Greetings All: I spent most of my day - the wrong direction from the redstart in Yoakum County - exploring Crosby and Dickens Counties. Highlights in Lubbock County on the way out in the morning: 2 Cackling Geese, 3 Snowy Egrets, and 24 Cattle Egrets at Leroy Elmore Park in Lubbock; 7 White-faced Ibises flying over South Loop 289 just east of the Highway 84 intersection. The sole Lubbock County highlight on the way back in the afternoon: 4 Black-necked Stilts at the playa just northeast of the intersection of North Loop 289 and Quaker Avenue. Crosby County highlights in the morning: 2 male Yellow-headed Blackbirds at the intersection of FM 40 and CR 149; 1 Cassin's Sparrow at the intersection of FM 40 and FM 651; 1 male Painted Bunting near the intersection of FM 651 and CR 2794; 1 Eared Grebe, 8 American White Pelicans, 2 Green Herons, 4 White-faced Ibises, 1 Semipalmated Plover, 8 Black-necked Stilts, 20 American Avocets, 2 Greater Yellowlegs, 17 unidentified 'peeps', 34 Long-billed Dowitchers, 7 Wilson's Phalaropes, 1 Eastern Phoebe, 2 Purple Martins, 1 Tree Swallow, 2 Black-crested Titmice, 1 Canyon Wren, 1 Curve-billed Thrasher, 1 Wilson's Warbler, 1 first spring male Summer Tanager, and 1 male Bronzed Cowbird at White River Lake (working mostly the shore, thickets, and woodlands along the west shore). Crosby County highlights in the afternoon: 2 Eastern Phoebes, 2 Cave Swallows, 2 Canyon Wrens, and 1 Orange-crowned Warbler at Silver Falls Rest Area; 2 Cattle Egrets, 4 American Avocets, 1 Greater Yellowlegs, 1 Hermit Thrush, 17 Chipping Sparrows, 6 Clay-colored Sparrows, and 86 Yellow-headed Blackbirds at Crosbyton City Park; 25 Cedar Waxwings near Ralls. Dickens County highlights, bridging morning to afternoon: 4 Purple Martins in Spur; 2 Eastern Bluebirds and 1 Curve-billed Thrasher in Dickens; 1 Sharp-shinned Hawk, 4 Bushtits, 1 House Wren, 1 Carolina Wren, 1 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, 19 Cedar Waxwings, 1 Orange-crowned Warbler, 1 Nashville Warbler, 5 Wilson's Warblers, 37 Chipping Sparrows, and 1 male Rose-breasted Grosbeak at Dickens Springs; 2 Bewick's Wrens, 2 Carolina Wrens, 1 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, 1 Brown Thrasher, 1 Wilson's Warbler, and 1 Harris's Sparrow along CR 22 between Highway 70 and Afton; 2 Red-headed Woodpeckers, 1 Eastern Kingbird, and 2 Purple Martins in Afton; 1 Purple Martin, 4 Cave Swallows, 1 Cassin's Sparrow, and 1 male Blue Grosbeak along Highway 82 between Dickens and the Dickens/Crosby County line. A pretty good day - made even better by hopes for a good visit to Yoakum County tomorrow - and even more better by the half inch of rain in my rain gauge (so far) from the unsettled weather sweeping through the region. Anthony 'Fat Tony' Hewetson; Lubbock