Say's Phoebe

 

"Tame birds sing of freedom. Wild birds fly."

~John Lennon

A short post today, just a lovely bird. Busy, busy, busy! The Sandhill Cranes are home, and it's the last day of summer! So, I have stuff to do!

It's A Summer Thing

 

"There is time in the last few days of summer 

when the ripeness of autumn fills the air,

 and time is quiet and mellow."

~Rudolfo Anaya

Bless Me, Ultima

What says, it's the last days of summer. quite like finding a gorgeous, Great Egret, sitting in a tree, waiting for a dragonfly to hop into it's mouth.

Shrug. I guess it's a summer thing.

Ellipsis Weekend Cooking... The Last Of Summer Eats

 

Blackberry Smash Sweet Tea - Pioneer Woman - Recipe

"Hard work should be rewarded by good food."

~Ken Follet

It's the first weekend in September, which means it is Labor Day weekend, the last official holiday weekend of summer, 2026! So, lets end summer on a delicious note, shall we? It's been a strange summer, as food goes, but it's time to put all the gloom and doom aside, and take a bite of some amazing recipes. I hope you will enjoy the recipes I have come up with! They sound amazing to me.

Grilled Lemon Chicken Dijon - Food Network - Recipe

Creamy Gold Potato Salad - NYT - Recipe

Zucchini-Peach Salad With Creamy Lime dressing - NYT - Recipe

That should make for a delicious Labor Day meal, and it's a lot more fun than the usual menus of Hot Dogs and Hamburgers! 

 Enjoy your holiday!

The Colors Of Summer

 

"Keep your face to the sun and you cannot see the shadows. That's what sunflowers do."

~Helen Keller

Summer is almost gone, but there are still some sunflowers lining Woodbridge road. Funny thing, it's sights like this that have made me come to mourn summer parting, maybe just a little bit.

The seasons all have their own unique gifts.

Not To Harp On It, But...

 

"If you ever looked at me once with what I know is in you , I would be your slave."

~Emily Bronte

Wuthering Heights

Seriously. Natalie Harp needs help. How do I know? Because she displays the exact same obsession I witnessed one day, by a girl, who also had a lot of problems. Her name was Talia. She came for a visit and was staying at my mother-in-laws house. She wasn't visiting our family, she was an acquaintance of the minister of our church, yes, the man I briefly dated. At least he called those dates. It's debatable. Anyway, Talia became obsessed with the minister, and suddenly she announced that they were engaged, a fact he denied. Slowly she began to display odd behavior. Like that ne day, I think I have shared this story,  when my brother-in-law called me on the phone, and very sweetly demanded that we pick Talia up together, from the local "mental health clinic" where she had just been taken by ambulance. Something had set her off, we never found out what exactly what the problem had been, but there it was. 

Neither dear brother, nor or I, had any idea what to say to her on the car ride home. She sat in the backseat very quietly, with very dark eyes, staring off into space. Daryl and I were on the brink of nervous giggles, which was so bad under the circumstances, but what could we do, who knows if she was going to randomly freak-out? Fortunately, she didn't seem to notice our nerves! After we arrived home she went to her room, where she spent about an hour. When she emerged she was holding a large poster board with the words... "God became man as man became Gumby's." Yeah, I didn't get it either. Still don't. But I don't think about it that much either. Talia made her way back to Oregon in late August of that year, and after that, who needed to dwell. But that's not the same as forgetting all together!

Fast forward to Natalie Harp. Natalie is not Talia. She's worse. Both in her own behavior, and in her blind devotion to a serial abuser, misogynist, cheater, a man convicted by a jury of his peers of sexual misconduct and at the end of the day, he is a suspected pedophile. And that doesn't begin to cover the other characteristics of his personality, personal beliefs and decision making skills that have proven dangerous to this country! Does America need one more reason to be worried? Natalie is about one heartbeat away from turning into, Alex Deforest, from Fatal Attraction! Does America need to be wondering when Natalie will end up boiling Barron's bunny? She works in highest post of the United States government, she's more important than the president, she's Trump's Binky. And in that she's already moved culture, and probably military policy with her inane posts, such as the one depicting Trump as Jesus, she's already made some deeply negative impressions.

None of this was ever on my bingo card... and I don't know why?

As Maggie Haberman Puts It, Trump's Binky

 

"There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always has been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread, winding it's way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that, 'my ignorance means just as much as your knowledge. "

~Isaac Asimov

This is so stupid and salacious I don't even want to think about it, but it is now apart of history, so here were are. This woman, Natalie Harp, is in love with Trump. How? Why? Who knows, but it's fairly apparent that she is. From ridiculous love letters, that spooked the Secret Service, to her hiding out in trunks of government SUVs to be with him, it's plainly clear that this young lady has a screw loose. As Maggie Haberman of the, New York Times, put it recently, Natalie Harp is Trump's binky. Her main function is to run his social media accounts, and feed him cool stories about himself. Trump is an 80 year old man, with failing health and who is in obvious mental decline, but what is her excuse? Why is she so gaga over a man so misogynistic, mean spirited, and cruel towards others, women in particular? A liar whose, at last count, has told well over 34,000 lies since jumping into the world of national politics. The number is more than likely higher than that! You'd think that hearing him call a female reporter, "piggy" would be enough to tarnish that devotion, but apparently not, she is his faithful Girl Friday. Available to answer his every whim, and reassure his fragile ego that he did indeed win the 2020 election. Oh yeah, and that he's better looking now then when he was in his 30's and his dick is 12 inches long. There's only one thing left to ask about this bizarre circumstance, does Laura Loomer know she has a rival?

Laura Loomer 

Getty Images

Update:

Oops... I guess she does! It seems that the White House has a leaker in their midst!

How do so many insane people find each other? 

BBC

Who is Natalie Harp, Trumps Right-hand Woman?

MS NOW

Trump Aide Natalie Harp Worked At The White House 

Without Security Clearance For Over A Year

Ellipsis Weekend Cooking... Ice Cream!

 

One-Ingredient Banana Ice Cream NYT - Recipe

"Never ask a woman, eating ice cream straight out of the carton, how she's doing."
~Unknown'

We are quickly approaching the midpoint of summer. This year it falls on August 6th. So, it's time to brush up on some ice cream recipes. I have a wonderful Cuisinart Ice Cream and yogurt maker, that I bought in the mid 90's, and it's still going strong! We have made some unique, and really delicious flavors. I have a Ben and Jerry's ice cream cookbook, and the cantaloup and chocolate mint flavors always come out perfect! I have tried most of their recipes, so I want to movie on to recipes I haven't thought of trying, and of course, New York Times Cooking does provide! Here is a link to a model similar to mine. I am fairly sure my 30 year old one has been retired. If you don't have your own ice cream machine, I recommend Cuisinart. But full disclosure, Cuisinart is my go to for most of my small product machines.

Don't these recipes for ice cream and sorbet sound delicious?

Mango Soft Serve - NYT - Recipe

Melon-Mint Sorbet - NYT - Recipe

Peach Ice Cream - NYT - Recipe

Summer Berry Ice Cream - NYT - Recipe

Mmmmmmmmm!

Late Spring Early Summer

 

"Sunsets prove that no matter what happens, every day can end beautifully."

~Kristen Butler

Here are my photos of a gorgeous sunset. Both taken along Franklin blvd the other night while we were birding and batting. But, is it the past spring sunset photos, or the first summer photos of 2026? Summer hasn't officially started yet, but a couple weeks ago, we celebrated Memorial day, which most folks think of as the unofficial beginning of summer! I guess we are closer to summer than spring. Spring is feeling tired and quiet, while summer is raring to go! Okay, I talked myself into it. These photos represent the first sunset photos in my summer folder! 

There will be more to come!

Sky Ballet

 

"The baby bat screamed out in fright, turn on the dark, I'm afraid of the light."

~Shel Silverstein

Yep, they're home! The Mexican Free-tailed bats have returned to the Franklin boulevard Bridge! It's early in their arrival, so there weren't many, yet there were enough for me to believe it's going to be an amazing bat season, fingers crossed! I was very pleased with the results of the camera on my new phone. It is every bit as good as the reviews said it was! I need a lot more practice, but these photos are the clearest I believe to date! I practiced a bit with the video feature, but haven't had a chance to edit what I got. I hope to go out again tonight, but frankly I am still rubbing Hydrocortisone on my many bites, and man is it painful, but I have been waiting a long time for the return of my friends, so bugs or no bugs, I am going to be on the Franklin Bridge a lot this summer! Jeepers, can you believe it, I was on the bridge last Thursday, and here it is, Monday, and I am still finding new bites. My doctor said bites like this can take up to 2 weeks to fully show up!

UGH!

Mexican Free-tailed bat and Red-tailed Hawk

These, And Other Stories, Tonight On 60 Minutes

 

"We should be profoundly skeptical when one party claims certainty and blames the other for our problems. That's a con. You know life isn't like that. That's why we invented democracies in the first place."

~ Scott Pelley

Truth Worth Telling: A Reporter's Search For Meaning In The Stories Of Our Times

Scott Pelley's Full Statement

"60" has been the number one program in America for decades because our beloved audience finds integrity, quality, and humanity in our stories. When stewardship of the program passed to my colleagues and me, our responsibility was to expand energetically into a new age of media technology while preserving the values our audience expects. Now, the new owner of our network is casting this legend aside, apparently to curry a moment of favor with the Trump administration.

The waste is heartbreaking.

Last month, 60 Minutes lost its DNA when our entire senior leadership and two of our best on-air correspondents were cruelly fired without cause/. Good people were silenced because they stood up for our audience. They stood for fairness against the forces of political bias; they stood for professionalism against chaos.

For my part, new management has instructed me to inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story. I've been told to include assertions that are unverified. To date, in every case, I have managed to ignore these instructions or refuse them. Recently, politicians have been invited to choose correspondents for interviews on the broadcast. Giving politicians control over 60 Minutes interviews is not how this is done. Finally, incompetence and unprofessionalism in the new management have wreaked havoc. In a case involving one of my stories, the entire program came within 19 minutes of not getting on the air at all.

At 60 Minutes, we have fought harder than anyone knows to save the program than anyone knows to save the program that became an American icon. We owed that to our millions of viewers. I am deeply moved by the thousands of wishes we have received to "keep up the good fight." Most of the men and women of CBS News are still in that fight. But now the collapse of values at the top has become untenable. The leadership o ^0 Minutes is no longer recognizable. The principles I hold dear are gone, and so I must leave as well.

I depart after 37 years at CBS with one emotion... a heart brimming with gratitude for the men and women of CBS News who encouraged and enriched my work, very often at the risk of their own lives. I pray for a day when those people and their ideals are honored again... a day when sanity, competence, and courage return."

~Scott Pelley

June 3rd, 2026

Scott Pelley's firing last Tuesday was Earth shaking. The Trump and his administration and donors are nothing short of a bunch of oligarchs and crooks. We are closer than ever to losing the American experience, all to make a few ultra rich, even richer, while we pay $6 a gallon for gas! This summer will be among the most challenging I will have experienced in my lifetime. Not just as I maneuver through my own health challenges, but also the stress of watching Trump destroy the country I was lucky to live in my whole life. This is the country my grandfather immigrated to, because he saw all the possibilities! He loved America, as did my father. My heart breaks daily. Dad would be beside himself to see what's happening. I miss my father, I think if him daily, but I would never want him to know about what we are all facing right now.

This story will more than likely shake out over the summer. I know we haven't heard the last of Scott Pelley. He truly earned my respect the other day, when he did his job and spoke truth to power! I felt good and found my own self respect the other day too. I haven't watched CBS in ages, their programming has gotten too repetitive! How many CSI shows does one network need? So, after Steven Colbert was kicked to the curb, never watching that network was no loss, but let me tell you, cancelling our Paramount+ subscription made me feel really good! All this pain at that network, and beyond, is for a merger that will bring us closer to having to endure state media, rather than a free press! I am not going to pay to support these people. They can kiss my ass. And as for Donald Trump, he hasn't permeated every area of my life yet, so with any luck he will be impeached, and with a little luck, we won't have him to kick around any more! 

Brain Drain Game

 

"Never use a big one, when a little filthy one will do."

~Johnny Carson

Yes, I know, I was MIA yesterday, because, well, I didn't wanna. I feel like I am one horrific Trump incident, from checking myself into Briarcliff! ( see American Horror Story/Asylum ) because the truth is, Tuesday kicked my ass! We won't even know for several days, or even weeks, what the what will be as far as the California races go. However, there are some things that seem clear right now. L.A. Mayor Karen Bass will go on to a runoff in November, but it hasn't been determined yet if Spencer Pratt is who she will be running against. Also, it's fairly clear, at least to me, that in the governor's race, Xavier Becerra and Steve Hinton will face off in the fall, as Tom Steyer is out of the running. Yikes. I have a knot in my stomach just thinking about it. But for right now I am not thinking about it, I'm concentrating on enjoying my summer, and not taking it all that seriously. I need to take my vitamins. Laugh as much as possible and enjoy life, because there will be a lot to fret about come the autumn. So, while I deal with the overwhelming brain drain I am experiencing, lets take a look back at the Johnny Carson show from November 12th, 1976. 

Frank Sinatra, Olivia Newton John and David Janssen!

True celebrity royalty!

Bonus Video... The Full Wedding Of Tiny Tim to Miss Vicky

December 17th, 1969