Sorry, I am late getting around to processing this week's photos. The past several days have been eventful and busy. I celebrated my eighth "double digit" birthday, which has occurred every 11 years since I was 11 years old.
Sadly, my dear Aunt Jean passed away at the age of 96. She was the last of my father's siblings as well as the youngest and last of the second generation of descendants of Jeremiah Patrick "The Dam" O'Shaughnessy of Columbus, Ohio. (More about him below). I am the first and still eldest of Patrick's Great-Grandchildren.
My Aunt Jean was an educator and a loving person who kept her sharp mind until her death following a major stroke. She liked to tell how her schoolmates would not believe that she was an aunt at only eight years of age. I am so sad that my medical condition does not allow me to travel to her funeral in New Jersey.
I did get out to the back yard on my birthday and was pleasantly surprised to find a number of interesting birds. A male Scarlet Tanager had traded the bright red in his plumage for more subdued yellow:
It was difficult to find him in the Chestnut Oak, as he blended in with the acorns:
An American Goldfinch visited the Black Cherry tree, where only a few ripe fruits remained:
Two Rose-breasted Grosbeaks in dull winter plumage also appeared in the cherry tree. This one was either a female or a juvenile:
The second had a reddish tint to its chest and was likely a mature male:
A Red-eyed Vireo had molted into fresh plumage...
...while a Chipping Sparrow was evidently in transition:
While I was processing my photos, our granddaughter Graci dropped by and helped me pick out favorites among the large number of sub-optimal shots. She was accompanied by her pet Cockatiel and took a birthday "selfie" with me:
Graci also insisted that this out-take would be an ideal "Where's Waldo" photo of one of the grosbeaks. Can you find it? (answer in header photo):
Graci's younger sister Cari just started college in Florida. She had to leave behind her very large pet rabbit, a Flemish Giant :
In the back yard, an adult Eastern Cottontail rabbit licked his toes:
Sunset over Hartford, August 30, 2023:
Once again I failed to obtain a reflection photo for my meme, so I reached back ten years into my archives and found a favorite, Lake Louise, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada in July, 2013:
More about Great-Grandfather "The Dam".
Jeremiah Patrick O'Shaughnessy was Superintendent of Waterworks for the City of Columbus, Ohio from 1896 until he died in 1921. During his long tenure as Superintendent, Columbus realized a wealth of modern waterworks improvements, including a storage dam and a water purification plant that helped to reduce dramatically the number of deaths from typhoid fever. A new dam was in the planning stages when he died. Two weeks later, the Columbus City Council unanimously named an additional storage dam the O'Shaughnessy Dam, in appreciation of "one of the most faithful servants this city ever had." The bridge which spanned the dam was also named after him. On August 22, 1991, the new O'Shaughnessy Bridge was dedicated as a memorial to Jerry O'Shaughnessy.
This Week's Header: Rose-breasted Grosbeak (Where's Waldo crop)
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My Corner of the World
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Please visit the links to all these posts to see some excellent photos on display
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Happy Birthday, especially the double digit ones. I have only had six of those.
ReplyDeleteI can tell you are full of life and love and are very much engaged with your world. Your granddaughters love you.
Chestnut Oak and American Goldfinch look magnificent!
ReplyDeleteSky looks hot.
ReplyDeleteGod bless your family 🙏🏽
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday. I imagine your granddaughters keep you young. The information a out your great grandfather is interesting. All my grandparents had died before I was born so I know very little about my heritage.
ReplyDeleteHi Ken, where do I start? With my best wishes for your birthday, of course. I can hardly believe the number. By the way, my brother is just a year younger than you. Then my condolences on the death of your aunt. She was granted a long life. Your photos are beautiful again. Thank you for participating in Nature Thursday and best regards Elke
ReplyDeleteKenneth, I always enjoy seeing your bird photos. You have a great eye for birds. I can see why that reflection photo is a favorite. It's terrific.
ReplyDeleteGreat shots of the birds! Hopefully they will be passing through Florida soon. What is her cockatiel's name? I have two. Buddy is 29 years old and Harley is 9.
ReplyDeleteDina, the Cockatiel is named Hizashi, probably a character in a video game
DeleteHappy belated birthday to you! What a great collection of birds, they are all favorites of mine too. I miss seeing the Grosbeak here, the Scarlet Tanager is a beauty and The Goldfinch is lovely. Your granddaughters are lovely girls. The pet bunny is huge, I have never seen one so big. Lake Louise is beautiful. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great week ahead.
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday my friend! It looks like you had a good day AND a good week! Love seeing your granddaughters...they are both so beautiful. You are looking good too! Enjoy your Sunday! Happy birding, too
ReplyDeleteHappy Birthday! Thanks for sharing your amazing photos! Hopefully, I'll make it to my 8th double digit birthday (5 down 3 to go). :-)
ReplyDeleteWe continue to see a few of "your" birds making their fall appearance down here. Yesterday we counted six American Redstart, two Northern Waterthrush and a Prothonotary Warbler. We'll take care of them and send them home in the spring.
ReplyDeleteBest wishes on your birthday!
Thank you for sharing the beauty of your area with all of us.
Such beautiful bird shots! I love the color of the goldfinches. They've about plucked all the petals and most of the seeds from our black-eyed Susans, but it's worth it to see the flashes of color! The chipping sparrow is adorable.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing at http://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2023/09/some-capital-photos.html, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!
I thoroughly enjoyed your photos as always a very Happy Birthday to you loved that selfie heheh! :-)
ReplyDeleteHave a birthdaytastic week 👍
Interesting post. As usual, your pictures are excellent.
ReplyDeleteI am sorry for the loss of your Aunts. My Uncle passed away at 98 this summer and was the last of that generation...Michelle
ReplyDeleteI await desperately for your post, the masterful capture of birds feeding upon berries comes straight out of cinema . Thanks for always being part of Garden Affair.
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