When I think of outdoor living I usually envision hiking, camping, fishing, and outdoor recreation in general. I’m just completing a couple of backyard projects, redoing a fence around our garden and making a surround for the mulch pile. Since I decided to bury some half inch mesh to keep out the burrowing critters, I dug a trench a foot deep around the entire garden to handle that part of the project. Somewhere along the way it seemed like a lot of work. Certainly not recreation. On the plus side, it looks great now, and we have vegetables planted in the raised beds inside the fenced area. Now I’m looking forward to fresh salads and meals on the deck. That will seem more like outdoor living. Of course, being outside brings its advantages. You get to see more wildlife, if you stop to notice once in a while. Yesterday we discovered a nest belonging to a pair of Baltimore Orioles. That has been a treat. Golden finches have been visiting the yard as well. They are so brightly colored this time of season. I haven’t seen them nest yet, and have wondered if they tend to nest in small flocks the way they seem to go about their normal daily routines.
I haven’t decided whether my Murder on the Road series protagonist, Bobby Navarro, is interested in birds yet. It’s funny, but the writer can give a protagonist some traits, but others seem to emerge. At least, that’s how it has worked for me. When the protagonist’s traits show up, seemingly on their own, they fit the character well. That’s important, so I think I’ll let the bird thing evolve on its own. I do see Bobby appreciative of migrating geese because he shares their wanderlust. I think he would find crows and ravens interesting because they are at home in the woods, on the plains, or in the desert, another shared quality. Since I’m setting my next Bobby Navarro mystery in Florida, Bobby will be seeing some birds he doesn’t normally encounter. I’ve got to give some thought to his reactions to them. Actually, I’m suddenly just curious to see what they turn out to be.
Lettuce in the garden
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