Yes, Mary, the cold snap killed off some of the poplar tree's blossoms in town here, but there were still quite a few that hadn't come out enough to get damaged. There were lots of insects earlier. Not so many now. Went out to the farm Sunday afternoon to mow the lawn and dump the hedge clippings. The Eastern phoebes have left the nest above the light fixture. The porch floor was a mess! Lucky it all hosed off easily. The chickadees are ready to leave their house in town. For the last several days the adults have been going in and out of that box from 7:30 am to 8 pm (dark). I've never looked out for more than 5 minutes without seeing one. Can you imagine? That would be at least 150 trips per day, or 75 for each adult. How do they do it? Two little heads popped up to peek out the opening yesterday afternoon. Then a construction vehicle started up a few hundred yards away. That loud back up alarm sounded from 3:30 pm until 6:00 pm, almost continuously. It started to get on my nerves after a half hour. How could anyone back up for 2-1/2 hours? I think the nuthatches are ready also. They may have already left.
A male rose-breasted grosbeak showed up on the deck this morning. They are migrating birds, just passing through. A female passed through last year just about the same time (April 22nd). Rather large husky birds. For the last 2 days BirdNET kept saying it heard a rose-breasted grosbeak (uncertain). I didn't believe it. And there he was. It also says it hears a scarlet tanager (almost certain). Also a pass through. I'll believe that when I see it. Would have been hard to miss. By the way, out in the country, almost dead silence. I heard a crow and a Carolina wren. That's all folks!
The Chickadees... They are more interesting than bluebirds. Only one brood per season. Babies are as large as their parents when they leave the nest. I was so certain Wednesday would be the day. One can't miss an event that happens only once a year. Wednesday: Nothing happened. Just tops of heads bobbing around inside the box all day. Miserable to be outside because of the noise (back up beeps, rant thread, post #1001). Do you suppose it drives the animals crazy too? How can the birds hear themselves calling to one another? Thursday: Rain all day. Sometimes very heavy. At least the noise stopped. All the birds were soaked, but the chickadees still made nonstop trips with seeds from the deck to the birdhouse all day long. Who would encourage babies to leave in the rain? Friday had to be the day. (4/28/23) Friday Warmed up a bit. Morning low 57, high 75. I started watching at 8:00 am. Two little ones competed to perch in the birdhouse doorway all morning. The first one, Fatty Fluffy, would sit in the hole hollering for food. His body seemed to fill the entire opening. Whenever the other one got a chance to perch, it just looked around in amazement, 180 degrees up down and sideways. No hollering. At 1:20 pm Fluffy flopped out the door and went almost straight to the ground in front of the birdhouse. He may have been pushed. I'm sure he did alright eventually. There were no scuffles or predators in sight. Almost immediately #2 leaned out too far gawking around and ended up dangling by one foot. Then flew ***WAY*** up into the hickory tree. If it hadn't been for the acrobatics at the beginning, one might have mistaken it for an adult. This one won't need any lessons. Two more immediately began competing to perch in the hole. At 3:40 pm number #3 flew almost up to the driveway into the hedge (80 feet?). A few minutes later #4 flew just a few feet from the nest, flopped around a bit, and with coaching from Mom and Dad, made it to the hedge. At that point there were no signs of any more birds in the house. No adults going in. So there were only 4? Typical size is 6. At 5 pm another one popped up in the doorway. It wasn't the least bit interested in leaving, in spite of coaxing by both adults for the next 3 hours. It just sat there hollering until 8 pm (dark) when I gave up. Yes, I got up at 6:45 am Saturday just to check. The trucks started beeping at 7:30 am. (On Saturday???) This time there were two trucks, taking turns, so it was almost non-stop beeping until 6pm. No sign of a bird in the box all day. I figured it just stayed in there and got too weak to leave. An adult came by twice. Went inside once and later just tapped on the box (I assume) listening for a response. (4/30/23) Sunday Rain in the morning, expected to stop by 11:00 am. The trucks were at it again at 10:00 am and stayed until 6 pm!!! I thought it was illegal to work on Sunday in the South. Two things occurred. The bluebirds started on a second nest. Female brought in one weed about 2 feet long. She got it in there, swirling it like spaghetti, I guess. A little later their only child followed them to the deck, and I got a look at it. Still can't tell males from females. This made me happy enough to go open the chickadee box. No dead bird. One unhatched egg, early on. Can you believe this nest? It is 3 inches deep and packed solid, filling the entire bottom of the box. Now that's how you build a nest, Bluebirds.
Ain't No Mountain High Enough - Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, 1967 I read that Mr. Gaye and Ms. Terrell recorded the original version of this song separately. Then Motown Records remixed the two and edited out background vocals.
Watching this little only child bluebird has been a real treat this year. After the first week in hiding, Papa has had it in tow and onto the deck at least once every day. And every day it has learned something new. It learned how to take a bath, even before how to drink water. Reminds me of kittens when they are first confronted with a dish to drink from. Their whole nose often goes under on the first try. It showed up all by itself yesterday. The parents usually cut them loose, cold turkey, after 3 weeks. Normally it's rather sad. The little ones look so lost and confused. That happened this morning. But I think this one is ready.
It has been 8 weeks since the new front door was ordered. The mfg's website said it could take that long due to supply chain issues. The middle guys, who will receive the door, told me they will keep it 2 weeks after it arrives to "check it out." Why don't people just tell the truth? Just say it may take a while to schedule installation. It makes you not believe anything they say. Because there are other irons in the fire right now, and because getting up and down off the floor has become a challenge (long story), I haven't been in a hurry. Inactivity hasn't helped, so I finally jumped on it last night, began trying to level the base for the threshold. Ended up tearing out the boards underneath, removed all the old nails from the one that might show, and sanded it down on one end to gain the extra 1/16" they requested. I'll let the installer nail it back. The real problem comes because a couple inches have to be cut out of the old frame on each side. What's under there? Can't check that without removing the old door. I'm getting cold feet about this project. Sent an email to the salesman asking about the status of the door. He replied this afternoon: ...."Rick will call you tomorrow to schedule a time for installation." If I were that salesman, I'd look for another job. It sounds like the door has already been there for some time. I need at least a week. Time to call backup if necessary. This is coming at a perfect time. Spring semester just ended. No traffic.
Eric (not Rick) called Wed morning and will bring the new door next Wednesday at 9:30, but "Mike" will install it. So this is really going to happen. After one day of panic, I got started. Cut back the old casings ~1 inch on the latch side of the door opening. The little battery Ryobi circular saw worked fine for the middle. The corners will have to be done with hand and oscillating saws. It's exactly as expected. In between the old casings is just a hollow space with a block of wood at the bottom and no obstructions otherwise, even at the top corner. [Yes! ] At the back is the old 2" x 4" wall stud + slats from the plaster and lath walls. ... There is, what some people might call, a rather large crack on the latch side of the door now, with 2 outhouse type door locks. I stuffed an old sheet in there last night to keep out the bugs and humidity. The weather is cooperating—no need for AC or heat. I hope the hinge side is as easy with no obstructions. The goal today is to do the top, the upper corner, and finish the latch side all the way to the floor. The hard part will be the bottom corner. I can't seem to visualize what to expect down there.
I'm ahead of schedule on the door. The only surprise so far is how easy it was to tear everything out. The original framing for the door was approx 42" x 88". They reduced it down to a standard 36"x84" door by just bridging the gap with 1 x 6 casings (frames). Leaving a hollow channel up the sides and across the top. The blocks at the bottom corners were not even nailed to the house frame. The hardest part was trying to follow a straight line while cutting through this almost petrified old wood. The old door slid out the front door (with no threshold) easily on a rug. Salvaged an old tarp from the throw-away pile in the basement and hung it over the door opening. It would have been hard to haul a 1" thin 4x8 piece of styrofoam in the truck without damaging it, and a 2" thick piece costs $64. I love picture-rail molding. You can hang anything anywhere without driving nails in the wall. From the street the tarp looks just like a piece of plywood. It's not as dirty as it looks. Just stained. It's almost like going camping. The plan for today is to get two new 2 x 6's, and slice one inch off the side lengthwise, to make them 1½" x 4½". These boards will slip in between what's left of the old casings, fill in that void, and provide something sturdy to attach the new door to. Like what they call a jackstud, only put in after the fact. Everything is going too well so far (jinx!).
(5/23/23) Tuesday Planned to accomplish a lot Monday but GC called and asked if his HVAC man could come by and do some measuring in the attic. Had to clean up the mess on the front porch, living room, upstairs, change clothes, and wait. When he left I drank a can of Miller Light that had been sitting in the back of the fridge for at least 8 years. (What was I thinking?) It was OK, but beer always makes me sleepy. End of story for Monday. I didn't cut off enough of the old casings on one side and had to remove about 3/8" more. Could have been worse. Could have cut off too much and ruined everything. The top had a 1" deep gap to fill. They don't make 1" boards anymore. Found one in the junk pile in the basement. It had some bright magenta paint that used to be on the guest bedroom walls. Likely 100 years old. Finished everything by 7pm tonight. The plan is to add some trim above the door one day when I feel ambitious, to make it level with the windows. Not likely to happen. Will ask the installers to do the threshold prep. Not sure how it fits. It should be included in normal installation anyway.
(5/24/23) Wednesday Mike, the door installer, showed up by himself at 9 am. He is only 35, with earrings and tattoos covering his arms. He has been installing doors since he was 20, but never installed one with a custom width and wall thickness. Slow and deliberate. A perfectionist. Most times I had to tell him, "That's good enough." He said, "You are the easiest customer I've ever worked with. It will take me a while to get used to that." . Not a single modification in the door opening was necessary. He was able to get the door straight up and down in spite of the leaning wall. He said the piece of aluminum cladding the factory sent to cover the top of the jamb didn't fit. The casings on the outside could not be installed until that is put on. He is going to make a new piece and finish everything either tomorrow or Friday.
You're right! I think the man was also confused. He said not tomorrow, but maybe the next day, and AT LEAST by Friday. It doesn't matter. My job is done... until he's finished.
My bad. I now see you put Wednesday at the top. This is why you hire professionals Good job on driving them to a successful install.
The door installer had a gadget he said works great:. A spring-loaded nail set. They also make one with a nail starter on the other end. Still haven't put molding around the edges of all the replacement windows in this house. It went in such hard to get at places, the ones I did do came out so bad, I just quit. I used pvc molding and it is so soft, it's not forgiving of a stray hammer or punch strike. I want one (or 2).