An Avian Anniversary

Two years ago today was the first time I cared for the birds at New Canaan Nature Center. The previous week I had shadowed Derick, the Director of Animal Control, and took notes.

When I started there were six birds: Hedwig, Gus, and Jasper--owls, Ralph--a turkey vulture, Glory--a bald eagle, and Tupelo--a red tailed hawk. Since then, Hedwig, Glory, and Jasper died. The center added Phoenix--a red tailed hawk, Mort--a black vulture,  and recently, a barred owl like Hedwig. I'll get pictures of Phoenix and the still unnamed barred owl soon. 

Rainy Day Blues

One of the first things I do in the morning is check the weather forecast on my phone. It's especially important on gloomy mornings like today. The forecast for today: rain likely to continue for several hours--a similar forecast to Saturday's even though Saturday's rain was more severe.

It feels as if it rains all the time. I keep thinking of that song, "Though April showers may come your way, they bring the flowers that bloom in May..." Then there's the Mad Magazine version of the second line, "they bring the plumbers for floods in May..." Hey, it's only March, and our ground is already saturated. Can we let things dry out? Today, Jace and I were able to  out for one long walk, one short walk, and two pee breaks. That was a great outcome based on the forecast.

Overall, a dull day. I did a short workout at the gym--no cardio. I canceled a lunch with my friend Elaine, because I just didn't feel that great. Truthfully, I probably would have gone if the weather were nice. The dreary rain was the tipping point. Instead, I spent the afternoon inside: did some light cleaning and paperwork with Jeff.  

Waiting for the sun. Waiting for the sun.

Monday Musings about a March Weekend

Saturday, I visited the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in NYC with my brother and his girlfriend. Unfortunately, it was a rainy day--the woman checking our membership said the museum is always packed on rainy days. I found the people taking pictures of the art and of each other in front of paintings very annoying. We probably would have stayed longer if it hasn't been so crowded.  I enjoyed the art especially Van Gogh's Starry Night and Dali's The Persistence of Memory. I also liked Hopper's Gas, and Monet's Water Lilies.  I impressed myself with how many of the other artists whose work I could recognize: Picassso, Klimt, Pollock, Mondrian, Seurat. We had a nice pizza lunch afterward in a restaurant we had to ourselves.

Yesterday was the 22th anniversary of the day that Spike came to live with us. He is often in our thoughts, especially on his birthday and anniversaries. We'll always miss him. In the past 22 years, we've only been without a dog for eight weeks: four between Spike's death and Lola's arrival, and another four between Lola's death and Jace's arrival. 

A week from today is April. Hopefully, April will bring warmer weather for good. April also means the year is one-quarter done. I need to take another look at my goals. I continue to fail at writing. I need to figure out just what is wrong.

Stream of Consciousness Friday

It's been a rough week. I don't want to go into details, but Jeff and I had a fight, we're dealing with a lot of paperwork, winter has made its reappearance, and I'm having sleeping problems.

Let's look at the good things. I took our tax paperwork to the accountant on Wednesday. I took Jace with me. We went to Danbury Dog Park which he loved for a half hour (we left at his choice) and then we went to Schenk's Island. 

I have some fun things to do soon. I'm going into NYC tomorrow to see art, and I'm meeting a friend for lunch next week. The cold isn't going to last--it's spring. 

I saw a bizarre Easter decoration today.: a bunny astride a dino bunny? I don't understand this at all. Can it be a modern cartoon that I don't know? At least they seem happy.

Easter outdoor decorations are nowhere as big as Christmas and Halloween decor. I've seen egg-shaped wreaths and lights before, but nothing like this. 

Here's a sign I've seen walking Jace. I thought it was a clever take on the normal no-poop sign.

But it's not as good as this one. 

Spring Is Here

It arrived last night at 11:06.

It doesn't feel like spring. Winter had one last trick (I hope) up its sleeve. There's talk of nighttime temps in the 30s and snow flurries.  

I can handle it; it won't last long.

.

Happy Saint Patrick's Day!

 

Jeff and I marked the occasion by going to Sedona Tap House for lunch: pulled pork and Kobe beef sliders, greens, shoestring fries, and Guinesses.

I've always considered myself more Irish than any other ethnicity. I look Irish; my last name is Irish. The other ethnicity I was conscious of is German. 

Then I took a DNA test from Ancestry.com. The results were a surprise: 

• Scotland 50% 
• Ireland 19%
• Sweden and Denmark 11%
• England and Northwestern Europe 11%
• Wales 7%
• Germanic Europe 2% 

Still Irish enough to celebrate. 

And happy half-way day Jeff. 

Book Four: The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

I picked up this book while walking with Jace. A house on Magnolia Street had free books on a bookshelf in the front yard. That was about a year and a half ago. 

I had heard of the book, but not much about it. Sometimes, I wondered why I had picked it up. I'm glad I did--I really enjoyed this coming of age story and hope to see the movie.

Lily Owens is a fourteen-year-old girl living on a farm with a peach orchard with her cold and abusive father in Sylvan, South Carolina in 1964. Lily longs for her mother who died ten years earlier. Her only friend is Rosaleen a black woman who Lily's father hired to cook, clean, and be Lily's "stand-in mother." 

After an encounter with local racists when Rosaleen is attempting to register to vote, Lily helps Rosaleen escape from the hospital. They make their way to Tiburon, South Carolina and the home of the Boatwright sisters where Lily hopes to find out more about her mother. 

Lily is a compelling narrator--I love how she sees the world around her. 

I realized it for the first time in my life: there is nothing but mystery in the world, how it hides behind the fabric of our poor, browbeat days, shining brightly, and we don't even know it.

If the heat goes over 104 degrees in South Carolina, you have to go to bed. It is practically the law. Some people may see it as shiftless behavior, but really, when we're lying down from the heat, we're giving our minds time to browse around for new ideas, wondering at the true aim of life, and generally letting things pop into our heads that need to. 

Happy Pi Day

In honor of all things pi, I picked up a pizza pie at Letizia's for dinner. It was another beautiful day, and Jace and I had walked the Norwalk River Valley Trail in Wilton. 

Springing Forward and Other Miscellanea

I've been discombobulated since springing forward on Saturday night. Can't we just pick an hour and be done with it? I was sluggish Monday and Tuesday; I don't like getting up when it's still dark; I'm starting dinner later than normal. Hopefully, I'll be fully adjusted by tomorrow.

We're enjoying a few nice days--sunny and warm. I took Jace to Cove Island Park again Tuesday and Winslow Park today. Tomorrow we'll go to Cranbury Park or the Norwalk River Valley Trail in Wilton.On the way home, I'll get a pizza in honor of Pi Day. 

Sounds like a plan. 

The First Daffodil

It's not a particularly clear image, but it's the first spring bloom that I've found on my walks with Jace. It was along the corner of a fairly active neighborhood street among the trash and painted indicators of water mains. 

The daffodil was the highlight in another bleak, chilly, rainy day.

A Sign of the Times

Walking with Jace this morning, I noticed a sign "Welcome spring" on a Magnola Street house. It may be a bit early--13 days to be precise--but knowing spring is imminent helps to deal with four the bleak, chilly, rainy days in the past week. It also helps that I saw daffodil and crocus buds this morning. 

I was thinking of putting my winter boots in their off-season storage spot, but I don't want to tempt fate. 

13 more days. 

A Taxing Time

I was supposed to get all the tax paperwork together last week--a goal I made for myself. I don't do the taxes myself anymore (too many mistakes.) I just needed to make sure I had everything and got the papers organized. I had previously put papers received in the mail in a manilla folder and other items in an online folder. 

I remember specifically telling myself last Monday that I really didn't have to work on taxes that day. I don't remember specifics after that, but I managed to find excuses and reasons to procrastinate the rest of the week.

Today I finally sat down, printed up a few documents, but realized that one of my 1099s was missing. Unfortunately, this was not one I could easily print from a website. After logging in with a new password and codes and not finding anything, I called and discovered the 1099 had to be ordered. I'll be able to get it online in three to five days. 

If only I had done this last week, I could have the document by now.

Oh well. Lesson learned. 

What We've Been Watching--Anthology Edition

Fargo Season Five: We've watched all five seasons of this show. I've liked them all, but don't think Seasons Three and Four were anywhere near as good as Seasons One and Two. This season felt like a comeback. First, one of the stars is Jennifer Jason Leigh who I love. Usually, I don't pay attention to the references to the film. But it was fun to watch how a resourceful woman like Dot reacted to a similar kidnapping that Jean experienced in the film. Actually, Dot was more than resourceful; you had to wonder what secrets was this seemingly mild-mannered housewife holding? 

True Detective Season Four: This is our first time watching True Detective. Jodie Foster is a local sheriff in a small Alaskan town north of the Arctic Circle. Seven scientists from a remote research station are missing, and six bodies are later found in a "corpsicle." A woman's tongue is also found at the research station from a five-year-old homicide. Things get stranger from there. Jodie Foster is brilliant; her costar Kali Reis is very good. It was good to see John Hawkes again.  

Both series had supernatural elements that I felt were unnecessary, but also intriguing. I'll watch both next season.