Rain, rain, go away — just kidding — it’s wonderful. More rainfall as of this date (December 17th) than in the last 10 years. 20-1/2″ so far, and TOTAL rainfall for the past 3 years has been 23-24″ per year (June is end of season). California (at least coastal) is starting to pull through. The big boy, Shasta Lake (visible from Interstate 5) is 32% full as compared to normal of 52% this time of year; it’s a good start. Come on low pressure, stick around, keep on keepin the storm track open…
Last night I was driving home about 9:30 in the pitch-black rainy night along the coast, Billy Boy Arnold playing a blues song, when a coyote appeared, trotting along the left side of the road. I pulled alongside him, rolled the window down and turned up the music full blast. He ambled along, glancing over at me, seemingly unconcerned, for 20-30 seconds before veering off into the coyote (sic) brush. Wily, mos def…
Old Time Lovin' by Al Green on Grooveshark
This guy has discovered the fish in our pond. Strangely enough, he’s hard to chase away, letting me get to within 25-30 feet. These birds, along with great blue herons are usually very wary and suspicious. Look at the long black legs!
Swarms of monarchs used to pass through town on their southerly migration, but in recent years there have been hardly any. This chrysalis appeared in our garden a few weeks ago and when it got knocked off the plant, Lesley tied it back and put the pot in the greenhouse. (Note the gold dots.)
We kept watching it and a few days ago, the transformation had taken place. (The second shot is a bit blurry.) Within a day or two, it had taken off into the wide outside world.
5-1/2″ in the last few days. There are those of us who are overjoyed. The woods are alive, creeks are bubbling, mycelium are searching for healthy oak roots. BIG storm forecast for mid-week. Low pressure seems to be predominating, allowing the storms to come in off the ocean. There will be flooding, trees down — speaking of which I got about a year’s worth of nice oak firewood by the side of the road this weekend.
Every Drop of Rain by David Byrne & Fatboy Slim on Grooveshark
Shot from the Cliff House at Ocean Beach
“The skulls on display in the Academy’s 4,000-square-foot second-floor Forum Theater and Gallery range from an enormous African bull elephant to a tiny bat, from frogs and fish to giraffes and walruses. There are interactive displays that simulate the vision of predator and prey, and allow visitors to be hands-on with cast skulls. Another part of the exhibit shows live dermestid beetle larvae cleaning delicate bones (the larvae can scour the flesh of a small skull in three days). And there is an interactive 3-D display developed by Google that allows visitors to view skulls from various angles.
“A skull provides important information about a species’ evolution and reveals secrets about that individual animal’s life,” said Moe Flannery, collections manager of ornithology and mammalogy at the academy.
Walking through the exhibit, Flannery added, “By searching for clues written in the bone, we can follow the story of an animal’s life, from birth to old age. We can learn what the animal ate, how it defended itself, communicated, interacted with its environment, and often how it died – all by looking at its skull.…”
–SFGate
400 sea lion skulls mounted here are “…only a fraction of those in storage…”
In garden yesterday on bronze fennel plant…
Intersections with the natural world the past few days: I studied water skeeters in a hill pond Tuesday; a brilliant design by mother nature. They float on 6 legs; 4 long ones for skittering and 2 short legs in front. They move mostly with breaststrokes of the 2 front legs and when startled just zoom. I was transfixed, watched them for 5 minutes or so, the fact they float on their legs…Doug saw a young mountain lion; we always look for the long tail to be sure it’s not a big bobcat…Yes, a long tail, he said, also that it appeared to be a young one, with spots on its skin…I saw a big healthy coyote crossing the road Tuesday night…Yesterday I paddled my kayak across the bay and dug clams…saw 4 of the huge American Pelicans; wingspan of 8-10 feet…harvested some seaweed — Macrocystis integrifolia, a smaller cousin of giant kelp; I’ve been bringing home all kinds of seaweed and this one appears promising. It’s flavorful, with salt crystals that sparkle when it’s dried. I’m grinding it and using it instead of salt on meat, vegetables. salad.
Summertime by The Zombies on Grooveshark
Maybe 15 years ago we had a fox that would appear when we were barbecuing. We’d give him little pieces of meat — not a lot, we didn’t want him to get dependent on humanoids. He was very cautious, always ready to flee. He was a joy to see, to get so close to an elegant wild creature. But there was a period where all the mid-sized critters — foxes, skunks, raccoons, possums — died off from distemper or something. Now they’re coming back.
This little guy has been skirting our half-acre the past few weeks — looks like a juvenile. A few days ago he was on my woodpile. I was about 20 feet away, standing stock still and we locked eyes. He craned his head in and out, I guess getting multiple takes on me.
Yesterday he nestled into a hollow spot on the (living) roof of the chicken coop.
Also on the wild creature front: in the last week I’ve caught 2 hummingbirds. They fly into the office kitchen and can’t get out. It’s easy to catch them. Once they’re in my cupped hands, they seem to relax. I’ll always find someone around to see when I release them. When I open my hands, they sit there a split second, green feathers shimmering in the sunlight. Then vooom! Off like a little helicopter.
Jeez do I love it up here. The first time I came to Oregon, in about 1969, I pulled in to a gas station and a guy walked up and handed me a joint (I had long hair).
I’ve been here about 48 hours and swam in 2 rivers, soaked in hot springs, met lots of wonderful people, and yesterday fell in love. With a barn.
I fall in love with buildings, and this little curved-roof barn just took my breath away. Hasn’t happened in years. I walk inside and go (out loud), oh yeah! I’ll post pix soon.
Book signing at Powell’s tonight. Maybe I’ll slip some barn photos into my slide shows this week.
Photo: No one told me the Clackamas River was emerald green!
