Tuesday 18 August 2009

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.


8 comments:

  1. What a beautiful quilt. I know it will be loved. No tanned muscular gorgeous road workers here either. Just sweaty ones!

    ReplyDelete
  2. The road workers here wear bright orange vests, too.

    I always enjoy seeing the birds and animals that live near you. Those pheasant babies are adorable!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Cute your quilt, beautiful colours.
    I always enjoy seeing your photos, in Brazil we don't have these birds. Hugs

    ReplyDelete
  4. I guess it wasn't hot enough for your road workers to take off some of their garments.
    I really like the colours of your quilt and it was nice that you got to re-purpose some fabrics.
    That little baby pheasant sure did look like a frog.
    Here in Toronto we are very cosmopolitan and there are many buskers downtown but we have yet to have an organ grinder - at least that I have seen. It would be nice.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Your quilt is beautiful, Ulla! I love the use of the bold prints! I remember the days when the road workers were slightly "less dressed" - too bad for all of those safety regulations that make them wear all those clothes now - LOL! Mr. Squash is delighted that you've shown the Linden Tree - he has been looking for one around here to show me but can't find one! And the geese are so cute - I do hope they flourish before the cold weather sets in!
    Cheers!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oh the quilt top is beautiful! Even prettier than I imagined.

    And the itty bitty baby pheasants!! I was cheering for them to make it to their mama.. and they did!

    It has been a very cold summer here too. But lately hot!

    So funny about the sweaty road men! I thought you were going to show some.. and was afraid to look!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Amazing camouflage on the pheasant babies. :-)

    Great job on the window quilt. Someone is going to love it.

    In Wales lots of rowan berries is meant to signify a hard Winter according to folklore. I did try to look hard for scantily clad young men in your pic before reading on. LOL

    Perhaps there was a barrow organ display? I rarely see them but they are used a lot to set the street scene in films set in Victorian times.

    ReplyDelete
  8. A very nice post (so much information) and a beautiful quilt, the colours go so well together, it is a pleasure to work with them!
    Our summer here has been quite warm, you should get some of the warmth too!

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for coming by! Kiitos käynnistä, voit kommentoida myös suomeksi