It's a perfectly clear day. The sky is brilliant blue. It is about 10:00 a.m. A moderate wind starts to blow and huge piles of thunderheads build in the Southeastern sky. They have gray bottoms that, although flat, are heavy with moisture. They flash with lightening and grumble with thunder as they sail majestically forward, the vanguard for a flotilla of numberless followers. Piles upon piles, they collect to form a solid gray mass over head. Then the whole mass seems to sink, carried earthward by the sheer weight of its precious cargo. The air is redolent of ozone. The world holds it's breath.
(It's at this point I used to lead my befeathered and jingle belled children outside to do a rain dance. Until they started school, they thought we made it rain.)
About 1:00p.m., the clouds would give birth to a few huge raindrops and then immediately open entirely to spill pitchers, buckets, truckloads of water. Cooool, cleaaar, waater..... After an hour or two of this beneficence, they would gather their sails about them and scud speedily off into the Western sky leaving clear skies and fresh clean air in their wake.
One time I was loping home on my old horse trying to beat the rain. We were within a stone's throw of the driveway, the barn, the hay...... when the sky opened. He whirled around, put his back to the driving storm and nothing I could do would budge him until the rain lightened up. Only then did we make our sodden way to the barn. I still miss him anyway.
So much for memories, real or glorified. This is now, and we are waiting for rain. I've been trying to catch some birds at the fountain and bird bath with little luck and my pix aren't the greatest, but here they are.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaFYNpEkSqNIrFQg0Ryr2UMEr0_94p31BHTZVgrevc25WtUo4NQq1w6UkTeD4h9GU2JoB_pYRT-J81rFWU4_B9GXaEaWBAmS6S-hXns2nwl3n4H-XCw4yxvGoFn3nysW5MjAPnZNm25p6e/s400/forth+010_edited.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWFsOzcqWkqTHqET6B5D_hPWuttghqCqMnAPf8VdNVrkONof3-C5q3CgiYgPD-xlaGS9KFGKvyrF2jWKDspN5Wjlc9RN9Nz92548ZlhEtq26roqa9HWy5HmTg3fPQjRMkK1mV-5UagyIXe/s400/fortftn+008_edited.jpg)
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQiF_8CEwis0raexS2_l0FPqr32GeSDH1NQxbZZ66joBwElC6PmzWVCT-1VMjHVdob09vYixKvTOJxHXw6_CzTbzhCWGGkpRPFvPOee4ypgz-U8BaT6IPjmatQmRyWJVXhrZofKFW1X9q2/s400/fortftn+010_edited.jpg)
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9 comments:
Anither lovely post. I love seeing the birds, they are so different to ours. We have had quite a lot of rain, & everything is growing well. It is still cold here though.
Ah, meggie, you've had more water than you wanted and we have none! I think Mother Nature is suffering from PMS or something.. Your birds fascinate North Americans. Cockatiels yet!
Lovely! We waited for rain for three months here in Wasilla, and had a lot of the same disappointments that you did. The first day of summer is on June 21 here, just like everywhere else. But the last day of summer always seems to be around June 28, and the clouds and showers began. Guess that's what we get for living on the Last Frontier...
Your bird pictures are beautiful!
Love your birds! Now, how about one of those rain dances. The weather is hot and dang frustrating.
Hey, isn't that my little house finch guy? He is playing the field, flying all over the neighborhood now that he has his kids all raised up and fledged.
Please let it rain soon....
Hi Liz, glad you're home!
GJ - who knew that when I lost my dancing skills the rains would stop!
Katie - it's probably a guy thing
He's just house finchin' around..
(oh, dear, did I really say that?)
I laughed at the picture of your old horse turning his back firmly to the rain:) I hope you've had some of the rain that you need so badly. You'd be welcome to have some of ours, it's rained non-stop all day here and, knowing that I have to take Bilbo Baggins out any minute now, it's coming down harder than ever:(
Lovely pictures, SOLB. We have some of the same birds here in PV but they had a respite this week when we had over an hour of rain one day.
Cat-Still nothing here! I'm glad for you though..
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