We had a nice dose of snow, followed by freezing rain then rain on Sunday. The mess left behind was heavy. I moved the snow before it started raining. The rain covered everything and then froze. It hasn’t been above freezing since.

I normally have cranberry pecan toast with breakfast. All the birds love the leftovers when I open a new loaf. Sometimes, the store doesn’t have that, and I revert to my old standard, sourdough. If you look closely in the featured photo, you’ll see two crows toward the upper left and center. That’s because:

“Hang on there starlings. I get the first few pieces of sourdough.”

Slow Joe Crow for One-liner Wednesday

Whenever we toss out sourdough pieces, the crows show up first to claim their portion. I don’t know how they know, but they do.

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Bridge to Nowhere

77 responses to “Joe Crow’s Favorite — 1LinerWeds”

  1. I think crows have the intelligence of a 7 year old human and kids know these things, too 😎

    Liked by 2 people

    1. These guys are pretty smart. If we’re not out there early enough, they call to us.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I love crows. They are incredible 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

        1. They really are amazing.

          Liked by 1 person

  2. Is it going to warm up soon? The ice crystals on the Cypress are impressive, Dan.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. They say we might see 40°f (4°c) on Monday. We haven’t been above 32°f (0°c) for over 10 days. The ice is pretty, but walking in treacherous.

      Liked by 1 person

  3. The photos are beautiful — the endless winter, not so much. The ice on the cypress made me reach for my granny shawl. You really got clobbered. The photo from boredom got the LOL from me. Those crows probably have a couple assigned as look-out so they quickly get the word when the word is “sourdough.”

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Maureen. I think the birds and the squirrels have someone stationed on guard duty. The yard is empty, and then it’s full. This morning, Mr. Crow was on the wire across the street. I apologized for being late. Everything is covered in ice. I wasted a good ten minutes trying to focus on that reflection. It still doesn’t look like what I saw, but it’s close.

      Liked by 1 person

  4. I especially liked the “Snow storms at night” photo. My eyes went straight to the street light and then focused on the rest of the photo.

    I also like how you feed the birds leftovers.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Frank. We give them lots of bird seed, but they really seem to like the cut up bread. It’s usually some kind of whole grain, with seeds or fruit mixed in. It attracts a quick crowd.

      Liked by 1 person

  5. If you know that the birds are always watching you, you may end up paranoid 😂

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Watching and waiting, Brian. If we’re late, the call to us. We’ve actually had squirrels knock on the door. I’m just glad none of them are big enough to open the door.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I’ll have King Parrots lined up on the verandah if they feel I should feed them

        Liked by 1 person

  6. Definitely a messy winter, Dan. But that can make for great photos. Crows are VERY smart.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Dave. I wish I could get out for a walk, but the sidewalks and the sides of the street are still very icy. Misty would not be happy with me. The crows are amazing. We do our best to stay on their good side. I’ve heard that they recognize and remember faces.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Frustrating when winter makes walking more difficult, whether for humans or cats. Crows are probably smart enough to wear cleated shoes. :-)

        Liked by 1 person

  7. Based on your residential snow coverage, we are buried because our banks on the sides of the road are at least 4′ high. I’ll look forward to your spring photos as I await melting. :-)

    Liked by 1 person

    1. We don’t have your amount of snow, Judy (I’m OK with that). It looks like we will warm up before any more snow falls. Early next week, they are calling for rain. I hope it has some place to go.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. When we had rain one day, there was no where for it to go so it ponded on the driveway and then turned to ice. Snow is one thing, ice is a whole other thing. Here’s to good drainage at your house.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. Thanks Judy. I’m afraid driveway will be OK, but the yard will be a skating rink. I hope we all get a nice slow melt.

          Liked by 1 person

  8. We lucked out this time. Snow then sleet… but no rain or ice. Husband cleared the driveway twice but the winds were crazy high and the drifts are impressive. Cracking through that top layer was tough going…

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Cracking through that top layer was dangerous here. My wife was walking on top in some places, and then stepped through. It’s a shock. At least the ice is preventing the snow from blowing and drifting.

      Liked by 1 person

  9. The crows here know when it’s garbage day. They go right for our neighbor’s trash. I don’t know what they eat, but crows love the leftovers.
    Thanks for that snow storm at night! That brought back memories; sitting on my window sill watching.

    Liked by 2 people

    1. They are very smart birds, GP. I hope your neighbors don’t eat outside ;-)

      Watching it snow at night has always felt peaceful.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Not to my knowledge, Dan! lol

        Liked by 1 person

    2. GP–you have me laughing. I am waiting for you to start a conversation with your neighbors, “Boy, you guys must eat well..” but I cannot think of a way to let them know how much the birds love their leftovers. 🤔😀

      Liked by 2 people

      1. Since they have often had to come out and re-bag it; I think they know! haha

        Liked by 2 people

  10. You brought winter to life in your photos Dan. The ice covered cypress and the snowstorm at night are awesome pictures. The “bored” photo made me laugh.

    The “winter sunset” is both bleak and beautiful.

    Fantastic shot of Old Glory. With everything that’s going on in this messed up world, it’s good to see her and be reminded that she’s one flag for all Americans.

    Everything is solid ice here too. Well, it’s winter, right? I think Mother Nature needs to get off her meds or start taking some!

    Be careful out there.

    Ginger🦋

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks Ginger. It was good to see how strong Old Glory was against that stiff wind. I hope that means she can stand against anything.

      It was too cold and icy to even try to go for a walk. I thought about not getting any new pictures when I saw the reflection. I never got it quite right, but I like it.

      Stay safe. The ice is treacherous, and the ground is cold and hard. It looks like it might warm up next week.

      Like

  11. Roof leaking is the worst. I feel for the store owner. Great shots, Dan. Right now we have a feels like temperature of 2 degrees. That is not our jam for sure.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. My brother is about 1,000 miles to your north (up I-35). He says the feels like temp is -22 today. Small comfort for you. I can imagine 2-degrees is anything you want to see.

      I feel bad for the store owners. I guess the roof drains ice over, and when the sun or the roof surface melts the pile up there, it’s got nowhere to go.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Always a problem when ice is involved.

        Liked by 1 person

  12. I love cranberry pecan toast! We’re still in a deep freeze with plenty of snow.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. That has become my favorite, Liz. I fall back on sourdough when they don’t have the cranberry pecan loafs. I hope it warms up for you soon.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I don’t mind the cold, as long as my husband doesn’t have to be out in it clearing snow.

        Liked by 1 person

  13. Brrrrr …. cold is not for me any more. But snow and ice make for good photos. Starlings in winter are definitely pack hunters.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The starlings show up in large numbers. We get one or two crows. They come in first, pick up a few bites and then retreat across the street. I love seeing them walk on the ice-covered snow.

      Like

  14. The frozen cypress is so pretty. All the photos are so pretty. We have freeze warnings out for tonight. Down to 31 degrees. 😆

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yikes! That’s pretty cold for you guys.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. It is almost comical the amount of email alerts our power company sends out when we dip down to the low 30s–reminding us to caulk around windows and doors, use electric blankets, set the thermostat and don’t fiddle around with it… We’ll survive. 🙄

        Liked by 1 person

  15. Once a bird or bunny or squirrel knows your game, Dan, they will be there in a hurry for your scraps. I’m guessing it’s a hard time for birds to find food under the snow and ice, so bird feeders and Dan’s pieces of sourdough are their dinner. Hope the warmer weather finds you and melts the ice.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. These guys know where the food will be, and when it’s due to be served. How the crows know we put out sourdough instead of any other kind of bread is beyond me, but they always show up for it.

      Liked by 1 person

  16. Makes me so glad to be wintering in Arizona. :)

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Awww, that’s no fair.

      Like

  17. That ice covered frozen Cypress is gorgeous. It must be one tough tree species to take that and come back in Spring year after year. Your toast sounds yummy.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. We used to have pine trees. The ice would coat every needle. The toast is very good.

      Like

  18. The photo of the desk lamp reflected in your phone is amazing and artistic! The cranberry pecan toast sounds amazing. I don’t think we have that bread here, but I’ll look the next time I’m in the store. Stay warm!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. We find that bread in the bakery department, and it’s usually gone early. Their sourdough breasd is also very good, nice an crunchy crust. I’m glad you liked the lamp photo. It’s amazing what you can get fixated on.

      Liked by 1 person

  19. My friend feeds the crows at her house. She says they’re the messengers. Stay warm!!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Crows are fascinating. We always have a few. Once in a while, in the spring, we have a lot of them. I think it’s when they have juveniles in the nests.

      Like

  20. Interesting, Dan, perhaps the crows can smell the sourdough. Our weather is very rainy and bleak too. We aren’t used to long periods of rain and most people don’t even have rain jackets.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. That could be, Robbie. I know their eyesight is amazing. Your weather sounds like you have your own climate.

      Liked by 1 person

  21. I like your bird photos. Bird brain is often used as an insult but I dunno… some of them seem smart to me.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. The birds around here are very smart, especially the crows. They say they recognize people and remember faces. They also are said to hold a grudge for a long time if you’re mean to them. We’re always nice.

      Liked by 1 person

  22. Cool pics, Dan. I actually love the one of your desk lamp. :)

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Thanks. I like it, too, but I think about the time I spent playingto get it.

      Like

  23. Your caption says you had to protect the Trex from your spikes. What is Trex and where are the spikes? On your shoes?

    Like

  24. That’s funny about the crows… Animals can be so amazing. I sure wish I could send you some sunshine and warm weather, Dan. Hugs.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I wish you could, too. Teagan. You’re warm and windy, we’re cold and windy. The crows are always welcome here.

      Liked by 1 person

  25. Crows are so smart.

    What a lovely bunch of photos, Dan. We received a record-tieing (1898) amount of 72.4cm in four days. What a thing to come home to, eh?

    Liked by 1 person

    1. I was going to ask, weren’t you someplace warm? Welcome home. Thanks.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. I was in the Caribbean and thanks.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. So the ice was all in your glass 😉

          Liked by 1 person

  26. That ice covered cypress photo is amazing!

    Liked by 1 person

  27. Crows are smart and they know their people.
    I like winter shadows too. (K)

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Ours came today to tell me I was late putting out his snack.

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      1. Mine like to complain from the water tower on the roof two buildings over. Perhaps they are reminding their own food source to get moving!

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        1. Ha! You might be right.

          Liked by 1 person

  28. Looks super cold. No one even wants to go shopping!

    Liked by 1 person

    1. No, at least our wind has died down. That was brutal.

      Liked by 1 person

  29. Still no relief from the ice and cold. The highway department gives residents free sand.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Yeah, ours does, too. We’ve used a lot, trying to keep the sidewalk clear.

      Liked by 1 person

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