Random Photo Thread: The Sequel

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In remembrance:

My wife's family plot - most of her mother's family since 1914 is here together.:

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Thinking of friends long gone:

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Yes, I spent yesterday at the cemetery finding my Mom's side of the family. Now I know where to find them, I can continue to help Mom.
 
They'll gnaw their way through anything plastic! We used to put out a goldfinch feeder like this:

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We also had to replace it several times a year because of the squirrels. :glare: Now we get the Droll Yankees brand goldfinch feeder because they offer a lifetime guarantee - and stand by it. Sadly, they don't make the upside-down feeder.

We used to keep our seed buckets (5-gallon covered tubs) in the garage. This past winter I moved them to the basement, figuring as long as we didn't have snow it would be easier to go up the bulkhead steps and fill the feeders right outside the basement. Now that it's summer, I thought of putting them IN the bulkhead. However, there have been too many bear sightings in eastern MA. I'm afraid a BEAR might smell it that way and rip the bulkhead open. :ermm: Don't want to test my theory that the doors are probably bear-proof.
 
They'll gnaw their way through anything plastic! We used to put out a goldfinch feeder like this:

bf_us_399_descrip-1


We also had to replace it several times a year because of the squirrels. :glare: Now we get the Droll Yankees brand goldfinch feeder because they offer a lifetime guarantee - and stand by it. Sadly, they don't make the upside-down feeder.

However, there have been too many bear sightings in eastern MA. I'm afraid a BEAR might smell it that way and rip the bulkhead open. :ermm: Don't want to test my theory that the doors are probably bear-proof.

You also want to be aware of that new breed of coyote that is now plentiful. They have been spotted in Downtown Boston. They have longer legs than the regular coyote and have no fear of humans. A few have been shot and I am sure we will be hearing from the animal lovers real soon.

Love your shots of the wildlife in your yard. :angel:
 
The little house-shaped feeder in my yard was being popped open and de-roofed, spilling all the seed onto the ground. It now has a bungee cord reaching around the whole house from side to side, which stopped the wholesale pilfering, but is a nuisance to undo for filling. This little guy has no trouble climbing straight up the skinny shepherd's crook post to get to the feeder. See the thorns on the tree? I saw him climb upward using the thorns for hand-holds the way a rock-climber would.
 

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The little house-shaped feeder in my yard was being popped open and de-roofed, spilling all the seed onto the ground. It now has a bungee cord reaching around the whole house from side to side, which stopped the wholesale pilfering, but is a nuisance to undo for filling. This little guy has no trouble climbing straight up the skinny shepherd's crook post to get to the feeder. See the thorns on the tree? I saw him climb upward using the thorns for hand-holds the way a rock-climber would.

They are a pain but they are fun to watch!

Maybe it's time to invest in a Twirl-a-Squirrel or a Yankee Flipper! :ermm::ohmy::LOL:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJuMqYQa7Vw
 
I have baffles on both of my bird feeders. They really work to keep squirrels and coons out. The critters still try, but can't get to the feeders.
 
Maybe we just had stupid squirrels, but the feeder we had was called a
Squirrel Buster, and it worked. It simply had a spring loaded perching ring that was adjustable for tension that let birds feed with no trouble, but the weight of a squirrel would pull the ring down, which closed the gates on the feeding ports. The squirrels never figured a way around it and ultimately gave up after a few days of trying. It was then squirrel free until the next crop of youngsters came of age. It got to the point where we almost never saw any squirrels around the feeder except occasionally on the ground under it, feeding on the scatter.
 
Kayelle, they can be cute and entertaining. However, they are also danged annoying when they chase the birds away, commandeer the feeder, and go through our seed licky-split. If they were satisfied with all of the peanuts we put out for them, I'd be OK. But they blow through our birdseed so fast that we have, at times, stopped feeding the birds instead of killing our budget. Not seeing the birds makes me sad.

And, yes, they ARE smart. Here is a little evidence about how they can clean out a feeder quickly. Yup, the upper half of that varmint is IN the feeder!
 

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Those tree rats are so annoying! I will send you some if you like, Kay. The baffles have helped a lot on our feeders.

The coons can actually unscrew and drain a hummingbird feeder.
 
THIS is the one we had and it was completely squirrel proof.

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The tension is completely adjustable so you can even limit the size of the birds that it will allow to feed from it.

Our squirrels tried to gnaw through the top cap, and while they only scratched it up a bit, the company replaced the cap free of charge. I felt like it was a good buy, despite the then $80 price tag. We used that feeder for several years, and I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one if we had any squirrels here in town.
 
It's totally dark out now, but I will take a picture tomorrow of the first squirrel baffles that have worked for me in over 20 years. I've used many squirrel-proof bird feeders, but they're not. The baffles have been the only things that work for me.

Warning: they will have plenty of bird poop on them, and it won't be pretty...
 
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DD had kindergarten graduation back in the early 1980s, full cap and gown. They were so cute marching.

When I started school, it was right into the first grade. There weren't any kindergartens for the kids.

I got to see some of the work kids in other families brought home that were in kindergarten. I wasn't impressed at all. So none of my kids attended. They were home schooled for the most part until they were to enter the first grade. In Boston, all children have to be in school by seven years of age. By the time each of them reached the mandatory age, they could read and do script writing. They learned to print in school.

I found out what books were being used in the school for first graders. I went to the library and got a copy and taught them at home. One hour a day I concentrated on the child that would be entering the following September. Spike was a ferocious learner. He would sit with his older sister and copy everything she was learning. He learned faster than her. I found him one day sitting with the book that she was learning from and noticed he was far ahead of where we were. I also got a book that was close to the workbooks for math the kids would be using. Spike was a whiz at math. I couldn't keep up with him. He loved learning. Today he can do math in his head faster than you can site what he has already figured out the answer to.

I attended a PTA meeting at the school when Spike was in the 7th grade. The teacher informed me that he had found several incorrect math problems in the book they were using. He also found spelling errors in other text books. She asked me to speak to him and tell him not to correct her. When I asked her how long she had been using these books, she told me. So my answer to her was, "Perhaps you should be paying attention to what the text books are trying to teach kids how to spell wrong and or do the math herself and she would be ahead of the children." She didn't like my answer, I didn't like her attitude toward my child. I never said a word to Spike except that the teacher mentioned how smart he was to find all the errors in the books they were using. :angel:
 
It's totally dark out now, but I will take a picture tomorrow of the first squirrel baffles that have worked for me in over 20 years. I've used many squirrel-proof bird feeders, but they're not. The baffles have been the only things that work for me.

Warning: they will have plenty of bird poop on them, and it won't be pretty...


Here's one of the squirrel baffles:

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