Full Ollie Moon

7-23-20 This Full Ollie Moon is named so because our family elder Oliver Alfred Williams, Jr., passed away Tuesday 7-14-20, he was quite ready and went peacefully at 93, a guy cannot ask much more in life. So now....oh my, that makes P and I the elders, sigh!

Full moon rises Monday as the sun sets, tonight and Tuesday should be good too.

After the wake and funeral mass we loaded up his ashes to deposit them next to Mamoe's ashes at the mausoleum. Now PawPaw never let himself be second in line for anything. Always impatient in traffic, always on the bumper of the slow guy in front of him, soooooooo....His elder grandaughter Rachel, understanding her PawPaw like she did, asked the sheriff deputy if he, Ollie's ashes, could ride in the cruiser at the front of the line rather than in third place in the funeral home car which is where he was destined to ride. So Ollie's last ride was in the front just like he liked it!

Amy in her eulogy comments noted that her PawPaw was an adventurer, always dragging her Mamoe to a dance, a party, a hunt or fishing trip, or travel somewhere far away from home. Amy also mentioned that when they lived in Houston, and the four grandkids where much younger, PawPaw would take them to AstroWorld and offered to ride any ride they wanted to, Did I say he was an adventurer, and he loved to eat and try exotic food too.

My favorite Ollie story is that he lived on the lakefront before it was "The Lake Front" in New Orleans and attended  a school over a mile away. When he was a first grader, on his birthday (6) he announced to his teacher that it was his birthday and the teacher, being a great teacher made a big deal of it. Then Ollie told her he wanted to invite the whole class to his house to ride his pony. The teacher walked the entire class to Ollies house only to find out he had no pony. Must have been a long walk back to school.

Eleanor Roosevelt "Do one thing every day that scares you".

For Paula:

"How far you go in life depends on your being tender with the young, compassionate with the aged, sympathetic with the striving, and tolerant of the weak and strong. Because someday in life you will have been all of these." George Washington Carver

The Full Ollie Moon rises Monday August 3 at 830, about a half hour after the sun sets. We hope the big storms will pause long enough to allow us to enjoy the Full Ollie Moon. Sunday and Tuesday Moonrises will be credible too so stock up on tart red and get your honey out there to enjoy it with you. Moonsets  on Monday and Tuesday mornings are scheduled to spectacular as well.

7-4-20 Full Oregon Red Wine Possum Moon night for July 4 was a spectacular part of the celebratory fireworks as it burst out of the tree line about 1030, the FORWPM was the best!

Mother nature calls

Each one of us to kneel down

Then gently pet frogs

          Vic Hummert, 2002

P and I commented just this week about the return of Toads to our space, thank God!

Joe, our baby, told me last week that he stopped to pick up a turtle on the road and moved it to the other side, facing the same way, of course, so as not to confuse it. Now, that's my boy!

7-5-20 A couple of days ago I moved my big pot of Milkweed, Cat Whiskers and Gara out of very full all day sun into the edge of the tree shadows, Ol Possum just could not keep up with the watering. You may remember that I bought two Mexican Milkweed plants in the Nursery in early April because one had a Monarch caterpillar on it and when the Monarch emerged from the chrysalis it was deformed and could not fly, ever, sigh!

You can imagine to my delight when I examined that same Milkweed today to find it full of Monarch Larvae, who had eaten my MW plants to virtual stumps, YAY! The Google search say 28-32 days total, egg to adult, so I'm still waiting for some action. I hope this anticipated hatch improves my (our) batting average.

Texas vervain, Verbenia halea, spotted in bloom today, I first mistook it for an Astor, shows you what I know, is a major pollinator magnet, at 1pm today there were 10-12 species of pollinators drinking nectar and harvesting pollen from on our on-campus bioswale/prairie, an amazing natural habitat in the middle of campus. Of course there a few old timers still asking why we are not mowing the grass anymore.

7-13-20 P and I went for a walk/bike ride in and around the City Park about dark. I ride off and into the area streets and around her and she has a route she walks. I headed NE and at about 1/2 mile I was swallowed up by a down-pouring pop-up shower, soaked me to my drawers, yes I wear underwear Dog. I have a saying "You almost never get rained on while riding you bike". Today was the almost never part of that saying.

From Kai Siedenburg:

THE GIFT OF RAIN

For the first time

in a long time

it rained today--

each tiny droplet

a gift

to a thirsty plant

or animal.

Seeds say"yes!"

Plants say "yes!"

Parched mosses

say "yes, yes, yes!"

From the tiniest

soil microbe

to the tallest redwood,

we rejoice.

        Thanks to Ben for this gift of a book of poetry

2am, P was called out to check on PawPaw who was having trouble breathing, home by 8am, his crisis seemed to have passed. Just needed his little girl to hold his hand and speak soothingly to him.

7-14-20 Breathing trouble again late this morning, passed by 1230 same daughter holding hand and praying him out of that worn body.

Let all that draws breath

Now give deepest thanksgiving

To the source of Breath

          Vic Hummert,2002

7-20-20 Hummer on the Elderberry in flower off the back of our home, pretty cool y'all.

Prairiedog sent me a fine video of a big Broadtailed Hummer on his purple salvia in downtown Grand Juction, Co. I told him that he should enjoy it as much as he can now because it will be headed down to the gulf rim real soon and into my yard to spend the winter. Ha!

Ode Beneath a Hummingbird Feeder

                          Sampson. I strike quickly, being mov'd.

                                              Romeo and Juliet, 1.1.6

1

Greenflash of lightning

and memory of a red scar

etched on the golden throat

of a still afternoon.

2

Whirr of tiny wings

like a small thunder

across the redwood porch.

3

Oh, arrogant little warrior,

if I had a naked weapon

I could brandish like yours

I, too, would suffer

no foolish rival suitors

sipping at my ruby fount.

                David Lee, So Quietly The Earth

Needless to say i filled my neglected feeder after that sight.

I'M NOT THE RIVER

I'm not the river

that powerful presence.

And I'm not the black oak tree

which is patience personified.

And I'm not the redbird

who is a brief life heartily enjoyed.

Nor am I mud nor rock nor sand

which is holding everything together.

No, I am none of these meaningful things, not yet.

        

          Thank you Mary Oliver

OK Janisse Ray, please lay a fine one on us...

SERVICE

To the quiet woods

every Sunday morning

a man comes. I have seen him,

although more often I note

his bicycle at the opening

of the path

leading to a pond.

Through Trillium,

Jewelweed, and Cranesbill,

Jack in the Pulpit. Fir. Fallen

feathers of Ravens and Owls.

Mossy Maple Polypore.

At the spring the man

faces cold water, west,

then delivers three long cries,

not animal, not human.

I hear him ululate.

I know him by the mourning.

I have not seen what other

ceremonies he makes.

Except one morning

when fog pitched the hill-

pasture, where the sun first arrives, I watched

the man stand with his face

to that brimming fire,

white light washing over him,

firmament and temples

ablaze. He raised his arms and beat his chest with his fists.

oh wow Janisse, thank you.

7-27-20 "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will  forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." Maya Angelou. Sweet Maya, I'll try to keep that in mind!

As I look out upon my sodden chicken yard (3" rain today) I think of roosters I have owned. None today, since "we" are not too impressed with them crowing at 430am, but once I had several fine ones. This poem reminds me one I once had, Mr. Comeaux, who may just be who the poet had in mind when he wrote this fine poem.

From David Lee's Stone Wind Water a book of poetry

July Whirlwind

A black and gold

and brown

and green and white fletched

banty rooster

scratches in the dust

like a devil

who will take on

any adversary

with red eyes and long spurs

and raised hackles and a bright comb

that can make

even a subaltern deity's

soul sweat

                --after Wallace Stevens

7-29-20 Two first class biologists, and notable characters, my brother John and David R.  reported today (together) that they saw two Swallow Tailed Kites over Hominy Hill in SW Louisiana, eight miles from the Texas line. I am accustomed to STKs living and hunting and breeding in the Atchafalaya Basin, bottomland hardwood backwaterswamp that it is, seldom wandering far out onto the Prairie. Hominy Hill is deep prairie, way out there y'all. However,  my theory, and it is only a theory, they, the STKs are using the swamp along the lower Sabine River for the same purposes in the same way as the Basin. Tall trees, abundant preferred food sources. There you go...

Brother John is an expert at coastal restoration, something we need way more of in S Louisiana. David, from Grand Chenier is expert in his own right and earlier worked to return the Brown Pelican to Louisiana and conserve them once back. He also worked with American Alligator and Bald Eagle, wow David! Two real live Louisiana Heros, those two are.

7-30-20 Per my routine, I headed to the coop to close up the girls at full dusk. Flashlight in hand, i scan the path for copperheads. In the past I have lost hens to Possum or Coon, even once a GHO slipped in to scare the berjesus out of one. My set up is an 8X12' coop with two doors. One door to my yard and one to the fenced chicken yard. So I close them up at night to reduce chance of loosing any to predators. I go in by the outside door, check the girls, and close the one to the chicken yard once I  am sure all is OK I turn and leave, occasionally I am startled by a rat scrounging crumbs from the coop floor, but usually things are quiet. So it seemed on this night. Now y'all, I built my own coop, with Joe's help, so when the yard door didn't want to close easily I swung it back open and tried again... Now this is the exciting part...

A 15' TRS dropped right past my nose, well maybe 5' Texas Rat Snake y'all... then just moseyed off out the coop, across the yard, under the fig and out of sight...

When i began breathing again I realized I was OK...

Whew, sigh! Exciting stuff y'all!

Get out there and enjoy the full Ollie, a glass of tart red, bring along the kids, the old people, and your honey. Tell stories, jokes, laugh, cry, love...

Sunday, Monday and Tuesday will all be grand, Monday is the official FM, go for it, watch all three rise.

peace love possumhugs

BT