Winter at the Farm

It was a sad time at the farm this Christmas. Gram, who started the farm with her husband 63 years ago, died on Christmas eve. We sat with her until she died. She was a tough fighter.

It was treacherous driving both to and from the hospital. There must have been a metre of snow. The farm was snowed in, and it was impossible to walk very far. We made some trails, so at least we could get to the chicken house, and walk along the berm. Later, we borrowed some snow-shoes and went for a long walk. We walked along virgin snow. It was hard work, using the snow-shoes. I thought they would be easier, and they were when we were in packed snow, and they were better than walking without them.

It was nice to go out into the land, and think about gram. She wants her ashes spread underneath the cottonwood tree where the eagles nest. The eagles watched us as we snow-shoed across the field. They were probably watching for us to scare some ducks into the air for them.

As the days are now getting longer, my mind turns to spring, and planting our next garden. It was Gram who encouraged me to garden, and taught me to can and make jams and jellies. Between the eagles and the garden, I will never forget gram. She'll be in the call of the eagles and in the soil that I plant and all the food I preserve.

Feeding the Birds

I am counting the days before I can get away from the city. I have to remember to buy more bird seed. It is snowing now, and the city birds are having a harder time finding food. I have a few sparrows and finches residing on my balcony.

Last week, at the farm, I made 2 ruby crowned kinglets and a chic-a-dee. I am going to give a kinglet to my friend, who is sick. I will tell him about the kinglet that flew into my window. How I held it in my hand, fearing it would never recover, but then, after it had rested, the kinglet flew away.

Winter in the Çity

Sap Suckers

I saw two sapsuckers today. This is a new record. We have always had a stray one come through in the winter and lately I have seen them more frequently, but this was the first time I have seen two of them at once. I hope this is a good sign.

It seems every time I am out walking, I see a different bird. Last week I saw what must have been a snow bunting and there was a herd of larks around in the fall. It's my only solace for the winter, that and the promise of spring.

Walk

Chickens II

Another chicken died. I wish I had been around so I could bury her next to Gladys. Poor old Smokey jr. I look at the chickens and the wild animals around the farm, and I wonder how it is that people can kill them so easily.

On the way out last night, the hunters were out in full force. We tried not to walk too close to the ditch, because we didn't want to flush the ducks out for the hunters. Of course, we still flushed them, they'd fly up and then a second or two later, we could hear the guns.

Golden Crowned Kinglet

A tiny male kinglet flew into the kitchen window this morning. We ran outside and found his tiny body lying on the ground underneath the window. He was still breathing, so we picked him up and placed it in a soft nest up in a tree. I felt so sad, watching his little body trembling and his tiny beak open and close as he panted. I wish he would be okay but I don't think he will be. Later, I went back to look, and he had flown away!

Mysterious White Bird

All sorts of birds are passing through on their way south. Every time I go to the farm, I see a new bird. The woodpeckers are back. They are a little hard to spot, but I can hear their odd little call, and now and then I hear them drumming.

All weekend there was a small flock of tundra swans feeding on the leavings of the corn harvest. The swans were all muddy, especially their heads from where they were rooting around in the soil. While I was out walking, I startled a white bird. I think it might have been a snow bunting. Last week there were a flock of wrens. They had such a beautiful song. I wished they would stay all year round.

Eagle Hunting

There was a small duck in the pond, that I startled as I walked by. It was a little wood duck (I think). It flew across the pond, away from me, in that long straights running flight some ducks have. Just before it reached the other side of the pond, an eagle dove after it. The eagle was amazing, its flight so quick that I feared the duck was a goner. Dive after dive the eagle made, trying to catch the duck, but the duck kept going under the water, until the eagle finely gave up. I was relieved, because I was cheering for the duck, but later I felt guilty about taking sides.

Flock

The cherry tree

We took the netting off the cherry tree,
one by one you untangled the birds from the net,
as I counted them.
I guess there was a difference in your untangling and my counting,
but it didn't matter to the birds anymore.

Monument 9

Sometimes I wish I was smarter
or a better dancer
or a better artist
or a chicken

video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dN64Q4lUl80

Saskatoon Berries

The cedar wax wings have found my saskatoon bush. They sit in it gorging themselves on my berries. When I yell at them, they just sit there eating my berries, laughing at me.

Robins II

They have spotted robins in Inuvik for the very first time. All the children ask their parents. “What are those birds?” The robins shouldn’t be so far north, but I try not to thing about what that means.

New Resident

A pigeon has moved onto the partition between my balcony and my neighbour's. He is a very disturbing sort of pigeon, and in all justice, it must be said that my neighbour is a disturbing sort of neighbour. Both pigeon and neighbour make ghastly sounds, the pigeon a sort of wheezing noise and my neighbour has periodic screaming attacks which end in a long drawn out "nooooononono". They often start up around 5:30 am. I can't decide which is worse, so I don't bother thinking about it too much. If I can't make my neighbour go, I figure I should let the pigeon alone too.

The Movie

Sounds by Anat

Eagle

Today, I am walking my dog and this man is standing on the bridge that leads to the park. He is leaning back, looking up at the sky. He turns when I am beside him, and he points up. There is an eagle sitting on a pole over the bay. He points at it and tells me that it is an eagle. He’s so excited, like he has conjured up the eagle himself. And in a way, he has.

Giant Chicken

You know, last night I dreamt that the world was ending all around me. Roads were cracked and broken and building were laying on their sides, collapsed.

It wasn't too bad thinking about everything ending. There was grass and tree roots poking up through the ground. I approved of that. I have always liked the notion of the land taking itself back.

But then I dreamt that I was the only person left alive. And that was okay too. I know it is a little bit conceited to think about being the only person in the world to survive the fiery end.

I wasn't alone though. And that was the problem, because my only company was this giant chicken. I think he was a mascot. It bothered me a bit, being left alone in the world with a giant chicken.

How would you feel stuck, alone with only a giant chicken to keep you company? I felt ridiculous. I was glad the world had ended so that nobody could see that I was such a loser that I survived Armageddon in the company of a giant chicken. I kept looking over my shoulder in case there was somebody around who could see us.

Besides, he was a very unpleasant giant chicken. Bossy and cranky too. Well, we'd walk along deserted stretches of road and when I turned left he'd say, "no! turn right." What was the point I ask you. It wasn't as if we had anywhere in particular to go. The worst part was that I'd start arguing about which direction we should go.


Even though I knew there was no point in arguing, I argued anyways. I hate when I do that. What's the point in arguing when fate has already written the rest of the story for you.

Robin

Flock

Bird in the Hand Show

The opening was lots of fun. Check out the bird footage at:

http://jewellerbau.blogspot.com/2008/01/bird-in-hand-leannejs-opening.html

Bird in a Hand

A Bird in the Hand
by leannej
Opening January 15th at 7pm
Runs to February 12th, 2008

At the JewellerBau
42 Kingsway
(at main)
Vancouver BC

Join us for the opening of A Bird in the Hand, a new show by leannej. A bird in the hand is a three dimensional graphic story. Known for her flowchart installations, leannej combines her odd tendency to tell stories in boxes with her compulsive need to make small hand-sized sock birds. In A Bird in the Hand, she explores the various meanings of habitat and home in her large flow chart stories.

This is leannej’s first three-dimensional show which features 50 life-sized replicas of birds commonly found in British Columbia with a few rare exceptions. The text flow charts provides shelter and places for the small birds to perch. Each bird is hand made using recycled socks and glass beads.

Leannej is a text based artist. She has been publishing and showing text based images in magazines and gallery spaces in Canada and the US. Her first book was published by Artspeak Gallery in 2002 and is available at www.artspeak.com. Texts in this show and bird images are also on view on her blog, Birds hate us. You can find the blog at www.leannej.blogspot.com.

(JewellerBau) is the latest reincarnation of Gallery 42, owned and operated by artists Dina Gonzalez Mascaro and Joelle Ciona. They have completely remodeled their space to accommodate local and Argentine artists and showcase the sculptures and jewellery of Gonzalez Mascaro. The “Bau” in (JewellerBau) is an evolving sculpture of display niches inspired by Kurt Schwitters' merzbau installations of the 1920's.

Gallery hours are Tuesday and Sunday 11am to 6pm, Wednesday to Saturday 11am to 8pm
The grand opening of (JewellerBau) is February 14h at 8pm.
www.jewellerbau.blogspot.com

Finches III

My mother tells a story about how gold finches were ill omens. They called these golden hued finches, canaries, and the day the telegram came to tell of her uncle’s death overseas, she looked out and the farm fields were covered in gold finches. She still can't stand the colour yellow.

Finches II

You don’t see the purple finches so much anymore, because of sprays they use to kill the Japanese spruce beetle, kills the finches that eat the beetles.We don’t build large aviaries to breed masses of purple finches to save the spruce. Instead, we build factories to make chemicals that kill everything. Why is that?

Finches I

In the spring they come calling to me on my balcony. A whole raft of finches scrapping, singing and just carousing on the balcony of my inner city apartment. They bring me such joy, watching their puffed up mating rituals. Sometimes, I see a finch that is so red and sings so well that I can see myself marrying and settling down with him.