Something Bright and Orange

My computer is in a corner of the dining room where I can see all of the front yard. It’s like the command center, and I love it. This is where I first see new birds, I can watch the horses in the pasture, and even though I’ve let the trees grow to block the view of the road, I can still see what’s going on out there.

This has been a lovely morning. A really fat little hummingbird is buzzing around the geranium that's growing up into the camellia bush in front of the window. There is some kind of new bird out there that is a real shrieker. No way you could call that sound a “song.” I’ll have to investigate that.

Then suddenly I see a flash of orange. What’s that? An oriole? I love orioles and the mulberries are ripe, it could be an oriole.

Maybe it’s just the tree rose.


Nope, it’s something out by the highway.


Oh. It’s the bad boys out picking up trash on this lovely day.


For those of you in England (my one follower from there), the bad boys are fellows who have broken a minor law or two and serve part of their sentence by doing public service. In this case, they’re out picking up trash along the roadway. OK, they're orange, but maybe not so bright. There are sheriffs in charge of them and they’re followed by a white van that pulls 2 porta potties on a trailer. Why 2? Because sometimes there are bad girls on the crew also.

This is the road crew, California-style. Things may still be a bit more rugged in Texas and Alabama, like you’d see in an old Paul Newman movie.