Egrets...I've Had a Few

Good morning, my friends. Our time here in Escondido is nearly at an end. We'll be here today and tomorrow, but then we'll move along to Boulder City, Nevada. We're still enjoying our time here, and we have yet to see everything on our list of things to do. Anything we don't do this trip will go on the list for next year.

My yesterday started with my slow-stitching. I've filled the hoop on this section now.

I decided to try the longer and larger Sashiko needle included with my kit. In the image below, the embroidery needle I usually use is shown on the right. This is the large-eyed needle I use for Perle cotton floss. The one on the left is the Sashiko needle included with my kit. The eye appears slightly larger, and the needle itself has a thicker shift. 

I prefer a shorter needle, but the larger Sashiko needle pulled the floss through the fabric easier and with less drag. I think that will help keep the thread from fraying as I stitch.

So now, I've moved the hoop to the right to stitch the right side of the turtle. That's where I'll start this morning.

We were meeting up with friends for a late lunch, but I had plenty of time to get out for a walk. The lake nearest us was the picture of tranquility. 

On the far side, I spotted our friend the Great Egret. When I'm photographing birds, I zoom in and shoot from a distance. I worry I'll scare them away if I get too close. And so he stood still for this next photo.

As I walked on and got a little closer, I took another shot.

And geez...I needn't have worried about scaring him because at that point he flew across the lake to within about 20 feet of me.

Okay, and so then I walked on. I met up again with these two geese looking for a handout.

Helllllooooooo...remember us? Got any snacks? Tostitos? Funions? Potato chips?

I get the feeling they're fond of Frito-Lay products. One might think they'd prefer Granny Goose potato chips. Are Granny Goose potato chips still being made? (Please tell me you're old enough to remember Granny Goose.)

I spotted a few new blooming things along the way. My phone tells me this next image is viburnum.

So, I walked all the way around the lake, and who did I meet up with yet again on the far side of the lake? It's our friend the Great Egret.

I'm starting to think he's just a camera ham, although it looks as if he has a bead on something here.

Across the lake there was a double-breasted cormorant. He kept flapping his wings and shaking off the water.

Also, these mallards. It appears each of the males has attracted a female. Do you suppose they’re double-dating?

My phone tells me this is Ceanothus cuneatus. (That's a mouthful.)

When I got back from my walk, I noticed Sadie had found a spot of sunshine to sleep in. 

We were getting ready to meet up with our Gang of Ten at a local BBQ restaurant. I've known most of these folks longer than anyone else in the world. I've known some of them longer than I've known Mike. 

Except for the gentleman second from the left (David) and the one fourth from the left (Jim), all of the people pictured here graduated from Vista High School. And except for the three men in the middle on the left, we were all in the high school band. Rick (first on the left) played trumpet. Tom (fifth on the left) played saxophone. All of us girls, except for Debi (fourth from the right) played clarinet. Debi played flute. I played alto clarinet and I played piano in the jazz band. (I was a terrible jazz pianist.)

So that was fun. We had a nice lunch, and it was good seeing everybody. And since our time here is growing short, we were saying good-bye until next year to some of these folks. Today we're meeting up with Jim and Debi again for wine and lunch. After that...we'll be spending most of our time putting things away and getting ready to head out. 

I’m hoping to get in a little sewing time tomorrow, but that might just be wishful thinking. Probably I won't get any more sewing done until we get to Boulder City. For now, I'll just focus on my slow-stitching. It's doubtful I can finish off the turtle before we go again, but sometimes I surprise myself. 

So that's all I have for you today. Let's all get on with our days, shall we? I hope y'all are staying warm in this cold winter weather. We can't complain here in Southern California. Nevada should be pretty much the same. We'll be doing more hiking and sight-seeing when we get there, and there's a quilt shop in nearby Henderson that I want to visit. There's still much to do on this trip, so don't unpack just yet.