Maybe, just maybe a little relief from the miserable heat is in store for the next few days. I got to tell you, folks are getting MEAN. The various weather reporting services are all over the place. But as I write this, it’s 12:45pm and it’s not yet 80 degrees and the humidity is much lower. Kevin Myatt is predicting rain Sunday and Monday. Yesterday was so hot, George the groundhog lay on the foundation of the old chicken coop gasping for breath trying to catch a breeze. Anne is going to do her rain dance this afternoon…i.e. she’s going to spray the grapes. Keep your fingers crossed.

REMINDERS

Anne and I are deck people. We have had a deck for most of the last three decades, and during good weather we spend a lot of time on it. At the end of the day, we relax with a drink, often have supper, and do a lot of entertaining there.

Basically, the deck is our outside room. Adjacent to the deck is The Dead Tree. It stands there like a totem, very sculptural in its appearance. It’s a favored perch for birds and Rocky, the Demon Squirrel. I usually see the Effing Chipmunk running from the strawberry patch towards it. I’ve photographed The Tree dozens of times under many different conditions.

A couple of evenings ago, I noticed something kind of odd. Little Wayne was half-way up the tree. Now I know black rat snakes go pretty much anywhere they damn well please, but I’ve never seen one climb a dead tree before. And this one was not only up the tree, he was disappearing inside the tree.

Obviously I know squat about Black Snakes, so I did a little more research and found that not only do they climb trees, they spend a lot of time in trees. Much of their diet is derived from the various creatures that inhabit trees. Now I wonder what LW was going after. I’m sure there are plenty of insects, and I guess it’s possible mice are nesting there. The birds that nested in The Tree this spring are gone. There is a chance that Little Wayne may have been going after the Effing Chipmunk.

If that was the case, all I can say is “ROCK ON YOU WEIRD LITTLE DUDE!”

George the Groundhog

George has been here about as long as we have. He has an entrance to his burrow under the remains of an old chicken coop. I usually see George early in the morning munching away on dandelions and clover in the side yard near the bamboo grove. Anne is particularly fond of George because she has less work to do as a result of his fondness for weeds.

Bozo the Side Yard Rabbit

Bozo likes the dandelions and clover all most as much as George. Bozo is pretty skittish though. He goes into his “rabbit freeze” stance at the first sound of anyone stirring in the kitchen. A second sound sends him hauling his little bunny ass back up the ridge to his burrow.

DeWayne the Black Snake and his buddy

Little Wayne

For a long time we thought we only had one snake who moved around a lot. A couple of weeks ago though, we came home around 4 pm and found DeWayne on the deck in back and Little Wayne on the front porch. Both of them spend time in the attic feeding on whatever they find there….birds, mice, insects. Periodically, one of them will climb down the front wall and scare the shit out of anyone nearby. Black Snakes are good to have around as long as you don’t mess with them. I’m told that their bite quote, “hurts like a sumbitch,” unquote.

The Damn Deer

These are two of the four deer who winter with us. In fact, these two were born on the ridge and tried to climb up the front steps when they were fawns. They spent most of the winter about 20 feet from the back door. They also spent most of the winter pruning a lot of our decorative evergreens. During most of the warm weather, they fade back up the ridge. During hunting season, I think they go to Florida.

There is also Rocky, the Demon Squirrel, and That Effing Chipmunk. Both of them have eluded the camera so far. If they don’t leave the strawberries alone, they’re gonna have to evade a fusillade from a .22 rifle. Anyone for squirrel gravy ?

With the passing of each week, Galena Creek continues to grow cleaner and healthier. The freshwater snails are more abundant and I’ve found what appear to be brown trout minnows swimming around. Though I haven’t been able to photograph any yet, there are also crayfish. New aquatic plants, some quite beautiful, are growing and it looks like we’ll have a nice crop of watercress soon.

Muskrats are all over the place. For some, these water loving rodents are cute little creatures. For others, like my neighbor James, they are destructive nuisances. Their burrowing damages his pond, and they are laying waste to the fish he keeps. In parts of the United States and other countries, Muskrats are considered a delicacy. They are said to taste like rabbit or duck. Personally, I don’t see a breast of Muskrat with a side of fava beans in my immediate future.

There a few things that I haven’t been able to identify. If anyone knows what this worm-like little creature is, please let me know.

For me, the creek has become my place for quiet contemplation. It’s a rare day that I don’t spend time along its banks as Anne says, “contemplating my navel.” In a few days, the irises in and along the creek will be in bloom so you can expect to see more pictures soon.

Earlier this week, I made a rather exciting discovery. Clinging to several of the rocks in the Creek were colonies of freshwater snails. The reason this is exciting is because these particular pleuroceridae are endangered and can exist only in unpolluted waters.

The previous owner of Our Little Piece of Paradise raised goats. Galena Creek was, in places, more of a muddy wet spot in the landscape than anything else, criss-crossed with metal fence posts, wire fencing, and shallow railroad-tie dams and bridges. All of that was removed when we purchased the place six years ago, and the Creek has been left to recover mostly on its own. We have done some judicious rock placement to create a couple of short rapids-runs and planted both irises and cat tails. For the last few years, watercress and wild mint have returned in great abundance, acting as a natural filter often requiring care in the late summer to maintain a good flow when water levels are down. Additionally, my neighbor’s cows no longer use the Creek and the late winter snow-melt and heavy rains combined to flush the Creek of any lingering pollutants leaving it in its current, nearly-pristine state.

Also seemingly in greater abundance this spring are the ubiquitous water sliders, a graceful insect whose study by the Chinese may lead to changes in the way water-proof fabric is made.

A bit more interesting, and possibly troublesome, the study could also lead to the “…designing [of] innovative miniature aquatic devices with drag-reducing [properties] and fast propulsion.”

I plan to investigate the introduction of fresh-water mussels and crawfish into the Creek, hopefully leading to an increase in bull frogs this year (read sauteed frog’s legs, they really do taste like chicken!)

According to a Virginia Tech study published in Science Centric (click reload after this link loads), streams such as Galena Creek, “…are natural filters that help remove and transform pollutants that drain from surrounding watersheds, including excess nitrogen from human activities.” The study goes on, “Nitrogen removal in streams is important because it reduces the potential for eutrophication – the excessive growth of algae and aquatic plants in downstream lakes and coastal marine waters,’ said Jack Webster, professor of biology at Virginia Tech. ‘Eutrophication in the Chesapeake Bay has damaged the oyster industry in Virginia…”

Despite the predictions for unusual weather patterns this spring and summer, we expect this to be a good year in the continued return of the Creek to its natural state.

To listen to an excerpt of Igor Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, click here.

At some point in the near future, I plan to do a longer post about feral and free-roaming cats, but this little kitten needs help now. Last month, someone abandoned this one and two others in front of the Ft. Chiswell Laundromat. One of the private agencies that deals with this problem was called, and a representative picked the kittens up, had them spayed, and promptly dropped them back off at the laundromat. There is no room at the inn for these kittens. Why do I care about these particular cats when there are hundreds if not thousands just like them in SWVa? Did I mention this is the place Anne uses to wash our clothes?

This particular kitty is male, and appears to have been trained to use a litter box. Michele, the lady who manages the laundromat, has been feeding the three and told Anne that the first week or so when she first set out food in a box, this one would rush over and pee in it. Personally, I think this one has some potential. So……if you’d like a kitten or three who haven’t been out on their own for very long, drop by the Ft. Chiswell Laundromat and ask for Michele.

-Dead Skunk by Loudon Wainwright III

For most of us, a sure sign that spring is on its way is the hardy little crocus poking through the frozen ground in mid-February, its cheerful, delicate-looking little bloom portending the explosion of color to come in April and May. But what with the foot-deep snow pack last month, we haven’t seen them yet.

Another sure sign of spring, are these unfortunate little critters showing up all over the place.

From our humble little cottage to I-81 4 1/2 miles away, there were a total of 3 of the odiferous carcasses on Rt. 52 this morning. In a couple of weeks, there will be double or triple that number.

It’s skunk mating season.

Skunks have very limited vision and love to get busy at night. So drive veeeeery carefully.

Last month after the second big snow of the season, we started tossing out birdseed figuring the poor starving little things would literally flock to our yard. After all, their normal foodstuffs were buried under a foot of snow. I flung a few handfuls of seed off the front porch and waited to see the show. After a couple of days with little or no action, Anne carefully placed some seed in other areas and we waited…….and waited…….and waited. The next storm came along and covered up all the seed (a whole 5lb bag’s worth) and we still hadn’t seen very many birds. I don’t know whether the two free-roaming cats that hung around for a week or so had anything to do with it or not.

Finally, a few days after the last storm when things had really crusted over, Anne put out more seed by the bamboo grove and the show began:

Of course there are always one or two bandits who show up:

Click on this to view a two minute video I posted on youtube.com of the “action”.

As I’ve said before, I’m not much of a winter person, so the arrival of the first blooms of the year always gives me a much needed emotional boost. The crocuses pictured above actually pushed their cheery little blooms up two weeks ago. Judging from their location, I suspect we have some hard working squirrel to thank. Crocuses are not native to this area, and their location on a wild slope behind our humble little cottage leads me to believe they were planted by other than human hands.

The past few weeks have given us some warmer days, including a couple of 70 plus degrees. Daffodils, irises, and day lilies are all showing their tips, and fresh chives are sprouting in their pot on the porch. Sage, oregano, and thyme are starting to green up, and it looks like one of the rosemary plants may have survived January’s sub-zero temperatures.

Spring arrives on March 20 this year and in case you can’t tell, I’m chafing at the bit. In a few weeks, our onion sets and lettuce seeds can go in the ground. I’ve begun the annual clean up of winter debris, and I plan to start prepping the garden soil this next week. I’m as ready as I’ve ever been, and as soon as Mother Nature gives her go ahead smile, I plan to get busy. 22 days and counting.