Open for Business

Today I had a funeral at Grace, Long Rapids, and then I drove over to Presque Isle.  I may head down to Grand Haven tomorrow afternoon, instead of Monday.  Accordingly, I picked up the remaining 3-1/2 gallons of ground floor wall paint which I'll take back to the store.  The color is lighter than the pale brown I tested a few weeks ago (unfortunately, my test swatches were tossed out).  If I put something dead white up against it, the paint is clearly a cream color.  On the walls and in daylight, however, it looks very white, not the pale brown I want.  So I have to see what Sevens can do to fix the situation.

Looking southwest from the living room.

We're having a bit of a heat wave today.  The temperature is above freezing and our snow is rapidly melting.  Still, the view out the living room window makes it clear it's still winter!  The photo above was taken earlier this week, but the snowy view has not changed.

One thing has changed, however: the Lake Esau Deli is open for business!  I found two Black-Capped Chickadees zooming in to grab a sunflower seed, and then zooming off into the trees to wolf it down.  They appeared quite pleased, and they had the feeder all to themselves.  That's likely to change before long.

The Black-Capped Chickadee (Parus atricapillus) is a small songbird seen all through the year in Michigan.  It has a black cap (of course!) and bib with white around the face, white underparts flecked with rusty red, and a gray back.  It has short wings and a long tail.

The Black-Capped Chickadee eats mostly insects in the summer, and seeds and berries in the winter.  It will hammer a seed on a tree to open it, and may also collect seeds for later use.  It can be tamed and hand-fed.  Dave assures me that larger birds patronize his feeder in Grand Haven, so before long I expect to see one of our woodpeckers, and perhaps other large birds, zooming in for a quick snack. •••