Wild weather

The wind is swaying tree trunks.  It's very warm at dawn but supposed to plunge 40 degrees by tomorrow.  There are layers of clouds with occasional glimpses of blue.  The dark, low clouds race out of the Southwest.  The ground is wet but it's not raining.  Before sunrise, a towhee, sparrows, cardinals, and chickadees had arrived.  They mostly left as it got lighter.  The squirrel with the white spot on her hip came by. Gulls and crows are playing with the gusts while pelicans fly low.

Around mid-morning the rain began.  Squirrels were not deterred and, in a lull, a wren and sparrows competed with them for peanut bits.  One squirrel has a very short tail - I noticed because another was using its tail as an umbrella.  A flock of robins took brief refuge in the oak.  The clouds continue to stream past but I think the wind has shifted a bit and is more West to East. 

The clouds broke around 4pm.  A great blue heron basked on the bulkhead in the late afternoon light.  There was great sky drama, first with the sunlight on trees against the dark and stormy East, then a flaming sunset in the West.