My Nutty Buddies.

The weather outside’s been a bit frightful, as is often the case on a holiday weekend. But, rather than whine about the weather, as I am often wont to do, I just skipped Saturday’s saturated walk, even though I am sorely lagging behind in steps for 2019 thanks to the weather. I still aim to get on board with walking in the rain, especially now that I’ve got all my various soggy weather gear in place, but I must embrace that idea slowly – it appeals to me more now that the weather is a little warmer.

Saying the weather is a little warmer is an understatement. Yesterday it was downright sultry – in the 80s. Today was not as warm, but it was very humid. I had just returned from my walk, got in the house and it began to rain. It’s drizzling now and a storm is on the horizon. We have stormy weather every day through Thursday. But, though the rain is a pain, it is not severe and devastating like other parts of the U.S.

It is finally ice-cream eatin’ weather and the truck has been making its rounds in the neighborhood … there must be lots of kids on nearby streets because the song is already an earworm. I was thinking of these “Nutty Buddy” treats in conjunction with hearing that ice-cream truck’s song. Do you remember them and did you like them back in the day, or are they still a favorite?

In my recent posts, we all oohed and aahed over all the sweet babies ... goslings, Robin hatchlings and even the Great Blue Heron. I am way overdue in showcasing some of Council Point Park’s peanut-eating pals I encounter on the perimeter path daily. A bag of peanuts gives a lot of pleasure to a cast of characters that you know as Parker, Stubby, Midnight as well as the Northern Cardinals and Red-Winged Blackbirds, who choose to swipe a peanut or two from under the squirrels’ noses. Feeding these furry and feathered critters gives me a lot of pleasure too.

So, please enjoy this parade of my Nutty Buddies, whose images I’ve been collecting the past few weeks during my Park treks.

No one is more appreciative of peanuts than Parker. Take a look at the smile on his face.

I've been following the antics of Stubby since last year when I saw he was missing half his tail, hence the moniker of "Stubby". I can't tell the Fox Squirrels apart ... Parker usually will run to see me, and the rest of them all look alike, except for Stubby. His tail is not so raggedy looking now with the white fur tip.

Midnight is awfully timid and I'm still working on gaining his confidence. You'll see how he is always mindful of my presence, a little bit of fear in his eyes. I daren't make a move as he'll bolt.

This beautiful male Northern Cardinal practices "swoop and swipe" ... from his perch he watches for an opportunity then swoops down. I laughed at these pictures when I downloaded them. The peanut is almost as big as he is, reminding me of the expression "go big or go home!"

The male Red-Winged Blackbird watches the peanuts, the squirrels and the Cardinal and decides when to make his move. Sometimes he just lands on the perimeter path in front of me - hint, hint ... I'm here and ready for peanuts. The female Red-Winged Blackbird doesn't resort to these tactics ... I assume she waits for her better half to bring home the bacon, er ... peanuts.

There are more pictures found in my blog post, click here please.

[Nutty Buddy ice cream courtesy of Pinterest]

You can catch up on my blog posts before I started blogging at Patch in August 2013 by going here: http://lindaschaubblog.net/