Hello, readers! One thing in my life that brings me joy is watching birds. My birdwatching is not done out in the wild, binoculars in hand, but simply looking out my kitchen window at the birdfeeder in my backyard. There is something very special about seeing all the visiting birds, and my family and I … Continue reading Backyard Birdwatching
Animals
Do Ewe Love Sheep, Too?
Hello, readers! I have had a long fascination with sheep, as those who have known me can attest. I’m not sure when it began, but perhaps it was watching British television shows and seeing those pastoral views of sheep grazing in a green field. Or maybe it was books such as those by James Herriot, … Continue reading Do Ewe Love Sheep, Too?
National Picture Book Month
November is National Picture Book Month! What a great excuse to talk about picture books. I freely confess, I'm a picture book fanatic. When we get shipments of new books at the library, the picture books are usually the ones I'm most excited about. Picture books offer so much, in both words and pictures. They … Continue reading National Picture Book Month
National Parks and Recreation Month
Hi Shelf Life Readers! Happy National Parks and Recreation month! I am writing to you from the Jackson County Public Library but if you tried to find me during the summer months from 2012 to 2015, you would’ve had to look deep in the wilderness of either the Sumter or Chattahoochee National Forest, where I … Continue reading National Parks and Recreation Month
The (Irresistible) American Museum of the House Cat
We love cats, right? (Right, mom?) A month or so ago my sweetie pie and I visited the American Museum of the House Cat in Sylva. We’d actually just moved to Sylva and I figured out how to give directions to our new house using the museum as a landmark (the directions make no sense … Continue reading The (Irresistible) American Museum of the House Cat
Let’s clear the air: a Vulture is not a Buzzard
Today’s blog focuses on the Turkey Vulture, another one of the most commonly seen birds here in the Southeast. Before we talk about identifying characteristics though, I thought we could dive into the semantics of the terms vulture and buzzard, because it can be pretty confusing. Before researching this topic, whenever I heard the … Continue reading Let’s clear the air: a Vulture is not a Buzzard
The Broad-winged Hawk
Hello readers! In my previous (and first ever) blog post I wrote about the differences between the Red-tailed Hawk and the Red-shouldered Hawk. We discovered how the Red-tailed is bigger than the Red-shouldered and how it is more likely to be seen in our area as well. In this blog we will talk about the … Continue reading The Broad-winged Hawk
More movies worth re-watching
As the holidays loom in front of us, many of us might find ourselves with some spare time and looking to watch some movies at home (instead of going to see The Last Jedi). I’d like to suggest some movies to consider for your copious spare time, beginning with a seasonal/perennial special, Rudolph the … Continue reading More movies worth re-watching
Thy Neighbor’s Anteater
People are always asking me, “Luke, why do Americans spend billions of dollars on cats and dogs every year, without hesitation, but only hundreds of dollars on anteaters?” Well, that’s a complicated question and there are no simple answers. Like most Americans, I have mixed feelings about anteaters. There is something about them that seems … Continue reading Thy Neighbor’s Anteater
Shelf Life in the Mountains 