#birdin — Public Fediverse posts

Good morning. 🌲🌳🪾

3 August 2026

My grandfather clock has started chiming three minutes early, so I need to deal with that. I usually reset the time to match my phone whenever I wind it, unless I’ve managed to misplace the phone — which happens more often than I’d like to admit. Winding the clock means using a small crank to raise three brass weights that hang from brass chains.

The old Black Forest clock is about twenty‑five years old now, but it still ticks like a champ — knock on wood. We picked it up the last time we lived in Germany. The only real trouble we’ve had with it was when the lock on the front door broke and we couldn’t open it. That becomes a major crisis when winding time rolls around. We had to track down a clock repair person to get it open and replace the lock. He suggested we simply stop locking it, and my first thought was, well, duh — I should’ve figured that out myself.

Inside the clock, down each side, are two narrow glass shelves. Sitting on them are four ten‑inch‑tall white porcelain clown‑musician figurines with gold‑leaf hats and accents and sapphire‑colored Swarovski crystal buttons — souvenirs from a porcelain factory we visited in Italy. Of all the figurines we have, they’re my favorites: simple yet elegant.

That reminds me — the first time we visited Italy was in the ’80s, before the euro became a thing. We took a million lire with us. Just saying “a million lire” made me feel well‑off, even though it was only the equivalent of about seven to eight hundred dollars. We were actually packing lire, marks, and dollars. Nowadays it’s mostly euros everywhere. We were living in Germany when that country switched currency.

Oops, I’m past my character limit.

“Clocks slay time… time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels.” —William Faulkner

“Memory is the treasury and guardian of all things.” —Cicero

#photo #photography #nature#birds #birdin #morning #landscape #egrets #grandfatherclock #travel #currency

Good morning. 🌲🌳🪾

3 August 2026

My grandfather clock has started chiming three minutes early, so I need to deal with that. I usually reset the time to match my phone whenever I wind it, unless I’ve managed to misplace the phone — which happens more often than I’d like to admit. Winding the clock means using a small crank to raise three brass weights that hang from brass chains.

The old Black Forest clock is about twenty‑five years old now, but it still ticks like a champ — knock on wood. We picked it up the last time we lived in Germany. The only real trouble we’ve had with it was when the lock on the front door broke and we couldn’t open it. That becomes a major crisis when winding time rolls around. We had to track down a clock repair person to get it open and replace the lock. He suggested we simply stop locking it, and my first thought was, well, duh — I should’ve figured that out myself.

Inside the clock, down each side, are two narrow glass shelves. Sitting on them are four ten‑inch‑tall white porcelain clown‑musician figurines with gold‑leaf hats and accents and sapphire‑colored Swarovski crystal buttons — souvenirs from a porcelain factory we visited in Italy. Of all the figurines we have, they’re my favorites: simple yet elegant.

That reminds me — the first time we visited Italy was in the ’80s, before the euro became a thing. We took a million lire with us. Just saying “a million lire” made me feel well‑off, even though it was only the equivalent of about seven to eight hundred dollars. We were actually packing lire, marks, and dollars. Nowadays it’s mostly euros everywhere. We were living in Germany when that country switched currency.

Oops, I’m past my character limit.

“Clocks slay time… time is dead as long as it is being clicked off by little wheels.” —William Faulkner

“Memory is the treasury and guardian of all things.” —Cicero

#photo #photography #nature#birds #birdin #morning #landscape #egrets #grandfatherclock #travel #currency

A female Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) takes a breather on a branch of our Fuyu persimmon tree #bird #birds #annashummingbird #hummingbird #birdin #garden #lionstail #native #photography #pollinators 🪶

A female Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) takes a breather on a branch of our Fuyu persimmon tree #bird #birds #annashummingbird #hummingbird #birdin #garden #lionstail #native #photography #pollinators 🪶

A female Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) sizes up a Leonotis leonurus aka Lions Tail in the garden July 27th, 2024 #bird #birds #hummingbird #birdin #garden #lionstail #native #photography #pollinators 🪶

A female Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) sizes up a Leonotis leonurus aka Lions Tail in the garden July 27th, 2024 #bird #birds #hummingbird #birdin #garden #lionstail #native #photography #pollinators 🪶

A female Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) grabs nectar from a Leonotis leonurus aka Lions Tail in the garden July 27th, 2024 #bird #birds #hummingbird #birdin #garden #lionstail #native #photography #pollinators 🪶

A female Anna's hummingbird (Calypte anna) grabs nectar from a Leonotis leonurus aka Lions Tail in the garden July 27th, 2024 #bird #birds #hummingbird #birdin #garden #lionstail #native #photography #pollinators 🪶

Now some familiar whistles from the #Starlings. Welcome back, you synchro-flight champs. #Birds #Birdin.g #LeBretonFlats