Quilt Top & Bird News

It is always nice to have a project which goes smoothly. This window pattern quilt top or the orphanage in Tanzania is one of them. I used the same fabric as for the strip quilt, but only the giraffes, and recycled a green pillowcase with animal print, and two jungle pattern summer skirts.




Do you like road construction works? I didn't think so. But isn't there usually some eye candy for the female road users, when the young muscular men showel hot black asphalt in front of the big machines, with their beautifully tanned bare upper bodies gleaming with sweat? In my dreams maybe. This is how the work is done during summer in Finland; everyone is wearing brightly coloured reflector vests on top of their brightly coloured raincoats or overalls. This is "our" road being done, half a mile or 800 m from our house.

The story about the fox and the sour grapes is in our fairytale books about the fox and the sour rowan berries, obviously because grapes don't grow in this climate. You may see the connection with the previous story. I saw these beautiful (and SO sour) berries at the station on my way to Järvenpää.

These trees grow around our railway station.

The oak tree may well be from the same time as the building, 1874.

This little linden tree (now my dictionary confuses me completely: it is also called European lime tree and American basswood) was planted when an underpass was built. I think the shape of the tree is repeated in the leaves:

These are from and older tree. I like the seed thingies.

I took the train to Järvenpää and sat outside enjoying a cup of tea and a Ruth Rendell novel (Thirteen Steps Down, just started). Organ grinders from around the Baltic Sea had come here after their meeting in Hämeenlinna. The one on the right was from Poland. The other one had a parrot, but I don't know where they came from.

There were at least seven of them in all.

Today I read in the newspaper that this cold summer has affected the birds' nesting, and many birds are late with growing their babies. Our titmouse family left their house in late July, when they usually are out in June. The Hooper Swan family I have told you about walked to a more quiet pond after a couple of weeks in the pond where I saw them. Now we can see one of the parents every now and then having some time off from baby duties there in the morning. I hope they take turns! Last week Mr. K called me to come with the camera to see the tinies pheasant babies we have ever seen. No, it is not a frog. Click to see better!

He had seen about ten babies, but by the time I got to the back yard they had vanished - in the sand? These three were moving, so I noticed them.

Here you can see them quite clearly. The mother kept calling until the last one had climbed up the stone wall instead of these very small steps.

Finally there were 9 babies and the mother. We saw them on the next day as well.

I hope they will grow fast and get some flesh on their bones before the nights will be too cold.

Chamaenerium angustifolium is a sign of the summer turning towards the end.