N°5 2024 perpetual calendar
(Looking back to N°4: the warm week was filled with frog calls, but by Sunday evening on the 28th, they quieted)
Thursday morning dawn was clear. Arcturus directly overhead, the big dipper standing out in the sky above the house. Moonlight spilling through the pines from the waning moon low to the south and Venus glimmering in the trees above the horizon to the east. A bright satellite, as bright as Arcturus, glided close to the star in its orbital route to the east.
We have had a coyote visit, after i scattered some stale bread. I am both excited to catch the visitor and perhaps a little cautioned that, indeed, they are this close to our house. I had been counting on the hawks to keep the rabbits in balance, but seeing the coyote where the rabbit has been out previous evenings makes a strong link. (And while the fence around the orchard is pretty impressive, i am aware of the threat to the cats.) No more bread scattered there!
The coyote visited the next night, but not the third. The second night, it startles a few times: i'm glad it's not comfortable. We finally got some shots of wildlife on the solar powered wildlife camera pointed out over the "meadow". We think this was taken about the same time Christine was letting Carrie in from "last call," which probably triggered the white flag warning.
I'm delighting in all the hellebore. The Crocus/**/tommasinianus is blooming, and surprised me in one location i did not recall planting it. Daffodils and other crocus have sprouted, as well as thick clumps of Ornithogalum umbellatum leaves.
In January we generated less than 3% of our power needs. I remain impressed looking at how quickly the solar power generation stopped in the autumn, between a generally less favorable angle and the shade of the pines. I wonder when the power generation will make a dent again. I'm guessing February will be over double January's production. Our usage will depend on the temperatures. And i do wonder if air frying is more power consumptive than the frying pan.