Not a Good Day

The plan was that we would leave this morning, drive down to Keizer, Oregon and stay with Daughter Dawn and her family. Then tomorrow I would leave Forry there and drive on over to Albany to attend PNMC's Communications Council meeting, then returning to spend the rest of the weekend with Dawn and Todd and Grandson Micah. We had thought about heading down yesterday, but I had the Deacon's meeting last evening and we no longer like to drive at night, especially through the Gorge.

Unfortunately, shortly after I got up this morning, it began to snow and snow hard! This time, the weather forecast was accurate! The winter storm they had been talking about had arrived with a vengeance. After checking the reports from the Gorge, it didn't take us long to decide the trip was off. No meeting was worth driving in the mess we were hearing about.

It put down about an inch of very wet snow, there was a lull, and then it started again. It basically snowed all day! And according to the reports, there will be more tomorrow and the next day.

The bird feeder was very busy this morning. There were lots of sparrow, finches, towhees and doves. Twenty or more quail were busily scratching underneath the feeder and under the loose snow for the scattered wheat. Then the sharp-shin hawk swooped through and everyone scattered! True to its description in the bird book, the hawk followed the little birds across the road and into their sanctuary bush. It was amazing to watch that big - in comparison to the finches and sparrows - hawk twist its way through the branches of the bush and grab its prey. Then it flew off with its lunch in its claws.

Sadly, the hawk also left behind a dead quail. When it swooped through and everyone scattered, one of the panicked quail flew into the side of the RV and broke his neck. The maintenance guys were around later and disposed of the dead quail when they were here scattering more sand. We agreed that  it was the cycle of life; we not only feed the little birds, we feed the hawks as well...