Oakland Nature Preserve

Yesterday was one of those "it's so beautiful you can't stay inside" kind of days. So. . .mom and I got ourselves a lunch from Subway and made our way to Oakland Nature Preserve. 

 Here's some pics I took along our trip down the boardwalk through the wetlands. 

 

There's a bird feeder area before you get to the boardwalk, and this is where the Painted Buntings and Cardinals like to hang out. It's almost a guarantee during the winter months to be able to spot something interesting here.

 

Mom taught me a long time ago how to make the "psh psh shhh" noise that always seems to intrigue birds. Little guys like this warbler/vireo fly in closer to get a look to see what type of bird is making the noise.

 

The Maple Trees have been all confused this winter, so in the midst of dropping their fall leaves they're now blooming and dropping their seed winglets as well.

Little Carolina Anoles could be seen along the boardwalk peeping over the rails or hanging out on the fencing.

 

Mom's wheelchair includes the "tilt" feature which allows her to lean back and relieve pressure. We've sort of started a new tradition of taking "tilting" pictures in different locations. 

 These shots come from down at the lake pavilion. 

The park is located on the wetland and shore area 

of Lake Apopka. 

We were on our way back to the van when I heard this Red Tail Hawk screaming in annoyance. 

Watching as he took off from his perch I realized that he/she was annoyed by the Bald Eagle that was sitting in a nearby tree. As I began taking pictures of said Eagle, some people walked down the boardwalk. 

I pointed out the Eagle and the fact that the hawk was trying to scare off the larger bird. That was when they informed me that the Eagle was very likely the same bird that they had just released in the parking lot. And. . .the guy I was actually talking to turned out to be the director of the Florida Audubon Society. Pretty cool. 

Especially since neither him nor the lady who was with him managed to capture a photo of the bird. So, I emailed them mine. Anyways, here's the article on the Eagle. She was injured back in October, and became the 439th bird to be rehabilitated and released by the 

Audubon Birds of Prey Center.

Snapshots of an early spring

Figured I'd post a few pictures here. 

As we all know, it's been unseasonably warm here. 

So all the plants think that it's the right time 

for them to start bursting forth. 

Azaleas are confused

The azaleas in one part of the yard are blooming. 

The azaleas in my yard however, they're still waiting.

 

The peach trees in the side of the yard have been blooming on an off all winter. Mom says most likely they're going to die. Oh well, I'll still enjoy the blooms while I can.  

The Peach tree is all out of whack

Then there's the plethora of birds that make their way through my yard and the field across the street.

Bluebird (from a great distance)

I wish I had clearer shots.

Sharp-Shinned Hawk

 I was excited about getting the pic of the bluebird. I'd been telling my mom that they were down at my house, drawn there by the huge open field across the street. She wasn't inclined to believe me, so I had to get photographic proof. The Sharp-Shinned Hawk photo was captured because I was trying to get a clearer/better lit pic of a bluebird. 

The disturbing thing is, the hawk is most likely hanging out there in order to catch either a bluebird 

or other small bird for his lunch.

Think you're hot stuff huh?

I'll have to work on getting some shots of the woodpeckers, warblers, squirrels, and rabbits that make their home in my yard. For now, enjoy this pic of one of my yard dwelling green anoles.

The owl is a painting I did on a patio stone, and it's sitting on the "tongue" of my trailer. Brave, brave little lizard!

 

Ashes

Ash Wednesday graphic by ME

Well, it's February 1st. That means that Ash Wednesday is not that far away.
That's right folks, Christmas may have only been a few weeks ago, but for those of us who work for the church it's full speed ahead into LENT!

Which means I, as the only person brave enough (you can come up with your own additional adjectives) have to get on with making more ashes for Ash Wednesday.

Palm Ashes

Now usually a church will just purchase ashes from a reputable source like Cokesbury or the Christian Bookstore. These ashes were supposedly made by burning the palm fronds from last years Palm Sunday celebrations. It's supposed to represent the circle that we make each year and to remind us of our own human frailties. Which is all fine and good.

But we don't purchase our ashes each year. Instead I take it upon myself to acquire them the old fashioned way. By burning things!

I wanted to show you a picture here of the actual fire, but I thought it might be better to keep my mind occupied with making sure the flames didn't get out of hand. So instead picture in your mind me sitting outside in front of an aluminum foil pan filled with. . .dried palm fronds? Nope.

I found this out a couple of years ago.  You have to think way ahead of the game in order to have palm fronds that are dried out enough to burn. That's part of the wonder of most palms. They don't burn really well. Unless they are extremely dead. Plus, when it comes to grinding them up and making them into ash, you have to have A LOT of burnt up palm fronds. You might be asking yourself, "why doesn't she just use the palm fronds from worship each year? Or the palm crosses that everyone seems to have?"

This is because
 1. We only use a few palm fronds in worship each year.
 2. The palm crosses don't burn.
       They must coat them with something.

So last year I was desperate because I'd forgotten that I needed to make more ash. I searched in vain for dead palm trees around my house.

Nothing.

However, there was plenty of dead grass.

Well, there it is. The big secret is out.
I use grass for ashes each year.
Laugh all you want. It serves the purpose just fine.

Anyways, here's a few pics of the process after the fire.

Details of process
After burning the grass (very carefully, and do not leave fire unattended) in the foil pan, I let the ashes cool. Then I scoop them with a plastic spoon into my mortar bowl. We had these in the church resource room left over from one of our Vacation Bible Schools. With the pestle (quartz rock) I grind the burnt grass down into a fine powder. However, because the grass doesn't burn evenly (nothing really does unless you can burn it REALLY FAST) I still have to sift it. Scooping the ash into the sifter, I then move it around with the plastic spoon, trying to get as much of the fine ash into my specialized plastic ziploc bag. Fancy, right?

That's pretty much it. Well, I mean besides going and washing all the ash off my hands (and face, if my nose itched!)

On Ash Wednesday at our worship service, this ash will be mixed with oil (sometimes scented with Frankincense) until it forms a black gritty gel.

Well, now you know how much fun I get to have working at a church. Is any of this part of my job description?
No. I do it because I know how and because it is for the Glory of the Lord.