Buzzzzzzzed And Auntumn #17

 "Why should I wake when I am half passed dead?"

 

~Emilie Autumn

 

Isn't it weird? But if that chair needs a little caffeine, to feel more like the inner bar stool that it really is, who am I too laugh or deny it a little something to kick the day into existence? 

~Me

 

 

I (Heart) Clark's Grebe And Leaf Of The Day #16

 

"Summer rolled into autumn

views of this world fall away."

 

Meeta Ahluwalia

 

The grebe is such a lovely water bird. It makes a strange barking sound, so if you just heard it's sound but didn't see the bird itself you might think there was some kind of monster in the pond. A small monster. But when you see the grebe, happily fishing, or floating about in the mid-day sun, you might think that whatever sound it makes, it would be properly British. You see, it's head reminds me of a British bobby hat. I am beginning to really love these guys! Sometimes I am very happy inside.

 

~Me

 

 

Great Ergret And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #15

 

"It was a beautiful bright autumn day, with 

air like cider and a sky blue you could drown in it."

 

Diana Gabaldon

Outlander

 

Isn't this a stunning sight? A scene so mesmerizing that all I wanted to do was walk into the water and swim around with the grebes, egrets, and cormorants. Look, it's so clear and so reflective you can see the details in the egret's under wings. The sky really was so blue you could drown in it. A sky that screams, autumn, but indeed, October. And a there's a bit of colorful algae to make the picture have a little color, but not so much algae that the ecosystem was an unhealthy mess for the birds. While on my visit to the Clifton Court Forebay, yesterday, I was able to see a number a beautiful sights, so don't give up on me, I can't wait to show you the beautiful things I see!

 

~Me

With A Twinkle In His Eyes And The Autumn Leaf Of The Day #14

 "Ah, lovely October, as you usher in the season that awakens my soul, your awesome beauty compels my spirit to soar like a lead caught in an autumn breeze and my heart to sing like a heavenly choir."

 

~Peggy Toney Horton

 

Today would be my father's 104th birthday. He is buried just down the road, in Lodi, but it's not really him there, he lives all around me, every day. He is just as amazed as I am, that I live in Stockton. I think mostly about the good days we had, not the sad or abusive ones. I still laugh at some of his jokes, or how most excellently he would lay down a righteous burn or goof on someone. He could make my day, or kill me with the pain only he knew how to inflict. I don't want to think about the bad times anymore, I have made my peace with them. I just want to think about my dad, and be glad that he was my dad. I just wish he and I would have had more time to discuss the beauty of the San Joaquin Delta. But I, in my youthful arrogance, would never entertain the nightmare of living here.

Be careful of the things, and people, you take for granted.

 

~Me

 

 

 

 

No really I am. Seriously, I am. Seriously. And #13

 "I cannot endure to waste anything so precious

as sunshine by staying in the house."

~Nathaniel Hawthorne

The American Notebooks

Seriously, I am going to write about something other than birds and leaves, now that I am back to blogging for the next six months. Other things do actually exist for me. Like what you ask? Well, like baking and using my new air fryer that we bought around/near my birthday. I haven't actually used it yet, but my sweetie husband has made a steak and some sweet potato fries that were to die for! Yum. So, he has inspired me to make something soon. Also, the bread maker is finally unpacked and ready to be used. You remember how much I used it was used in my former life on Alturas.

 

 At one point I think I made some kind of baked item at least every couple days, but until I am less obsessed with birds and leaves, I am afraid this is the course I am on. But hey, it's October, which means vacation has officially begun for 2022. We will be going here are there, and then there is Movieapalosa. This year, I think we broke a record, on DVD purchases. There are at least thirty new movies, just waiting to be seen. Most are horror movies, but we also added some comedies too. Maybe that will be a subject of an upcoming post, how I overspent on vacation. I bet you can't wait! So, into the autumn sunshine I go, and hopefully I will see, and photograph, more beauty than I did the previous day!

 

Click Photo To Enlarge

Tuesday's Leaf Of The Day... #13

~Me

Looking Deeper Into The Photograph And #12

 

"It was one of those perfect autumnal days which occur more frequently in memory than in life."

 

~P.D. James

A Taste For Death 

 

 

Clifton Court Forebay

I photographed this amazing Osprey on September 22nd, just hours before autumn was to begin officially. I was giddy with pure joy at the promise that the long, stupid, hot summer was finally over. The golden sun was shining in a cornflower blue sky and there was a surprisingly cool breeze blowing really gentle, it was just enough to cool you, but not to insult you. And there he was... a really big bird I had never seen before. The Osprey. And he was eating a fish, but I didn't notice until yesterday, while going through some photos, because I had been concentrating only on him.

 

His yellow eyes. His impressive size, especially when his wingspan (5 feet) is out fully. I NEVER saw the fish. There is a real lesson in that, as photographer must ALWAYS be aware of the backgrounds when doing a photo FULL STOP! I neglected to do that, so lesson learned! That was something Steven tried to impress on me, and I really try to do it, but in this case that bird was so amazing, so challenging, so wickedly beautiful that I was completely focused on preserving the moment that the osprey and I made eye contact. It's not an excuse, but it is a reason. Now, isn't it fun that a little autumn magic came into play?

 

And now a little more autumn magic...

 

 

~Me

 

 

A Tale Of Two Roads And #11

 "September days have the warmth of summer in their hours, but in their lengthening evening a prophetic breath of autumn."

~Rowland E. Robinson

 

Desmond road

Galt, California

Spring, 2022
 

I speak a lot about Desmond road, and the Woodbridge Wildlife Preserve in, Lodi, California, so I thought it would be nice to give them their own post. I have enjoyed them very much this year! I saw, and photographed, my first bald eagle on Desmond road, last spring, and another moment I will never forget was seeing was a small flock of Sandhill Cranes flying in circle over my car on Woodbridge road, on the very day they returned to Lodi. It was so soul stirring I think I aged backwards at least two years! Birding has been good for me, I hope I can see all the birds on my list this year, but it's okay if it takes me ten years to find them, because it will always be the ones you didn't count on being there, that fill those little parts of my heart that needs healing the most. That's the way it is with bird watching. It's kinda like a treasure hunt. Even if there are no birds to be found, there is always a beautiful pier, park, forest, or just a gorgeous road, in the middle of nowhere, that's discovered along the way, and if you are lucky, you just might see a bald eagle, or a Sandhill Crane!

 

Desmomd road

Galt, California

September 2022

 Woodbridge road

September 2022

Woodbridge road

September 2022

 

And...

 

 

 

 ~Me

Gathering Leaves And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #10

 

Gathering Leaves

By Robert Frost

 

Spades take up leaves

no better than spoons,

 And bags full of leaves  

are as light as balloons.

 

They make a great noise

of rustling all day

like rabbit and deer

running away.

 

But the mountains I raise

elude my embrace

flowing over my arms

and into my face.

 

I may load and unload 

again and again

Till I fill the whole shed

and what then?

 

Next to nothing for weight

and since they grew duller

from contact with earth

next to nothing for color.

 

Next to nothing for use

but a crop is a crop

and who's to say where

the leaves shall stop. 

 

The leaves above are from a Judas tree, that exists for the time being, at a park and ride in the El Dorado County town of, Ione, California. You may remember me mentioning Ione, when I post about one of my favorite spooky places ever, Preston Castle. Anyway, it has been one of the best sources I have had for finding autumn color in a safe place, and by that, I mean as a place easy to get to, off the road, and not too far into the Sierra foothills. But the last couple years it has become more and more apparent that the town of Ione would rather watch these trees die, than give them a little water. I don't live there, so I feel funny about complaining, I don't know what their budget is, I just know my heart hurts for these beautiful trees. The drought has destroyed so much of the beauty of California, and I feel these trees are just one more casualty. Pray for rain in California, or do some positive visualization, or please, if you can, send some hope their way. I don't want to see their beauty lost forever. 

 

Also from the Judas tree...

 

~Me

Autumn Picnics And Todays Autumn Leaf Of The Day #9

 

Still

By Jaakko A. Ahokas

 

In the fall, I believe in poetry again

if nothing else it is

a movement of the mind.

Summers ball together

into sticky lumps,

evenings are glass beads from one mould

for standard-size youth

winter a smooth heaviness, not even cold.

But the mind trembles

here, on the brink 

the mind trembles

there is life, after all,

there is life, still

unbelief left. 

 

A mother, father, and two baby Clark's Grebes frolic in the warm afternoon sun, in early autumn. The father swims a short distance away, and returns a little bit later with the perfect meal for their picnic... a shiny silver colored fish. He hands it off to one of his children, and floats over to his wife to give her a kiss. They are a happy American family, enjoying life in their home, the waters of the Clifton Court Forebay, in Byron, California. There is just something deeply magical about the sunshine in autumn, that no other season enjoys.

 

 

 

Today's Autumn Leaf Of The Day...

~Me

 

 

Autumnal Rainbows And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #8

 

"Fall colors are funny. They're so bright and intense and beautiful. It's like nature is trying to fill you up with color, to saturate you so you can stockpile it before winter turns everything muted and dreary."

 

~Siobhan Vivian

Same Difference

 

White-faced Ibis are beautiful, full stop. As a juvenile they shine with iridescent dark green feathers. There are other colors mixed in, but as they fly overhead all you can see is either green or black feathers. These two Ibis are among the most lovely I've seen, and with the autumn sun shining through their feathers, illuminating a beautiful rainbow, I can't think of a more fascinating or photogenic bird. 

 

 

~Me

Draggin 2021, Plus The Autumn Leaf Of The Day #7

 

"Don't drag your feet in 2022. Drag a corpse instead.

 It's the only way to kill 2021."

 

~Anthony T. Hincks

 

See that stair goblin. It's not a ghost or a monster or even 2021 sitting there, it's my sweet child Joey. He loves cuddles and smiles. He loves to take mad dashes up the stairs, around the bedroom, and then back downstairs to the living room and kitchen. He, and his brothers, Hendrix and Dylan, are the light in my life. The people who provide me with joy and meaning. I get to take care of them, and in return, they take care of me, well actually, us. Now that my dear hubby is retired, he gets to spend every day with them. 

 

My life is small right now. As my last friend has passed away, and it's difficult to make new friends, but it's okay. In some ways I am kinda glad it's just us. Last year was a shitshow. The thought of never seeing 2021 again never fails to make me smile. Say it with me, it was the year of one of the worst moves I have ever had, and hubby and I both got Covid-19. We missed most of the birds on the Pacific Flyway, and someone stole Christmas packages off our porch, with both of us sitting in the living room. But I think my favorite, OH MY GOD moment of 2021, might have been when someone totaled our new SUV and the cars belonging to 5 of our neighbors, one beautiful morning last October. Sigh. what a year.

 

So if I could, I would drag 2021 behind my little red Mini Cooper. I would take it straight over the Altamont Pass, and through a corn field, before finally drowning it in the delta. But I can't, so when something comes up that even remotely has to do with 2021, I pretend it is nothing more than a residual haunting. A ghost that sometimes floats through the room, says boo, and then disappears out the wall of our kitchen. The ghost of 2021 will rise up from time to time, and I will get the wiggins, but then it will stop and I will be fine. At the end of every day, I know Joey will be on the stairs, waiting to walk me to be and tuck me in, and all will be right with the world.

 

 

~Me

He's Home, And Autumn Leaf Of The Day #6

 

"I've always marveled that geese can feel a call stirring, rise on hardy wings to engage it, and without contemplation, compass or map complete the feat. And could it be that they achieve this astounding accomplishment because far too often contemplation. compass or map rob the call by sterile analysis when we should liberate the call through expectant obedience."

 

~Craig D. Lounsbrough 

 

He's home! My favorite of the species of goose. The king himself. The Greater White-fronted goose has finally arrived in lower Sacramento county, after a long trip from Siberia. I have been checking, pretty much since the end of August for it, at all the usual spots. Cosumnes. Woodbridge. Stone Lakes. Even the Clifton Court Forebay, with no luck at all, but on Sunday, there he was, relaxing in the water off Desmond road. Visiting all those places paid off by awarding us at least one new bird each time. And if there wasn't a new bird for this year's file, there may have been more than one moment of deep cute, such as a mother Grebe, floating happily in the water, with one of her babies on her back. Sigh. But knowing he is back moves me a little more toward normal. I am thinking about my projects, and not about painful memories. I am planning to set a new goal to find. The Caspian Tern, or maybe a Black Oystercatcher. So many birds await!

 

Clark's Grebe with baby.

 

 

~Me

Canada Geese, Late In The Day. Plus Leaf #5

 

"If, of all the seasons, there is a season in which a person completely forgets himself and constantly watches the magical environment, it is undoubtedly autumn!"

 

~Mehmet Murat ildan

 

 That old familiar song... honk... honk honk. I am not completely sure what the geese are saying, but it sure sounds like, I love autumn, to me!

 

 

~Me