UPDATED: Look at this guy making himself at home in my backyard now. He’s got nerve a’plenty. The only thing left for him now has got to be knocking on my sliding door and asking if he can use my phone.
Apparently, I’ve got my own hawk. The next door neighbor told me he hangs around in back of our fences and here he is. I took some pics from inside the house hoping not to scare him away but within a minute I slid open the door, stepped outside and slowly advanced towards him, one photo at a time and he never moved except to swivel his head around. Then I gave a test cough to see if he’d be alarmed and take off, but he wasn’t and he didn’t.
So he must think of my fence as his territory and he’s not afraid of people. Two things:
- I think I’ll wear a hat outside until I am safely enclosed by a pool cage. Maybe a helmet.
- I wonder if he’s strong enough to carry away an adult male corgi?
Also, I saw what I assume was a baby heron strolling around the parking lot of World Market earlier today but I wasn’t quick enough to get a picture. It looked to be a perfectly formed heron but was only ~18″ tall. This is pretty good. In NJ, only pigeons and seagulls strolled through the parking lots.
Update: I’m enjoying this photo of the setting sun shining on the pine trees that I took about an hour after the hawk picture. I didn’t enjoy it in person because I was pushing/dragging a lawn mover and a generator from the garage to the shed. I like the part where I’m down here alone and no one tells me what to do (or tries to tell me ha ha as if) but I do not like the part where I have to do my own lifting, carrying and pushing.
Also, this wacky grass around here. We have that sideways crab-grassy stuff called St. Augustine Grass in the front but in the back, its mixed grasses. Whatever they are, they form a kind of surface mat on top. That stuff is about 6″ high now and I was worried I’d find the snake that the hawk was looking for.
So I’m pretending the coloring here is autumn leaves in NJ* and then I’m putting on flip flops and cutting the sleeves off of my old jerseys so I can be more comfortable tomorrow when I move the giant air compressor around.
*where by the way, a light dusting of snow fell this morning.
Cripes Suzette 
2. Probably not, but you do have Golden and Bald Eagles.
Stedman will be relieved.
You moved in the nick of time. No snow would almost be worth the move.
Not only that – but I escaped Denver’s first snowstorm of the season by about 20 hours.
Karma!
I’m a stealth reader. I’ve been enjoying your blog for years! Congrats on your new home. And the bird you thought was a heron is possibly a least bittern.
Hi Ama, I just looked up a least bittern and that wasn’t it. My parking lot bird was tall (18″ maybe 20) and slim and bright white. If I go by the description on this page, it was an adolescent great egret.
Welcome to Florida, it seems you arrived just in time!
There are lots of hawks around here and plenty of other predator birds. A couple of weeks ago I was out in my yard and a hawk snatched a squirrel out of my yard maybe 2 or 3 feet from where I was standing, scared me……startled me. The hawk came from behind me and flew over my head creating a slight breeze as he whizzed by me and snatched the squirrel and flew off. I felt badly for the squirrel as I was sneaking up on him myself, he had just noticed me and in that moment froze then swoosh he was lunch.
So neighbor you were at World Market? I only know of two and they’re a pretty long drive from here, am I missing out on something?? Did they build a new World Market close by?
“… as I was sneaking up on him myself …” This is how I know for sure that we are going to be friends. 🙂
I went to the World Market on Marsh Landing Parkway in Jacksonville Beach. I HAD TO because I’m already tired of River City Marketplace.
One of my deep regrets about leaving New Jersey was that I wouldn’t be able to shop at Christmas Tree Shops anymore. Then one of my Instagram acquaintances informed me that one is opening in Jacksonville in December! Have you ever been? It’s a very large store with a rapid turnover of unnecessary but irresistible items for every season. The first thing I ever bought there was a wine bottle cover done in a material similar to a green astroturf doormat, complete with white plastic flower. Irresistible! You are going to love it there.