Reading about Trent’s relaxing week made me #weeklysmile. Mine is about the birds and the bees.

“Not those birds and bees,” she said, blushing!

image: California Audubon Society and Toshi Studios

The “begonia” bee continues to visit the window box outside my kitchen window. The wildly striped and brilliantly coloured cone flowers I pass on my way to and from the train station continue to be “bee central” offering lots of bee petting opportunities. I do so very gently; often the bees are so intent and intense on pollen retrieval, they don’t seem to even notice my light touch.

palm warbler; image from Ebird (a great bird identification resource!)

A few birds have ventured back into the recently re-natured gardens around the house. (That story is NOT a #weeklysmile). “Just passing through” palm warblers in their plain fall traveling clothes; the superhero-red flash of cardinals, with a father feeding a late fledgling, and persistent blue jays who continue to berate me for the lack of a proper feeder. (Another NOT a #weeklysmile story), and the very tame little chickadee.

My gourmet (pronounced gore-met – as in the past tense of meet, lol) #weeklysmile: pulling together a “what have you got in the refrigerator” salad at my brother and sister in laws house over the weekend. No fruit (I don’t mix greens and citrus/apple) but lots of greens, fresh herbs, mushrooms, vegetable peeler strips of carrot and celery, almonds, and left-over steak. I will eat fruit in a dressing – I improvised my creamy cranberry version and a crash course vinaigrette. The main was my sil’s sausage “ragu” over Rummo riccioli pasta. The cheap wine du jour: a sauvignon blanc (of course) from New Zealand. The red drinkers enjoyed a pricey bottle of something Sicilian. No dessert, but cappuccinos later (the making of which I left up to my bil.)

If you’d like to relax, head over to Trent’s #weeklysmile (and find out more about participating). What’s your #weeklysmile? Feel free to share!