Reason for a Change-Mitch’s Blog

I was on Lake Monroe on Sunday, far back in the islands area north of Pine Grove in Jojo’s canoe. As we quietly moved towards flooded woods, I realized he was heading right towards a beaver lodge.

Coming back from our bike ride on Bottom Rd on Saturday last, Jojo and I spotted a snow goose grazing with some Canada geese in the field across from the water treatment plant. I checked with Dawn Hewitt at the HT, and she reported that Bloomington birders Jim Mitchell, Dave Crouch, and James Dodd saw the same individual at Griffey Lake. I understand that they are pretty rare in this part of the world at this time of year, normally snow geese are in Canada by now.

The squirrels in Dunn’s Woods are a happy bunch, but they must be very wary of the Cooper’s hawks in spring and early summer. But with so many people around, there is always something to eat, and all the squirrels look healthy.

I’ve counted and mapped all the nests in the woods, and at the beginning of this spring, there were over 30 nests visible. But I don’t think they are all inhabited, there seem to be no more than a dozen squirrels active in the woods. This guy is relaxing near Bryan Hall where someone threw down some cracked corn.

I was walking around last week when I thought to stop by last year’s hawk next in the woods, I thought I heard a hawklike squawk, then saw one fly into an upper branch about a hundred feet from the nest. This week I saw a pair, I am pretty sure the bigger one is the female, and she flew onto a branch with the male, and proceeded to eat what looked like a small mammal, while he kept watch.

Then today I saw what appears a new nest a few hundred yards from the bigger original, and I’ve seen the mom sitting on the nest, and the dad swooping down from the incredibly high beech tree and fly through the woods. If I stand on one of the pathways for a while, I am able to spot one of them, often after hearing them call. In a few weeks, the babies will be calling for food all day long, that is how I spotted them last year, and I will be keeping a close eye on their growth.

Two weekends ago, Jojo and I saw a courting display by hawks on the ridge overlooking Lake Lemon, and the week before I saw the same at Dubois Ridge Rd.

Emma has decided to be a one woman NGO, is raising money for a girl who wants to go to school to become a nurse. Here is her message:

Dear everybody,

Have you ever wanted to send some money to Africa, but was afraid it would get embezzled by corrupt officials or organizations? Of course you have, and that’s probably what would happen to your money if you sent it to Africa! But not anymore, because Honest Em is here to offer you a chance to give like you never gave(?) before.

I have a group of kids aged 10-17 who meet almost daily for their Straight Talk Club. They practice songs, dramas, and discuss questions about health and HIV. They also have an amazing garden and a nursery for coffee trees. This whole project is run by an amazing girls named Tapither Namono. She is 18, and she wants to be a nurse She is also an HIV orphan and lives with an aunt in my village, Magale. School is not free here, and her aunt is not willing to pay school fees for her to become a Nursing Assistant. She needs fees for one year which will total about 700,000 Ugandan Shillings or 425 US Dollars per year. I am determined to get this girl through school, so any help would be appreciated. I am going to just spend my pitiful Peace Corps allowance on it otherwise. Her first term would begin in April, so only half of a year ($215) would be due at that date.

So here is the deal, you either send a check to my Mom or give her cash. She deposits the money into my account and I take it out from Uganda. It’s that easy!

Also, if you can’t donate but you know someone who can, could you please forward this email to them?

Thanks so much,
Emma

To ask questions:
Emma Rice
alleykitten7@gmail.com
PO Box 62
Mbale
Uganda
cell phone: 011+256 75 1700 564
Send money to:
Eileen Rice
1215 E. Hunter Ave.
Bloomington, IN
47401
812-334-3852

I was at work on the Friday before Easter, when peace broke out in front of the army recruiting office on Kirkwood Ave. The people sang, and laid done in front of the door, all in the pouring rain. The 2 police officers there finally walked across the street to Noodles to get a cup of coffee, and then like the rain, it was done.

I serve on the Board of Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard, our community food pantry.

Our philosophy falls some where between the Diggers and Mom. It was founded by single mothers trying help each other and they wanted whole nutritious foods for their families. The cupboard now distributes free food, often organic and locally grown, to anyone in need, no paperwork, authentication, tax forms; nothing but your signature affirming compliance with our guidelines. Like Mom, we want everyone in our family (our community) to be well fed and healthy. We run with minimal staff, our volunteers are the heart of the organization, people helping each other.

We have three parts to the organization’s outreach, our food pantry at 1010S. Walnut, our nutrition education classes, and our community gardens programs.

The vibe at MHC is like a cooperative, people helping each other, we are not a charity. Mother Hubbard’s Cupboard needs to grow, we are the largest distributer using the Hoosier Hills Food Bank, and our customer numbers have grown by 20% in the last year.

At our last board meeting, Sophia Travis came to pick up her husband Greg (who is on the board), and got to hold Rebecca’s son Donovan, I got this great snapshot.

Our next big event is the Harvest Team Breakfast on March 6, 2008, where we ask you to come to an early breakfast, and then ask you for money. I will be contacting you soon to see if you can attend!

We had a light snow in December, and when we came back from North Carolina, it snowed again here in Indiana on New Year’s Day. We woke up late after a great party and Sue and Katie’s, the food and company were great as usual. I went out after lunch time, the snow was big and fluffy, you can see it in many of the pictures on my Picasa album here.

After lunch most days, I take a walk around the woods behind Bryan Hall, and I’ve become friends with some of the squirrels that live there. When I called this one, he scampered up a tree as soon as I gave him a piece of caramel popcorn), then sat on the shelf mushroom room while chowing down on his treat.

Last spring I noticed the family of Cooper’s Hawks in the woods, and even though they have long since moved out, their next became visible after the leaves fell. This nest is really different than the many squirrel nests in the forest, it is made entirely of sticks and is about twice the size of the squirrels’ leafy bowers. The snow scenes are from the Dec 15th snow in the woods.

Eileen and I spent Thanksgiving with about 30 other folks at Sue and Katy’s house, and the big hit of the party was the Xbox game Guitar Hero, most everyone played, and I tried, but just could not get the hang of it. Dinner was great, with tons of good food, Eileen made baked apples, and there were three kinds of stuffing.