Birds in the Kitchen Window

 Someone used this Lowe's feeder for a great squirrel pose.
When hanging, the feeder is relatively safe from squirrel predation.

Cleaning the kitchen window led to installing a new feeder and six-foot Jackson EZ Bird Swing. Directions are linked here.

Some advantages are:

• No Venetian blinds to block the view.
• A window so clean it is almost invisible.
• A place where we are often busy and now have a constantly changing view of birds feeding.

I did not expect an immediate response, since birds are so wary of anything new. However, the Lowe's feeder is the third one hanging and the Jackson EZ Bird Swing has been enjoyed for several years.

Today, several days after the installation, the new swing and feeder were accommodating a stream of birds. As I watched, a male Cardinal, a goldfinch, and a house finch took up their stations to eat some sunflower seeds.

The design lets the birds have their own station. The shy Cardinals often take the side away from the window, but the feeder rotates slowly around to let us see all the birds.

I began photographing them today. That led to a boycott after some good photos. I will try more tomorrow and post some.

 The male Goldfinches do not have their spring livery yet,
and all bird lovers wait to spot their change
to an impossibly bright hue.

Landing and Feeding
The kitchen window does not yet afford a good landing zone, except for the swing. Some birds land directly on the feeder, but others land on the swing, which is very close to the window.

The birds peer inside at the humans and wait to get a place to feed.

When the Crepe Myrtle grows up, the birds will also land there, with room for plenty to rest, preen, and enjoy their seeds. Small birds will take a seed and land where they can open it with their beaks. Chickadees are most likely to do this.

Cardinals have large, powerful beaks, so they sit at the feeder with a droll look on their faces, and process one seed after another, ejecting the hulls.

Doves are ground feeders, but they are happy to land
on a hanging feeder.
Among the birds we see,
doves are the ones that love to bathe and eat the longest.

Luther Days Fiasco - Endorsed by SP Mark Schroeder. Website Down. Video Gone. Money Gone.

Luther Days no longer exists. Reports from the presenters say they didn't get the promised reimbursement.

***

 Con artists like to rub it in when they leave with the loot.

GJ - No shock is registered here. Two ladies ran the circus, which was really a scam. Natalie Pratt had a court record about money lost from various enterprises, which were just like this one.

But SP Mark Schroeder guided thousands of dollars her way and refused to support a genuine gathering.

Imagine poor Jay Webber flying to "The Largest Distinctively Lutheran Festival" in North America and finding just one person who would listen to him - and then paying his own expenses!

Funny how two women are organizing it:

Event Coordinator

Natalie Pratt: info@lutherdays.org

https://www.facebook.com/natalierpratt

Marketing Manager

Karalena Pittenger: marketing@lutherdays.org

Demonstrator at Safeway: related to ELS Pastor Tony Pittenger

The Odd Couple will sign books,
even though Jessica Pratt said she cannot stand Scott Barefoot's arrogance.

http://lutherdays.org/pdf/Luther_%20Days_Schedule.pdf [website down?]

Should be fun-ny.

Sleepless in Silvis asks:

They are still going through with this?  I'm wondering how much synod dollars are going into this? 
They claim 50+ booths and displays?  Are they all paying?  Other than Thrivent who REALLY could be a valid sponsor?  A member's personal business?  An individual?  They should declare them by now.  Most conventions do especially when guests are traveling farther than intrastate.   

***

GJ - Answer. I am told WELS has funded this debacle, after Pratt met with Mark Schroeder. That would help explain how this became a showcase for Church and Changers with a side-helping of sodomy.

Otherwise, there is no chance this could work, and there are still big, gaping holes in the logistics, according to my safe sources.

"Natalie Pratt's Safe Pastor"
Con artists let others take the fall.

Another set of comments -

Objective of event 

Welcome to Luther Days

The Luther Days Festival is one of the most exciting events around for Confessional Lutherans and is the largest distinctly Lutheran

festival in North America! This one-of-a-kind event is for the entire family and brings Martin Luther and the Reformation to life by offering

participants a uniquely interactive and distinctly Lutheran experience for all ages. The festival also embraces the heritage of the Lutheran

Church and is an action-packed day with hands-on exploration into the reformation, our Lutheran faith, and the German heritage of the immigrant Lutherans.

A lot of the Master Schedule "classes" "courses" whatever word one would use has topics that I can't say are "action-packed" or "embraces the heritage of the Lutheran Church".  Such as:

Stressed Out But Standing Strong 

Got Women-What do to with women who don't bake or make casseroles  
Hope and Healing after Porn  (What about during?)

Dangers of Porn and the Need to Prepare (Didn't it exist before the internet?)

For Called Workers Helping our Families Reject Porn in our Churches (One would think that all these Porn classes apply to our Lutheran Heritage.  Reject Porn in our Churches--nothing about "at home where

most men/women view porn except for the few brainless that have to do it at church office computers?  Or is that just a poor choice of title?) [GJ - Natalie Pratt is big on porn addiction and has put a lot of porn links on the Luther Days Twitter list. So - action-packed is right, after all.]

WELS Training Camp Rock Climbing Wall  ("Got" Liability Insurance?  Oops---forgot Luther was a big Rock Climbing guy)
Taste of Germany - Food Court ("Got" Liability Insurance and State Food Licenses?)
Holy Hen House- Social Gathering for WomenEither they have enough Luther subject matters or make the sessions longer.  The rest of the things (Pakistan, etc could be put in a booklet)

The one that bothers me the most is "Everyone who Calls on the Name of the Lord will be Saved".  Topic is on Romans 10:13 versus Matthew 7:21-23?

You could stand in line for 6 hours (assuming their will be huge masses of people with no parking) just for book signings.  When Luther is there to sign a real book, I'll go. 


Is this Luther Days or WELS days based on the topics?  A lot of pats on the back are scheduled.

 More of the Same

"Is This Your First Saturday Morning Meeting?" No, More Like My 80th. Just Another Walmart Team Jackson BBQ

 Grandson Alexander agreed to pose in my Tilley hat,
holding my walking stick.

This is our schedule for monthly Saturday Morning Meetings at Walmart:
5 AM - I wake up and do some cleaning and coffee brewing.
6:30   - Pick up Little Ichabod at the Little Ichabode.
7:00   - Arrive at a Walmart location or the outdoor, tent-like AMP for the 8 AM meeting.

We arrive so early at the famous Saturday Morning Meetings that we often sit directly behind the celebrity guests, Walmart executives, or Walton family members.

 LI did a hilarious imitation of Arnie discussing his early morning
shopping trips at Walmart, during delays in filming.

This Saturday, we had a row of reserved seats ahead of us, and some younger people sat there as special guests. LI wondered where they came from, so I asked. "We are interns at WM; we're in business school."

The young intern wanted to know about LI's job and mine. She looked at me and asked, "Is this your first Saturday Morning Meeting?"

 Geena Davis sat in the row ahead of us at one meeting.
She began an annual movie festival for Bentonville, a town which has no movie theaters of its own.

I said, "No, it's my 80th or so. We go to all the SMMs, unless he is out of town. And we attend the shareholders' annual meetings too. My wife and I have lived in the area for seven years - for the grandchildren - and their parents." We named a few of the celebrities we have seen live, from our press row seats. Our favorite remains - Hugh Jackman.

Sandra Bullock came to the SMM
immediately after her Oscar win.
Many military heroes are honored at the meetings - and their super-safe truck drivers are routinely honored and applauded.

We had a fun BBQ event for the whole family, where most of the birthdays fall within 30 days. Mrs. I has extra time to spend with our son, before the rest of the family arrives. So we catch up on all the developments and technology changes of the moment.

LI was my first Greek student, so I told him about how well the Bethany New Testament Greek classes are going.

 Hugh Jackman stayed afterwards to
meet guests and shake hands.
We did not miss that opportunity.