When Samantha spends the night, she sleeps with me in our bedroom — Grandpa doesn’t really mind the couch. A couple of weeks ago she woke up early and got up to use the adjacent master bathroom, leaving me half-asleep. The windows were open and the dawn chorus was blaring with chirps, songs, calls heard clearly through the bathroom window. As I listened, Samantha began to mimic the loudest of the birds, a two-parter that she started with a carefully pursed whistle and then a caw-caw-caw followed by dee-doo-dee-doo…

I took a Birding class several years back, taught by the eminent Sharon Sorenson. She is a wonder and can imitate any kind of bird sound imaginable. She would have known exactly which bird Samantha was hearing, but I had to look some stuff up. What I found was a wonderful resource from Audubon.org to help me identify my yardbirds. I am not sure what kind of bird Samantha was hearing, but I have recognized the Cardinals and Carolina Wrens. There are at least a dozen species out there, dozens of families of birds living in our trees and under our shrubs, and I kind of wish Sharon would visit some morning and tell me who is what…

I do, however, recognize the sound of the Surfin’ Bird…

Now that summer is nearly here, the birds have quieted down when I head out to my Thoughtful Spot for my morning contemplation. I hope they’re eating bugs, but they never eat the chiggers. Why haven’t chiggers been identified as a plague? Is it just me? I once had a kid come in whining about a chigger bite — a chigger bite! Just One, I asked? How is that possible? Do they only line up for my tender skin? Already this year I’ve had dozens of them bury themselves in spots where I can’t show you, nestling their itchy-asses wherever the sun don’t shine…

I still avoid sitting in grass, even in a lawn chair, which explains why we have covered our garden area with rock; I still get bit, but to a lesser degree. It is also why we rocked a path to the campfire circle, covering islands of chiggers that love to cling to the weeds and jump easily to legs and upward. I use DEET, but sparingly, and it does seem to help with mosquitoes, but those dang chiggers..

Heat and Humidity and overtaken our world, but the pool is up for cooling off.

I’m on my way to pick up the Jr girls for this week’s get-together.

Peace