Sooty Tern

Last night Patrick texted me, wanting to know if I could transport a bird from Feather & Fur to Hawaiian Air Cargo. Because Curtis & I switched my Friday morning off with Thursday, I could! The bird needing a ride to the airport was an adult Sooty Tern (Onychoprion fuscatus); called ‘Ewa‘Ewa  in Hawaiian.


This morning we had a Care Conference for Dad; this is the 2nd one in as many months since they forgot one. We should now be back on schedule to meet every quarter with the staff. There are 4 different aspects that are covered in the Care Conference: medical, dietary, activities, and social services. RN Fred went through all the medications and supplements that Dad is taking, his weight management, intake of liquids, POLST directives, and daily procedures. Jody read the dietary report prepared by Alyssa; most of it was already covered by Fred, but did include that the weight they are aiming for is 130 to 140 pounds. Dad is at 141.3 pounds. For activities Jody noted that Dad likes to see Lynne & Gloria during their ukulele session; he also likes to watch Chin when she does her Korean taiko drumming. Under social services, Fely discussed Dad's upcoming swallow test and how they help residents with lining up transportation to various medical appointments. It was good to get everyone on the same page.

I started the day with a walk that began 21 minutes before sunrise; that's a little too early, less birds were out at that time. I did not hear or see quite as many Spotted Doves as I do when I start closer to sunrise. There were also no Common Mynas drinking nectar from the African Tulip Tree flowers. I took a photo of the hāpuʻu from the outside of the wall; this is from one of the photopoints I established for the replacement project. I have noticed that a pair of Red-Whiskered Bulbuls hangs out in this area of Lurline; there is another pair that hangs out by the park.

Twenty-one minutes before sunrise on Maunalani.

Sunrise on Sierra.

Photopoint 1; hāpuʻu is behind the wall to the right of the invasive Australian tree fern.

Red-whiskered Bulbul; it is in the clump of palms behind the fern seen in the photo above.

When I leave the house each morning one of my chores is to pick up the newspaper and put it inside. I couldn't find it this morning and assumed it landed under one of the cars; I figured I would find it when I got home after walking. And I did, though not where I thought it would be!

It stayed in place up and down Maunalani! I wonder what the drivers behind me thought?

After breakfast we went to Dadʻs Care Conference, then I did my mid-morning walk. I saw a woman puttering around with plants at one of the houses with the bush with the large yellow flowers; I asked her what they were. She said, "Buttercup," and gave me one of the flowers. There are several plants called "buttercup" that I know of and that I have found on an Internet search; none of them are this plant. There is the Genus Ranunculus which contains many wetland species including several that I used to work with. There is the Genus Allamanda, of which there are many Allamanda cathartica shrubs on my walk; but thatʻs not this.



Further up the road, I saw Bo Derek; no, not the actress. The dog that I had met a couple weeks ago; she was walking with Matthew who had gotten bitten by some other dogs earlier in the day. Bo Derek lives at this house but Matthew takes her for walks.

Bo Derek hanging out on the garage roof.

I skipped my afternoon walk since I got back from dropping the Sooty Tern off at the airport with just enough time to grab my things and head up to Maunalani. Curtis had gotten Dad in to the mobile lounge chair they use in the Namaste massage; they were out on the 3rd floor lanai enjoying the fresh air and cool breezes. I stayed out there with Dad for another couple of hours & birded while he snoozed. Later Sam helped me take him inside to participate in the exercise session with Chin and her Korean taiko drum.

Hanging out on the 3rd floor lanai.

Dad snoozes before Chinʻs exercise class.

Sam wheels Dad in for Chinʻs exercise class.

Dad stayed in the mobile lounge chair so I had them wheel him in to the Orchid Dining Room and he ate while watching TV. After that he needed to head to bed since his okole was sore; he stayed in the mobile lounge chair about 6 hours!

Watching TV during dinner.

Chibi's breathing is still sounding horrible. Dr. Sylvester called to check in on her. Tomorrow she goes in for a check-up to see how she is doing. I have not been able to get her to eat, but at least the meds are easier to get in to her since they are either subcutaneous injections or transdermal.

L to R: prednisolone, simbadol, & mirtazapine.

Hauʻoli lā Hānau to Karen, Gloria, & Barbara!