Paradox Pizza owner Susan sponsored a team, made up of me and my coworkers Liz and Steph.  We were one of 19 teams.  We had no idea what to expect, as none of us had been in a spelling bee since our own school days.  They gave us an extensive list of words to study, which we did.  By the night of the spelling bee, we knew all the words on the list inside out and backwards.  We were very secure in our spelling prowess.  That’s Liz, me and Steph below.

The format of the spelling bee was utterly foreign to us.  We were to sit on the stage with three other teams, each with a chalkboard on which to write our word.  The four teams would be given ONE word, and anyone spelling it correctly stayed in, and incorrect spellers would be eliminated.  Of all the words given over the course of the entire evening, only ONE was actually on the list we were given.  Team Paradox got eliminated on the first round, with the word ‘perquisite’, which none of us had heard before, and the definition the pronouncer gave was not understandable.  GRRRR.  The actual spelling portion of the evening was over in less than an hour, thanks to words like ‘eurytherm’, ‘nyctalopia’, ‘eupepsia’, and others.

To say that the three of us were disappointed is a bit of an understatement.  In any case, we now know what to expect if there IS a Second Annual Moab Adult Spelling Bee.

Here are some photos of some of our competition (many are left out, as good photos were hard to come by):

Backcountry Trail Rides, Buck’s Grillhouse and ‘I’ll Take 4 Letter Words For $100, Alex’:

KZMU, Sloan Law Firm Beehives and The Spelling Elvises:

Team School Board, The Vicious Vampires, and Zions Bank Spellbounders:

…and last but certainly not least, here are the winners.  Canyonlands Community Recycling:

Here’s a photo of the pronouncer, who didn’t enunciate well, and pronounced ‘malfeasance’ as ‘mal FEE ance’.  Double GRRRRR.

At the end of the spelling bee, all the teams had to return to stage to have our costumes judged.  Here we are, prancing about.

So, we didn’t win.  I guess that’s all okay, as the prizes for the winners were turkeys.  Not even Butterball turkeys…I think they were Norbest.  Next year, we’ll triumph.

I really don’t want any of this to sound like we didn’t have fun – we had a GREAT time.  Learning new words, laughing with friends, etc.  It was a great experience, and I thank Susan for sponsoring us, and Liz and Steph for being good sports, too.  Also, thanks Rich and Mom for coming to the spelling bee to support us and laugh at / with us!

Canada Goose – 57
Eurasian Collared-Dove – 4
White-winged Dove – 1
Red-naped Sapsucker – 1
Northern Flicker (Red-shafted) – 2
Black-billed Magpie – 2
American Crow – 17
Common Raven – 18
American Robin – 2
Cedar Waxwing – 32
Dark-eyed Junco – 7
House Finch – 32
Pine Siskin – 24
Lesser Goldfinch – 4
American Goldfinch – 1
House Sparrow – 40

Here are some photos from the day of the count (yes, I know I posted the red-naped sapsucker in the last ‘blog, but here he is again!).  Common Ravens, a raven with something like a tortilla in his beak, and my Red-Naped Sapsucker (this is the photo I entered in the GBBC photo contest – It’s not great, but it was better than some…).

The tabulators (or whatever they are called) for the bird count didn’t believe my sighting of my White-Winged Dove (visit the link, and note the map).  I e-mailed back and forth with them for 3 weeks before they finally accepted my identification of her.  I had to send photos.  She IS way out of her usual territory.  She should be wintering somewhere like Mexico or the Caribbean.  She has been hanging around my yard, though, since early December.  Here is a picture of her, and a picture of her with a Eurasian Collared-Dove for comparison – she is the nearer dove.

The rest of the photos below are not from the GBBC, but from other days.

Here is one of our yard Northern (red-shafted) Flickers.  This is Mrs. Flicker, and she was hammering away at our metal roof, in hopes of finding…?  Who knows.

These are: a Juniper Titmouse (left), and a House Finch on the birdfeeder in my parents’ side yard, a White-Crowned Sparrow, and a female Audubon’s Yellow-Rumped Warbler.

Okay, here’s one for fun.  He was spotted (ha ha ha) on Feb. 18, while we were counting birds, but really he doesn’t count – he lives in a nice coop/pen configuration at the Youth Garden Project just down the road from my house.  I am not sure what kind of chicken he is, but he’s VERY fancy, and very proud of himself.

There are also new birds coming to the yard to visit, eat bugs and wake us up in the mornings.   In the past two weeks, we’ve had a hairy woodpecker (who is a new addition to my life list), two red-naped sapsuckers, many American and lesser goldfinches, and more.

My front flower beds are a disgrace this year.  I am not sure how to get rid of the Bermuda grass in the beds at the advanced stage it is.  It cuts my fingers up when I try to pull it, and with gloves, the best I can do is break it off. It doesn’t leave the ground.   However, I have noticed that where lilies are growing in the bed, there is little to no Bermuda grass.  This is good.  Lilies = no weeds.   Note to self: Plant more lilies!   Below, you’ll see what I am talking about.  The dead brown stuff is Bermuda grass, and the pale green shoots are lilies.

Here are some flowers to brighten the day:

Hopefully some less dingy photos coming soon!