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Daily Deer, and marking an achievement

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Getting any photos of Hungry Girl and Barbecue this morning was more difficult than usual.  They were extremely nervous today, but I couldn’t see why.

White Tail Deer

White Tail Deer

There was also the issue of glare on the window, which you can see some of in the picture.

Partly, I’m sure there must have been some cats going along the house.  Something was certainly there to catch their hoof stomping attention.

I also think the light hitting the window meant they could see us, and our movements, more, too.  I could barely get to the camera, take off the lens cap and turn it out before they’d dash off.  Even my husband raising his arm to reach for something seemed to startle them more than usual.

Very high strung and nervous.  It wasn’t long before they simply took off and, from the looks of the feed outside, they have not come back.

Perhaps later.

Meanwhile, some time during the night, this blog reached an achievement.  Fifty followers!  So I wanted to say thank you to those of you who have decided to follow our crazy lives through this blog!  It is much appreciated, and I hope you continue to enjoy visiting. :-)

And now, back to trying to figure out where to call to get a copy of my marriage certificate so I can finally get my ID.

The Re-Farmer

And now for something more pleasant

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Critter pictures.  Great for de-stressing.

I didn’t get any photos of deer today.  In fact, the only time I saw them was when I scared them off, returning from one of my outings today.  I just caught the sight of a flashing white tail, disappearing around the house.

My husband sees them more, when the pain has him up much earlier in the day.  At the very least, he saw Hungry Girl and Barbecue come by.  Not sure if it was them I chased off, or Mama and the twins, later on.  None came back while I was at home.

Here are some of the photos of other critters I got today.

Red Squirrel

Red Squirrel

I haven’t been able to get many photos of the squirrels, but I got a couple of good ones today.

Red Squirrel and Chickadee

Bombs away!

Not the best of photos, quality wise, but catching the chickadee looking like like that is pure gold!

Female Redpoll

Female Redpoll

I love how the little birds are so light, they can sit on the very top of twigs and seed pods.

Male Redpoll

Male Redpoll

Focusing past the twigs is always a challenge.

I’m not sure why that purple is there, on the twigs.  It’s in the raw image, and not a side effect of post processing.

Any camera techies that can explain it to me?

The Re-Farmer

 

 

Are You Kidding Me?

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Finally sitting down to my first cup of tea today.

That’s right.  It’s been one of those days where I haven’t even had tea until evening.  ;-)

Green tea with chamomile and honey.

I’m definitely going to need me some chamomile!!

Okay.  This morning, I headed out to the post office, remembering that they close at noon on Wednesdays.  The postmaster was there, so I started off letting her know I had an odd question to ask her.

Did she know me?

She kind of hesitated, with a “not really… I mean, I remember you, but I remember your daughters, more.”

Which was fine.  She could confirm my identity.  She remembered me well enough to remember what house we lived in before leaving the province, how many kids I had, and so on.

I was rather impressed, really.  I barely remember any adults from when I was the age she was at when we left the province!

Anyhow.  I explained why I asked and what I was hoping she could do.  She didn’t have to know me well.  She just had to know me.  After looking over the form, she confirmed that she could sign it for me.  I filled out my part (it specifically states that it has to be filled out in front of the person confirming my identity), then she did the rest, while I regaled her with the problems I’ve been having with updating my ID.  I thanked her profusely.  I could finally go and do my driver’s license!  The first step in a series of steps.

I went home first, to take care of some things, like calling my auto insurance company that I got a letter from, saying my file was “incomplete.”  Talking to the guy on the phone, he explained that my coverage was coming up for renewal and, with my new address, they wanted to confirm it should be renewed.  I explained the situation to him.

Apparently, quite a few people are having the same problem.

As it stands now, my auto-renewal kicks in after March 30.  It would be really good if I can get this straightened out before then.  Not because I’ll lose my insurance, but that if I have to cancel soon after, I will be charged a cancellation fee.  If I cancel before March 30, there will be no fee.

Nice of them to consider that.

Meanwhile, he attached notes to my file about my transfer being delayed and why.

That done, I headed into the next town with all my paperwork to get started on updating my driver’s license.

There was a different woman at the counter this time, so I explained from the start why I was there, and what I had to confirm my identity.

Well, it turns out it didn’t matter.

They still need my marriage certificate.

She even phoned the main office to confirm.  She even gave them my name and information, and they found me in their system from when I last had a license in this province, back in 2004.

Yes, they have me on record with my hyphenated name.

However, because it’s been so long, they have to start over (if I’d moved back within 2 years, it wouldn’t have been an issue).

A marriage certificate is the ONLY document they will accept to do that.

Ugh.

After getting home, I started going through a bin I hadn’t finished unpacking yet that had papers in it, hoping that it might be in there, but nope.  Nothing.

There’s really no point in trying to find it.  I’ll have to phone Vital Statistics and get a new copy.

Who knows how long that will take?

I had even asked her if I should drop half my name and go back to using just my birth name but, as I expected, it would still be the same problem, since my current ID is all in my married name.

I just can’t get over what a pain this is.

At least it’ll be easier for my husband and daughters!

The Re-Farmer

Strange New Bird

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My husband called attention to a strange new bird in a spruce tree…

2018-02-20.cat.in.tree

Can you see it?

Look closely…

Can’t see it?  That’s okay.  She moved to a more visible spot.

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Butterscotch, looking very comfortable.

Yes, that’s Butterscotch, up in the spruce tree.  Quite settled in!

Since this photo was taken, however, she has made like she wanted to get down, but seemed to be having difficulties.  So my daughters went out with a ladder to help her down, but she just went off out of reach and just sat there, looking at them.

They’ve left the ladder on the tree for now.

Meanwhile, we have some more familiar birds to look at.

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Redpoll.

The redpolls were very co-operative today in posing for me in the bush.

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Blue Jay

We had 4 blue jays, bullying each other for the piles of seeds.  This one looks like he’s mocking the ones he just chased off. :-D

The Re-Farmer

Sourdough Cornmeal Pancakes

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It’s been ages since I’ve made these, and they are absolutely my favourite pancake recipe, ever.  They’re just a bit of a PITA to make. :-D

The original recipe called for sour cream.  I substituted yogurt “cheese”, which my daughter described as “sour cream 2.0 – like sour cream, but MORE”. :-D  I was out of yogurt cheese, but I still had some of our homemade yogurt, so I quickly made some.  It took two batches to get the amount I needed for a double recipe, and I also have some whey for our next bread baking.

So I’ll start with instructions on how to make small batch yogurt “cheese” for a sour cream substitute.

Needed:
About 1/2 cup yogurt
2 coffee filters
fine sieve/strainer that will fit over a measuring cup
2 cup measuring cup

  1. Place the strainer over the measuring cup.  (If yours has a heavier handle like mine does, you might need to have something next to it to prop it up.)
  2. Line the strainer with 1 coffee filter
  3. Pour in the yogurt.  Let sit to drain long enough that, when you pull the coffee filter inwards, then let it fall back again, the yogurt stays behind cleanly.  About an hour or so.  You will find the outer edges are thicker and the middle is still soft.
  4. Draw edges of coffee filter in and lift out the yogurt.  Place the second filter into the strainer.  Gently roll the yogurt into the new filter, so that the softer middle is mostly on the bottom of the filter.  Leave to drain until desired thickness.
  5. At this point, if you want it to drain faster, or want a thicker “cheese”, fold the filter sides over the yogurt to completely cover it.  Place a small, flat object (I used one of the many tiny dishes in my collection) over the filter, than add a weight, such as a can of beans, on top.
  6. When at desired consistency, remove from coffee filter, place in a sealed container and refrigerate.
  7. Reserve the liquid for bread baking.

The 1/2 cup of yogurt will yield about 1/3 cup yogurt “cheese”, depending on how long you let it sit to drain.

And now… on to the pancakes!

This recipe is modified from “Cornmeal Pancakes” in The Sourdough Cookbook by Rita Davenport.

ingredients

The amounts pictured here is for a DOUBLE recipe of Sourdough Cornmeal Pancakes.

Here is the ingredients list for a SINGLE recipe.

1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
2 tsp sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup sourdough starter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup sour cream (or thick yogurt or yogurt “cheese”)
1 1/2 Tbsp vegetable oil

20180220sourdough.cornmeal.pancakes

Sourdough Cornmeal Pancakes

  1. In a medium bowl, combine all dry ingredients, then set aside.
  2. In a small bowl, beat the egg, then mix in milk and starter.
  3. Add egg mixture to the dry ingredients and stir until just moistened.
  4. Fold in oil and sour cream or sour cream substitute.
  5. Preheat and oil frying pan.  Cook 1/4-1/2 cup of batter per pancake for a minute or two, each side.

Note: kitchen chemistry!  When the wet and dry ingredients combine, the acidic sourdough starter and sour cream/yogurt cheese will react to the baking powder and baking soda, causing it to bubble up.  The batter will still be very thick, but light and fluffy at the same time.  Be gentle with it, to keep those bubbles for light and fluffy pancakes!

I like these with nothing but a bit of melted butter on them, but of course you can top them with whatever you want.

I hope you enjoy these as much as we do!

The Re-Farmer

Out our Window, Today

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Some highlights of the activity out our living room window today – at least the ones I was there to take pictures of. :-)

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Whenever I get photos of the male pine grosbeaks, my goal is to capture the incredible red as much as possible.  This one is very close!

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Mother white tail deer with her twins.

Mama and the twins came by today, and I quickly grabbed a group shot with my phone’s camera, since I would have to change the lens on the DSLR to get all three in one shot.

I was going through some of my older deer photos with my daughter, and saw some of the very first ones we took of Mama and her babies.  Seeing them, it struck me how much the twins have grown in the past couple of months!

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Young white tail deer.

The group was very active today, and very nervous about the cats hanging around.  It was cute watching them staring down whichever cat was there, stomping their hooves at them.  Which, for the most part, the cats ignored!

The above picture is one of the twins, after it had shied away from the feed because of a cat.

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Bleh!

“MooOOOoomm!  He’s sticking his tongue out at me again!”

I can’t help it. I love these shots!

The Re-Farmer

 

Playing with Macro

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This morning I realized I’d forgotten to put the battery for my daughter’s Nikon D80 to charge last night.  Since our other D80 is broken, however, we have a spare, so I went digging through the camera bag to find it.

You’d think it would have been an easy find, but it took a while. :-D

In the process, I was noticing some of our other lenses, including one of my old favourites, a Tamron macro lens.  It’s been a long time since I’ve used it.  My younger daughter’s orchids happen to both be blooming right now, so I figured I’d give it a shot! (pun fully intended)

I moved the plants to a well lit location in the kitchen, which meant no tripod space.  I promptly was reminded of just how vital a tripod is for me these days.  My hands shake so much!  Normally, it’s not an issue, but as soon as I start using them in certain ways that involve even minor strain to my hands, I just can’t keep them still.  It’s why I don’t draw anymore, because I can’t hold pencil to paper to do the detailed work I used to.

Of the various shots I took, here are two of them.  These images are resized to 30% only; I have done no adjusting for lighting or anything like that.  To they’re pretty much raw from the camera.

pink orchid

This tiny orchid was harder to shoot than the bigger one.  I’m happy with how this photo turned out, and one or two others, but none of the photos are anywhere near as crisp as the lens is capably of, simply because of the shake.

Love that depth of field, though!

The pink orchid has only two open flowers right now, with many buds, so I look forward to trying again as more of them open.

white orchid

This larger orchid is in full bloom; I think there’s 10 flowers in it, alternated on the stem.

Again, I got several good photos, but the the focal points are still not as crisp as I know the equipment can do.

Which is not always a bad thing.  There was one photo where nothing was in focus – but the soft focus that resulted was so attractive, I ended up setting it as my background image.

I know I can make up for some of it with my Paint Shop Pro, but I wanted to post these without any adjustments, just as an example.

We used to do so much photography, back when we were all able bodied and youthful! :-D  We used to go hiking for hours in the ravine near where we lived and take hundreds of photos.  It was a rare day that went by that didn’t involve at least a few photos.  My husband was especially keen on photography, and quite good at it.

I think, now that we have moved out here, I will be able to take it up again.  I even have a monopod I can take with me, to help with the shake.  Hopefully, we’ll be able to get some more pain control for my husband and he’ll be able to get back into it more, too.

The Re-Farmer

Critter Pictures

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I hope you have been able to take time out this first Sunday of Lent for focus and reflection.

With all the crud that accompanies a major move, I find it’s always a good thing to pause and look at WHY certain choices were made.

Unfortunately, in our case, the why of things is more a matter of “getting away from” rather than “going to.”  Such is life, of course, and we take the good with the bad and focus on the important things, rather than the things that threaten to drag us down.

At least, that’s the theory.  LOL  Reality is much messier.

However, among the things I do appreciate with this move is our daily critter visits outside the window.  As the stresses of the day begin to add up, there is something very healing about looking out our window and finding a deer looking back.

Or a cat.  Whatever. :-D

With that calming influence in mind, I will first share with you an image from yesterday.

2018-02-17.whitetail.deer

Hungry Girl, checking out… something.  I can never quite see what it is that they’re looking at when they stare down the length of the house.  There usually isn’t anything but birds.

Especially these guys…

2018-02-18.redpoll

I love getting accidental pictures!  This redpoll was flitting around among the twigs so much, I’m fortunate to have gotten any shots at all, but getting one in a fun position like this is always rewarding.

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I finally had a chickadee stay still long enough to get a decent shot!  :-D

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Once again, something alongside the house has their full attention!

The physical differences between Hungry Girl in the foreground, and Barbecue in the back, are still quite striking.

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I’m thinking that this time, there must have been a cat walking along the house that they were watching, because later on I saw…

2018-02-18.cat

… Trüllbus the Crime Eater.

He was in the bushes when I first spotted him.  Then he spotted me in the window, taking his picture.  He was accommodating enough to move out of the bushes and pose for me in the feeding area.

I love that intent gaze!

The Re-Farmer

 

 

 

I have floor space!

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After much procrastinating, I had a chance to work on unpacking stuff in the office today.

With one large bin, I unpacked a only few things, but the rest of the items in it are van stuff, so that went out to join the growing stack of boxes along the wall in the dining room that need to be either put into storage or otherwise dealt with elsewhere.

I unpacked another medium bin, two small boxes of books and office stuff (I found my notebook with my passwords!  Yay!), and a medium box of crafting materials.  My crafting table is chaos, but at least the stuff is out and accessible. (Beads! Findings!  Glue guns! Yarn! Office supplies! … … … Stuff!)  Another small box of books got moved to another room for later unpacking there.  I was able to re-arrange things in the process, having cleared out some space on my storage shelf, giving me room for bins of inventory and supplies.

I’m nowhere near done, but the end result is…

More floor space!

I can actually back up my office chair and not bash into the bins that were behind me before.  It’s amazing how much bigger this tiny room feels now!

Also…

20180217bin.cat

Bin Cat.

This happened.

After I removed the last items from the bin and took them to the room they belonged in, I came back to find DaBoy had hopped in.  He loves to go into boxes and bins and hard sided reusable grocery bags, and just sit there.

I wanted to move the bin out, so I popped the flap lids over him and carried him out with it.  I put it on top of the bin of van stuff and let the girls know that the bin was now available for any use it might be wanted for, as I opened the flaps.  Of course, they got a giggle out of my special delivery, as this furry head popped out.

I figured he’d leave after that, but nope.  He ended up sitting there, just as he is in the photo above, for probably an hour.

He’s such a chill dude.

The Re-Farmer

Noooo!!!

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Well, crap.

Yesterday, a few more photos were taken, so this morning I uploaded the last of the pictures on the camera.  As typical, I removed the old photos from the card completely, so that it would go back into the camera with maximum space on it.

As I was transferring the files, I got a pop up.  Did I want to replace files?

Sure, I thought. This typically means I’ve already uploaded some photos and didn’t want duplicates, so I usually just let it override the old files, so there are no duplicates.

I forgot two things.

One, I was uploading files from the camera card, not my phone, which I copy from, not remove completely.  So it’s not unusual for me to accidentally overlap and grab images I’d already uploaded.

Two, my daughter had her camera set to restart files from 001 on an empty card.

Normally, it wouldn’t have been an issue, because I organize my photos in folders by date, but these were photos from yesterday, and they went into yesterday’s folder.

I didn’t realize it until I went to review the photos, but I overwrote the first dozen or so images I’d uploaded previously.

Crud.

Now, most of those first photos were the ones where I was using the 18-55mm lens, then switching the settings around, so they weren’t good photos to begin with.  The “ghost bird” photo was the very first one I took, so I do have the modified version of that one (cropped and resized for the blog).  But the rest are gone.

The settings have now been changed.  It won’t happen again!

*sigh*

Meanwhile…

Here are some photos from yesterday.

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Downy woodpecker

My daughter got this one for me.  The downy woodpecker decided to check out the seeds. :-)

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White Tail Deer

You see this?  THIS is why I asked to borrow my daughter’s camera.  There is no way I could have gotten this shot of Hungry Girl without that 70-300mm lens!  No amount of zooming in with my phone camera could have gotten this photo, even though she was so close to the house.

2018-02-16.white.tail.deer2

Barbecue, meanwhile, was even farther away, but I could still get a wonderful shot of him eating.

Even resized to 30% (my usual resizing on the DSLR photos; my phone camera photos get resized to 25%), you can see those little lips and that tongue, picking up seeds.

Details like that are why I love taking so many photos.  Once they are on the computer, I can see so much more than I could, looking out the window.  Those little details, frozen in time.

I love technology.

The Re-Farmer