Thursday, November 11, 2010

Birds of a feather

This morning I was busy overseeing Brian's schoolwork and putting up my crockpot apple butter. The latter necessitated running back and forth to the basement pantry; through the basement patio doors I noticed a bunch of quail. A few brave ones occasionally come to the feeder on the deck above; I didn't realize the rest of the bevy hangs out below! Grabbing my camera, I managed to get in position out of sight without putting them all to flight, and tried Mr. Lumix out on birds.
I just love the zoom on this thing! (Click to biggify if you want.)

Our cats, however, are not flocking together:
Tippy is hanging out at the barn, greeting us warmly morning and evening for chores and eagerly seeking a cuddle. Oreo, who has never been much of a cuddle-cat, is making herself more and more scarce, apparently resenting having to share her territory with this interloper. Last night when I sat down, I was able to pet Tippy (in my lap the instant I made one) and Oreo (at arm's length beside me) for awhile; that's as close as she's deigned to get to him so far. This morning she was absent. I do so hope they reach a truce! When we brought Oreo home several years ago, she won our grumpy old man-cat over with her insistence on being his friend. I guess time will tell.

That's it for today from . . .

8 comments:

Susan said...

I love those quail! Time is, indeed, the answer. My two new kittens have wriggled into the family and my old, cranky cat, Tipped, now allows Kramer to sleep next to her (not TOO close, but...) We are all getting used to each other. I love the black and white cats, don't you?

Kelly said...

Can you please ship me a couple of those beautiful quail....I simply love birds of any type, something about me is drawn to them.
Just got home from Vegas and I was feeding pigeons in front of the casino......my husband just shakes his head at me. :D
BTW-I simply love your new camera pictures and am now on the hunt for the very same one.

Tiggeriffic said...

We used to have Quail here in Iowa. We have 40 acres and one could always see them or hear them... Bob White.. I used to tell me kids "Oh there is Bob">>>they would say "Bob who".Of course I would say "Bob White".. After so many times of doing this they quit asking. lol.
Haven't seen or heard a Bob White in along time... I miss them and I think they are so beautiful. Can one raise them for conservation and then let them loose? I wish I could do that.. We don't allow any hunting on our property so as long as they stay on our land they are safe. THe pheasants have seemed to of learned that if they stay here they won't get shot.. We have lots of pheasants..
Love your blog... highlight of my day to see what you have written.. ta ta for now...from Iowa

Anonymous said...

I brought home my new cat about eight months ago to keep the old one company. It has been a long, slow process but now they will share the couch more or less happily, as long as I am in the middle. It's nice.

Michelle said...

Yes, Susan, I think black and white cats are my favorite - the orange tiger cat in my childhood notwithstanding. In fact, I took pictures of one of Brian's violin teacher's black&whites today; I'll share Gertrude with you all tomorrow.

Kelly, I don't think you'll regret getting one. I love it!

Tiggeriffic, you CAN raise and restock bobwhite! People do it all the time, usually to keep hunting populations well stocked; I like your idea much better. These are California quail; such beautiful birds. And thank-you for loving my blog; it means a lot to me! Lately I've been in a bit of a slump (hormonally induced, I think), and sometimes I wonder if anyone cares. No matter; most of the time I blog for me.

Canttalkdyeing, I think the process would go more quickly if my cats were trapped inside together, but since both are barn cats, they can be anti-social if they choose. I just don't want Oreo to leave....

Kim said...

Don't you love that you can oversee school and do something like make apple butter? It's a great thing!

Sharon said...

I never tire of the quail. Thanks for buying a new camera. Your daddy quail is quite handsome.

Candy said...

I hope your cats get more tolerant. We have had Gracie for over a year and she still beats up on Pickles. They share the same Cat House, but have to have separate beds and even separate food dishes. At least they don't fight over the mice, there are enough both.