia – I did some research on psychedelics drugs and color enhancement / vibrancy. And yes, drugs such as LSD or psilocybin (found in magic mushrooms) are known to enhance color perception. This spring with everything being so vibrant and green it could be called a psychedelic experience. We could all be hippies from the Woodstock days! Hahaha!!

I’m sure you have noticed one of the first things people love to talk about is the “weather”. Even if you aren’t a farmer the weather dictates what we decide to do. How has the golf game been this spring? Evenings and morning golf dates have been cancelled due to wind, rain or cold. The greens are greener or in better shape than ever and yet the number of golfers is lower in numbers I would bet. The die-hard golfers will be out there but not the fair-weather golfers. They will be waiting for a nicer, warmer less

windy day. I have been trying to attend a ladies golf evening for 3 weeks now and it is cancelled once more.

May long weekend was once again on the very cool, rainy side. I was up at Candle Lake on the Friday night with friends and returned home on the Saturday. It rained throughout the night and off and on in the morning as well. A very damp, cool morning. I didn’t even make it down to the beach. I assume the ice was off, but I actually didn’t see it for myself. After I got home, I was like – well I should have walked down to the beach!

We decided to get air conditioning installed this spring. So far, we have turned the furnace on but not the air conditioning. The warm days of summer are coming, and I am going to be really glad that we have air conditioning when they do get here. The weather has been changing over the years and I am a believer in climate change. I am quite sure we have a very warm July and August coming up, which will make the majority of people happy. But as we know it is hard to please everyone. The next thing we will be wishing for is cooler, rainy days like we had in June. A very fickle species we are.

We didn’t spend much time moving snow around the yard this winter. There are years where we have had to blow snow every other day – depending on winds and the amount of snow. This past winter we were blocked in a couple of times and had to get the neighbour to come and plow us out as the snow drifts were too deep for our yard tractor. Living in the country it is immensely helpful to have good neighbours that have the “big” tractors to help with snow removal. With all of the moisture we are now getting the lawn mower is having to be used every 2-3 days. Time saved in the winter is now being used to keep the grass caught up this spring.

Various songbirds have shown up this spring again as well as a few birds that we wish did not come around. The average age of a birdwatcher from one source I found is 59 years of age. And it does seem that a lot of seniors enjoy bird watching and take it up as a hobby as they now have time to sit and watch the birds. Many keep a notebook handy and mark down the various types of birds they see on their bird watching ventures. Many people watch birds from the comfort of their own home while enjoying a cup of coffee. A good pair of binoculars are a handy item to have on hand as well.

One of the reasons birdwatching has become popular is that it is a great source of relaxation and stress relief for the majority of birdwatchers. And what does this mean – well it helps in maintaining mental health and overall well-being. And birdwatching is typically a very inexpensive hobby – allowing anyone to take it up as a hobby. For many the most expensive item will be binoculars. A few books are handy as a resource to help identify the various types of birds you see as you birdwatch. And a person can always go to the library to borrow a book vs having to purchase their own. Another nice fact about birdwatching is that it is open to any gender. It is not a hobby that is dominated by any gender. Anyone and everyone can birdwatch from the very young to the very old. It is a hobby you can share with your children or grandchildren. Although statistics show more women than men are birdwatchers.

Why are birds so fascinating? A few reasons are that birds exhibit a wide range of behaviors, from intricate courtship rituals to complex nesting habits. And then there is the woodpecker – pecking on a piece of tin at 4 in the morning. Lol. Now why are they doing that? Just to annoy us? Or is it helping their beak? Studying the migration of birds is extremely interesting as well. How these birds travel thousands of miles and return in the spring. Their brilliant colors, the difference in colors between the male and female – so many interesting facts to study when becoming a birdwatcher.

I have been tracking our hummingbirds for the past few springs. And they arrive back to the hummingbird feeder within a day of May 16 on either side. How do they manage to get back here at the same time every year? And what a trip they have to make! Many hummingbirds spend their winters in Central America or Mexico. And did you know that their wings flap up to 70 wingbeats per second, faster than any other bird. These 70 wingbeats add up to more than 4000 wingbeats per minute. They are a very, very busy bird. There are a lot of interesting facts about the hummingbirds – just one bird of many that a person can study in our northern / western hemisphere. Perhaps you should find a notebook, a pair of binoculars and start your birdwatching journey.

I am going to recommend listening to “Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley & The Wailers. A nice uplifting song to put you in a summertime mood. Kind of makes you just want to dance and enjoy the day! “Hoping everything in your day is gonna be alright.” Get your Reggae movin’ and groovin’.

Until next time – enjoy the upcoming warm, long days of summer that are coming, and I hope you have or had a happy Father’s Day and take a little time to listen to Bob!

Merle Lee Ann Pratt – merleleeannskitchen.com – Email: merleleeann@gmail.com

This column is sponsored by MacKenzie Funeral Chapel and Crematorium – We will be there when you need us – Bev and Brian Stobbs

130 9th St. E, Prince Albert, SK

Phone: (306) 763-8488 – https://mackenziechapel.ca