Finding Currents

Thursday, May 30, 2024

Daddy Robin perched on a post and watching me. The handsome fellow already had me following several careful, watchful “stops.” He was obscuring the destination for that tasty morsel in his beak. I had already been in the barn and seen Mama Bird sitting on unhatched eggs. The nest is solid and will keep their babies safe. I hope to be unobtrusive and also observe their family and activities. Both parents know my presence, and their staying put is a tickle.

Soon after snapping the header photo, I glanced upward, spotting another gift: a pair of Ravens utilizing air currents to soar and were highly visible under a white cloud. Capturing Ravens in their soaring activities has been one of my dreams. Here’s my earliest sighting.

I watched the pair using currents to gain altitude and then glide downward until they found another updraft. Occasionally, they came low before rising again. Finally, they were low enough and also beneath bright clouds, and my camera could capture more details.

Ravens use various air currents to conserve energy and stay aloft for long periods, scanning for food or traveling long distances during migration. I’ve observed Raven adults in the sky and training juveniles to use air currents. This seems too early in the season for a parent to be training a juvenile, plus that training usually is a group outing. This pair could have been young adults courting in the sky or playing and having fun.

Ravens don’t actually float on air currents but utilize them to soar. That means they use air currents to rise and gain altitude before gliding downward and finding another updraft. This energy-efficient flight method lets large birds cover vast distances with minimal effort. A group of Ravens in training is a spectacular sighting.

During my sky-spotting, I saw this very dim mid-afternoon moon. Capturing that moon with enough visibility forced me to manually focus my camera. I made the foreground trees a bit fuzzy in order to make the moon as clear as possible. This image encourages me to focus manually more often.

Dear Friends: These are thrilling spring signs; I’m anticipating more. Diana

Still Standing

(Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

Monday, April 29, 2024

Last night, I streamed the 2024 George and Ira Gershwin Awards Show from the Library of Congress, honoring the musicianship of Elton John and Bernie Taupin. That was unusual for me, as recently I’d watched the televised version. That excellent production featured great artists performing key numbers from the duo’s catalog.

What made me want to stream was a clip from the show which turned up on Facebook, featuring Joni Mitchell singing “I’m Still Standing,” Accompanying her, Annie Lennox, Brandi Carlile, and the Sista Strings. As a standalone, the number struck me more deeply than back when it seemed one among many satisfactory performances. That superb performance clip encouraged me to see the whole show again.

Again, this time, I found the event excellent. Many elements of John’s and Taupin’s music make it lasting. The Awards Show highlighted some of their best, with world-class musicians performing. I’m not much of a modern music fan, but their music has slowed me down, and I’m thinking more deeply about their collaboration.

John’s catchy melodies reflect excellent musicianship; his memorable melodies stay with listeners. Taupin’s lyrics have depth and storytelling; his themes are poetic and insightful: about love, loss, hope, and self-discovery. Everything’s personal and relatable.

John’s musical style is genre-bending. He’s an artist at blending pop, rock, and gospel, key sounds that appeal to wide audiences. His musicianship connects deeply by evoking a wide range of emotions. Essentially, John’s and Taupin’s key themes are timeless and enduring.

Their music resonates with all ages because listeners connect to it on personal levels. That all landed home to me while I was re-seeing and re-hearing Joni and her collaborators, “…Still Standing.”

Dear Friends: The super-to-watch, streaming awards show is available on PBS. Diana

Toward Spring

Tuesday, April 02, 2024

Today will be this area’s warmest; I haven’t any pressing needs to take me away from home. I am going to rev up my tractor and clear the horses’ dry lot of dried muck and other ground-awful debris. The pitifully messy area has been on hold until a pause in our long string of wet, windy, and too-cold days, and it’s this one.

Last week, after charging the tractor’s motor, I tested its starter. The engine immediately powered up and with a good-sounding idle. I didn’t do any cleaning that day because it was overcast, and later it rained.

When I first moved onto this property and arranged it for horses, which had been my dream, I knew little about all actually needed. If today I were setting up for horses, many elements would be different. Years of experience teach; and I’ve learned and dealt with many unanticipated needs on my hilly, rocky property.

Hey, I count my blessings, too. Space with a rocky landscape reduces gardening demands; provides room for outside animals–horses, chickens, and a goat; enables privacy when it’s needed; and living up high makes visible a distant, beautiful mountain range.

When the tractoring is done and the dry lot better, I more easily will welcome spring. Already growing weeds need attention; the horses (and dogs) should be out on trails; and my favorite hobbies need resuming.

Dear Friends: A warm day encourages a shift from shrinking to re-engaging. Diana

From Time Immemorial

Thursday, February 29, 2024

Happy Leap Day!

I was having “the dickens of a time” recalling what Leap Years are all about. Soon, I began wondering what “dickens” may mean. I assumed it refers to Chas. whose stories contain worlds of woe and wonder. After some research, I learned that the origin isn’t that Dickens, because way prior Shakespeare had used the phrase.

It turns out the general assumption is that “dickens” originally was a euphemism for the word “Devil.” Back in the history of time, ‘What the Devil” or “the Devil take you” were very serious curses, however, in those very old days, “the dickens” could be freely used.

My mom often muttered, “What the dickens!” The phrase became woven into my learning DNA, and I have loved it. The words perfectly highlight my confusion and struggle to comprehend something complicated or make difficult choices.

Yesterday, somebody at work pointed out to me, that I “overthink things.” Well, maybe so, and maybe that prevents me from quickly processing some kinds of information. From one perspective, it’s a disability, and from another, an asset.

I overthink, indeed! Now, an equally famous phrase, “Face the music,” comes to mind. I am okay with processing thoughts slowly. That lets me separate the thought elements, turn each upside down and around, and examine it from various perspectives. Upon reweaving the elements, I wind up with a decent handle for taking them forward or dropping them.

Dear Friends: What the dickens–it’s snowing again! Enjoy this leap day. Diana