Great Horned Owl Family Update

Year 11
Eighty days into this year’s life of the owlets, and six years into watching Les and Amy (the parent Great Horned Owls) raise families, the owls have taught me a few rules:
  1. By myself I am often allowed within 20 yards
  2. If I bring another human with me, I must stay much further away
  3. If I step on a branch and it cracks, the owls fly away
  4. Certain times of the day are reserved for sleep, while there are other times during the day that the owlets practice hunting (sorry robins).
  5. Thou shall NOT wake an owl up from a nap!

Please note that the owlets are now often found in deciduous trees. Thus, there is no reason until the leaves fall this autumn to only perch / hunt in pine groves. Cover is everywhere now in the forest.

Day 77 (Monday … June 17th)(Owlet and Mom)

Day 79 (Wednesday … June 19th )(both owlets … different perches)

Day 80 (Yesterday … June 20th)(owlet hunting robins in the afternoon)

Rosie the Raccoon NEEDS a Break!

Year 11

Moms … ever need a break from the kids (also you Dads)? Two afternoons ago, before the torrential rains started and as the temperatures mounted … Rosie came out in the afternoon. Now I could claim she was just curious and wanted to watch me BBQ at 6 pm, but I think the combination of at least 4 crazy youngsters, heat and humidity meant she just HAD to get out of her house. The raccoon’s den is in the hollow trunk of a white pine 20 yards from our house.

When I finished cooking, both Rosie and I returned to our homes!

Surgery Delayed

Background, Year 11
My surgery is delayed for about one month … date unknown. Needs to be scheduled.
My urologist just phoned. The operating room at Miller Dwan (part of Essentia St. Mary’s) is not safe for me because of my poor heart ejection ratio. My poor heart function is nothing new, but upon receiving the schedule for tomorrow Miller Dwan will not let me be operated in their operating room for my own safety. My prostate surgery needs to be in St. Mary’s where the operating room has the facilities to better respond if there are complications.
Please note my operation is NOT being delayed because of any concerns caught in the pre-op visits … it was an administrative oversight. My overall risk factor is almost as low as someone who has not had heart problems, but rules are rules.