Debbie and I were in the front yard yesterday afternoon – she was working; I was, um, supervising – and our eyes were drawn to a flock of birds circling our neighborhood’s north pond, about two blocks away. I grabbed my video camera, and then returned and got my SLR with a long lens, and… Continue reading Awesome Acrobatic Avocets!
Category: Midland/Odessa
When life gives you lemons…
…make, uh, pomegranate juice? As I may have mentioned, our big pomegranate tree didn’t survive the Big Freeze of Ought Eleven. We discussed digging it up and planting something else, but then noticed a very healthy and vigorously growing batch of shoots coming up from the base of the dead tree. We decided to let… Continue reading When life gives you lemons…
Redefining a Day
In anticipation of the watering restrictions scheduled to begin on April 1st in Midland and several surrounding communities, I reprogrammed my sprinkler system control box on Saturday, determined to get a jump on things rather than wait until the last minute. Our home address ends in an odd number, meaning that we’ll be allowed to… Continue reading Redefining a Day
Cultural Exchange Students
One side effect of learning to dance has been that our social adventures have expanded significantly. So it was that we found ourselves in a local bar last Friday evening, surrounded by curious patrons, and listening to instructions in Spanish. OK, let’s backtrack a bit. I had received an email from Richard Ortiz, a young… Continue reading Cultural Exchange Students
Traffic Light Sync System on Holiday?
Contrary to my earlier opinion, the synchronization of traffic lights IS apparently rocket surgery.
Great Blue Heron in Distress
We’ve had a Great Blue Heron hanging around the neighborhood for the past few months. It’s quite a sight, especially when winging its way over the mesquite-dotted pasture that surrounds us; there’s a vaguely prehistoric look to its flight. While it prefers to wade along the shoreline of the two ponds, it’s not unusual to… Continue reading Great Blue Heron in Distress
The Sci-Fi World of Insects
I walked over to the north pond yesterday, hoping to get some photos of the big crane that’s been hanging out the past few weeks. He flew away before I could do that, so I sat at the water’s edge waiting for him to return. He never came back (thanks to you, Mr. Loudmouth Cell… Continue reading The Sci-Fi World of Insects
Voting Daze
I stood in line about twenty minutes today, waiting to cast my vote on the last afternoon of early voting. There were about a hundred people in line when I got to the polling place, and that number stayed steady throughout the time I was there. Entering the building where the voting was taking place,… Continue reading Voting Daze
Pomegranates, anyone?
Or, should I say, everyone? Our tree is loaded this year, as the photo below proves. And this is after we thinned out the crop a bit. From the street, the pomegranates look like those big red Christmas tree ornaments. I don’t remember the fruit being quite this red and shiny last year. I think… Continue reading Pomegranates, anyone?
“That’s Oil, Folks!”
I pretty much gave up on Texas Monthly years ago, when Molly Ivins exemplified the magazine’s left-staggering slant on, well, just about everything. (Plus, they were rarely charitable toward my beloved Aggies, and way too benevolent toward our arch-rival, Whose Name Shall Not Be Mentioned.) The downside of that decision, however, is that I miss… Continue reading “That’s Oil, Folks!”