Monday
Grover came by for breakfast.
On Saturday, I crumbled up a cracker into the wooden bird feeder I made during my last trip. Around noon, a red cardinal flew into the tree branches above the lania outside the gazebo. He was not as bright red as the others I had seen on previous trips, in fact, he was all dishreveled. He looked like he had been in a clothes dryer. A slight breeze caused his feathers to stand up, adding to his dishreveled look. He came down to the handrail but not any further.
Upon seeing him, the first bird to venture close, I got a cracker and crumbled it up into the feeder, but he just flew off. They have me well trained! Later in the day, he came back, followed by two rather large plump doves.
They were large enough, that they might have been pigeons. Anyway, they started off down by the plastic tray along side the stairs that is more of a bird bath, as I have seen many birds taking a bath in it.
The cardinal came down to the feeder and would sit on the edge of the feeder and reach down for a beak full, then look around and chirp. The doves came to see what he was chipring about. The doves came up on the lanai – something they have never done before – and being larger than the cardinal, in fact, they are almost twice his size, they were nor intimidated by him as the red headed cardinals are.
One of them hopped up onto the feeder and had a go at the crumbs.
On Sunday, I saw a different red cardinal – one that was not all dishreveled, or maybe it was the same one, but he had been to his hairdresser. I saw him two or three times in the branches above the lanai. Later in the day on Sunday, a solitary red headed cardinal came by and landed on the handrail. These red headed cardinals are about half the size of the normal all red cardinals, and the only part of them that is red is their head. Their bodies are predominately white, with black wings and their head is bright red. I had seen two of them flying back and forth down by the shed, but this solitary one was the only one to venture up to the gazebo – I call him Grover.
This morning, Grover came by for breakfast. He landed on the handrail and sat there. He looked left. He looked right. He looked left. He looked up. He looked down. He looked left. He looked right. When he was confident it was safe, he dropped down to the cross bars under the handrail. Then he hopped over to the feeder.
After a few bites, he flew away. That was a lot of effort for just a few bites!
I spent the morning cutting more of the grass from the side of Holowai Road from my property to the corner where it meets Palaoa Road. Then I started on the other side of the road and cleared about 40 feet. Tiring of this, I drove into Naalehu to the hardware store for a nut for the bolt that holds my four prong rake to the handle. I stopped at the park and filled up a bunch of empty bottles with water.
I spent the afternoon trimming the grass and weeds by the driveway at the Ahi lot.
First, I backed the car down the driveway to the bottom.
Then I proceeded to chop the grass and weeds and throw them onto the driveway.
After which, I used the car to smash them down, driving up and down the drive.
There are still lots of tall grass in various areas of the lot.
I watered the plants. My two plumeria trees have leaves on them, so they must have taken root.
The two norfolk pines look like they might survive . . . the Ulu (breadfruit) did not. The macadamia nut tree looks good. It is still only about 6″ tall, but it is quite green.
and there are about a hundred little papaya trees growing in the rock tiered planters I created on my last trip on the front hill by the road.
TTFN
TropicalCastaway 