Astrid's Bird Feeder

This project actually starts with the workbench Astrid made last year for our wee 6' x 6' balcony here where we live in our senior complex.  Everything she used was salvaged from the junk room in our complex where people can leave stuff they no longer want (i.e, someone's trash is another person's treasure)!

At 46 sq. meters (495 sq. ft.), our apartment is small.

But we both love the challenge of making every sq. inch count, including the balcony.

The workbench Astrid made, outside our kitchen window and backdoor,
 encloses and protects her Workmate and then opens up to become her workbench/table
 for whatever she wants to do.  Don't you love it?!

Now segue to the beginning of April this year when Astrid found a tiny bird feeder (in the junk room)

in which she put a suet ball and seeds for the Great Tits around here.  Problem was, 

it was way too small and not a good design for keeping the suet/seeds inside.

It was a mess on the balcony.

So, out comes the Workmate and pieces of wood she has collected over the years.

Who knew her salvaged bamboo would be used for the roof of a bird feeder!

She even waterproofed the roof so that rain couldn't leak through.

Voila!

What precious little birds, flying from the tree across the street to the feeder!

It was heavenly to watch them.

But suddenly, the Magpies, 10-20 times bigger than the tits, found the feeder.

They'd carry off a ball of suet in one blow.  UGH.  

So, it was back to the drawing board, moving the feeder from the railing to inside the balcony,

sitting on top of that magnificent cupboard that Astrid's mom painted eons ago.

For some reason, the Magpies will NOT come inside but the Great Tits will.

A win-win for us all!

Did I mention that we live on the second floor?
So, yes, we get to watch them as they come and go from the nearby tree, even if very briefly.
By now they're feeling safer than when I took this video a couple weeks ago.

Speaking of safe, are you still sheltering in place these days?
We are, until the end of May right now, with only a few restrictions lifted.
God have mercy on us all.

Chapels, Windvanes and Cows, Oh My!

HA!  I guess you had to be there...but sometimes it really is like a fairytale. Another joyride on Sunday, this time in the area of Arkel, Hoornaar and Schelluinen, all nearby....

  Arkel is where Astrid used to live, just 3 km north of us in Gorinchem.

I've seen this wee Koepelkerk a thousand times, it seems, but had never been inside.

It has a long history, beginning in 641, but the present chapel was built in 1855.

This past Sunday they had an open-house viewing from 2-4 p.m.

Lucky for me that Astrid notices these things in the paper!

And yes, they have a small congregation with services every Sunday.

I think my dad would have loved being pastor of this cozy chapel.

He was such a lover of books and hymnals.

So am I.

But instead of sheep to shepherd that day, all we got were cows!

Cows and more cows.  

It was a heyday for cows, most of which are grown here for their dairy products.

We did find some sheep, however.  HA!

And two gable stones on the same house.

And TWENTY-ONE weathervanes, of which these are the NON-birds/animals...

...and these are.

Milkweed covers many of the canals right now (bottom-left).

And Spring is still showing off her beauty everywhere.

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

On an entirely different note, close to home...

Look what we saw Saturday morning right after breakfast.

Astrid says it's a koolmees (Great Tit), common to Europe.

Apparently this little fella was too young to be frightened, while eating his own breakfast.

After several minutes, he flew off to mind his own business.

Did he know he made my day, I wonder?

That was about the same time I was connecting many dots to fulfill a life-long dream:

P A I N T I N G.

There are so many embellishment and/or manipulation tools these days,

to transform photo images into paintings...without all the mess, I might add.

So as I start my new decade (in two weeks), my dream is becoming real.

This is an oil painting of one of the collage images above.

Here's a watercolor of the same bird but different pose.

And how about a watercolor of the cows!

It may not be everyone's cuppa tea, but for me, I'm in heaven.

You have no idea how soulful this is for me!

(so might as well get used to it)