White Ladyslippers

There she is..... one of that special breed of native orchids. This is Cypripedium candidum - the white ladyslipper. Discovered in 1805, it ranged from New England to the Dakotas. Now, due to habitat destruction and thoughtless "collecting", it is extirpated in much of the East and very rare in the upper Midwest. It was found in wet meadows and prairie sites. Draining and plowing plus intensive pasturing did them in...

I was on a hike to a protected native prairie site just south of Bluff County. It was over the border in Iowa. The time was early summer. The site encompasses about 500 acres. It reportedly has never been tilled. After taking a some shots of shooting stars, I continued down the path until I saw another clump of white. I was completly surprised to find a small mound of some kind of native orchids. At that moment, I was unaware that these small plants even existed. I took a few pictures and then hurried home to check out my Moyle wildflower book. It was then that I found out how rare they really were. A few weeks later, I was watching the evening weather report. Mr Weatherman mentioned he was inviting people to send in pictures of their garden each week and that there was a prize to be won. I couldn't claim the garden where I'd spotted the unusual orchids, so I identified the flowers as being in "Mother Nature's Garden." Knowing the looting that sometime takes place with these kind of rare specimens, I stated they wre located somewhere near Bluff Country. Later, when several neighbors called me up to inform me that my picture had made the evening news on Channel Ten, I was astonished again. I give all the credit to these beautiful gems and the gift certificate award was well spent at a local nursery in Rochester. Sometimes you just got to be lucky...

The fishing hadn't been the greatest that day. So toward evening we took a leisurely cruise down
the east shoreline of beautiful Mantrap Lake in northern
Minnesota. It had been clear skies all day, but now the
clouds began to gather as twilight approached. Rain was forecast for later that evening. We were headed towards Steamboat Bay at the far northern end of the lake
Thinking about the forecast, I turned my weather eye
up to the clouds ahead of us. It was all looking pretty innocuous. Then I saw him.
A giant was peering down a us. Who was it???
A mighty warrior leading his minions across the great forest of the north was my first thought.
Was it a Norse god - perhaps Odin or Thor with his mighty hammer?
Maybe Zeus preparing to cast his thunderbolts down upon us?
Then I looked again and saw Janus the two faced god.
The other face looking back to the west was..... was.... Jimmy Durante? He of the big nose. Or maybe two Presidents... Tricky Dick & Bubba.....
Relaxing, I chuckled to myself. No big storm to be afraid of tonight! Now who do you see???

Big Dog/Big Pony/Bigger Horses

It was late November and the Big Guy and I were hiking a perimeter trail along the eastern edge of Lake Louise State Park. I was hoping to catch sight of an early arriving Northern Shrike. Sure enough....
Baron had stopped along the park fence line noticing something even more interesting out in the nearby pasture. Two horses and pony.I don’t believe he had ever seen such large animals before. Of course, he wanted to investigate. I thought he would surely begin barking. Not a chance. He carefully approached the fence. The horses approached. The pony came right up to the fence. Baron backed away. Then Baron went right up to the fence. ....I scratched the big brown horses ears. Baron watched me and then....

The Evil Dog Ambusher or Sainted Kitty?

It seems Simba and his patron enabler (Mrs. T.) have been really been put out since a few days ago . Their argument seems to be that I placed a photograph, in the previous post, which puts him in a bad light. He claims that I am always prejudicial in favor of Baron and thus the dumb dog can do no wrong. The numerous comments fingering his obvious guilty tendencies are also cited as proof of the canine bias of Troutbirder blogging friends. . I promised that I would present him in a better light. Thank you.....

Simba is a fine daytime role model for retirement as he is wont to follow the sun around the house seeking out the most comfortable spots to bask in the sunlight. The hair, which he sheds all over the house is much easier to vacuum up compared to the GSD's (German Shedding Dog) which clings to everything, according to Mrs. T. He is a fastidious eater, never tempted by the gross things Baron is known to sample. He also has never been known to howl or screech at passing fire engines or police cars. Thus according to Mrs. T's analysis he is "a lovable, sweet, caring, snuggletime kitty."

Innocent or Guilty?

It seems a flower pot was knocked off a table in the Troutbirder home. Rushing into the room, I found dirt all over the floor. There were two apparent suspects in view. each proclaiming their own innocence.

Simba (Mrs T's) spoiled cat claimed that in the process of harrasing him, the dog had crashed into the table, upsetting the pot.

Baron, (Troutbirders GSD) simply said, The Devil made Simba do it.

What do you think?

A Troutbirder Rant

Rant - to talk in a noisy, excited, or declamatory manner. 2. : to scold vehemently. transitive verb. : to utter in a bombastic declamatory fashion.
After three years of blogging I’ve decided to step over the line. The ranting line that is....
Far too many bloggers, especially those of a political nature and the male gender, regularly live there. My own passion though is of a more vegetable nature. It seems as a child I was born to be prejudiced against certain types. Cooked cabbage, broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cooked carrots, canned peas, and rutabagas. I eventually outgrow all those dislikes except for one. The later.
My mom loved to cook with rutabagas. God alone knows why. I’ve often thought that the smell of cooking rutabagas could overpower anything, even an enemy. I’m surprised the army never adapted them for battlefield use.
Mom regularly added the hated ingredient to her vegetable beef soup. The corker though was the Sunday roast beef dinner we had after church. A fine dinner it was with carrots, potatoes and onions added to the roast. The rutabagas killed it all though with the taste and odor lingering on for hours.
The memory of all this has unfortunately lingered on into my so called golden years besmirching my reputation for open mindedness. Take our recent fine dinner with Mr. And Mrs. Science. Somehow, and I don’t know how it happened, the subject of the hated vegetable came up. I proceeded to launch into what Mrs. T calls "his predictable ten minute tirade." It was then that our gracious hostess finally blurted out "but we love rutabagas." And proceeded to point out that their neighbors grew them by the ton and gifted them with a 50 pound bag each year. Thereupon, I was informed that many fine and discerning gourmets love the root. Oh my. In another example, my wife’s best friend has often carefully boxed and wrapped one for my birthday. The word has gotten around.....

For the uninitiated who remain unconvinced, in the public interest, I submit the following:-

Lemon Carrots and Rutabagas
Ingredients
4 medium carrots, cut into 3 inch julienne strips
2 cups rutabaga, peeled and cut into 3 inch julienne strips
1/2 cup water
2 tablespoons butter or stick margarine
1 tablespoon brown sugar
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1/4 teaspoon dill weed
Directions
In a large saucepan, combine the carrots, rutabaga and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook for 13-15 minutes. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the remaining ingredients; cook, uncovered, over medium heat for 2-3 minutes or until butter is melted.
Drain vegetables; add butter mixture. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until vegetables are glazed, stirring occasionally.

Barb

Barb had a breast cancer diagnosis shortly before we were to leave for Arizona. We determined visiting the grands was the best cure option in the short run. The day after Christmas we returned to Minnesota and met the next day with the Mayo surgeon. The next day a double mastectomy was successfully performed. I'm typing this now with the knowledge every thing seemed good (limited ) and chemotherapy may not be necessary. No radiation either. We're very encouraged. Amazingly Barb was up that very evening and was given permission, the next day, to go ahead and return home. While under medical instructions to keep a low profile for a few weeks, she is already giving me orders on what to do in the domestic field as well as my home nursing duties. We see the surgeon next Tues and the Oncologists on Jan 9th.
Ray (Troutbirder)

Winter Arrived Last Night

As I stepped outside, this somewhat cold and dreary morning, winter had arrived on Oak Hill overnight. Greetings winter! I'll let Baron outside to romp. My own snow romping days are over. But content, I'll start up the snow blower to clear the driveway. Go back inside for some hot chocolate. And watch the bird feeders from my easy chair while starting a new book. Each season to its own rhythms here in the northland.