Something Weird Happened

I was sitting there working on photos and day dreaming about that tree where I see the birds, what I would do if that branch ever broke and all the sudden a major branch broke and came down on my flatbottom boat I have sitting out there. It is about 15-18″ diameter branch and it broke about 30 feet up, and is still attached so it will be hard to cut down myself. I don’t want to climb the tree with my bad back. I think I will cut around the boat and try to get it out of the way and then hook a chain around it and see if I can get it to break off the rest of the way so I can cut it up.

A few months ago I was out working in the yard and a good sized branch broke off and hit me on the head. But it was windy that day, and there is no wind out there at all. It doesn’t look damaged at all from dead branches or lightning burns. I think the heat put stress on it, otherwise I can’t see any reason for it to fall. That’s a soft maple tree, about 60 years old I think. I’m glad it didn’t fall on my new roof. That side has a dead stump and it should be the weakest side.

UPDATE: I was able to use the truck and a tow rope to twist it around in different directions and I got it to fall. Its all cut up and boat is back in place under the tree. The branch did have a dark spot so it was cracked previously.

New Photos Sinnissippi Park, Sterling IL

Common Buckeye Butterfly

Yellow Sulphur Butterfly

Yellow Sulphur Butterfly

American Lady Butterfly

Painted Lady Butterfly

Painted Lady Butterfly

Monarch Butterfly

Monarch Butterfly

Red Admiral, When Butterflies get old

Photos out my Window 12/10/09

Here is some photos I took today and a couple days ago:

Andrew Playing in first snow this year

Wrens

Bluejay

Woodpecker?

Bluejay

Cardinal

I took Andrew fishing

Andrew was all eager as we walked down the hill to go to the dock, he was talking a mile a minute while walking fast and looking at me the whole time with his silly fishing hat on.

Getting there

But we weren’t there 2 minutes and Andrew was demanding that we go home. He didn’t like the idea of watching a stupid bobber, that got old real quick. After showing him a few fish I was able to buy a little more time and then I kept telling him “just one more fish” until he caught on that I kept saying that. So I told him “just two more fish” since I already said one more and that worked for a bit. I compromised and let him throw rocks in the water next to where I was fishing and it seemed to help the fishing.

fishing

fishing

hotdog

I asked if he was sure and he was, so we did and I got a little more fishing in. As I was fishing and he was throwing rocks on the dock and in the water next to me a guy from the local paper came down and asked if he could take some photos for the paper. So Andrew was in today’s paper holding a fish in the air with his pole.

When we left he made it to the path then laid down on the blacktop path and asked me to carry him back to the truck, he was too tired. I couldn’t do that because my hands were full already. So I let him rest for a bit, then coaxed him by telling him there was Tigers and Lions in the bushes. He didn’t believe me but it kept him going to the steep hill. When we got there I kept telling him I saw a snake and that seemed to give him enough energy to walk the rest of the way.

I really did hear something in the bushes. I think it was the strange looking guy I saw at the truck, he came walking from the bushes in that area and asked if I had a cigarette. I told him no and quick sped off, but I wonder what that was all about. He looked like a homeless person and maybe we woke him up and he was sleeping in that wooded area that’s too thick to access easily.

All the Full size photos of Andrew fishing

Ethanol spill likely cause of fish kill in Rock River

Ethanol spill likely cause of fish kill: EPA continues probe into contamination

This was at Rockford. A very sad story. A massive fish kill that shouldn’t have happened. I read where it was a Canadian train that hydro planed during a severe thunderstorm and derailed, exploded and killed one lady and burned others severely. it looks like this killed most of the fish in the river below Rockford for many miles down river. After seeing the ships running giant gil nets killing Walleye when I went again this year, the words Canada and massive fish kill seem to go together when it comes to American waters and fish.