Today should have been a great birding day, but it wasn’t! I was hoping and expecting to see Great Gray Owls in the Pine Island State Forest wilderness west of Big Falls, Minnesota. The wind was dead calm … the skies were overcast and dark … it is mid November (i.e. owls start hunting meadow voles).  Even when the owls did not appear, Toomey-Williams Forest Road always provides excitement, except when it doesn’t.

Oh well, last week I had a great time birding just north of Tucson. I always enjoy seeing the “metallic blue cardinal” which is otherwise known as a male Phainopepla.

Tomorrow I will give Toomey-Williams one more try. The sun is even supposed to make an appearance in the morning. Thankfully all was not lost today. I am at our small Northwoods cabin which is actually shut down for the season (read … no running water or heat except for the wood stove). After supper I really wanted a treat and discovered a 10 year old container of Jiffy Pop. All the other food had been taken home for the winter. The Jiffy Pop popped. “It’s as fun to make as it is to eat! Jiffy Pop”. (Jiffy Pop TV commercial from 1980 … email subscriber link)