What's outside of your picture window today?

@johnbishop, and all...You get the best of the best photos of your bird friends. One of my favorites, too, the lovely woodpecker! I do love those birds.

I've been under the weather, even here in Florida that happens...for the last few months since Covid in July. Since then, I've had bronchitis, developed PMR and GCA, and then began purging and selling my home, downsizing for the last time for me. I haven't been able to keep my feeders in good shape at all since Covid, filling them a few times, but not anything since before Christmas. I finally got out a couple of days ago and filled them all, even added several new ones and tossed some old ones. I also covered my plants on the patio and in my front yard. That was a very full day for me!!!!

I'm recuperating from a 2nd round of Covid, since the 1st week in January. Still positive, but after 3 IV infusions of Remvesidir and a visit to the ER for testing and treatment. I got some fluids, an X-ray, CT Scan of my lungs to check for pulmonary embolism. Don't have one but do have COVID-19 pneumonia. I was sent home from the ER since I use my bi-pap with O2 nightly and that keeps my O2 level over 90...the lowest level allowed before hospital admittance at Mayo for COVID-19. Now you have the facts...

So, I'm improving at home, on my bi-pap and O2 for 3 days and nights, and now, just at night. Stayed out of the hospital! That's the goal and thank you God for the home treatments I have to accomplish that!

Now, my birds and your birds who are flying through Florida on the way further south...and found no food on my patio when they flew over...can come by for a good snack now that I have the feeders clean and filled. I hope they didn't all give up on me forever. I've been late getting food out before, but never this badly. I think they'll be back...

When they do come by, I'll take pictures for you and let you enjoy them with me. I do have a lovely white orchid blooming its' little head off downstairs. I'll take a picture later and share it, John. All my rescue plants from last year have done well, and some even had babies! My upstairs windows are filled now with thriving, happy plants making my life better.

I'm taking down my white ceramic Christmas tree today. I enjoyed it so much, made with love by my Mother many years ago. I enjoyed it in my bedroom window, making the entire building more festive and lighting my room day and night with her love and Christmas joy. Here's a picture I think I sent in December. It was the first time in many years I decorated at all for the holidays, the first tree I've had up for years. So, a good thing!

Enjoy my pictures I'll send them via my phone in a few minutes. Still don't know how to get the phone pics to the laptop. One day I'll figure that out, maybe...Blessings, Elizabeth

@joyces and all...Love your property. I'm so sorry for your troubles this year. Global warming is not...You are living in a lovely location you chose for all the right reasons. We never know, however...But, one year does not mean the next decade will not be as wonderful as you planned!

We've had a very light winter this year in Florida. A short 2-day frost in December, unusually early for us, but since, it's been lovely. In the 50s-80s until yesterday. With a cool NNW wind, the wind chill brought us below freezing temps both Saturday night and tonight. I covered my patio tropical plants and in the front yard, thankfully I was feeling better with COVID-19 pneumonia and able to do all that needed doing.

Blessings, my friend. Elizabeth

Hi Elizabeth @ess77, Probably the easiest way to get the photos from your phone to your laptop is to email them to yourself using email on your phone and then open the email on your laptop. The downside is you can't send too many high resolution photos at the same time depending on your email provider and attachment size limits they may have. Sorry to hear you had another round of Covid but happy to hear you are on the mend.

Beautiful John. thanks for sharing!

Hey everyone. I’m new to this thread. Was recommended to come and share to ideally warm up a few upper midwesterners. My wife and I are originally from Minnesota but have lived here in Costa Rica for 2 years now. Here is what’s out my window right now.

Wow! What a glorious view, John! Let’s see if I can identify that orange globe the sky? LOL. It’s been weeks since I’ve seen that in person! Thank you for sharing this dream vision. What a contrast to this midwesterner’s view today with the ice storm moving toward us…

@loribmt, @johnbishop, @johngrudnowski and all...Wow, is right! The first word comes to mind is Wow! So beautiful, John and what a glorious opening of your day. Makes you extra, extremely grateful for each day you have...each gift of a morning! Thank you for sharing.

My northern Florida day is in the 60s currently, up to 70-80s the rest of this week. I love waking each morning with my new day peeking through the huge, strong, beautiful limbs of my old live oak tree that spans the entire front of the building now...which Spanish moss and squirrel nests, lots of birds, owls and life waking me each day. Not your vision, but a good way to start each day with gratitude!

Enjoy your special place. Blessings, Elizabeth

I am jealous. Why did you decide to go there? How does Costa Rica provide health care?

John, great photo, although you're just killin' me! This is the 15th year that development far up the steep hill above my old growth spruce acreage means that my driveway's either flooded or in danger of being flooded from Nov 1 thru end of March. I park far from the house, at the very edge of the road, just past the creek culvert. It means donning boots and carrying everything across the creek and up the hill to the house...cranky, cranky, cranky. In addition, last week we had, OMG, real ICE for the first time in my 62 years here, very close to the ocean where it almost never gets below about 35. No power (which means no water from our well). No way to charge my phone because there was a downed wire lying across my ice-laden car. I learned that our wonderful Earth stove cannot adequately heat our 1600 SF house when it's only 25 outside, but also how to cook on the top of the stove instead of digging my camp stove out of all the camp gear in the back storage space. Lots of alder wood to salvage, before the next time we lose power!

@joyces, @blackcat, @johngrudnowski and all...Joyce, I'm so sorry you had these tough issues...I can only imagine, based on my experiences with hurricanes in Florida and flooding due to rainy years and seasons...seasons we have every year, the rainy years come about every decade-we go from less rain, dryer years to heavier rainy years by decades, so I ignore all the climate stuff for us. We seem to have our pretty dependable climate cycles.

Bless you, my friend. Hopefully, this will be your only climate attack this year. I don't know how you handle the boots and parking away from your home. I'd not be physically able to survive that problem!

Be safe, blessings...Elizabeth