THE DUST WILL WAIT

  When I came around the corner at dusk to see this stranger on the fence, the sight stole my breath.   So, I grabbed my cell phone and stole their moment.  Tit for tat. Yes, another February with lots of cold and snow.  

This afternoon my husband transferred a couple of videos from his phone.  One of them was from a late summer walk along the creek.  The water flowing over the diversion was catching the golden rays from the setting sun. Sunset Sparkling on the Diversion Dam from pamela on Vimeo .

This morning I took 8-year old Z-bub, 6-year old Dinkum Devo, and 4-year old Mizelle up to the lake, which is really a flood diversion reservoir managed by the Corp of Engineers.  It is a great place to walk and to bird watch. Unfortunately, it is currently being drained. Or as they call it, "the draw down."   I'm not sure if it s done for repairs on the earthen dam or if it is just an annual event.  Each time there is a "draw down" the beaver dam collapses and the ducks and other water fowl head for other wetlands.  But lots of walkers, bikers,  dogs, and horses take advantage of the trails.  And hunters, too. I forgot my binoculars but was able to see Red-tailed Hawk, Kestrel, Northern harrier, and a Bald Eagle soar overhead.  Using my cheap cell phone, I snapped this photo of the kids being rock-climbers on the dam slope.   The camera was safe and warm at home, snuggled in the cupboard with the binoculars. The inversion that is currently ...

I took a walk above the diversion dam this afternoon.  I loved the sun reflecting off the stubble field, and the snow in the more distant foothills. The wind was blowing and the birds were not active.  It didn't seem to bother the ducks, however. This week my 4-year old, 6-year old, and 8-year old grandchildren made "shoeboxes" for O peration Christmas Child .  They found things that they really wanted to have for Christmas, too.  But I hope they learned something about sharing from the experience of picking things out for someone else.  The boxes were due at church today so I snuck around and took a quick cell phone shot right after the service ended. Doesn't seem possible that the holiday is speeding towards us again. $igh. .

Spring has been cool, windy, and a season of catching up on annual precipitation.  That last bit has been threatening the local cherry crop.   I wonder if that is why the small orchard close to where I walk has been surrendered to the birds.   If the rain splits the cherries they aren’t very marketable. Or, maybe the farmer wasn’t prepared for the birds .  (Insert a little Alfred Hitchcock mood music here.)  The past week provided the valley with an unusual migration population of Western Tanagers.  Like I’ve never seen.  Thus, the orchard was full of Tanagers chowing down on the partially ripe fruit.  They were accompanied by a fair number of Cedar Waxwings, Robins, Finch, Starlings, and probably more.  There was no saving that crop. WR captured the Tanager with the cherry in its mouth.  I snapped the gorging Waxwing and Robin. I’ve not...

Today, I walk earlier than usual and experience a slight bit of unease. For the first 30 minutes I see only two other people . There have been rare reports of cougar and bear along the creek – the knowledge of which makes me very aware of my isolation. When I turn back, I begin to meet more people, the majority of whom are wearing MP3s and IPods. We smile in greeting and I say “good morning.” Of course they do not hear me. Nor did they hear any of the bears or cougars that snuck up on them from my earlier flight of imagination. Unaware of the obbligato springing forth from the heavy underbrush, they miss the evasive fluttering of a Bewick's Wren. I watch it pause from its busyness and I sigh as it tilts its head back to sing with enthusiasm. How can such a loud trill emanate from so tiny a creature? They do not discern the performance of the wind symphony. Sometimes it plays a legato b...