My face is melting...

Naked pecans trees. One has a crow...or a raven.

Just in from a morning walk and thawing, slowly (so it feels like my face was melting as it warmed up). Our weather is all over the place these days - anywhere from 30s to 70s. I did not question DH when he said it wasn't cold outside. He had taken the dog on a short walk, but I wanted a longer one - to the park.

I added a light jacket to my jeans and T because I am always a little colder than DH. But only now, as I thaw in the living room, do I look and see the temperature is in the low 40s with a windchill in the mid-30s.  It's not bad on the way to the park, but climbing the hills with the wind in your face - well, that's just face-freezing, sneeze making, earlobe numbing COLD.

The sun is out and shining bright - almost no clouds in the sky. Oak leaves crunched underfoot. Our yard will need raking - red and bur oak leaves mingled in the yard and along the edges of the sidewalk and against the curb.

The dawn birdsong had given way to the mid-morning birds. And then there was the crow, or raven (I never know which)* laughing at us from atop a pecan tree.

Maybe this is why I cannot tell the difference - it's easy when you see them fly. Both birds we saw today were perched. Of course, as I look at the photos, it seems the birds are fairly large. That would mean raven.

A pit pixelated, but still...

Later we heard him or another just across from the park. We were in the open field between the creek and a business - looking for milkweed. Unfortunately, this field is well-mowed these days. It is unlikely we will see milkweed there again, but we checked near the edge of the creek. Anything is possible.

Whatever, they laugh had us, "Haw, haw, haw, haw!"

 We found no milkweed, but the poison ivy is making itself known. I try not to worry about it - I am one of the lucky 50% (who do not break out). But when it is in arm-thick vines strangling the enormous oaks in the neighborhood, it gives one pause. I don't touch it - I don't get too close.

Those are some serious vines on this oak.

Only a few green things out these days. And this little snail attempted to mind his own business. He was crawling along the scar of a neighborhood giant - old native pecan. The tree was damaged in a storm when a good third of the tree sheered off.

This tree was damaged a few years ago. I am still afraid it will not survive much longer. The snail ignored us.

Garden snail (?)**

Clover (wild oxalis?) still green - protected by the fallen leaves. I'll look at the bloom in the spring and I'll know more.

Zelda and I found two game trails from the empty lot down to the creek. She wanted to explore, but I vetoed that plan. Time to get home and warmed up.

 We finished our chilly walk having greeted 3 neighborhood dogs, but no neighbors. They were likely in the hundreds of cars passing us, our little neighborhood rush.


NOTES:

*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ5iippq3rA
 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9-wTnqIidY

** I just looked this up on iNaturalist. I am trying to be more specific with observations. Yikes. Who knew these guys had such a boring name. My name for them (in my yard) cannot be shared. I hate them - used to pay the children to gather them for disposal. http://www.inaturalist.org/home