Chicken Hawk

I was waiting for a customer at a job site yesterday when this fella swooped in. He landed on a tree close to my truck. I have been trying to remember to keep my camera in my truck, just in case something like this happens. I have had many times when I wanted and needed to take a photo and the camera on my phone just does not cut it. So I was lucky this time.

Coopers Hawk, lesser known as the chicken hawk, which actually deemed them a nuisance. Though they rarely would go after chickens, since they are not much larger than a chicken.

Kept on looking around and not towards me, so I would whistle, he would spin his head around and look around trying to find the victim. They are agile flyers, and hunt in wooden areas through the forest looking for small song birds, that they catch in flight. They kill their pray by squeezing while in flight. Danger to the poor birds at bird feeders in your backyard. 

I am assuming his feathers are all fluffed up because it was cold out, -15C. Those eyes adults have red eyes, good key for identifying this raptor.

I whistled again and I was spotted. He had a good gaze on me for a while, he was probably pissed and wanted to rip my eyes out, customer showed up perfect time to get back to work.

Coopers Hawk, I was honoured to be in your presence.

Pretty cool, maybe you don't think so, but maybe your also lame.

Peace I'm out.

This is the time....

This is the time when we get together for feasts and family, long trips away from home to the west then to the east. Long ago stories from relatives with beverages, food, and smiles.

My thanks, are to my family and friends, air and water, Flora and Fauna, Health, food and beer. And being lucky to be born in this place we call the Great White North.

Hope your weekend is just as fantastic.

Peace out.

Earth?

What is Earth? Is it a planet in this huge vast area, and no one really knows how big it really is?  They can lie and tell you they do know, but, its all guess work.
We call lots of things Earth, Black Earth, Diatomaceous Earth, Soil is sometimes referred to as Earth, Earthworms, Earth Shelter, Earth Quake.

What is Earth? Dirt? Yes, at least to me it is. I like it and all the things it can do. Support life, Micro organisms, It supports me and my feet, my home, my plants, the animals in which walk on it, the farmers market I go to down the road, my bicycle and car tires, the grass in which my dogs pee and poop on, where my cats can chase mice and bugs and think they are hiding in, The enormous and beautiful trees, the water that sits on it, or goes through it and gets filtered. We can all thank dirt but most of us don't. This is my thanks.

We dig into it, we plant our veggies and flowers into it, sow seeds into it, walk, run, trot on it. Sleep and sit on it, put different types of dirt into our bars of soap, press it into pottery, make buildings out of it. Get it in our hair up our cracks, under our nails, stuck to our feet, packed into our boots and shoe treads, tread it into our houses, sweep it up throw it back outside.

How many times have you looked up at a tree? To see its Large trunks, colour and shape of its leaves, its twists in its branches, texture of its bark.

Now?

How many times have you looked down at the Earth? And seen its jewels and gems, colours and textures.  Whether its arid or saturated, if its hiding treasures just underneath its surface, whether its been compacted to support buildings and roads. Has it been disturbed?  Is some creature running through it like a miniature subway system, or did another creature bury its meal for safe keeping? How many different layers of different types of dirt are beneath you?

Peace, I'm out.