The season for birdwatching

Wow -- this has been the spring for birds!

Over the weekend, Mr. L and I saw several birds we'd never seen in NY. I saw my very first blue bird, which is the STATE bird of New York. We were in the car and I saw a blur of blue and orange out my (passenger side) window and there it was -- flying alongside us.

Then there were these wee birdies pecking around around the deck looking for something to eat; the hummingbirds, of course, and then an oriol. Not being a birder, I always thought a red-winged blackbird was an oriole. (Oh, the wonders of Google!)

This morning, there I was drinking my tea and I looked out the dining room window and said, "Holy crap--is that a hawk?" I tiptoed to the window to see what could only be (and was) a wee owl! You better believe I ran and got my camera.


I tried taking its picture through the livingroom window, but there are screens. So I went outside, got my shoes hopelessly wet, crept around to the deck, and took a couple of shots. I didn't dare try to get close, so this is an extreme crop of my picture. Isn't he handsome? It's only the second time I've seen an owl--the first time was more than 30 years ago at our cottage. It was like a flying log.

Have you ever had an owl in your yard?