This simple little gadget has saved me so much time and aggravation, that I just had to share it with our readers.
Thursday, April 13, 2023
Easy Grip Jar Opener
This simple little gadget has saved me so much time and aggravation, that I just had to share it with our readers.
Thursday, March 23, 2023
National Bird Holidays and Awareness Days- 2nd Quarter
Male Cardinal |
This review will introduce you to a few of the bird holidays and awareness days for the second quarter of the year. I have found bird watching and bird photography to be a wonderful pastime. In addition to sharing some of the second quarter bird days, I will share a few of my photographs in this review. All photos were taken in my backyard.
April 8- Draw a Bird Day
April 29th- National Go Birding Day
- Take Photographs
- Visit a Nature Reserve or a Park
- Share your Photos and Videos on social media.
Female Cardinal |
To celebrate Bird Day you may want to learn more about birds. There are lots of sites on the internet where you can learn facts about birds or you may want to look for a bird book on Amazon. Here is one for you to consider.
May 14-World Migratory Bird Day
Celebrating American Eagle Day
The first American Eagle Day was proclaimed by President Bill Clinton in 1995. Since then 41 American states have made the day an official observance. From 2007 onwards, the US Senate has also passed resolutions to mark June 20 of the year as American Eagle Day. The American Eagle Foundation is at the forefront of organizing and sponsoring events on this holiday.
American Eagle Day is an observance, which means that businesses, stores, and government offices are open.
On this day, conservation and educational organizations hold public outreach programs such as lectures, workshops, and informational sessions to raise awareness about the importance of preserving and protecting bald eagles and other wildlife.
The holiday is sometimes known as Bald Eagle Day or National Eagle Day.
Thursday, March 9, 2023
Fun with AI in Photography
AI (Artificial Intelligence) has been in the news a lot lately. It is surrounded with controversary, but it can also be a lot of fun. In this article I will discuss the fun ways to use AI both with your own photographs as a starting point and with descriptive words to create an image. The image above was created by typing descriptive words into an AI generator. This then produced several images.
Dream by Wombo
After a bit of playing around, I found there was a place I could upload my own photographs and then select different styles to apply to my photos. Here are some of the results when I uploaded a photo of a Cardinal in the snow in my backyard. There are many filters to choose from and I used the expressionist filter for these photos.
Dream by Wombo
Starry.ai
Night Cafe
PicFinder
I hope you have enjoyed my adventures in AI images and perhaps you will want to experiment with one or more of the sites. All of the ones that are listed in this article are free versions, although several have the option of upgrading to a "premium" version.
Thursday, February 23, 2023
The Tobacco Wives- Book Review
The Tobacco Wives- A Book Review |
The Book on Amazon
The Story
My Recommendation
Thursday, February 9, 2023
Above the Bay of Angels - Book Review
Above the Bay of Angels |
The Book on Amazon
Book Summary
Saturday, January 28, 2023
Book Review of An Enemy Like Me
I found this book to be totally captivating on many levels. First of all, the author made the characters so believable that you couldn't wait to turn the page and find out what was going on in their lives. Secondly, for me the storyline and characters sounded like they stepped right out of my family history. The similarities include: my father growing up in a German Lutheran community, my parents eloping, and my father and uncles going off to fight in World War II.
The Characters
Jacob Miller
Bonnie Phillips
William Miller
The Book on Amazon
About the Author
Born in Athens, Greece as an Air Force brat, Teri M Brown graduated from UNC Greensboro. She began her writing career helping small businesses with content creation and published five nonfiction self-help books dealing with real estate and finance, receiving "First Runner Up" in the Eric Hoffman Book Awards for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, finalist in the USA Best Books Awards for How To Open and Operate a Financially Successful Redesign, Redecorate, and Real Estate Staging Business and for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, and Honorable Mention in Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award for Private Mortgage Investing. In 2017, after winning the First Annual Anita Bloom Ornoff Award for Inspirational Short Story, she began writing fiction in earnest, and published Sunflowers Beneath the Snow in January 2022. Her second novel, An Enemy Like Me, launches in January 2023. Teri is a wife, mother, grandmother, and author who loves word games, reading, bumming on the beach, taking photos, singing in the shower, hunting for bargains, ballroom dancing, playing bridge, and mentoring others. Learn more at www.terimbrown.com.
Thursday, January 12, 2023
National Bird Holidays and Awareness Days- First Quarter
Male Finch |
Did you know that bird watching is enjoyed by over 73 million Americans? It is no wonder than that there are many different bird days listed on special days lists.
I count myself as an ardent bird watcher and photographer and on this post, I will share with you some of the national bird days I found interesting. This post will be part 1 of 4 so I will include bird days in the first quarter of the year. I will also share photos of birds I have watched and photographed in my backyard. For more information on national bird days check out www.birdtipper.com.
Jan 5 - National Bird Day
- According to the US Census more American bird watchers (73 million) than baseball and football players.
- Birders fund the economy, including feed, supplies, traveling and donations by spending $40 billion a year on their hobby.
- Worldwide there are 9800 species of birds; 850 are in the U.S.
- The National Bird Day takes place after an annual survey that tracks American wild birds to get an accurate bird population count at the three weeks long December count.
- According to Born Free USA, nearly 12% of the world's bird population is threatened with extinction.
Jan 20- Penguin Awareness Day
They kidnap chicks
When a female emperor penguin's baby dies, she will often "kidnap" an unrelated chick.
They're down south
There are 17 species of penguins and all of them live in the Southern Hemisphere.
Macaroni penguins rule
The penguin species with the highest population is the macaroni penguin with 11 million pairs.
The fastest penguin
The gentoo Penguin is the fastest swimmer — reaching speeds up to 22 mph.
They're all wet (usually)
An average penguin might spend up to 75 percent of its life in the water — where it also hunts for prey.
Feb- National Wild Bird Feeding Month
Feb 17-20, 2023, Great Backyard Bird Count
Spend time in your favorite places watching birds–then tell us about them! In as little as 15 minutes notice the birds around you. Identify them, count them, and submit them to help scientists better understand and protect birds around the world.
March 20th- World Sparrow Day
How to Celebrate World Sparrow Day
One of the biggest threats to sparrow populations is loss of habitat, so consider planting native trees and shrubs in your yard or community garden. You can also put up a birdhouse or two; tree cavities are perfect homes for nesting sparrows.
Also, be sure to keep your cat indoors—birds of all kinds, including sparrows, are killed each year by outdoor cats.
Finally, fill your bird feeder with seeds that sparrows love, such as sunflower seeds and millet, and sit back and enjoy watching these busy little birds at work!
On World Sparrow Day, take a moment to think about one of the most common birds in the world: the humble sparrow. This holiday is a chance for us to learn more about these fascinating birds and take action to help them thrive!
Here are some photos I have taken of sparrows in my backyard. They are all Eurasian Tree Sparrows.
Thursday, December 22, 2022
Review of Nativity Scenes
Nativity Scene within a Cross |
Nativity sets and scenes are a wonderful part of my Christmas decorating. They point us to the true meaning of Christmas. I think they are a wonderful item to pass down to future generations. In my house I have several nativity sets: one from my grandparents, one that my mother made and another that my daughter purchased on a trip to Bethlehem. I also have a nativity scene within a cross that I believe is a wonderful reminder of the purpose of Christmas. It shows the Jesus is the reason for the celebration. That cross is depicted in the beginning photo of this article.
Nativity Cross on Amazon
Nativity Sets Passed Down to Me
My Grandparents Nativity Set |
Mom's Nativity Set |
My Bethlehem Nativity Scene
Nativity Sets on Amazon
Thursday, December 8, 2022
Review of Favorite Christmas Decoration
I love decorating for Christmas and after over 50 years of marriage, needless to say, I certainly have more than enough Christmas decorations. I have gotten to the point where I rotate some of my decorations, so I don't end up with too many for our house. But still, I enjoy getting a new decoration or two each year. Last year some friends gave us the delightful snow globe lantern pictured in the photo above. It can be used with batteries or plugged into any USB port, so I have it sitting on my desk in our family room plugged into my computer. I love the silver snowflakes shimmering around the Santa, snowman and tree. When it is turned on the light catches the snowflakes, and they glisten as they twirl around inside the lantern.
A Variety of Christmas Lanterns Available
Features of Christmas Snow Globes
- Runs on either battery or USB plug in
- A timer that lets you set the snow globe to be on for 6 hours and off for 18 hours
- Music that can be turned on or off. These usually include 8-12 different Christmas themed tunes.
- A subject or Christmas scene available for every taste.
Thursday, November 10, 2022
Review of Suet Nuggets for Birds
Nuthatch waiting turn for Suet Nuggets |
In this photo a female Downy is getting the last bits of the nuggets out of the feeder. Below is a male Downy enjoying the nuggets in the wintertime.
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