"One friend in a lifetime is much; two are many; three are hardly possible.  Friendship needs a certain parallelism of life, a community of thought, a rivalry of aim."

~ Henry Brooks Adams (1838 - 1918) American novelist, journalist, member of the political Adams family.  The Education of Henry Adams [1907, ch. 4.

"The most effective way to learn bird songs is to listen to recordings made in the field and produced commercially as cassette tapes or discs.  The best ones are made by the Cornell University Laboratory of Ornithology and published by the Houghton Mifflin Company.  [Check other sources; update this information.] 

A lot of ornithologists write lyrics for bird melodies ~ actual words and sentences that birds would use if they could talk instead of just whistle. 
"Here are a few of the more famous results:  Drink your tea ~ (rufous-sided towhee), Old Sam Peabody Peabody Peabody! (white-throated sparrow), Teacher Teacher Teacher! (oven-bird), Sweet, Sweet Sweeter than Sweet! (Yellow warbler), Quick Three Beers! (olive-sided flycatcher), Pizza! (Acadian flycatcher). "

Our Mum always heard Polly, Polly put the kettle on when the oriole sang.

~ Wild Birds of Canada, Tim Fitzharris, Toronto Oxford University Press, 1989.

Neighbouring Caledonia

Travelling in Haldimand one observes village downtown improvements.  Dunnville, Hagersville, Caledonia were extensively revitalized.  Small hamlets have experienced new sidewalks and curbs.  Rural roads have been up-grated.

This summer Cayuga saw Talbot Street, Hwy 3, torn up and modernized with provision for future underground cables.  Construction of the new bridge is complete.  It will be moved into place in 2015 on new foundations.  Perhaps the most visible improvements will be the planned Cayuga Street changes ~ the old business section.  Watching neighbouring villages,  we wonder with excitement what the new Cayuga will look like.

Oh for a book and a shady nook,
     Either indoor or out,
With the green leaves whispering overhead,
  Or the street cries all about,
Where I may read all at my ease
     Both of the new and old,
For a jolly good book whereon to look
Is better to me than gold.

~ John Wilson (1785 - 1854)  Scottish poet
[pseud. Christopher North]

ODE TO AUTUMN

SEASONS of mists and mellow fruitfulness,
Close bosom-friend of the maturing sun;
Conspiring with him how to load and bless
With fruit the vines that round the thatch-eaves run;
To bend with apples the moss'd cottage-trees,
And fill all fruit with ripeness to the core;
To swell the gourd, and plump the hazel shells
With a sweet kernel; to set budding more,
And still more, later flowers for the bees,
Until they think warm days will never cease;
For Summer has o'erbrimm'd their clammy cells.

~ J. Keats (Oct. 31, 1795 - Feb. 23, 1821)  English Romantic poet.

"Making scrapbook albums is not only fun and rewarding, it is also an invaluable vehicle of communication.  Finding the right words is usually the most difficult, yet most important, part of scrapbooking.
Every family seems to have stories that are told generation after generation to define them, where they have come from, and where they are today.
You may be the only person in your family or circle of friends who will take the time to write the important details and feelings of events and relationships.  Whether you are writing about mistakes made, victories earned, or simply documenting your feelings about your loved ones, your words will be priceless to you and will help others piece together their own stories.
Sometimes what  you're writing may seem trivial at the time, but later on, you'll find that the little things are what tie us all together through the generations."

 ~ Melody Ross, what to write To Make Meaningful Albums. 2004 Chatterbox Inc., LLC.

[Check out our HOBBIES section ~ including scrapbooking.]