My brother, the children's Uncle P, came by to spend time with us before he moves away for a year.
He is hitting the big time, moving to The Big Apple, to live with a mission group that works with the homeless there. He has committed to stay for a year, and if he loves it he has the option to simply remain there.
So he wanted to visit, and only had a couple of hours. They all went across the field and the creek to the pond, and fed the ducks. It is something i try to get them to do when we end up with lots of old bread in the freezer, and it had built up quite a bit. They had wanted to take him to the zoo, but it is too far for a two hour visit. Getting there takes up 45 minutes by itself.
He came to visit, and talk, and he also brought forks! Because he is emptying out his house to sell, and everything is going, he brought us his flatware. Like mine, not a full set (in fact, all 5 of our forks are from different patterns), but now we have plenty.
No, we aren't picky when we set a table. In fact, we don't have a table right now to set, so everything is a bit scribbly.
We hope to have bar stools soon, and a small table to use for the microwave and fruit bowls.
Uncle P also brought plastic containers, one without a lid. It got me to thinking about all the things you have to dispose of when you break up housekeeping. The plastic baggies and box of tin foil (as my grandmother taught me to call it). The can openers -- ours died recently, he brought 3! Whisks and a stirring spoon, a couple of mismatched bowls that Sweetie has claimed because they hold his favorite serving size, LARGE.
So we had a good time talking and visiting. This is something i hope works out well for him. Seminary didn't, and he has never married, and he wants to do more with his life than just the usual nine to five. If he likes it, this may become his life work. Better than paper pushing, that is for sure. Work that makes you feel like you've really done something at the end of the day.
Being a creature of the South, i also hope the weather isn't too much of a shock to him.
Today is:
Escape Day
Ka Molokai Makahiki -- Molokai, Hawaii (harvest festival)
Martyr's Day -- India
National Croissant Day
National Inane Answering Message Day
Puce and Ochre Day -- Fairy Calendar
School Day of Nonviolence and Peace -- Spain
St. Aldegund's Day (patron against cancer, childhood illness, fever, eye disease, sudden death, wounds)
St. Bathild's Day
Three Archbishops' Day
World Leprosy Day
Yodel For Your Neighbors Day (Why? Do you hate your neighbors?)
Birthdays Today:
Brett Butler, 1958
Phil Collins, 1951
Steve Marriott, 1947
Marty Balin, 1942
Dick Cheney, 1941
Vanessa Redgrave, 1937
Boris spassky, 1937
Tammy Grimes, 1934
Louis Ruckeyser, 1933
Gene Hackman, 1930
Dorothy Malone, 1925
Dick Martin, 1922
Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1882
Thomas Rolfe, 1615 (Only child of John Rolfe and Pocahontas.)
Today in History:
The Jews of Freilsburg, Germany, are massacred, 1349
King Charles I of England is beheaded, 1649
Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of the Commonwealth of England, is ritually executed after having been dead for two years, 1661
The Forty-seven Ronin, under the command of Oishi Kuranosuke, avenge the death of their master, 1703
Henry Greathead tests the first boat intended to be specialized as a lifeboat for rescue purposes, which he invented, on the River Tyne in England, 1790
The burned Library of Congress is reestablished, with Thomas Jefferson contributing, 1815
Edward Bransfield sights the Trinity Peninsula and claims the discovery of Antarctica, 1820
The Menai Suspension Bridge, considered the world's first modern suspension bridge, connecting the Isle of Anglesey to the north West coast of Wales is opened, 1826
A fire destroys two-thirds of Mayagüez, Puerto Rico, 1841
The city of Yerba Buena is renamed San Francisco, for the nearby mission of the same name, 1847
William Wells Brown publishes the first Black drama, "Leap to Freedom," 1858
The US Navy's first ironclad warship, the Monitor, is launched, 1862
The pneumatic hammer is patented by Charles King of Detroit, 1894
The Canadian Naval Service becomes the Royal Canadian Navy, 1911
The House of Lords rejects the Irish Home Rule Bill, 1913
"The Lone Ranger" begins a 21 year run on ABC radio, 1933
Indian pacifist and leader Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi is assassinated by Pandit Nathuram Godse, a Hindu extremist, 1948
American civil rights leader Martin Luther King, Jr.'s home is bombed in retaliation for the Montgomery Bus Boycott, 1956
The Beatles' last public performance, on the roof of Apple Records in London. The impromptu concert is broken up by the police, 1969
Carole King's Tapestry album is released, it would become the longest charting album by a female solo artist and sell 24 million copies worldwide, 1971
Pakistan withdraws from the Commonwealth of Nations, 1972
The Monitor National Marine Sanctuary was established as the first United States National Marine Sanctuary, 1975
Richard Skrenta writes the first PC virus code, which is 400 lines long and disguised as an Apple boot program called "Elk Cloner", 1982
Peter Leko, of Hungary, becomes the world's youngest chess grand master at age 14, 1994
Friendly Fill-Ins Week 443
14 hours ago
I wish your brother well. It must be a bit frightening to pick up and leave like that but very exciting at the same time.
ReplyDeleteI stopped feeding ducks a few years ago when I heard that it wasn't good for them - particularly bread. Intentions are so good but the results.. not so much.
http://birding.about.com/od/birdfeeders/a/feedingducksbread.htm
Best wishes for Uncle P as he begins his mission group work in NYC. Culture, and weather, shock for sure. I hope he reaps as much satisfaction from his work as the recipients will receive. How wonderful for your family to have this visit, albeit short, with him prior to his travels. And how wonderful for him to bring the great kitchen utensils, supplies. We called it "tin foil", too, growing up.
ReplyDeleteAbout duck feeding re Hilary's post: Overall, it's okay to feed bread to ducks in limited amounts. The danger comes in carb overload and other reasons, such as ducklings learning to depend on the handout food and not learning to forage naturally. It all depends on the locale and how often, and how many other humans, are feeding them bread. It is more dangerous in urban/park settings than in what I am perceiving as a mostly rural setting where your ducks are, Mimi. The real danger is the ducks' loss of natural behavior in urban/park settings. When ducks become accustomed to handouts, they lose their natural fear of humans and may become aggressive in order to get more food (if you've ever been bitten by an aggressive, charging duck or goose, you know what I mean). Their loss of fear can also cause other dangers, such as a willingness to cross busy roads in order to reach humans and other likely sources of food. Good alternatives to feed the ducks would be natural grains/commercial duck feeds, fruits, and some veggies, such as peas.
Moderation, for ducks too, is the key. ;-)
Safe travels for Uncle P.
Thanks, Hilary and PonyGirl!
ReplyDeleteRefined carbs aren't good for us, so you are right, they aren't really that good for the animals, either. We know better than to let the squirrels become dependent on the handouts, we should watch it with the ducks, too. This pond is not really rural, but tucked away in between subdivisions behind some office buildings. It's never crowded, but people who know about it love to eat lunch there, and feed the ducks.
We'll be more careful in the future.