The Wordsmith's Forge

Today we went out running errands and grocery shopping.

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Today is partly cloudy, muggy, and hot.

I fed the birds. I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, plus a mourning dove.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/16/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

I've seen a female cardinal.

EDIT 7/16/26 -- I picked 3 'Gypsy' peppers and 1 yellow pear tomato for tonight's crockpot dish.

I helped set up the mower.

EDIT 7/16/26 -- We walked around to look at the newly mowed south lot.

Red-winged blackbirds are singing.

EDIT 7/16/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/16/26 -- I watered the new picnic table garden. Another sunflower is opening. One of the others looks like it has multiple buds developing. Most of the volunteers there only have a single head. Single/branching is one of the divergence points you can use when developing a landrace of sunflowers with genetic diversity. I like both kinds, and they have different advantages. One head gives you a bigger flower, more and often larger seeds, but a short bloom time. Multiple heads are smaller, often with smaller seeds, but you get a considerably longer bloom time.

Fireflies are coming out. Cicadas are singing.

EDIT 7/16/26 -- I watered the telephone pole garden.

I saw several bats flying along the driveway and road. :D

I cracked 1 black plum pit, but no seed. I cracked 4 apricot pits but only got 1 good seed. I cracked the last batch of black cherry pits and got a few good seeds. Those all went in the fridge to stratify in damp sand.

Clouds are piling up to the west and northwest. I don't know if they'll amount to anything.

As it is now dark, I am done for the night.

Today is sunny, humid, and hot.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/14/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/14/26 -- My partner Doug mowed the house yard earlier, so I trimmed around the goddess garden.

I saw a male cardinal foraging in the fresh-cut grass.

EDIT 7/14/26 -- I trimmed more grass in the house yard.

EDIT 7/14/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/14/26 -- I cracked 2 apricot pits and got 2 good seeds.  I cracked 2 black plum pits and got 1 possibly viable seed.  I cracked two batches of cherry pits and got a bunch of good seeds.  I put all those in damp sand to stratify in the fridge.

Fireflies are coming out.  Cicadas are singing.

EDIT 7/14/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.
 

Today is partly sunny, humid, and hot.  It rained thoroughly yesterday.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/12/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/12/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/12/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I checked the new picnic table garden and picked 2 yellow pear tomatoes.

EDIT 7/12/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/12/26 -- I cracked 2 apricot pits and got 2 good seeds.  I cracked a batch of cherry pits and got plenty of seeds.  I added those to the bags in the refrigerator.

EDIT 7/12/26 -- I mixed a little comfrey fertilizer with water and used that to water the new picnic table garden.  I discovered that the 1-gallon watering jug requires 2 hands to carry when full and is still prone to spilling. >_< I may watch for a better one, although the selection in this size was very limited.

I am done for the night.

Today is cloudy, humid, and hot. It rained off and on this morning, then poured during part of today.

We went out to an art fair, so I haven't fed the birds yet. I bought a tiny ceramic dish on a stake that will serve as another bug watering dish. :D

On the way home, I spotted a red-headed woodpecker. They used to be common here, but nowadays I mostly see downy woodpeckers. It makes sense that they would be active now, because of all the storm-damaged trees attracting colonizing insects. There was a small branch down in our driveway that had clearly been killed by the previous storm because all its leaves were already brown.

EDIT 7/11/26 -- I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/11/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/11/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/11/26 -- I cracked open a black plum pit, but it had no seed inside. I cracked 2 apricot pits, both yielding a good seed which I put into the bag of damp sand to stratify.

EDIT 7/11/26 -- I walked along the road a bit. The sky to the west and east is clear, but there are clouds towering up to the north, northwest, southwest, south, and southeast. It made for a very pretty sunset.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.

Today we went up to Danville.

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Today is partly sunny and warm.

I fed the birds. I've seen a small flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/8/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/8/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/8/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/8/26 -- We started breaking up the parts of the birdgift tree that had fallen into the south lot. There's about twice as much mow path past it now. We dumped 2 wheelbarrows of sticks into the firepit in the ritual meadow.

EDIT 7/8/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

EDIT 7/8/26 -- I cracked open 2 apricot pits and got 2 big perfect seeds. I cracked open two batches of cherry pits and got several good seeds. I think the advice to let seeds air-dry for a few days is bad. One day at most. They shrivel up pretty fast.

I walked around for a bit. I saw 2 bats flying quite low in the house yard, and more flying high over the road and other places. I'm not sure if they're the same bats or not. I don't know how many I actually have.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.

Today we went out to Mattoon so I could attend a permaculture club meeting at Douglas-Hart Nature Center.

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Today is cloudy, humid, and not but not quite as bad as yesterday.

I fed the birds.  I've seen a mixed flock of sparrows and house finches.

I put out water for the birds.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work around the patio.

I've heard bobwhite quail calls.  :D

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I started work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

I've seen a male cardinal and a robin in the forest garden.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I did more work on a repair job outdoors.

EDIT 7/5/26 -- I finished the repair job outdoors.  *goflopnow*

Fireflies are coming out.  Cicadas are singing.

As it is getting dark, I am done for the night. 

Today we went up to Champaign-Urbana.

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