Misty Mornings

The first rainbow I've seen in ages 🌈

A few weeks back we had some great foggy mornings. I love fog, although it also freaks me out, thanks to a certain Stephen King story. My SO and I have also been spotting all kinds of wildlife, and we even managed to get a few pictures! Hope you enjoy...

 

The next couple of shots were taken by my SO. We've seen lots of evidence of beavers around (so many tree stumps!) but catching a glimpse of one of the artists is rare.

Blue Heron:

 

 Frog friend that got turned around and ended up hitching a ride to the creek:

 

Red-winged blackbirds are my favourite birds. I was so excited to get these photos:

 

 

Have you seen any interesting sights lately? Share in the comments...

 

When I'm not trying to spot the local wildlife, you can find me writing. Check out my books!

Bleeding Heart

Love Lies Bleeding

Blood Magic

Tooth & Claw

(Links take you to all available stores. Love Lies Bleeding and Bleeding Heart are also available in paperback.)

Cheers,

Aspasia

PS: Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com. 

All photos by Whimsy Bower/Aspasia S. Bissas, unless otherwise mentioned.

Winter's Winding Down

Of course, this being southern Ontario, winter has a few last gasps before spring finally arrives. I took these photos over the last couple of weeks. A lot of the snow in the earlier pictures has melted. Then it snowed again. Tomorrow it's supposed to be -25C and on Wednesday it's supposed to be +17C. No matter what the weather's doing, though, the birds are singing and the squirrels are frolicking, and spring is definitely on its way...eventually...

We had some impressive fog a little while back, as the snow started melting. The grey "sky" in this shot is actually fog over the Etobicoke Creek.

 

 

Staghorn Sumac

Staghorn Sumac

Eastern White Pine

I was so excited to see these coyote tracks and then, when we encountered the coyote later in the walk, I didn't think to take a photo! We spotted him as we were approaching a bridge. He was on the other side of it, coming toward us. We backtracked and gave him space. He was cautious, but eventually passed us and went on his way. It was a highlight for me.

I also spotted a bald eagle being driven into the trees by a group of Canada geese. I've seen smaller birds targetting hawks in the past, but this was my first eagle (outside of the zoo). 

The sign outside Tim Hortons has a vaguely threatening energy. Or maybe it's just me. 

Round-leaved Bittersweet

I tried to capture the water droplets on the berries, but it didn't turn out the way I'd hoped.

What's the weather like where you are? Share in the comments. And don't forget to get my books! (Also, apologies for the wonky formatting--blogger is being weird today and I can't figure out how to fix it.)

My Books 

Bleeding Heart

Love Lies Bleeding

Blood Magic

Tooth & Claw

(Links take you to all available stores. Love Lies Bleeding and Bleeding Heart are also available in paperback.)

Cheers,

Aspasia

PS: Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com. 

All photos by Whimsy Bower/Aspasia S. Bissas

Snow Days

I've always loved snow. Probably not a surprise as a Canadian. According to my mom, the first big snowfall of the year happened the night I was born. When I was younger, I would always be out playing in it. I don't play so much anymore, but I love walking in it. The fresh air, the crunching underfoot, and the quiet [Edit: I forgot to add how fresh snow sparkles in the sun]. Not only are there fewer people around in general, but snow somehow muffles background noise. Yes, shovelling sucks, and the cold isn't much fun (still better than the summer heat!), but I'd hate to live anywhere without at least one good snowfall a year (preferably on my birthday).

Here are a few photos I took recently...

Off in the distance you can see a tiny figure. I tried to get a better shot but she's a fast walker. We've gotten to know her a bit on our walks, and she's apparently out every day picking up litter. She also gave us tips on watching out for coyotes-- never underestimate the toughness of tiny older women.

Speaking of tough women, download my books and read about some whose fangs would put a coyote's to shame...

 

Love Lies Bleeding

Bleeding Heart

*Blood Magic

*Tooth & Claw

(Links take you to all available stores. Books marked * are free everywhere other than Amazon. Love Lies Bleeding and Bleeding Heart are also available in paperback.)

 

Are you a fan of snow? What's your favourite winter activity? Share in the comments...

Cheers,

Aspasia

PS: Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com. 

All photos by Whimsy Bower/Aspasia S. Bissas

Jinxed

Life has been strange lately--kind of awesome and kind of stressful. Awesome because we adopted a stray kitty that started showing up at our door. He's super friendly and sweet and we (okay, mostly I) named him Jinx, inspired by a minor character on Buffy (one of Glory's minions for my fellow fans.) I always thought it was a great name for a cat and, come on, how could you not give a black cat a name like that? Surprisingly he's my first ever black cat and I think I must always have one from now on. There's something magical about them. And when he stretches and arches his back in the classic Halloween cat pose, it's just about the coolest thing ever.

It's been stressful because Jinx, while mostly amazingly healthy, has some parasite issues and needs to be kept isolated from our other guys until it clears up (he's also constantly hungry and quite underweight). That means he's confined (which as a recent outdoor cat he doesn't love, although he's mostly okay) and the other two are jealous and confused. And none of them likes to be alone. The SO and I are taking turns keeping Jinx company, so we're not getting a lot of together time. And the two rooms we're keeping him in are the only two in the house with windows that don't open (but there is a couch so at least we can nap). Basically I'm not getting much of anything done these days (it's been five days of isolation so far--hopefully the meds will start working soon!) I do get to go out to the garden in the mornings, which I'm quite happy about. And I've been crocheting a lot--my blanket is almost done! But the sooner we can introduce Jinx to the other guys and let him be a free-range indoor kitty the better.

The new addition to the household, looking regal

Dianthus

Azalea bud. My azalea is currently potted but I think I need to get it in the ground this year.

Lilac we discovered growing inside our cedar hedge. I don't know how it got there but every year it gets a little bigger and flowers a little more profusely. It's lovely.

Dandelion. I have a love-hate relationship with them.

The aquilegia has flowered. I don't know what variety it is but it was a gift from a friend, and apparently they grow wild in his yard.

Another angle

Bleeding heart

Bird (I think it's a female blackbird) enjoying our hospitality (although not quite as thrilled with me pointing a camera at her)

The 'Sensation' lilac in our yard. Prettier than the old-fashioned one in the hedge but doesn't smell nearly as sweet.

A large branch broke off our maple during a storm a few months back. We discovered it's currently the home of a family of blackbirds :)

'Sensation' lilac

Not quite fully opened yet.

Interestingly some of the flower panicles on the 'Senation' lilac are pure white. I'm assuming one of its original parents was a white-flowered lilac. Hopefully the whole tree won't revert to white in time, although I don't mind a few pretty white blossoms.

A couple more shots of a very handsome kitty (the vet thinks he's got some Siamese in him)

Photos ©Whimsy Bower

[Edited to fix a typo. We ended up re-naming Jink to Nox, and as of 2023, he's eleven and a good bit chonkier! Follow me on my official site: AspasiaSBissas.com]

Gone Wild

One thing I love about Toronto is all the green. This is a city of trees, parks and gardens as much as of concrete and steel. No surprise that we have plenty of wildlife as well. I like to think I've made my yard welcoming to the critters and they seem to agree, making themselves at home year round. Every so often we have some particularly fun encounters. The other day we watched as a hawk (or maybe a falcon--I suck at IDing birds) swooped into the tree overlooking the yard. He surveyed the place for awhile (not long enough to grab the camera, I'm sorry to say) before leaving again. As soon as he left and we went outside, all the little birds that hang out in the yard took off and flew to the hedges. Poor things must have been terrified seeing that bird of prey. But it was pretty cool for us.

Yesterday I was surprised to open the door to check for mail and found our snow-covered newspaper adorned with a set of birdie footprints. You can see them leading up to the paper on our doorstep:

 

And then on the paper itself. Somebody hopped right on up to the door (I guess they took the welcome mat to heart)! This is why we're afraid every time the cats wander near an open door. Even perfectly content house kitties can't be expected to resist the thrill of chasing birds (and squirrels) this bold...


 

Last week I also discovered what seems to be a den in the far corner of our backyard. It might look like a mess but it's definitely not a random pile of branches (especially since these are the only fallen branches in the yard). The pile encompasses a hollow tree stump too--could be quite a cozy little bed for someone:



 

I wasn't sure what kind of animal might live in this sort of nest but after seeing footprints leading to and from it I'm guessing a small raccoon has made this home. What do you think?

UPDATE: I just found out that raccoons have five toes so now I'm completely at a loss as to what kind of wildlife this might be. It's too large to be a squirrel. Ideas anyone?


 

Photos by Whimsy Bower