terrene: Like sooey, I only count the time actually spent watching the birds. For me, this is usually 1 to 4 hours (estimated); just spread out over the whole two days. I spent more time for the Christmas Bird Count, which was one of my two PFW days, so I called that 4 to 8 hours total. Most of my productive counting is done in the early morning hours when the birds are feeding after a long night. I'll often look at my tally sheet around 10 or 11 am and see that most of the regulars are there. There's another burst of activity after I refill the feeders in the late afternoon. I do this so that there will be plenty of food in the morning and I won't feel pressured to get out there early. The rest of the day is for stragglers and fine-tuning the count. sooey: I don't really hear the cardinals in the winter - my windows are pretty tight. The Mourning Doves are a different issue. They come at dusk, but they're so wary (I think because of the hawks) that I usually don't see them. Often I'll see 2 or 3 at a time during the daytime, but when I go out to refill the feeders I'll hear that squealing sound of a flock of panicky doves taking flight. If I look up fast, I can get a rough count of the flock, maybe 10 or 12. The other birds that come at dusk with the cardinals are the native sparrows, but these are really hard to identify - little brown birds in the shadow of a big shrub. Claire

Welcome, Dee, Becky and Lisa, glad you could join us! I spent the day dealing with my groundhog problem. He has cleared my back flower bed, and the hole he is digging is going to undermine my shed. Time for solutions! I called Animal Control and they gave me a list of people who will come to your home and trap the critter. Great. I called the first one and he wanted to charge me $100 to trap my groundhog. I'm serious. AND, I guess as an added bonus, he said they would also take it away. NO?! Really!? And I was thinking the critter would live in that trap in my backyard forever. Sorry for the sarcasm, but come on. In any event, a friend of a friend is, hopefully, coming over sometime this week to trap the groundhog AND take him away, free of charge. This guy has already trapped 13, yes, 13 groundhogs at his home/yard this year. This wasn't the most encouraging news I've had recently. Hey, on a more postive note: The first swap for FOTESS will be posted Saturday! Are ya ready!!? Shirley!

Meredith (naughtykitty), here is the starter list. :-) I haven't compiled the list from 2012 and early 2013 yet but it's coming. :-) Will list the upcoming 2013 books as we read them. 1998 Eva Perón Fraser, Nicholas and Marysa Navarro A Cup of Tea Ephron, Amy The Notebook Sparks, Nicholas A Change of Heart Claire Sylvia; William Novak A Yellow Raft in Blue Water Dorris, Michael Divided Lives Elsa Walsh Divine Secrets of the YA-YA Sisterhood Wells, Rebecca The Color of Water McBride, James The Horse Whisperer Evans, Nicholas 1999 The Chin Kiss King Veciana-Suarez, Ana A Year In Provence Mayle, Peter All The Pretty Horses McCarthy, Cormac Falling Leaves Yen Mah, Adeline Memoirs of a Geisha Golden, Arthur Snow Falling in Cedars Guterson, David Stones for Ibarra Doerr, Harriet The Fencing Master Perez-Reverte, Arturo The Reader Schlink, Bernhard; Carol Brown Janeway The Song of the Lark Cather, Willa; Doris Grumbach 2000 A Prayer for Owen Meany Irving, John Gap Creek Morgan, Robert Laguna Heat Jefferson Parker, T. Midwives Bohjalian, Chris Prodigal Summer Kingslover, Barbara Red Light Jefferson Parker, T. The Blue Hour Jefferson Parker, T. The Slave Girl Emecheta, Buchi We The Living Rand, Ayn Where the Heart Is Letts, Billie 2001 Before Women Had Wings Fowler, Connie May Chocolat Harris, Joanne Fortune's Rocks Shreve, Anita Guests of the Sheik Fernea, Elizabeth Warnock Left Behind Tim F. LaHaye; Jerry B. Jenkins Silent Joe Jefferson Parker, T. The Bone Setter Tan, Amy The Haj Uris, Leon The Ladies Auxiliary Mirvis, Tova The Red Tent Diamant, Anita 2002 Drowning Ruth Schwarz, Christina Good in Bed Weiner, Jennifer Managing Ignatius Strahan, Jerry Sister of My Heart Divakaruni, Chitra Banerjee The Fig Eater Shields, Jody The Fourth Treasure Shimoda, Todd The Girl With The Pearl Earring Chevalier, Tracy The Makioka Sisters Tanizaki, Junichiro; Jun-Ichir-O Tanizaki The Painted Bird Kosinski, Jerzy The Shipping News Proulx, Annie 2003 Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress Sijie, Daj Blue Shoe LaMott, Anne Embers Márai, Sándor I Am Madame X Diliberto, Gioia Lovely Bones Sebold, Alice Mrs. Dalloway Virginia Woolf; Maureen Howard Running In The Family Ondaatje, Michael The Da Vinci Code Brown, Dan The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency McCall Smith, Alexander Unsolicited Kaewert, Julie Waller 2004 Angry Housewives Eating Bon Bons Landvik, Lorna Caramelo Cisneros, Sandra I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Angelou, Maya Reading Lolita in Tehran Nafisi, Azar The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time Haddon, Mark The Lady and the Unicorn Chevalier, Tracy The Miracle of Edgar Mint Udall, Brady The Namesake Lahiri, Jhumpa The Secret Life of Bees Monk Kidd, Sue The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax Gilman, Dorothy 2005 Death Comes for the Archbishop Cather, Willa Dreams From My Father Obama, Barack Having Our Say Delany, Sarah L. ; A. Elizabeth Delany Heart Full of Lies Rule, Ann The Chinese Gold Murders van Gulik, Robert The Cold Sassy Tree Burns, Olive Ann The Cruelest Miles Salisbury, Gay; Laney Salisbury The Kite Runner Hosseini, Khaled The Sunday Tertulia Carlson, Lori Mari The Tender Bar Moehringer, J.R. 2006 Devil in the White City Larson, Erik Don't Lets Go to the Dogs Tonight Alexandra Fuller Hallbaloo in the Guava Orchard Desai, Kiran How to Read Literature like a College Professor Foster, Thomas M.C. Beaton Mystery (member selection) Beaton, M.C. Me Talk Pretty One Day Sedaris, David Snow Flower and the Secret Fan See, Lisa Sweet Diamond Dust Ferré, Rosario The Memory Keeper's Daughter Edwards, Kim The Mermaid Chair Monk Kidd, Sue 2007 A Thousand Splendid Suns Hosseini, Khaled Infidel Hirsi Ali, Ayaan Jane Austen's 'Read Alikes' Various Memory of Running McLarty, Ron The Ginger Tree Wyland, Oswald The Glass Castle Walls, Jeannette The Prize Winner of Defiance, Ohio Ryan, Terry The Thirteenth Tale Settersfield, Diane Unpardonable Lies Winspear, Jacqueline Waiting for Snow in Havana Eire, Carlos 2008 The Shadow of the Wind Ruiz Zafon, Carlos Body Surfing Shreve, Anita Bel Canto Patchett, Ann The Day the World Came to Town Defede, Jim Water for Elephant Gruen, Sara Hundred Secret Senses Tan, Amy Three Cups of Tea Mortenson, Greg Life of Pi Martel, Yann 2009 The Mysterious Flame of Queen Loan Eco, Umberto Plain Truth Picoult, Jodi Kids from Nowhere Guthridge, George Rabbit Run Updike, John The Cure for Modern Life Tucker, Lisa Winterdance Paulson, Gary Obscene in the Extreme Wartzman, Rick Down River Hart, John Outliers Gladwell, Malcolm Molokai Busnell, O.A. 2010 The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo Larsenn, Steig The Help Stockett, Kathryn Travels with Charley Steinbeck, John Sarah's Key de Rosnay, Tatiana Olive Kitterdge Strout, Elizabeth The Weight of Heaven Umrigar, Thrity The Season of Second Chances Meier, Diane South of Broad Conroy, Pat An Inconvenient Wife Chance, Megan The Home for Broken Hearts Coleman, Rowan 2011 Murder on Astor Place Thompson, Victoria Cutting for Stone Verghese, Abraham The Lady Matador's Hotel Garcia, Cristina You Know When the Men are Gone Fallon, Siobhan The Poisoner's Handbook Blum, Deborah Crocodile in the Sand Bank Peters, Elizabeth Mink River Doyle, Brian Daughter’s in Law Trollope, Joana Middlesex Eugenides, Jeffrey Kosher Chinese Levy, Michael

Good morning, everyone! The Bingo words for today are: DEER and CODE TALKER. I'll update the full list for us again tomorrow. I found out there is a book about the Code Talkers. Many of you may already know this interesting part of history. I think I will look for the book because it sounds so interesting. "Throughout World War II, in the conflict fought against Japan, Navajo code talkers were a crucial part of the U.S. effort, sending messages back and forth in an unbreakable code that used their native language. They braved some of the heaviest fighting of the war, and with their code, they saved countless American lives." The book is: Code Talker: A Novel About the Navajo Marines of World War Two by Jospeh Bruchac (Perhaps there are other books as well. This is the one I found listed. Windtalkers is a movie based on this same theme. Has anyone read the book or seen the movie?) I want to recheck the guesses and will post the winner and then people can guess for today if they like. One time a day for as many members as want to try it. No one has them all right yet. Jeanne