Towhees and Amaryllis, Reindeer and Angels, in the dark December 19, 2014

Welcome to my end of the autumn post.  I am writing this in the second black-out in 4 days.  I really appreciate electricity when I don't have any. 

Today I am linking with-

Wild Bird Wednesday hosted by Stewart M.

Today's Flowers hosted by Denise

Saturday's Critters hosted by Eileen

Macro Monday 2 hosted by Gemma  and Mystical Magical Teacher

I heart Macro hosted by Laura

This is the most Christmasy bird that comes to eat my black sunflower seeds, I am used to calling it the Rufous-sided Towhee, but the western race is now called the Spotted Towhee.   They are not as bold as the Chickadees, Steller's Jays, and Nuthatches, but I have a few photos.   You must guess what I think makes them look Christmasy-

"Check it out!"

"101, 102...... and they're all mine!"

"A tough nut to crack"

"Don't even think about it!"

They are large sparrows at 7 1/2" / 19 cm, and I haven't observed them having any obnoxious habits, unlike their relatives the Canyon Towhee I had in southern California, who could go down a row of freshly planted corn, pea, or bean seeds and somehow locate each seed.   They had a sneaky technique of jumping backwards digging with their feet and left neat round holes where each seed had been.   

In order to grow those crops I had to cover the planted rows with wire mesh, then lay greenery on top to obscure the view of the ground so the seeds could sprout.  A handy herb for this was Sanguisorba minor, the cucumber-flavored Salad Burnet, which loved San Diego and would spread all over by seed and make lots of 2' clumps of greenery, and it would take a lot of them to get enough branches to cover all the rows.  But I did succeed in outsmarting the Towhees.  There, I could grow peas in the winter.

My featured houseplant this week is the wonderfully Christmasy Amaryllis.  The care for a potted Amaryllis is to put it in a dark place and let it go dormant for 10-12 weeks, then bring it out and water it, and this triggers the bloom season.

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Some Chanukah lights in a special 9-candle Chanukiah (menorah), and also my little tree Chanukiah that has cups a little small for holding candles,

so I use the bigger one.  Chanukah is the Festival of Lights, a time for self-reflection and re-dedication.

Wow, the lights are back on.   Happy Chanukah and Merry Christmas.  And Happy Birthday to me.    Hannah

                                                 or cameras are macro

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