Fear Not The Hooded One

This year's first shot of a male hooded oriole sitting high in the ocotillo.  
I figured out how to get mom to drink Ensure (nutritional supplement drink): use it to make a fruit smoothie.  This morning it was strawberry-banana.  I even tossed in a little vanilla ice cream to add a few calories.  I learned another trick.  Knowing that she'll only eat a half of a sandwich, I cut the bun in half and used the same amount of cheese and ham that I would have on a whole one.  Honestly, it's like when I was a little kid and she was trying to trick me into eating brussel sprouts.

Short but sweet(?):
A little old man shuffled slowly into an ice cream parlor and pulled himself slowly, painfully, up onto a stool… After catching his breath, he ordered a banana split. The waitress asked kindly, 'Crushed nuts?' 'No,' he replied, 'Arthritis.'