A year of change and transition

 The oasis went from the birdiest it's ever been to the least birdy, almost overnight. 

One big, more permanent, change is my son moving to the area. He's doing most of the maintenance at the oasis other than I'm still watering and servicing feeders. He bought a jackhammer today that he plans to use to make improvements to the road. That is huge! He'll be able to make the steepest part a little less steep and less rough. I'm excited about it!

And my husband sold his rent houses so that takes a big workload off me. 

And my birding buddy, Dale Ohl (sister-in-law) moved back to the area

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And I'll probably wear a mask in public for the rest of my life now. Seems unwise to expose myself, at my age, to whatever viruses are circulating. Plus I'll always limit close contact, hugs, and shaking hands from now on. 

I'm also going to be more focused on proper breathing. It seems modern man is always suppressing breathing to the bare minimum, for whatever reason. Like I hold my breath when listening for birds, looking through binoculars, and especially camera lens. But new research is bringing to light the value of good breathing practices. Maybe it'll help my essential tremors and tinnitus. Can't hurt.

Today I took a few bird photos before heading back to town. The Ladder-backed Woodpecker doesn't seem to tilt the feeders like the Golden-fronted did last winter. I haven't had the feeders swarming with bees anyway.

Molting male Anna's Hummingbird

Rufous-crowned Sparrow