Various Oddities

Last week I was on a walk, and coming back from the gate I spotted a little ball perched in a tree, silloughetted against the sky. It hardly looked like a bird, but what else could it be? Once I got close enough for scrutiny, I was surprised to see a tiny little owl staring at me. The thing was about 3-4 inches tall and didn't look like it was planning to move any time soon. I scurried back home, grabbed the camera, hopped on a bike and went back down. It was tough to make the little critter look my way, but I managed to get a few decent pics. Here's the one that turned out best (it's cropped).

I looked it up and found out that it was a Northern Pygmy Owl, and not seen very often. Anyway, that was kinda' cool.

Quote of the day:
"And then I began to see daylight. What exactly was the trouble I didn't understand, but it was evidently something to do with the good old Artistic Temperament, and I could believe anything about that. It explains everything. It's like the Unwritten Law, don't you know, which you plead in America if you've done anything they want to send you to chokey for and you don't want to go. What I mean is, if you're absolutely off your rocker, but don't find it convenient to be scooped into the loony-bin, you simply explain that, when you said you were a teapot, it was just your Artistic Temperament, and they apologize and go away."--P.G. Wodehouse

I've got to go babysit at the neighbors so I can't write more, but I might get to it tomorrow.