One of the blue bird boxes I monitor occasionally is inside a small fenced in family cemetary that predates the Vanderbilts arrival in Asheville. The above stone commemorates those buried in this small plot. Below are a couple of bees feasting on a thistle nearby.

These baby birds clearly were in the mood to be fed. The guy below who is a bit older seems to be having a bad hair day. Until the feathers are fairly mature at around the two week point, these birds can look pretty bizarre.