03 October 2017

Birds and somber thoughts

Some birds. Shore birds. I don't know about you, but I'm feeling pretty numb this morning. I remember a couple of trips to Las Vegas when Walt and I still lived in California. We had such a good time there — to my surprise, the first time. I didn't think I'd like it, but I did. I'm not a gambler. We didn't go to any shows. We just wandered through the big casinos, taking in the scene, and we had two or three nice meals in good restaurants.


Of course the fact that my sister (Joanna) and my cousin Ginger were in Las Vegas when this latest horror happened makes it feel even more real to me. They told me that they decided at the last minute not to attend the concert because they were worn out after spending a busy week in Vegas. And the fact that Walt's cousin Kim lives there now too. Our first trip to Vegas was to meet Kim and couple of her friends there. They'd come from Orlando to spend a few days having fun, and we wanted to join in.


These shore birds were ones I saw a photographed in North Carolina in 2002. I know that posting just a series of photos with no captions or other text to read can be kind of boring. Text stops your eyes so that you don't scroll through the photos so fast.


I love the color of the water in several of the close-up shots here. It looks so clean and clear. Even so, a lot of the photos in this set were far too blue. I decided that the two photos featuring pelicans looked better in black and white. Pelicans look so primitive. Prehistoric, really. In both pelican shots, there are gulls lurking nearby, as if they are hoping something to eat might fall out of the pelicans' pouches.


Okay, nothing more to say, really. When I got up to take Natasha outside at five a.m., rain was coming down so hard that the puppy refused to go outside. She might never have really seen rain like that in her short life. It has slacked off a little now, but it's still raining. It's my morning to walk Natasha, but rain may cut the walk short.


Then I have to go get my hair cut at nine. Yesterday I saw my doctor, and I got a good report and a renewal of my prescription drugs. This is all in preparation for my trip next week. The doctor said I should probably make an appointment to see a cardiologist next year, since my last cardiology exam was four years ago. My father and his father both died of heart failure, and my mother had a heart attack some years ago too. So I have what the doctor called des antécédents — a family history.


I don't know what bird built or occupied the nest above, on top of a channel marker in the Neuse River estuary east of New Bern, but it looks like it might be a big one. An osprey? Some kind of eagle? Anyway, you can see how wide the estuary is.


Events — atrocities — like the one in Las Vegas this weekend, make you contemplate your own mortality. Oh, and I apologize to the bird above for cutting its tail off. I didn't crop it that way; I accidentally framed it that way when I took it. Doesn't the water look pretty, though?

20 comments:

  1. I'm surprised 45 didn't say there were good people on both sides. Sad!

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    1. Forgot to say the third photo is especially stunning.

      Is it my connection why your blog takes for ever to download?

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    2. I don't know why the blog is loading slowly. I haven't noticed much lag here. Have you run a speed test recently. Right now, my connection is running at 8.7 Mbps for download and .89 Mbps for upload.

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    3. That's 750 kB/s download and 150 kB/s if you measure in kB instead of Mb.

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    4. I just ran it again, on my tablet, and I got 1086.0 kB/s down and 124.5 kB/s up. It's up it's down, it's up it's down, kind of like the stock market.

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  2. I think that for chm, it might have been the number and size of the photos that slowed it down. But they are photos well worth waiting for.
    I am relieved to learn that your friends and family are okay. For those caught in the gunfire it was a terrorizing event and the sooner Americans learn to focus on all terror -- not just religious terrorism -- the better. To the victims, it simply does not matter if the origin is religious, mental derangement, workplace vengeance or whatever other label.

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    1. It turns out that CHM's internet connection is running at only 1.5 Mbps, whereas mine is at 8.8. So something is wrong. And something was definitely very wrong in Las Vegas. It's not something easy to understand.

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  3. Oh my heavens, your sister and cousin were there? and just missed going to the concert? There are no words for all of this. I'm so glad they're okay, and so horrified for all of the other families involved in this.
    Judy

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    1. Yes, my cousin, I know, likes country music. I'm so glad they decided at the last minute not to buy tickets and go onto the concert grounds. Horrified is the right word.

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  4. Definitely an osprey ("sea eagle") nest. Almost every mile marker on the Waterway has one on top of it. I love these coastal photos...even the gull cries and the smells of the salt water are easy for me to imagine.

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  5. so glad your family members are safe...scary now to go to concerts....don't know what congress is waiting for re gun control
    speaking of heart history....my doc put me on statins due mostly to family history.....she said it cant hurt even if cholesterol isnt out of whack

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    1. It's scary to go to concerts or other large gatherings, or even into city centers. I'm glad to live far out in the country at this point.

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  6. Bonjour Ken,

    Just to let you know that we flew AF yesterday and you don't have to worry , except for delays in take off or late gate change (especially from one end of 2E to the other end).

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    1. Thanks, N., I'm sure all will go as planned. I was wondering if your rental apartment in the 16eme in Paris was near no. 31 rue Chanez, where there has been a suspicious incident involving a stockpile of bonbonnes de gaz today.

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    2. Bonsoir Cousine,
      Glad to know all went well with your flight. It was a pleasure to have lunch again with you and Y in his favorite restaurant in Paris (mine too!).

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    3. Bonsoir Cousin,

      It was our pleasure also to meet with you over lunch though Y was under the weather and apologizes for not being too talkative at the table. Hope to do it over again in a couple of yrs :-)

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    4. Ken,

      The apt is on Avenue Victor Hugo , less than 2 mins walk to Place Victor Hugo, far from Auteuil. It is a great place and we do hope the lady will be willing and able to rent after the new law about vacation rentals goes into effect at the end of the year.

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  7. Thanks for those beautiful photos today, Ken.

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  8. Lovely photos, and I'm glad your and Walt's people are OK.
    I've seen osprey nests like that in Florida. It's classified as a raptor, aka hawk, kind of eagle. Fierce critters.

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