Picnic at Oconee National Forest

What's the next best thing to camping? You're right! An all day picnic in nature. And that's just what we did this beautiful Saturday Spring day.
We found the perfect spot by a running stream and set up our station complete with our own come-along bathroom. Ooooh, the sound of nature, the serenity of the forest, the melody of birds singing in the trees. Everybody seemed to have enjoyed it because everybody looked happy all day. Of course, the pulled BBQ pork sandwiches with macaroni cheese casserole helped. Did I mention chips, beer, all the bad stuff for you? Nah, we worked it off! There was the good ol' iced tea for those who don't drink, of course.
Debbie's Mom was visiting this week and enjoyed all of it too. The one thing you can't experience with these pictures is the soothing sound of the running water. I think that put Kelly to sleep.
Have you ever wondered why I enjoyed nature so much but I usually wear pants? Well, I wouldn't want any bugs crawling on my legs! That's why. And it makes it easier to go deep in the woods.
Oh yes, we did play some Rook games too. As usual, time passed by quickly. But there is another day.

The great rewards of birdwatching

After working in the yard yesterday, we went for some birdwatching at the Piedmont Wildlife Refuge.  We wanted to see some waterfowl so we headed straight to the pond and marsh areas. 
What a nice surprise as we got there!  A Double-crested Cormorant was sitting right in the middle of the pond on a tilted log. Just like in the bird books.  We know this bird but we've never actually seen one before.  We see his "cousins" the Anhingas all the time.  Hello, Mr. Cormorant, you're not bad looking.  A small flock of Canada Geese were having some "loud conversations" at the other edge of the pond. 

Now, we're off to the marsh areas. We met various Passerines (songbirds) on our way.  A determined Titmouse was singing his heart off, calling for a female. Never mind humans walking by!  Getting close to the marshes.  Nothing, nothing, nada.  Turtles... wait a minute, ducks, YES!!! ducks, pretty ducks.  These are some very pretty ducks playing in the water.  You think the Wood Ducks and Mallards are pretty.  Yes, they are, but these ducks are different and pretty.  Full and fluffed red-burgundy head with a green mask, the same distinctive green you see in the Mallards and Wood Ducks.  More of the same green was in their wings as they were splashing in the water. A straight white line runs downward  his body toward the front, his tail... what's that???  Some distance to the right of the ducks were four Sand Hill Cranes watching us and wondering why we were not looking at them instead!  They're special visitors from Florida!!!  We don't have them here in Georgia usually.  We saw their unmistakable red caps before they took off.  Four of them, big but graceful in their flight.

The Sand Hill Cranes got the Green-Winged Teals aware and they too took off.  Yes, those pretty ducks were Green-Winged Teals.  After our Teals took off, another group of ducks took.  Those might be Wood Ducks, we didn't have a good look. Then another group!  Mallards? Oh well, there they go.  We've seen Mallards and Wood Ducks here before.  The Green-Winged Teals were our first.  As we were walking around, another group of 4 waterfoul just took off also.  Were those sleeping or something?  And how did we miss them?  Ok, ok, now we know.  Next time, we're coming even earlier, setting up a blind and waitting for them birds! We ain't walking in on those no more, hear?

That wasn't all, folks.  Before we left the swamp area, we saw three Rusty Blackbirds. Have you ever seen one of those?  Well, today was our first time too, so don't feel bad.  We got back the truck, ID'ed the birds we've seen and had our breakfast, very contented.  As we headed back driving through the forest, we were quite surprised at how vocal the birds were today. Chipping Sparrows, Chickadees, Cardinals... all singing.  We were the only humans around so, I guess, they all were happy to see us too.  The feeling is mutual.  To cap it all, there goes a BIG bird.  What was that?  We were driving quite slowly already and saw the biggest Red Tail Hawk we've ever seen.  He was flying low through the trees, his copper color tail looking very prominent.  We stopped and watched him for a minute as he perched, then we all went our ways.

I wish someone told me earlier birdwatching is so rewarding.  If you're reading this, trust me, birdwatching is fun.  I'm telling you.  

Tae Kwon Do tournament

We had our regional TaeKwonDo tournament this past Saturday.  It turned out to be an all day affair. Too many people for the space.  We needed at least 10 rings, and we only had 7.  So, the process became slow. New schools have joined our regional tournaments.  These "sister schools" are more agressive and hit and kick hard. You have different versions of TaeKwonDo, but the basics are the same. Korean styles with a lot of foot techniques.

I've spent most of the day judging.  I was assigned one of the kids group, which was nice.  I could hear the teenagers having at each other hard around our ring.  Yes, some people got hurt, which was unfortunate.  But, nothing serious. We show a lot of control in our schools. But if some people are not showing control at tournaments, then of course, everybody start kicking and hitting hard.  After the kids did their forms and sparring (fighting), some of the parents went home with their precious little ones.  That gave us more space.  We pretty much cleared the floor for the adult men black belt competitions.  These are the ones you want to watch.

Three divisions for all black belt men. Yes, you have to be a black belt for these divisions. The women had their own black belt divisions but do not compete for the grand championship.  That's not fair because some of the women are pretty good.  Each division has 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place trophies.  The 1st place winners of the divisions meet for the Grand Championship.  All three winners came from Georgia and a Macon student won. A good friend of mine, Austin McWaters. We train together.  I usually loose fights with him.  He is good, and super nice.  Austin is fast and young, just 19 years old.  He started very early. You can see the people in my division on these two pictures.  Too many people fighting for just 3 trophies.

Sometimes, people forget that these are mainly plastic trophies!  Overall, there was good sportmanship and everyone was pretty much pleasant and friendly, except when the fights were going on.  Then you have no friends.  

 I came home with a 3rd place trophy.  I'm happy.  If I'm going to compete again in these tournaments, I will really have to train better.  It's getting more and more competitive.

Birdwatching with Connie and Duane

We got the pleasure of having Connie and Duane in Macon this past week-end.
Yes, we played lots of Rook games and spent a pleasant time together.
The highlight of their visit was a trip to the Bond Swamp. As usual, it was serene, quiet, and we enjoyed a nice walk and saw lots of birds.
Kelly and Leah were at home this past week end also. That made everything even nicer.
Debbie cooked some great meals.
Before you know it the week-end was gone, but we sure were glad for the good company.
See you next time!

It's snowing in Macon

Our neighbor's house across the street. The green lawn is now white.
Street scene. All turning white. It's gonna be pretty.
Our backyard, getting it's share of snow.
Debbie waving to the snow, or the camera, or to me. Hope it's to me.

Enjoy the snow if you get some. I thought this was supposed to be global warming and not "global cooling". Oh, I get it. It's climate change, everything is extreme.

Die hard birding

Debbie and I felt like some die-hard birders yesterday when we went to the Ocmulgee Mound for some bird watching.  It was 38 degree outside and the cold wind didn't help.  I forgot my gloves and the binoculars felt ice cold in my hands at one point.
But, guess what, the birds were out and it turned out to be a pretty rewarding birding outing.  We even had a close look at two Pileated Woodpeckers busy in the trees.  A small flock of Canada Geese were resting from their migratory trip. They stood on one leg and tucked their heads under their wings. They were so tired they barely moved when we went by. 
There were many Northern Flickers around and these birds look quite colorful when you see under their wings.  Flocks of Robins were around as well as flocks of Red Wings hanging out with European Starlings.  Some birds have made their home here and we see them regularly like the Red Shouldered Hawks, the Great Blue Herons, the Red Headed Woodpeckers with several other Woodpeckers, Chickadees, Titmice, Cardinals, various Warblers and Sparrows. We can finally tell the different Sparrows apart.
However, it's nice to see a different group of birds hanging at The Mound when the seasons change.  The Cedar Waxwings have been around in large numbers recently and you can still see them, several Eastern Towhees are now here, Killdeer and some Plovers are back, and the Anhinga has been hanging around.
It's even nicer when you see a bird that you don't normaly see at a site.  In this case, we saw a female Mallard and a Ruby Crowned Kinglet. (No, they were not together).
As much as we're learning about birds, we still see and hear birds that we cannot identify.  Well, we may be braving the elements and appearing "die hard", but we still have a lot to learn (like forget your gloves when it's cold!).

New Year Eve get together

We had our New Year celebration with the visit of the Price family. 
What a way to kick off the New Year!
We all enjoyed some good food with great company. Of course we played some Rook games and everyone had fun no matter if you won or not. We also played some Pool games and Duane surprised everyone.  He is good!


This is Ms. Price (Mama) with some of her children: James, Debbie, Ricky and Connie. 



We all were thankful for the past year and are looking for a better 2010. There are a lot of things going on in the world today and it's nice to be together and see the smiles on everyone's face.

What truly counts is Family that's why Debbie and I always feel blessed to have family who care enough to visit. 




We wish everyone a great and prosperous year 2010!