Smith Canal And Pixie Woods

 

“The river this November afternoon
Rests in an equipoise of sun and cloud:
A glooming light, a gleaming darkness shroud
Its passage. All seems tranquil, all in tune.” 

~Cecil Day-Lewis,

  The Complete Poems of C. Day Lewis

 

Smith Canal, across from where I live, is beginning to finally show it's colors. Mostly beautiful orange and tiny lemon drops of yellow Cottonwood. And there is a park that runs along Smith Canal, Lewis Park Pixie Woods, and it too is starting too burst with color! The trees look so lovely next to the boats and yachts across the canal. They are a dream come true for a leaf peeper like myself. Last Autumn was really stunning, so I have great expectations for this year, but last years atmospheric river did a lot a damage, I am crossing my fingers.

 

One New Year's eve last year, it was so rainy and windy I thought we might just blow away, and when I woke up to the news that Desmond road had flooded to the point that there was, in affect, no road to be seen, my heart broke. It was a couple months before things really got back to normal, forever in birding, and it left just Woodbridge road to do our birding on, but I have to admit, Woodbridge certainly provided plenty of birds! we got 40 birds in just 3 months on Woodbridge.

 

 Losing Desmond road was quite a blow, but I found out that my little park, just across the street, was pretty nifty for birding as well, so all was not lost! I'm going to explore the park a little more in the next few months. It's pretty there, but as someone once said, "Its a park in Stockton. Its great in the daytime, just don't go there after dark." LOL. Christmas day, 2021 began with the discovery of a dead body, lying on the end of the road, one street over, facing the park, was depressing and scary. Ugh. I had just got Covid, so it was all completely surreal. But I had just moved in, and moving was absolutely off the table!

 

 Two years later, I am happy in my condo, we have decorated it really nice, and best part of all, I feel grounded, safe and my situation is stable. Bad things happen everywhere. I will just do what I always do, be aware of my surroundings. I have a cell phone, and I am not afraid to us it. Plus I have Hubby to walk with me. Smith Canal is worth exploring, and explore I will! I know there will be a lot to photograph, and from there, exploring around Stockton will come next. The Old buildings.The University of the Pacific. The Miracle Mile. The Bob Hope Theater its all waiting, and doesn't that all sound fun?

 

Now someone give me the courage to climb out of my grieving. 

Please.

 

 

Stay Tuned.

Score! Dine And Dash? Or Luck?

 

“And then, as if written by the hand of a bad novelist,

 an incredible thing happened.” 

 
~Jonathan Stroud,

   The Amulet of Samarkand

 

 

That 70's Show

Season: 3 Episode:13

Dine & Dash 

Disclosure... This is a long winded post.

 

SCORE!

Or perhaps...

 

Death By Good Luck!

Or maybe...

 

This year's, September 21st, The First Day Of Autumn. was happy, and weird! It was also a day of incredible luck. Umm, I am no "dine-and-dasher" but sometimes life puts stuff in your Micky D bag, and you have nothing to do with it. It just does. Is that a bad thing? Well, in this case it might be bad for your cholesterol levels, but is luck... luck? Or is it something else? Like is it stealing when stuff you don't order ends up in your bag? All I know is that this autumn has been putting free food in my Micky D bag, Starbucks's cups and Firehouse subs cartons. Shrug. It all started on that first glorious day of autumn, with a morning trip to McDonald's.

Hubby and I were on our way to Ione, to leaf peep, but we were getting out of the house a lot later than we had planned, so we decided to stop and grab some fast food, and eat on the way! Two things I usually frown on. High sodium contents and I are not friends, now that I am the oldest woman alive, and even if I could eat it without my feet bloating to the size of cannon balls, eating while driving is never a good idea, at any age, so two the two evils were working against the whole plan from the start. Not to mention, fast food prices have increased since the beginning of the Covid pandemic. But McDonald's does have a rewards program, and we earn points from time to time. There is Free French Fries Friday, and sue me, I am a sucker for a Big Mac from time to time. Ugh. Cannon balls.

So, we ran out the door, and used our points. It was 10:15 am, and we had to get there by 10:30. I put the order in, and we drove 8 minutes to the restaurant, and parked in space #4. After a long wait, maybe 10 minutes a very pleasant young man named Jim, came out to the waiting cars... 4 of them... and handed the bags of death to each driver of the cars. When he arrived at our car, he smiled politely, said my name, and handed us our bag. Hubby checked the ticket, it seemed to be right and then it was my turn to hold the bag, which I promptly put at my feet. Our order had been...

2 Sausage McMuffin with Egg

1 Egg McMuffin

1 Apple pie

What we recieved was...

6 Sausage McMuffin with Egg

1 Egg McMuffin

1 Hashbrown

And I swear, I didn't notice how heavy the bag was! We drove to one of our favorite parks, opened the bag for the first time, and inside was a huge feast! And enough sodium and cholesterol to, well, you know! Let's just say, my doctor, and my stylish slouchy Autumn/Winter boots would frown on what was in the bag! So much sodium, so much cholesterol, so many calories. Here is the nutrition break down...

 

Sausage McMuffin with Egg $4.39

 

 

Egg McMuffin $4.14

 

Apple Pie $2.29

 As you can see, it's very naughty to partake, but sometimes, mmmmmmmmm. It's a love hate thing at this point. Anyway in all ways, this is what was in the bag.When we got to the park, I turned to Hubby and said, SCORE! He looked in his bag and rolled his eyes. Hubby is a very moral guy. He has a love/hate relationship with the "score" in general. I, however, see it differently. I mean, isn't it the restaurant's ultimate responsibility to check to see the order is correct? I have driven off many times with my order incomplete. But I suppose, really, there is a shared responsibility involved. I hand money to these restaurants. I should check to be sure it's correct, if I value my money. One gets ripped off a lot more than one scores. 

So, it was now 10:45 am, well past the Breakfast time, had we taken the ill gotten gain back to McDonald's, they wouldn't have served it to anyone else, because no one would be ordering it. They don't allow breakfast orders after that time, so the food would have probably been tossed or given to us anyway. I think at least the food was eaten  eventually kept it from being wasted. While we do eat an McDonald breakfast from time to time, neither of us eats more than one sandwich or burger at a time. And they haven't had good Hash Browns since the mid 1980's. Blech. But we put it in our ice chest, and refrigerated immediately when we got home. The next morning we put them in the toasted oven, with some homemade rosemary breakfast potatoes!

But the Autumn theme of something for nothing didn't stop there. Later in the day, on the first day of Autumn we stopped at Starbucks for a quick drink. We placed our order, and when we got to the window we were gifted a Venti Black Iced Tea. But this time we were asked if we wanted it by the Brista, so it definitely isn't a dine and dash situation, but it does count as an absolute score! It was a fun start of Autumn to be sure, and a weird one too, but we went on our way that day and smiled about that being yet another fun day we spent together. And on one of our favorite days of the year, the first day of Autumn.

 

 But just yesterday, it happened yet again.

 

I got a coupon for a free medium, Hook and Ladder, from Firehouse Subs. A $13.00 value. Again, I place my order through the app, and picked up my order, again without checking the bag until I got home. When I opened the bag there it was! The bag didn't feel particularly heavy when it was handed to me, but none the less, we had, apparently, scored. One sandwich for Hubby, one sandwich for me, and one sandwich for my moral pull. Sigh. The sandwich shop was in another city, miles away. Can they sell the sandwich after it's been in my possession for over 20 minutes? We are still living in the age of Covid-19, despite what some think. I don;t know it would be legal before Covid to resell food. The extra sandwich was indeed a medium Hook and Ladder, but was made with lettuce and tomatoes, both of which I can't stand on hamburgers or sandwiches, so it may have belonged to the car behind me. Sigh. 

 

WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?!

AND THANK YOU?!

Two things are clear. Autumn is weird this year! And the questions remains. When is a SCORE a score? When is a DINE AND DASH a dine and dash? And when do you just relax and thank luck for nodding your way? 

If you care to, leave me your thoughts. 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #49

 

“There's something to walking with autumnal thoughts through the evening fog. One likes to compose poems at a time like that.” 

~Hermann Hesse,

  Demian. Die Geschichte von Emil Sinclairs Jugend

 

 

 Every leaf is a poem. Isn't it?

 

Well, That's A Thing!

 

The Mafia?

I literally didn't know the Mafia was a thing, here, or abroad! But today, several members of the Gambino crime family was arrested in Brooklyn, New York. That's the crime family that Rudy Giuliani worked so hard to put behind bars in the 1970's and 80's. Does he know? And what a strange thought... will he be sharing a cell with one of the Gambino's one day? I thought that crime family died with the arrest and conviction of John Gotti! I guess I should read more about the Mafia, beyond Donald Trump's connections to it. And yes, he does indeed have deep connections to the Mafia. 

 

Of course he does! 

 

Read more about it at the Mob Museum.

Ivank Trump... I Don't Recall

Finally, Ivanka Trump testifies, and the prosecution rests, with the option of recalling certain previous witnesses. She didn't cause any moments of wow, it was either, I don't recall, I am not sure, or she admitted to whatever was asked of her. Sigh. The drama resumes tonight with Donald Trumps big fancy speech, designed to interrupt the next Republican debate, and Monday when his witnesses begin to testify. But both sides have planned motions and Trump's side may ask for a directed verdict. Sigh. The circus continues.

 

Click here, to read some of the relevant points of the day.

 

So fucking tedious.

 

 

The Birds At The Tides

 

 

Alfred Hitchcock's

The Birds

By Daphne  du Maurier

 

Mitch Brenner: I wonder if you could help me?

Mitch Brenner: Do you happen to have a pair of birds that are just friendly?

Melanie Daniels: Just what is it you're looking for, sir?
Mitch Brenner: Lovebirds.
Melanie Daniels: Lovebirds, sir?
Mitch Brenner: Yes, I understand there are different varieties. Is that true?
Melanie Daniels: Oh yes there are.
Mitch Brenner: Well, these are for my sister, for her birthday see, and uh, as she's only going to be eleven, I, I wouldn't want a pair of birds that were too demonstrative.
Melanie Daniels: I understand completely.
Mitch Brenner: At the same time, I wouldn't want them to be too aloof either.
Melanie Daniels: No, of course not.

 

Oh my, Melanie Daniels and Mitch Brenner!

 

The Birds is one of my all time favorite horror films, partly because it is Hitchcock in all his glory. Partly because it is filmed on one of the most beautiful towns in Northern California, and partly for the amazing cast, including Rod Taylor (ooh la la) Tippi Hedren and Suzanne Pleshette. But one of the most compelling performances came from actress, Doreen Lang. She played a terrified mother, stuck in The Tides restaurant, during one of the scariest bird strikes on the town of Bodega Bay. Chilling!

The film was released in 1963, and remains a classic of the horror film genre. The plot revolves around an example of nature hitting back at humans, for ignoring it's plight through the dangers of global warming, or does it mean that at all? Or could it simply be one of those unexplainable occurrences that take place every once in a Blue Moon? Still one other theory is that Melanie Daniels is somehow causing the strange, birds gone insane, happening as it didn't seem to start, until Melanie Daniels arrived in town. She was the first victim of the birds, when she was assaulted by a large gull, while operating a small boat heading across Bodega Bay. 

It was love at first sight between, Mitch and Melanie, although it was initially more combative than romantic. They banter back and forth for a bit, but in the end, Mitch seems to win their verbal dance. Not to be outdone, she pursues finding Mitch's address, and through her stalking mishaps, finds herself on her way to Bodega Bay. Her flirtation with Mitch Brenner, a lawyer from San Francisco, but living on weekends in Bodega Bay, is sexy and smart. It makes you want to see them form a lasting relationship, because in simple terms, you learn of their shared loneliness. They are that couple who finds each other, under difficult circumstances, often sparring, often turning to empathy for each other and the dynamics that leads them to live their respective guarded and lonely lives. Pressure we can all relate to in some way. But the road to love usually has some bumps along the way, but these two take it all to a new level.  LOL. 

Anyway, chances are you are very familiar with the film, so I won't go on and on about the plot, but I want to remind you how much fun it is to watch! It's a Saturday afternoon movie in my opinion, which is great because not all horror movies are geared to dark rooms and blankets to hide under. It is a popcorn movie though, and it's a gem with so many individual impressive scenes it's ridiculous! See the cool clips below. So, as you can see, I enjoy spending time in the famous town, not just as a movie buff, but also for the amazing birding opportunities it provides! Ironic, right? And I love the cheesy sense of humor Bodega Bay has about being the home of one of the most beloved horror movies ever!

The Bodega Harbor. The trees that stood in front of the house featured as the Brenner house, and the Potter Schoolhouse, used for the Bodega Bay school, are still there, as are is the Tides Restaurant. Although while it has gone under significant redesign, they maintain a small display outside the restaurant that runs the movie, in full, several times a day. Fans can stand outside the exhibit and do selfies next to the scenes behind them. It doesn't really put you in the film or anything, but it's kinda cool to stop and watch the movie. I have no idea who I would have been best to play in the film, but being a customer in The Tides, during all the drama, would have been an absolute hoot!

Enjoy my favorite clips...

"I think you're evil!"
 

From The Tides Display...

Hey, just because October, and Halloween, is over doesn't mean the chills, horror and all manner of things scary has to end! I am planning another trip to Bodega Bay before the atmospheric rive arrives, so I will post more photos from around the town later this month. Now, go watch the movie, and stay tuned!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #48

 

“...the air has that bracing autumnal bite so that all you want to do is bob for apples or hang a witch or something.”

 
~Sarah Vowell,

  Unfamiliar Fishes

 

November is here! Bringing with it the first really cold day of the year. At least it seems that way to me! The temperature right now reads 64 degrees, but with the wind it feels more like 54 degrees. Anyway, I love feeling cold. I love wearing my autumn/winter sweaters, so all is good. And the leaves... well... it's getting gorgeous outside!

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #47

 

“In her finest gold-tipped pen,

 Nature writes the poem of autumn upon the earth.”

 
~Laura Jaworski 

 

That's all. That's the leaf.

 

 

Fruitful, Lusty, Wild, Revealing

 

“Fruitful. Lusty. Wild. Revealing. Every day a brilliant reminder of how nothing stays the same, every day an exercise in variability, resilience, and trust. I love seasons, live for the changing seasons, could not imagine my life without seasons, but, I must admit--at the risk of offending the others-- autumn is my very favorite one.” 

~Shellen Lubin 

 

Mine too.

 

 That's it.

 That's the post. 

 

 

Big Mouth Blues

 “Right is right, even if everyone is against it,

 and wrong is wrong, even if everyone is for it.” 

~William Penn 

 

 

 

The Big Fat Baby Endures...

 

And it's terrifying.

Beer Jerky Soda

 

“There were days when no kid came out of his house without looking around. The week after Halloween had a quality both hungover and ominous, the light pitched, the sky smashed against the rooftops.”

 
~Jonathan Lethem,

  The Fortress of Solitude

 

Okay, I have kinda found my bravery when it comes to spiders, so now I need to work on my inability to visit little stores and shops out here in the valley. For some reason I have shied away from checking out what kind of things are most popular in the quirky little shops. Almost to the point of it being a phobia! What the hell is that about? I know... I'm a weirdo, it's just that everything out here is so foreign to me. The little delta shops, and seeing weirdness everywhere, like the constant red light runners. I dunno, I know bait is a big deal here, so is jerky, but I am betting there are other cool products to be had. I passed a place a while back that advertised "gizzards" for sale. I wonder if they were for bait or for Sunday dinner? Hmmm... I have NO IDEA! I guess it's time to check it out!

 

Stay Tuned! 

 

By the way, which one do your like?

 Original, Black and White or Sepia?

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #46

 

“I loved autumn, the one season of the year that

 God seemed to have put there just for the beauty of it.” 

 
~Lee Maynard 

 

Isn't that leaf breathtaking?

 

 

My Happy Place

 

“Come, little leaves," said the Wind one day, "Come to the meadows with me and play. Put on your dresses of red and gold; For Summer is past, and the days grow cold.” 

~George Cooper 

 

 

“Squeeze your eyes closed, as tight as you can, and think of all your favorite autumns, crisp and perfect, all bound up together like a stack of cards. That is what it is like, the awful, wonderful brightness of Fairy colors. Try to smell the hard, pale wood sending up sharp, green smoke into the afternoon. To feel the mellow, golden sun on your skin, more gentle and cozier and more golden than even the light of your favorite reading nook at the close of the day.” 

~ Catherynne M. Valente,

  The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making 

 

 

Close your eyes and imagine yourself surrounded by crimson red leaves dancing around in the air. Smell the scent of the raw earth, just after the corn is harvested. Geese and Sandhill crane flying by, singing for everyone to hear as they arrive high above Woodbridge road. Imagine a sky, filled with clouds that seem to go on forever, with just enough blue sky surrounding them to make you think of the ocean. That's what it's like here in Autumn, and no other season presents itself with that kind of beauty. This is one of my happy places. It's really helping my process my grief. I loved my niece and nephew, very much. I am so sorry they died and I miss them greatly, but being out in nature provides me a gentle relief from the stress and sadness. In an upcoming post I will tell you about some of the other sights I see on Woodbridge and Desmond roads. It's a truly amazing place.

 

 

 

 Take a moment to just daydream. 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #45

 

“Maybe late afternoon is autumn; summer’s retreat
not being archived, but suspended, as the feathered
vane of a bird wings its way across the avenue.” 

~Michelle Cahill,

  The Accidental Cage

 

I love oak leaves. They turn such glorious shades of wine and rust. I am lucky enough to live near a park that has at least 30 varieties of trees, and yet the oak always calls me over first. The trees in the park are maturing slowly this year, so it will be closer to Thanksgiving before I can get a picture of the trees in all their glory. I am really looking forward to just taking a whole day and photographing everything Lewis Park has to offer! Bird, leaves, ships in the harbor, it's all waiting for my camera. 

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #44

 “In November, some birds move away and some birds stay. The air is full of good-byes and well-wishes. The birds who are leaving look very serious. No silly spring chirping now. They have long journeys and must watch where they are going. The staying birds are serious, too, for cold times lie ahead. Hard times. All berries will be treasures.”

 
~Cynthia Rylant,

  In November

 

The leaves are getting more colorful now. A little later today I am going leaf peeping in Sacramento, and the anticipation makes my heart leap just a little bit! I can't wait to see all the beautiful autumn color! 

 

 

Autumn Naps

 

“November is usually such a disagreeable month...as if the year had suddenly found out that she was growing old and could do nothing but weep and fret over it. This year is growing old gracefully...just like a stately old lady who knows she can be charming even with gray hair and wrinkles. We've had lovely days and delicious twilight's.”

 

~L.M. Montgomery,

  Anne of Avonlea

 

 As days of birding in Bodega Bay goes, this day was not one of the best ones I have ever had, but we still managed to leave with four new birds, and some shots of some gorgeous ornamental plume grasses, like these. These particular ones line the bay, and  makes the place look even more serene than it already does. Watching them sway back and for always makes me want to take a nap, which I guess could be a bad idea, since my napping urges seem increase with the gold of the season, and we live about 2 hours away, depending on traffic! I could nap on the way home, but I like to assist Alan with staying awake, as the road can be somewhat hypnotic! The plumes sit along the same side as where Mitch Brenner's house, from the film The Birds, would have sat.

 

 I am going to have to check the movie the next time I watch it, to see if there was this kind of grasses seen in the movie. Of course it was filmed in 1962, so I am thinking probably not. The next time I visit, hopefully sometime this month, I will get there with enough time to be able to do some photos from around town, and maybe do a before and after, and show what was filmed in town and what was filmed on a sound stage. In between looking for birds, that is, November is always a good month for searching for birds along the coast! The Brandts and about 4 or 5 different kinds of gulls are in, as are ducks and grebe. There is all sorts of waders, and there's even a bald eagle that haunts a line of eucalyptus trees that sits directly behind these plumes!

Yawn. For now I am going to go catch a nap, and plan my next trip. I will get in at least one more trip to the Clifton Court Forebay next week, and next Wednesday also we are venturing up to the top of Mount Diablo in search of a pair of California Condors that have been spotted near the summit. It would be great to spot them, and coincidentally we spotted one in Bodega Bay, quite by accident, during the autumn of 2005! We were in front of the Potter Schoolhouse, when we saw a large black bird fly past us and land on the top of a telephone poll. Low and behold, it was a rare California Condor, who at the time was fairly close to being an endangered species!

Bodega is magical that way, and especially in autumn. So never take for granted what bird you might spot in Bodega Bay or Mount Diablo for that matter! That seems to be the way things go with birding, you go out looking for one thing, and comeback with something else, just as cool! Yawn. I think I need a nap now, I have a lot of dreaming to do for next week! Or maybe just for my own well-being. It's been so stressful this last month or so. Sigh. X continues to be filled to the brim with hate, just the way Elon Musk loves it, and Trump continues to suck every bit of energy right out of me. I know it will all get better one day, and I have my my hubby, and my birds to help me though it all. And naps. And baking. And so much more! All is not lost.