Mark's Reading Place: Chapter Seventeen

É uma continuação do tópico Mark's Reading Place: Chapter Sixteen.

Este tópico foi continuado por Mark's Reading Place: Chapter Eighteen.

Discussão75 Books Challenge for 2020

Entre no LibraryThing para poder publicar.

Mark's Reading Place: Chapter Seventeen

1msf59
Editado: Out 27, 2020, 7:48 pm



Keowee Key, SC



-Eastern Phoebe



-Last punch. August 31st, 2020.

2msf59
Editado: Out 28, 2020, 6:56 pm





Audiobook:



Graphic/Comic:



July:

79) Redhead by the Side of the Road by Anne Tyler 4 stars (audio)
80) Blood: A Memoir by Allison Moorer 4.2 stars (audio)
81) The Prisoner of Heaven (Book 3) by Carlos Ruiz Zafón 4.4 stars E
82) The Bad-Ass Librarians of Timbuktu by Joshua Hammer 3.6 stars (audio)
83) Animal Spirit: Stories by Francesca Marciano 4.5 stars
84) With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo 4 stars (audio)
85) The Virgin Suicides by Eugenides Jeffrey 4.5 stars
86) The New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration by Michelle Alexander 5 stars (audio)
87) The Migration by Helen Marshall 3.6 stars
88) Parakeet: A Novel by Marie-Helene Bertino 4.2 stars
89) American Heiress by Jeffrey Toobin 4.6 stars (audio)

August:

90) The Raw Shark Texts by Steven Hall 4 stars
91) Department of Mind-Blowing Theories by Tom Gauld 3.7 stars GN
92) Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell 4.8 stars
93) Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts 3.8 stars (audio)
94) The Driftless Area by Tom Drury 3.7 stars
95) All the King's Men by Robert Penn Warren 4.2 stars (audio) AAC
96) Sansei and Sensibility by Karen Tei Yamashita 4 stars
97) Blacktop Wasteland by S. A. Cosby 4.3 stars
98) The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean 3.8 stars (audio)
99) Q Road by Bonnie Jo Campbell 3.7 stars
100) The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett 4 stars (audio)

September:

101) The Fire Next Time by James Baldwin 4.6 stars (audio)
102) Vesper Flights by Helen MacDonald 4.2 stars E
103) Burning Bright: Stories by Ron Rash 4.4 stars E
104) Migrations: A Novel by Charlotte McConaghy 4.3 stars
105) Postcolonial Love Poem: Poems by Natalie Diaz 4.7 stars P
106) Today Is the Last Day of the Rest of Your Life by Ulli Lust 4 stars GN
107) How to Be an Antiracist by Ibram X. Kendi 4 stars (audio)
108) Tiny Love: The Complete Stories by Larry Brown 5 stars

October:

109) The New Wilderness by Diane Cook 3.6 stars
110) The Home Place: Memoir by J. Drew Lanham 3.7 stars
111) The Pale-Faced Lie: A True Story by David Crow 4 stars (audio)
112) Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell 4.2 stars ER
113) Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story by Frederik Peeters 4 stars GN
114) Lost in the City: Stories by Edward P Jones 3.6 stars
115) Righteous (An IQ Novel 2) by Joe Ide 4 stars E
116) Erosion: Essays of Undoing by Terry Tempest Williams 4 stars (audio)

3msf59
Editado: Out 4, 2020, 10:02 am




"By turns angry, funny, elegiac, and heartbreaking, The Home Place is a remarkable meditation on nature and belonging, at once a deeply moving memoir and riveting exploration of the contradictions of black identity in the rural South—and in America today."

I just finished The New Wilderness and now I am moving on to The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man's Love Affair with Nature. A memoir that Nancy recommended. It sure sounds like a winner. I had not heard of Mr. Lanham before. He is a poet too. It looks like I am currently reading a pair of memoirs, since I am still listening my way through A Pale-Faced Lie. This is pretty rare for me.

4msf59
Editado: Out 4, 2020, 10:07 am



^Thanks to my dear pal, Kim, I now own a lovely signed copy of Vesper Flights which I had read and loved early last month. I have all ready picked out a perfect spot on my "Keeper" shelf for it. Yes, I do have a small "birding" section.

5richardderus
Out 4, 2020, 10:11 am

>4 msf59: That is way cool! Happy new *hic* thread! *hic*

6alphaorder
Out 4, 2020, 10:27 am

>3 msf59: So excited to see you are reading The Home Place. It is an excellent read, in my opinion, especially for my nature buddy.

I am really enjoying Barbara Kingsolver's new poetry collection How to Fly. Still reading Vesper Flights too. And am going to start Long Live the Post Horn!, which I suspect you would appreciate too.

7benitastrnad
Out 4, 2020, 11:08 am

I just took a BB for the Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man's Love Affair with Nature.

Yesterday was the first home football game here in Tuscaloosa and the business owners around town were hoping for a miracle to turn things around. They didn't get one. 20,000 people were allowed into a stadium that seats 100,000. The University forbid any tailgating on University property. They allowed no "watch parties" on University property, including sororities or fraternities. The City forbid any tailgating on City property including the city parks. The mayor told bar and restaurant owners that the fire inspectors and police would be patrolling venues and counting people and they WOULD be handing out citations to businesses for any violations that they found.

As a result the day was very quiet. I spent yesterday afternoon outside at my local Starbucks were I met up with the former professor who is going to proofread my journal article. We had a pleasant talk, and I hope that she thinks my article is publishable. The deadline for submitting it is October 30, so I hope that she doesn't recommend major revisions.

It has been a beautiful couple of fall days here in Tuscaloosa. Unseasonably cool and sunny. Usually this kind of "football" weather happens here sometime around the first of November, but this year has been wacky year, so why would it change now? I will say that you picked a good time to visit the South, but you should know that the weather you experienced is not usually the way things are in the South in September. The weather you had for your trip would make people think that the South is a perfect place to live. However, that was the exception rather than the rule. But that doesn't keep me from enjoying it. My container garden is beginning to look blowzy and thin so I know winter is coming! Things still look nice on my patio and it makes it a joyful place to sit and read.

8msf59
Out 4, 2020, 11:48 am

>5 richardderus: Book buddies are the best, Richard. I will even rate them over bird buddies! B.A.G.

>6 alphaorder: Looking forward to dipping into the memoir, in just a little while, my friend. I am sure it will be something I will enjoy. I have requested the Kingsolver collection. I have not heard of Long Live the Post Horn!, so I will be watching for your thoughts on that one.

>7 benitastrnad: Happy Sunday, Benita. Glad I got you with a BB and I am glad you are enjoying some cooler weather. How do they disperse the 20,000 tickets? A lottery or first come, first serve? I am sure those are coveted.

You are correct about the weather down south. It was warm and humid last September in SC.

9PaulCranswick
Out 4, 2020, 12:00 pm

Happy new thread, Mark.

10m.belljackson
Out 4, 2020, 12:31 pm

Ah, Byzantine, such a lovely word, that could describe your beautiful water path photograph...

11quondame
Out 4, 2020, 1:46 pm

Happy new thread!

12msf59
Out 4, 2020, 2:08 pm

>9 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul.

>10 m.belljackson: You put that beautifully, Marianne. Happy Sunday!

>11 quondame: Thanks, Susan.

13drneutron
Out 4, 2020, 2:18 pm

Happy new thread!

14katiekrug
Out 4, 2020, 2:35 pm

Happy new one, Mark!

15quondame
Out 4, 2020, 2:42 pm

>10 m.belljackson: (prev. thread) >290 quondame: benitastrnad Well, it is almost impossible to direct a change in language, the logic of usage and resonance of sound and meaning having their own hypnotic compulsion. I just feel compelled to squawk when I see the B word. Of course England/France/Germany even with the addition of the USA aren't the whole world, as Eastern Europe, Russia and the entire continent to their east well know. Sometimes I have to remind myself that this is all happening outside China and doesn't matter much at all in the long term. Not that the long term for China will extend much past ours, what with their choice of mistakes.

16benitastrnad
Out 4, 2020, 2:57 pm

>15 quondame:
That made me laugh! Yes. A thousand year empire would be a short lived one in Chinese history. No matter what its name.

17BLBera
Out 4, 2020, 3:32 pm

Nice photos at the top, Mark. Happy new thread!

18mdoris
Out 4, 2020, 4:00 pm

Happy new thread Mark. Love all the bird pics and great that you are enjoying your new life!

19richardderus
Out 4, 2020, 4:07 pm

Mark, you really need to go look at this: Birds & Bees PSA

Shelley posted it, gawd luv 'er.

20charl08
Out 4, 2020, 4:16 pm

Happy new thread - and congrats on your new signed copy.

21figsfromthistle
Out 4, 2020, 5:17 pm

Happy new one!

22FAMeulstee
Out 4, 2020, 5:19 pm

Happy new thread, Mark!
So glad retirement didn't disappoint you ;-)

23Storeetllr
Out 4, 2020, 7:17 pm

Hey, there, Mark - happy new thread!

24msf59
Out 4, 2020, 7:40 pm

>13 drneutron: >14 katiekrug: >17 BLBera: >18 mdoris: Thanks, Jim, Katie, Beth & Mary.

>19 richardderus: Thanks, Richard. I will check out the link.

>20 charl08: >21 figsfromthistle: >22 FAMeulstee: >23 Storeetllr: Thanks, Charlotte, Figs, Anita & Mary!

25Donna828
Out 4, 2020, 8:30 pm

Ooooh, a shiny new thread! I seldom get in on the beginnings of your many threads, Mark, so this is a real treat. South Carolina is such a beautiful state. I would like to visit it again someday. I have a good friend that has a second home there on Fripp Island where Pat Conroy lived. We have an open invitation to visit. Lucky us!

26thornton37814
Out 4, 2020, 9:12 pm

Re: Jeopardy pic on last thread. I think I'd prefer that to a debate.

27msf59
Editado: Out 5, 2020, 7:30 am

>25 Donna828: Hi, Donna. I would like to explore the eastern parts of the Carolinas too. I know there is a National Park in SC, Congaree, that I would love to visit. I hope you can make it out to Fripp Island one of these days.

>26 thornton37814: I think many of us over here would much prefer watching Debate Jeopardy, Lori. Good to see you, BTW.

28karenmarie
Out 5, 2020, 9:07 am

'Morning, Mark, and happy Monday to you. Enjoy your SBR.

29benitastrnad
Out 5, 2020, 11:11 am

I stayed up late last night to finish Lost to the West by Lars Brownworth. This is narrative nonfiction in the style of Shelby Foote. It is just darn good storytelling. It is a blow-by-blow chronological overview of the history of the Emperors of the Eastern Roman Empire. It is NOT a work of academic history. It IS storytelling. It succeeds wonderfully at telling the story. It does get a bit polemic at times, but the author stays on-track and draws the reader unto the great drama of the rise and fall of civilizations. And what a bumpy ride that is. (we can all attest to that given the current times in which we live.) If you don't know anything about the Eastern Roman Empire (AKA as the Byzantine Empire) this is the book to read. It never gets into details and it keeps the story rolling.

Why I have this book is tied up with why I am on LT. Back-in-the-day, School Library Journal ran an end-of-the-year review of great web sites for school teachers and librarians. In about 2007, that review included the web site, and nascent podcast done by a high school history teacher, Lars Brownworth and his brother Anders. The title of the site and the podcast was Lost to the West. It was about a forgotten part of Western Civilization - the Byzantine Empire. Brownworth was teaching high school history in New York and became obsessed with, what he saw as the forgotten history of the Eastern Roman Empire. His brother Anders was interested in this new thing called podcasts, so the two brothers developed one of the first podcasts as a teaching aid. It was specifically aimed at helping high school teachers teach about a historical subject that they knew little about. I downloaded the podcasts and still have them on my computer and my iPad. A few years later Brownworth wrote this book - which was a bestseller. A few years after that he developed another podcast on the Norman's and the Norman kingdoms of Sicily and Naples and the critical role that the Normans played in the history of the European Middle Ages.

When the book was published I purchased it and got one for our library. I am finally reading it now because the subject of the Byzantines and the Ottoman Empire is the October topic for the Non-fiction reading challenge hosted by Suzanne. My next book for this challenge is Justinian's Flea: Plague, Empire and the Birth of Europe by William Rosen. I have read 20 pages in it and I can tell already that this is a more academic book in style and substance.

In that same issue of School Library Journal, in the same review section was a review of another new web site - Librarything. I thought that one sounded interesting as well, so I took a look and bookmarked it. I have been hanging around Librarything ever since.

As for School Library Journal. I hardly ever look at it now. I don't have time, and we stopped getting a paper copy of it, so I can't carry it around with me to lunch like a did in the past. Because of that I don't know about the new whiz bang stuff that might be out there on the internet. Something's lost and something's gained with every change. Not reading SLJ is one of the losses.

30msf59
Out 5, 2020, 2:21 pm

>28 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. I had a very nice SBR. Thanks. Chilly start but plenty of sunshine.

>29 benitastrnad: Thanks for all the helpful info on Lost to the West, Benita. It looks like a book I could sink my teeth into and learn some stuff too.

31vivians
Out 5, 2020, 4:30 pm

Hi Mark - did I miss your comments on The New Wilderness? It was a bit of a slog for me so I'm wondering what you thought.

32msf59
Out 5, 2020, 5:52 pm

>31 vivians: Hi, Vivian. I didn't review it yet but I will definitely be leaning in your direction on The New Wilderness. I didn't quite find it a slog but it never took off like I was expecting.

33Whisper1
Out 5, 2020, 11:32 pm

>4 msf59: I added Vesper Flights to the tbr list. I imagine you are very much enjoying retirement! The end of this month will be my second year of retirement.

I hope to read more next year.

34LovingLit
Out 6, 2020, 4:37 am

>1 msf59: ooooh, great top pic!
Happy newest *retired* thread :)

35msf59
Out 6, 2020, 7:21 am

>33 Whisper1: Hi, Linda. Good to see you. Glad I got you with a BB. Did you read H is For Hawk? Yep, retirement is off to a wonderful start.

>34 LovingLit: Thanks, Megan. Good to see you, my friend. Glad you like my topper choice. A beautiful place.

36karenmarie
Out 6, 2020, 8:17 am

'Morning, Mark! Enjoy your day. I wish FoYs and/or lifers.

37msf59
Out 6, 2020, 6:35 pm

>36 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. It was an exciting bird day, with my pals. A few FOY birds but sadly no lifers. I still had nearly 50 species, which is pretty darn nice.

38Familyhistorian
Out 6, 2020, 7:38 pm

Happy new thread, Mark! Do birders still go out when there's snow on the ground?

39msf59
Out 7, 2020, 7:38 am

Thanks, Meg. Birders go out, no matter the weather. I like hiking in the woods in the winter, as long as the snow isn't deep or the trails icy. The birds will be a bit trickier to find though.

40msf59
Editado: Out 7, 2020, 7:51 am





My birding buddies and I drove down to Dixon Waterfowl Refuge yesterday. It is just under 2 hours away, southwest of the city, but well worth it. The waterfowl have started migrating through the Midwest and this trend will continue for the next several weeks. My spanking new spotting scope came in handy here. Binoculars are not very effective at these long distances. This marshy wetland was covered with birds when we arrived and the numbers slowly abated as the morning went on. There had to be 500-600 American Coots. No, I am not kidding. Also seen were white pelicans, sandhill cranes, mute swans, egrets, grebes, Canada geese and of course a multitude of different ducks including- ruddy ducks, canvasback, redhead, ring-necked, gadwell, pintails, northern shovelers and blue-winged teal. I may have missed one or two. We also had a couple of raptors, including a northern harrier and three bald eagles. Teamed up with a fair number of land birds, we had about 50 species.

41msf59
Out 7, 2020, 7:56 am



-American White Pelican. I love seeing these beauties and this was a FOY of the year for me.



-Canvasback. Hard to see these red eyes even in the scope but these guys are gorgeous.

*None of these photos are mine. Far to difficult.

42karenmarie
Out 7, 2020, 8:34 am

'Morning, Mark, and happy Wednesday to you.

Congrats on your exciting birding adventure, and have another good one, albeit solo, today.

43lauralkeet
Out 7, 2020, 8:35 am

>40 msf59: Mark, I can so relate to this! We had a similar experience at a National Wildlife Refuge in upstate NY this time last year. The park ranger directed us to an out of the way marsh area where hundreds of birds had been spotted. It was just amazing.

44bell7
Out 7, 2020, 10:05 am

Happy newish thread, Mark, and glad to see you're still enjoying retirement life and birding! The canvasback is particular striking.

45benitastrnad
Out 7, 2020, 11:38 am

Your birding excursion is just an ordinary day in the fall and in March in the very busy flyways of the Great Plains every year. I love the fall evenings and nights when humongous flights of geese and ducks float into the fields to feed and then take off in great clouds of feathers. These birds signal the end of the migration season as most of the smaller birds do their migrating a bit earlier in the fall. It is like the magnificent ending of the Hallelujah chorus when the geese, ducks, and cranes come in.

And the noise!!!!!!!!! From thousands of feet up in the air you can hear them calling and honking to each other. Amazing.

46richardderus
Out 7, 2020, 12:38 pm

>40 msf59: How stunning! And so close to the city. Lucky you.

>41 msf59: I had no idea the blandly-named canvasback was so snazzy!

47msf59
Out 7, 2020, 3:42 pm

>42 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. It was a quieter morning but it gave me a little time to practice with my new scope.

>43 lauralkeet: Hi. Laura. I am sure there are many of these waterfowl refuges scattered through the Midwest and the NE part of the country. They truly are a remarkable sight, even for non-birders.

>44 bell7: Thanks, Mary. Great to see you. Yep, retirement has been a perfect fit for me. Glad you like the photogenic canvasback.

48msf59
Out 7, 2020, 3:48 pm

>45 benitastrnad: Hey, Benita. It sounds like you have fond memories of migration through the great Midwest. Until I became a birder, being a city boy of course, I had no idea of the magnitude of migration. Yes, it happens twice a year but it never becomes mundane. Whenever I hear those sandhill cranes calling, my head snaps right up.

>46 richardderus: Hey, RD. I never knew most of these striking waterfowl ever existed. One of the many joyful discoveries of becoming a birder. Glad you enjoy my birdy posts.

49msf59
Editado: Out 7, 2020, 6:43 pm



"Utopia Avenue is the strangest British band you’ve never heard of. Emerging from London’s psychedelic scene in 1967 and fronted by folk singer Elf Holloway, guitar demigod Jasper de Zoet, and blues bassist Dean Moss, Utopia Avenue released only two LPs during its brief, blazing journey..."

^Mitchell is a big favorite around here and after being introduced to his masterpiece, Cloud Atlas I am solidly in the Mitchell camp. I have been looking forward to his latest. I won this advanced copy from ER back in April but received it on September 14th. I will finally start it tomorrow.

50DeltaQueen50
Out 8, 2020, 12:45 am

Hi Mark, I hope you are enjoying your retirement with the 3 B's - birds, books and beer. I have been enjoying our cooler weather and hints of fall. We don't get overwhelmed with fall color but the odd tree here and there, and we are lucky that we have a very colorful plum tree just outside our living room window. The books are treating me well, I've already had one 5 star read this month and hopefully I have some more good ones lined up.

51msf59
Out 8, 2020, 7:48 am

>50 DeltaQueen50: Hi, Judy! Great to see you. Yep, the mighty 3 Bs have been treating me fine. Our fall color has started to arrive and it should really be popping in the next 2 weeks. Glad to hear those books are treating you well. Mine our as well.

52karenmarie
Out 8, 2020, 9:35 am

'Morning, Mark, and a happy Thursday to you.

>49 msf59: I still haven't read Cloud Atlas, even though it's been on my shelves since 9/22/2011.

By the way, I've seen one hummingbird a day for the last 3 days. including today. I wonder when they'll all finally migrate south?

53SebastianShillito
Out 8, 2020, 10:05 am

Este utilizador foi removido como sendo spam.

54jnwelch
Out 8, 2020, 10:15 am

Happy New Thread, Mark!

Liking those toppers, and your trip with your birding buddies to Dixon Waterfowl Refuge looks and sounds great.

I hope you like Utopia Avenue as much as Ellen and I did. I'm betting you will.

I'm reading two widely diverse ones, This is Happiness, a novel set in a small coastal Irish village, and the urban grit of The Awkward Black Man. I'm having to pause after every short story in the latter, and just let it sink in. My latest poet is Robert Creeley, largely a re-read in his collected edition.

I hope you can find a bit of time to relax today, between taking care of your retirement duties. :-)

55Caroline_McElwee
Out 8, 2020, 10:43 am

>49 msf59: So far Cloud Atlas has been my favourite Mark. I'll wait for the new one to come out in paperback, but I'm noting the love for it.

56drneutron
Out 8, 2020, 12:21 pm

I love the sound of the refuge! Sounds like a place I’d like to visit.

57msf59
Out 8, 2020, 2:23 pm

>52 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. I hope you can give Cloud Atlas a try one of these days. It doesn't work for everyone, but if it clicks, it is an amazing journey. I have not seen a hummingbird in 2-3weeks. They have still been sightings in our general area, so I will leave up the feeder for another week or so and maybe catch a straggler.

>54 jnwelch: Thanks, Joe. Sweet Thursday. Dixon was a fantastic area, but a long drive. I will still get back there. Looking forward to settling in with Utopia Avenue in just a short while. The Awkward Black Man sure sounds like my cuppa. Do you own a copy? Not familiar with the poet Creeley.

>55 Caroline_McElwee: I am with you on Cloud Atlas, Caroline but I have not been disappointed in Mitchell yet. I love how diverse his books are. I still want to read Ghostwritten.

>56 drneutron: Hey, Jim. I haven't been to very many waterfowl refuges but they are a quite a sight to see, especially during waterfowl migration. It can be jaw-dropping. I am sure there is one in your general area.

58Caroline_McElwee
Out 8, 2020, 2:26 pm

Funny, I still have Ghostwritten to read too.

59mahsdad
Out 8, 2020, 3:04 pm

I'm about 250pp into Utopia Avenue right now, and I am really enjoying it.

60richardderus
Out 8, 2020, 3:22 pm

Happy Oh-it's-Thursday-fancy-that.

61msf59
Out 8, 2020, 10:38 pm

>58 Caroline_McElwee: We should do a shared read of it, in the coming month, Caroline.

>59 mahsdad: Only 50-60 pages in, Jeff but I am enjoying it. I like the 60s music references.

>60 richardderus: Hey, RD. I hope you had a good day.

62Whisper1
Out 8, 2020, 10:52 pm

>35 msf59: Mark, I own the book H is for Hawk, and I just may know where it is. I will look for it and hope to read it soon. Thanks for the encouragement to do this.

Are you having a difficult time with knowing which day it is in the week? If not for a calendar wherein I mark dr. appointments, and other things I must do on a specific day, I fear I would not know the day of the week. This is but one of the things of retirement...a small one that does not bother me.

I loved your photo of the last day of work! How nice it will be not to travel around in that vehicle that never seemed safe on snow and ice.

63msf59
Out 9, 2020, 8:03 am

>62 Whisper1: Happy Friday, Linda. Great to see you posting around. Always puts a smile on my face. With Sue continuing to work and on a fixed schedule, I am having no problem keeping track of the days. So far it has been a smooth transition. I hope you can bookhorn in H is For Hawk, sometime in the near future. Yep, I do not miss careening around in that postal vehicle. Grins...

64msf59
Editado: Out 9, 2020, 12:54 pm



109) The New Wilderness by Diane Cook 3.6 stars

The cities are dying-ravaged by climate change and overpopulation. There is still a huge area in the country called the Wilderness State, that remains untouched and uninhabited. A group of volunteers have been selected to live here but they have to follow strict guidelines and cannot leave a trace of their existence. The penalties are harsh. Bea, her husband Glen and their young daughter, Agnes are part of this group. How they survive in the following years, against a multitude of challenges, man-made and nature-related, is the meat of this story.
Climate change fiction has become a staple of late, and this one is a prime example. A very intriguing idea, and the author has done her research but despite landing a coveted Booker Shortlist spot, I found the book lacking, in depth and soul. Not a bad read by any means, but it never really took off, the way I expected. I much preferred Migrations which also dealt with climate calamities.

65karenmarie
Out 9, 2020, 9:20 am

Hi Mark! Happy Friday. I hope your day is a good one and that all the camping trip prep goes well.

66richardderus
Out 9, 2020, 10:17 am

>64 msf59: Oh, it's *fiction*! I've been assuming it was non-fiction, for some reason. It's too bad you experienced failure to launch, the idea is a good one.

Camp well!

67m.belljackson
Out 9, 2020, 10:48 am

MARK - Today's online MY MODERN MET is a Bird one not to miss!

68msf59
Out 9, 2020, 12:55 pm

>65 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen. A bit chaotic, but it always is. I can't wait to be on our way.

>66 richardderus: Hey, RD. Cook also has a story collection out, Man V. Nature. I wonder if she would be better in that format. I will probably give it a try at some point.

>67 m.belljackson: Thanks, Marianne. We are heading out soon on our camping trip, so I will have to circle around to the link, when we get back.

69msf59
Editado: Out 9, 2020, 1:02 pm



^Mississippi Palisades State Park will be our camping destination, for this long weekend. Of course, it sits right along the Mississippi River, on the IL side. It will be our first time here but it looks beautiful and the fall colors should be in evidence. It is just over two hours away. We will be back on Monday afternoon. I won't be on LT much but I will report when I can.

70quondame
Out 9, 2020, 6:06 pm

Have a great trip. May the weather gods be in a mellow mood.

71FAMeulstee
Out 9, 2020, 6:54 pm

>69 msf59: Have a good time, Mark.

72jessibud2
Out 9, 2020, 9:10 pm

Have a great trip, Mark.

73DeltaQueen50
Out 9, 2020, 9:28 pm

Have a good weekend, Mark. That looks like a great place for camping and exploring.

74tymfos
Out 9, 2020, 10:38 pm

Hi, Mark! Just stopping by to say hello and wish you happy reading! And enjoy your weekend!

75karenmarie
Out 10, 2020, 9:08 am

Have a wonderful time!

76SandDune
Out 10, 2020, 10:17 am

Mark, I have been amusing myself this morning by looking at videos on Twitter of the lammergeier which has been seen around the U.K. for the last couple of months. it is now in Lincolnshire which is a very flat part of the country and very far from its normal habitat (the Alps). Every twitcher in the country is trying to take its photo and it is just huge!

https://twitter.com/jameswalsh60/status/1314877393262260224?s=21

https://twitter.com/grafhamwbirder/status/1314119327403118593?s=21

https://twitter.com/paolobolton/status/1314612227425566726?s=21

Thought you might be interested.

77kac522
Out 10, 2020, 9:42 pm

>69 msf59: Enjoy your weekend, Mark! It's a beautiful park with awesome views of the river when you get to the top of the bluffs. I've never camped there (or anywhere!) but we've driven there a couple times for day trips.

78PaulCranswick
Out 10, 2020, 9:45 pm

I can almost get interested in ornithology reading your threads. Almost.

Have a great weekend.

79Storeetllr
Out 11, 2020, 2:26 pm

Hi, Mark! Hope you're having a wonderful time.

>69 msf59: Beautiful! I never knew that park existed, and so close to Chicago!

Saw this Spot-Bellied Eagle Owl on Twitter today and thought of you.

80banjo123
Out 11, 2020, 4:33 pm

Hi Mark, happy new thread and beautiful topper!

81richardderus
Out 11, 2020, 4:45 pm

Hey Birddude, hope the trip was lovely and y'all're all home and dry.

82benitastrnad
Out 11, 2020, 7:41 pm

I am listening to the short book Me & Patsy Kickin' Up Dust by Loretta Lynn and am really enjoying it. Lynn does not narrate the book, but I like the narrator. I am surprised at how good of an author Lynn is, and got so interested in this book, that I have requested her autobiography from our library. There are two and neither of them is very long, so I hope to get them done in fast order.

83msf59
Editado: Out 12, 2020, 6:36 pm



^Mississippi Palisades State Park. This photo was taken from one of the several overlooks, in the park, (some of the trails up to these points can be difficult). This one is looking south, toward Savanna, IL. Those are train tracks below, paralleling the river. They get heavy use. I heard the freight trains through the night, whistles blowing.



^Since we sold our pop-up camper this past June, we are back to tent camping. A bit tougher going, but Sue brings many amenities to make it a tad more comfortable. The weather was beautiful, until this morning when we woke up to threatening rain and windy conditions. We hustled and tore it all down, but still got wet in the end. Ugh. We are back home and all is good.

Thanks, for all the visits. I may not get back over here tonight but I will catch up...

84Donna828
Out 12, 2020, 9:42 pm

Beautiful pictures, Mark. I’ve never been camping and I don’t think I will start at my age! My husband had all he could handle in the army so we’re happy to stay in motels for our travel experiences. I was a big fan of Utopia Avenue. Can’t wait to get your reaction.

85Berly
Out 13, 2020, 4:46 am

Sorry you got wet in the end, but it looks like a beautiful spot!

86karenmarie
Out 13, 2020, 5:04 am

'Morning, Mark! Happy Tuesday. Nice camp set up, glad you escaped rain 'til the last day.

87msf59
Editado: Out 13, 2020, 8:33 am

Thanks- Susan, Anita, Shelley, Judy, Terri & Karen.

>76 SandDune: Thanks, Rhian. I am not familiar with a lammergeier, (nice looking bearded vulture) but I know what a twitcher is. Grins...

>77 kac522: Thanks, Kathy. The Mississippi Palisades is a beautiful place and a perfect spot for fall colors.

>78 PaulCranswick: Looks like I'll have to keep working on you, Paul. Grins...

>79 Storeetllr: Hi, Mary. The Mississippi Palisades is just over two hours away and it is in a beautiful part of the state. LOVE the Eagle Owl. Thanks.

>80 banjo123: >81 richardderus: Thanks, Rhonda & Richard.

88msf59
Out 13, 2020, 8:31 am

>82 benitastrnad: I did not realize that Lorretta Lynn had any memoirs out. I have been a big fan of hers, most of my life. I may have to check one of those out. Thanks.

>84 Donna828: Thanks, Donna. It was a fine weekend. The fall colors were gorgeous and the weather cooperated, or at least until the last day. I am also enjoying Utopia Avenue but only a 100 pages in. Glad to hear you loved it.

>85 Berly: Hey, Kimmers. I am sure glad the rain didn't hit on Saturday or Sunday. That would have completely ruined it.

>86 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. Trying to get back into my usual routine.

89LeahReed
Out 13, 2020, 8:53 am

Este utilizador foi removido como sendo spam.

90richardderus
Out 13, 2020, 10:27 am

Such a beautiful park! And in the lovely fall colors, too.

91msf59
Out 13, 2020, 10:52 am

>90 richardderus: Good morning, Richard. It is a gorgeous location and we will go back.

92msf59
Out 13, 2020, 10:55 am

The Month of June: 13 1/2

As our daughter approaches graduation and
puberty at the same time, at her
own, calm, deliberate, serious rate,
she begins to kick up her heels, jazz out her
hands, thrust out her hipbones, chant
I’m great! I’m great! She feels 8th grade coming
open around her, a chrysalis cracking and
letting her out, it falls behind her and
joins the other husks on the ground,
7th grade, 6th grade, the
magenta rind of 5th grade, the
hard jacket of 4th when she had so much pain,
3rd grade, 2nd, the dim cocoon of
1st grade back there somewhere on the path, and
kindergarten like a strip of thumb-suck blanket
taken from the actual blanket they wrapped her in at birth.
The whole school is coming off her shoulders like a
cloak unclasped, and she dances forth in her
jerky sexy child’s joke dance of
self, self, her throat tight and a
hard new song coming out of it, while her
two dark eyes shine
above her body like a good mother and a
good father who look down and
love everything their baby does, the way she
lives their love.

-BY SHARON OLDS

^This is from the collection The Gold Cell, which Joe heartily recommended and I can see why. I will have to seek out more of her work.

93benitastrnad
Editado: Out 13, 2020, 12:52 pm

I loved the pictures of your camp grounds. What a nice looking place. I am somewhat surprised that you did not get much reading done while out of cell range, but I understand. The same thing happens to me when I go home. No internet, so I think I am going to get lots of reading done. Usually, (before Covid) I did. Especially in the quiet of the morning with my first cup of coffee. However, after that quiet morning - none. Too many people coming in to visit and see me, and they sit there and talk forever. Then in the evening too many places to go and people to see. I would think that being by your twosome you would get more reading done.

There is another state park clear in the south part of Illinois that I would like to spend some time at. That one is Garden of the Gods State Recreation Area. I see the sign every time I take the Shawneetown Bridge across the Ohio River and I want to see it sometime. It is clear down south from where you are, but the reviews of the place sound like it would be a good trip.

Are you going to make it a retirement goal to camp at all of the Illinois State Parks?

Oh - and the trains. That reminds me of the railroad tracks along the Rhine in Germany. There are wonderful flat roads for doing a bike trip, but there are so many trains going up and down the same river bed, that I wonder how much of the river the bikers actually see. But still - I can't wait for your report about hiking. As for the train whistles - I can hear that lonesome whistle ... (Hank Williams)

>88 msf59: - I am really liking Me & Patsy Kickin' Up Dust and am thinking it might make a good Christmas present for my sister. I would start with it, even though it is the last one of the memoirs she has written. The first was Coal Miner's Daughter back in the 1980's. The second was Still Woman Enough in the 1990's. Each of the is about 200 pages.

94figsfromthistle
Out 13, 2020, 1:57 pm

>83 msf59: glad you are enjoying camping the old fashioned way! Looks like a great location.

95jnwelch
Editado: Out 13, 2020, 2:09 pm

Welcome back, buddy.

The Mississippi Palisades state park looks like a great place to get away. Sorry you got some rain, but it sounds like it wasn't a big deal.

We just went to the North Park Village nature center, a new one for us, and loved being out in the woods again. Debbi will probably post some photos on FB.

Yes, I have a copy of The Awkward Black Man, to add to my Mosley collection, and I'd be happy to lend it your way. I do think it's just your cuppa.

I'm glad you're liking Gold Cell! Isn't Sharon Olds a good 'un? I've got more of hers at my place that you can peruse next time you're over.

I'm going to start, for Halloween, an old favorite by sci-fi/fantasy author Roger Zelazny, A Night in the Lonesome October.

96alphaorder
Out 13, 2020, 5:55 pm

I am putting this book on my wishlist. Think you might like it too - https://bookshop.org/books/field-notes-from-an-unintentional-birder-a-memoir/978...

97msf59
Out 13, 2020, 6:58 pm

>93 benitastrnad: "Are you going to make it a retirement goal to camp at all of the Illinois State Parks?" That is an excellent question, Benita and one I have not considered...until now. It does sound like a fun and rewarding goal. Just like our National Park To-Visit List, but I think we will wait until we upgrade to a hard-sided camper, before taking on those ventures. That could be another year or more. A big expense but one we plan on.

>94 figsfromthistle: It was a beautiful park, Figs and a place we plan on returning to.

98msf59
Editado: Out 13, 2020, 7:04 pm

>95 jnwelch: Hey, Joe. Good to see you. Glad you discovered a new place, North Park Village nature center. Sounds like a good one. Looking forward to the new Mosley collection, either from you or from the library. Yep, I would like to try more Olds. I hope you enjoy your Sci-Fi/fantasy book.

>96 alphaorder: Hi, Nancy. You know me well, my friend. Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder: A Memoir sounds like my cuppa. I will add it to the list. Thanks.

99Whisper1
Out 13, 2020, 7:59 pm

Incredible photos! And, thanks for the photo of your camping experience. It looks like you are really enjoying your retirement!

100msf59
Out 14, 2020, 7:16 am

>99 Whisper1: Hi, Linda. Glad you like the photos. We had a great time camping with friends and the fall colors were popping. Retirement is a fine thing.

102karenmarie
Out 14, 2020, 10:07 am

'Morning, Mark, and happy Wednesday to you.

Retirement is a fine thing. I'm so glad you think so.

103laytonwoman3rd
Out 14, 2020, 10:19 am

>83 msf59: Gorgeous spot. In my experience it ain't camping unless you get wet. Which is why I don't do it anymore!

104m.belljackson
Out 14, 2020, 1:27 pm

Mark - Have you been to Starved Rock State Park?

I remember being terrified when my father ventured close to the edge of that Rock.

105msf59
Out 14, 2020, 6:50 pm

>101 alphaorder: Fascinating article, Nancy. I caught a couple of BBs on that one. You are dangerous, my friend.

>102 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. It was a good Wednesday. Thanks.

>103 laytonwoman3rd: Hi, Linda. I know rain is part of "roughin'" it but we are still not fans, plus it makes quite a mess.

>104 m.belljackson: Hi, Marianne. I have been to Starved Rock State Park as a teen and an adult. It is less than 90 minutes away and it is a beautiful place. Rock bluffs and formations along the Illinois River.

106msf59
Editado: Out 14, 2020, 6:57 pm



-Monk Parakeet (NMP)

Yes, I had a lifer today and it was a parakeet. Yes, you heard me right. This one was not planned but it has been a bird I have wanted to see for a few years now. This was not an escaped pet. Here is some info about these "accidental" natives:

"A bright green monk parakeet, a type of parrot indigenous to South America, were first spotted in Chicago during the 1970s. It's widely believed they entered the U.S. via the exotic pet trade in the late 1960s.
How the monk parakeets ended up in Chicago is uncertain. Some theorize the birds escaped a shipment at O'Hare Airport or that pet owners simply released them into the area. To the vexation of utility companies, monk parakeets like to build their typically large, communal nests on man-made structures in addition to trees. Utility poles and satellite dishes often serve this unintended purpose."

^We saw several flying. A lovely flash of green. This was at a ComEd substation, where they build their large stick nests.

107alphaorder
Out 14, 2020, 8:27 pm

108LovingLit
Out 14, 2020, 11:12 pm

>92 msf59: that is a great poem :) With my biggest boy in what would be your 7th Grade, about to hit 8th, it rings true of the pattern.

109lauralkeet
Out 15, 2020, 7:38 am

>106 msf59: that's so cool, Mark! Pretty bird, too.

110msf59
Editado: Out 15, 2020, 7:40 am

>108 LovingLit: Glad you like the poem, Megan. I can't believe your eldest is going into 8th. How exciting.

>109 lauralkeet: Morning, Laura. I wish I could have seen one of these monk parakeets perched somewhere, instead of in flight but I will try that location again.

111msf59
Editado: Out 15, 2020, 7:55 am



^"The sedge wren (NMP) is a small and secretive passerine bird. It is widely distributed in North America. It is often found in wet grasslands and meadows where it nests in the tall grasses and sedges and feeds on insects."

We missed our target birds yesterday, especially the merlin, a fierce little falcon, (it would have been a lifer for me) but we did get a good look at a sedge wren.

112karenmarie
Out 15, 2020, 9:40 am

‘Morning, Mark, and happy Thursday to you. Wow! Congrats on your Parakeet lifer.

113msf59
Out 15, 2020, 9:50 am

Morning, Karen and thanks. Getting ready to head out with my birding buddies.

114Berly
Out 15, 2020, 9:54 am

Hello, Mark. Birds, birds, everywhere birds! Glad you are having so much fun and success with the lifers. Wild parakeets? Who knew!

115richardderus
Out 15, 2020, 11:43 am

The parakeet's a bit more showy than the sedge wren...just sayin'

San Francisco has a feral population of parakeets, too! Makes me chuckle every time.

116jnwelch
Out 15, 2020, 11:46 am

Sweet Thursday, Mark.

Man, this new design wiped out the way I had organized the 75er threads. Oh well, otherwise it seems fine so far.

We used to see those green monk parakeets down in Hyde Park. It was always so cool to see that bright green color.

We may go over near us to early vote today. Our place is not hours-on-line, although I'm sure impressed with those who've gotten on line for hours to vote. Georgia has been remarkable - their governor wants to suppress the vote, but has in the end only encouraged a bigger turnout.

My GN right now is Plain Janes by Cecil Castellucci - she's one of the good 'uns, IMO. I read some of this years ago, but now it's all been collected in one volume. Very well done. It might pitch young for you at the start - they're rebellious artists in high school at the beginning.

117vivians
Out 15, 2020, 11:48 am

>106 msf59: Great shot Mark! This reminds me of Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead, a very noir mystery that prominently features wild parrots in the hear of New Orleans. I think there was even a parrot on the cover.

118drneutron
Out 15, 2020, 12:39 pm

>106 msf59: Wow, that's an interesting story about the parakeets. around here we got snakefish as an accidentally invasive species. They're not nearly as pretty as that parakeet. 😀

119msf59
Editado: Out 15, 2020, 3:06 pm

>114 Berly: Hey, Kimmers. Yes, as you well know, birds are one of the things I really enjoy, along with books. That is why I knew retirement was going to be a blast. B.A.G.

>115 richardderus: Hey, RD. I did not pick the best pic of the sedge wren. They are a bit more colorful but I agree, the monk parakeet steals the show. You mentioned San Fran and their population of parakeets. It seems like there are pockets of them, through the country, although I am sure they thrive better in warmer climes.

120msf59
Editado: Out 15, 2020, 3:07 pm

>116 jnwelch: Sweet Thursday, Joe. I agree this new LT design will take getting used to. Glad to hear you got your early voting in. I will do mine next week. Ooh, Plain Janes does sound appealing I will have to request it.

>117 vivians: Hi, Vivian. Good to see you. I read and enjoyed Claire DeWitt and the City of the Dead several years ago but never did get to the follow-up. Have you?

121quondame
Out 15, 2020, 3:06 pm

>116 jnwelch: Yesterday my default organization was gone, today it's back, which de-stresses a bit of my online routines. I hope you get yours back! I would like to be able to do Preview without abandoning Firefox.

122benitastrnad
Out 15, 2020, 3:29 pm

I finished a good book last night on pandemic's. This one was Justinian's Flea: Plague, Empire, and the Birth of Europe by William Rosen. It was published in 2007 and is about the first recorded pandemic in Europe. It was in 541 and was Bubonic Plague. This was a 326 page book and the first 150 pages of it were about the Emperor Justinian and a run down of all his accomplishments. The last 150 pages were about how a horrific epidemic attacked the Eastern Roman Empire in 541 and killed, according to some estimates 50 - 60 % of the population. This resulted in severe depopulation and economic hardship that lasted for centuries. There were pages and pages of vector analysis, things like how the rat population had to crash for the bacterium to jump from its normal host species to humans, how the outside temperature had to be just right, how the plague traveled and what the bacterium actually does in the human body. There was even a whole chapter on the evolution of bacteria. It was fascinating, but gross at times. Anyway, it served to make me feel better about the relative inconsquentialness of this current pandemic, that has so far affected only a small percentage of the current population. In Constantinople so many people died that they couldn't bury them all and the stench of decaying bodies covered the city for months. There were also some parallel's - the disease killed most of the health care providers of the day at the very beginning of the plague. The worst thing is that from then on the Bubonic Plague reoccurred in waves every 16 - 30 years until it disappeared for about 400 years, then came back to hit western Europe in the 1300's where it became known as the Black Death.

Turned out to be a very timely read. That might not be something that most people want to read right now, but I learned a great deal from it. Like, this is when the concept of the hospital being a place for sick people who couldn't pay for private care was invented. I thought I was going to be reading history nonfiction, but there was a huge amount of science in this book.

It is not narrative nonfiction, but it wasn't academic history either. The writing style is breezier than what you find in a normal academic book. I can't decide if it would be a book you would like or not, but thought I would tell you about it anyway because of the timeliness of the subject matter.

123benitastrnad
Out 15, 2020, 3:32 pm

>115 richardderus:
I did a walking tour in San Francisco about 10 years ago and the guide said that the parakeets in San Francisco were as much of a nuisance as pigeons were in most other cities. The parakeets in S.F. have so successfully competed with the pigeons that it has controlled the pigeon population while the parakeet population has continued to grow.

124Caroline_McElwee
Out 15, 2020, 4:38 pm

>106 msf59: We started to get flocks of these 30 years ago. Darn noisy when they fly over. I once saw what was probably 200 in a couple of trees in Kew Gardens Mark.

125msf59
Out 15, 2020, 7:08 pm

>122 benitastrnad: Sweet Thursday, Benita. You always manage to find some interesting reads. This Bubonic Plague book is no exception. I learned a lot just from your description. As you know, I am a big fan of NNF, so I think I will wait for that approach.

>124 Caroline_McElwee: Wow! That is interesting, Caroline. I would not have thought these parrots would have traveled to Europe, unless it was under the same unusual conditions.

126msf59
Editado: Out 15, 2020, 7:14 pm



110) The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man's Love Affair with Nature by J. Drew Lanham 3.7 stars

“I am a man in love with nature. I am an eco-addict, consuming everything that the outdoors offers its all-you-can-sense, seasonal buffet. I am a wildling, born of forests and fields and more comfortable on unpaved back roads and winding woodland paths than in any place where concrete, asphalt, and crowds prevail.”

“Being a birder in the United States means that you're probably a middle-aged, middle-class, well-educated white man. While most of the labels apply to me, I am a black man and there fore a birding anomaly. The chances of seeing someone who looks like me while on the trail are only slightly greater than those of sighting an ivory-billed woodpecker.”

“I've expanded the walls of my spiritual existence beyond the pews and pulpit to include longleaf savannas, salt marshes, cove forests, and tall-grass prairie. The miracles for me are in migratory journeys and moonlit nights. Swan song is sacred. Nature seems worthy of worship.”

I had not heard of Professor Lanham before reading this solid memoir, which is a bit surprising since I am a fellow birder, nature-lover and avid reader. Regardless, I enjoyed following his history, growing up in rural southwestern South Carolina. His family were farmers and this where he learned to love the outdoors and respect hard work. He also witnessed the racism that ravaged the south in the 1960s and this also shaped the man he became. He also turned out to be an accomplished writer and poet. My only quibble was, I would have liked more of his birding life. I felt short-changed.

127weird_O
Out 15, 2020, 7:43 pm

>122 benitastrnad: a horrific epidemic attacked the Eastern Roman Empire in 541 and killed, according to some estimates 50 - 60 % of the population.

Herd immunity?

128weird_O
Out 15, 2020, 7:52 pm

Hi, Mark. I haven't been away, yet my presence has been nil, thanks to both computers succumbing to stupid operator actions. Then I got a rude cold and passed it to my sweetie. We finally got ourselves to an "ExpressCare" facility and got some meds for the colds. Just for so, we also got Covid tests. We got the word today that we both flunked. Neither of us has the virus.

Reading Jill Lepore's The Secret History of Wonder Woman.

129msf59
Out 16, 2020, 7:51 am

>128 weird_O: Hey, Bill. Good to see you. Sorry to hear about the computer woes and rude colds. I hope you are beyond those now. I loved The Secret History of Wonder Woman. You should too.

130karenmarie
Out 16, 2020, 9:37 am

Hi Mark, and happy Friday to you. It's raining here, I'm glad I got my errands run yesterday. Enjoy your reading day.

131msf59
Out 16, 2020, 9:41 am

Morning, Karen. It is much cooler here but there is at least there is sunshine. The colors are popping. Enjoy your day.

132msf59
Editado: Out 16, 2020, 9:44 am





^Tufted Titmouse. One of my favorites. This is only the second time I have seen one at my feeders. This one preferred the suet.

133richardderus
Out 16, 2020, 9:56 am

The tufted tiddlypom coordinates quite nicely with our new color scheme.

Good weekend's reads, Mark.

134Berly
Out 16, 2020, 10:04 am

>132 msf59: I just put up a suet feeder, but I can already see how your feeder's design will help keep out the larger birds and the #$@% squirrels. Might have to upgrade. ; ) But it is still fun to see all the birds gather round, and I still have lots of hummingbirds flitting about, too.

135karenmarie
Out 16, 2020, 10:20 am

Just had the exciting thought that I could put out a suet feeder where I was hanging the hummingbird feeder. Thanks for inspiring me with your pic of the TT, Mark!

136vivians
Out 16, 2020, 10:25 am

>120 msf59: I read all three Clare DeWitt novels, Mark, mostly because I'm a completist. I thought they were all ok, but not terrific. I was going to wish you a good weekend but all your days are weekend days now:)!

137msf59
Out 16, 2020, 12:03 pm

>133 richardderus: Thanks, Richard. You are correct the tufted titmouse does go well with the decor.

>134 Berly: We aim to please around here, Kimmers. Be it books or birds. Grins...The squirrels continue to be a challenge for me, as well. They sure are crafty and acrobatic.

>135 karenmarie: I love this dual suet feeder, Karen. The squirrels don't even give it a second look and the birds do not seem to have a problem navigating it.

>136 vivians: Thanks, Vivian. Now, I don't feel bad about continuing the Claire DeWitt books. Did you read Utopia Avenue yet? I am really enjoying it.

138msf59
Editado: Out 16, 2020, 12:12 pm



-Northern Cardinal



-Black-capped Chickadee

^Yes, these two are both year-round residents but that doesn't make them any less special. These photos are from yesterday's solo jaunt.

139richardderus
Out 16, 2020, 2:06 pm

>138 msf59: Both very handsome gentlemen. Cardinals are simply smiles on wings for me. And my little chickadee again coordinates quite well with LT's new colors.

140msf59
Out 16, 2020, 4:51 pm

>139 richardderus: "Cardinals are simply smiles on wings for me." I am with you, RD. I love that indelible song of theirs too, but that will have to wait until early spring.

141msf59
Editado: Out 17, 2020, 7:52 am



^This is another photo of the Mississippi Palisades State Park but this one was with my Canon.

142AvaHudson0
Out 17, 2020, 8:02 am

Este utilizador foi removido como sendo spam.

143karenmarie
Out 17, 2020, 8:38 am

'Morning, Mark, and happy Saturday to you.

Looks like your Bears play my Panthers tomorrow.

144msf59
Out 17, 2020, 8:40 am

Morning, Karen and thanks. Go Bears! Grins...

145msf59
Out 17, 2020, 8:42 am



111) The Pale-Faced Lie: A True Story by David Crow 4 stars

“After running from pursuers a good part of my life, I was used to hiding in the shadows. But now, I was trying to save myself from the ultimate bully, my murderous father.”

“Doubt kills more dreams than failure ever will. Believe in yourself. Never quit.”

David Crow grew up on a Navajo Indian Reservation, with his younger siblings. His dominating father was a Cherokee ex-con and his mentally-ill mother was white. It was a difficult childhood, to say the least. If they were literary awards for POSP, (piece of shit parent), then Thurston Crow would win hands-down. A cruel con-man, who beat and belittled his children relentlessly, even attempting to coerce his eldest son into a murder plot. How David survived these early years, to go onto college and a career in D.C. is the saving grace of this memoir. Well-written but also quite difficult to stomach at times. Be forewarned.

146msf59
Editado: Out 17, 2020, 9:22 am

Touch the Earth (once again)

This is what we do:
this is what the cotton truck driver does:
this is what the tobacco leaf roller does:
this is what the washer-woman & the laundry worker does:
this is what the grape & artichoke worker does:
not to mention the cucumber workers —
not to mention the spinach & beet workers
not to mention the poultry woman workers
not to mention the packing house workers &
the winery workers & the lettuce & broccoli
& peach & apricot & squash & apple &
that almost-magical watermelon
& the speckled melon & the honey-dew the workers
this is what they do:
notice: how they bend in the fires no one sees
notice: their ecstatic colors & their knotted shirts
notice: where they cash
their tiny & wrinkled checks & pay stubs:
stand in that small-town desert sundries store
then walk out they do & stall for a moment they do
underneath this colossal tree with its condor-wings
shedding solace for a second or two notice:
how they touch the earth — for you

-Juan Felipe Herrera

^This is from his latest collection, Every Day We Get More Illegal, which I am currently reading.

147richardderus
Out 17, 2020, 11:41 am

>145 msf59: Ew! That's as bad as bad gets, or at least I hope it is. Good on David Crow for escaping the viciousness and brutishness he grew up around.

148charl08
Out 17, 2020, 12:33 pm

>141 msf59: Beautiful image Mark.

How does that cardinal survive predation being so bright? Nature's mysteries...

149msf59
Out 17, 2020, 1:56 pm

>147 richardderus: Hey, RD. If I remember correctly, you also grew up with a POSP, am I right?

>148 charl08: Thanks, Charlotte. I have asked myself that same question numerous times. Cardinals are generally pretty elusive birds. Usually they have heavy cover nearby, that they can duck into. Yes, this male was feeding in the open but the treeline was just a few feet away.

150Storeetllr
Out 17, 2020, 2:10 pm

Hi, Mark! Happy Saturday!

>132 msf59: Ooooh, I want that suet feeder. Where did you get it?

>141 msf59: Breathtakingly beautiful!

151msf59
Out 17, 2020, 6:34 pm

>150 Storeetllr: Hi, Mary. I love my caged suet feeder. Completely squirrel-proof. I believe I got it from Amazon.

152figsfromthistle
Out 17, 2020, 6:38 pm

>141 msf59: Wow! Quite beautiful.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend.

153msf59
Editado: Out 18, 2020, 5:33 pm



"Terry Tempest Williams's fierce, spirited, and magnificent essays are a howl in the desert. She sizes up the continuing assaults on America's public lands and the erosion of our commitment to the open space of democracy. Erosion is a book for this moment, political and spiritual at once, written by one of our greatest naturalists, essayists, and defenders of the environment. She reminds us that beauty is its own form of resistance, and that water can crack stone."

I adore TTW. Her latest collection Erosion: Essays of Undoing came out last October. I can't believe I have not read it yet. Bad Mark. It is my next audiobook, narrating by the master herself. This will only be my third audiobook since retiring. I expected the drop-off but I still don't like it. That said, I will not be returning to work.

154msf59
Out 17, 2020, 6:40 pm

>152 figsfromthistle: Hey, Figs. I am glad you like my landscape shot. That one came out pretty good.

155bell7
Out 17, 2020, 7:51 pm

Nice photos of the cardinal and chickadee. Common birds here, too, but still put a smile on my face when I see them.

Glad to see you're still getting some audiobooks listened to in your retirement, and I'll look forward to your thoughts on Erosion: Essays of Undoing. We gotta give you a nice hobby like knitting so you can work away and listen at the same time :D

156msf59
Out 18, 2020, 7:45 am

>155 bell7: Hi, Mary. Always good to see you. We love our common, year-round birds, don't we? Have you read Terry Tempest Williams before? If not, give her a go. Her collection on National Parks was amazing.

Thanks for the suggestion on taking up knitting but I will take a pass. Grins... I am trying to think of ways to listen to more books.

157msf59
Out 18, 2020, 8:14 am

excerpts from “Will There Be Singing”

During these days,
I would wake up and my head would hurt
and then I would realize that in my dream
I had said to myself that I should write some poetry.
But my dreams never explained to me why.
Or how.
How to sing in these dark times?
It is true that I have been with poetry for a long time.
Since I was a teenager.
Those loves of many years and our bodies changing together.
And yet also the deepening of this love. Despite.
That day with the breeze in the bar
And we said together, there needs to be some pleasure in the world.
And next, poetry is the what is left of life.
And we pledged, more singing.
And we referenced by saying,
In the dark times. Will there also be singing?
Yes, there will also be singing. About the dark times.

-Juliana Spahr

From A Poem A Day. This is the poem in it's entirety: https://poets.org/poem/excerpts-will-there-be-singing

158karenmarie
Out 18, 2020, 9:18 am

'Morning, Mark, happy Panthers-Bears day to you.

My bird feeders are very close to the Crepe Myrtle. I guess even bare branches are enough cover for Cardinals. Here's a pic from January of this year. Eleven Cardinals and a Carolina Chickadee, if my original notes are right. Fuzzy, but you get the idea.

159Caroline_McElwee
Out 18, 2020, 10:07 am

>141 msf59: Stunning Mark.

>153 msf59: You know what a sucker I am for good essays.

160msf59
Out 18, 2020, 10:14 am

>158 karenmarie: Morning, Karen! Eleven cardinals? Wow! I have never seen that many congregating together. Must have been quite a sight. Go Bears, my friend. I just hope we get to watch a good game.

>159 Caroline_McElwee: Happy Sunday, Caroline. Glad you like my landscape shot. It is a beautiful state park. Have you read TTW at all? If not give her a try.

161lindapanzo
Out 18, 2020, 11:55 am

A nice cold, rainy day means a good day to stay in and read and watch Bears/Panthers and Packers/Bucs. Oh and game 7 of the NLCS.

Enjoy your day, Mark.

162richardderus
Out 18, 2020, 12:01 pm

>149 msf59: Indeed I did; both, in fact, but never the kind Crow endured. Their violence was psychic but not physical.

But they're dead, I'm not, so I won!

163msf59
Out 18, 2020, 1:16 pm

>161 lindapanzo: Happy Sunday, Linda. Great to see you. Reading in the morning. Football in the afternoon. Bears off to a good start. The Packers/Bucs game should be the game of the week.

>162 richardderus: "But they're dead, I'm not, so I won!" Amen, to that, RD. You are a survivor.

164SandyAMcPherson
Out 18, 2020, 2:54 pm

>111 msf59: ~ Hi Mark, just cruised your whole thread... all 'new-to-me' ~ I can't believe I didn't get to it sooner and star the newest one. Love the photos, all that beautiful birding country, especially the toppers.

We have Merlins! Every year they nest and teach their young to hunt in our urban neighbourhood. Established stands of spruce trees and huge American elms. They keep our over-abundant "English sparrows" somewhat whittled down. Such a distinctive hunting call. All our song birds flee into our twiggy shrubs to hide!

I would have expected you to easily find Merlins. Isn't there a big band of grassland in Illinois?
You would love birding in Saskatchewan (yeah, yeah, 3-days of solid driving; hauling a camper)
As seen here, also a 10-hour flight ~

The grasslands and sloughs in Saskatchewan are full of birds, although you've probably already got most on your "life-list". The waders are so plentiful around the wetlands near town, however, that I love just driving out to see them. Little known fact: due to migrations here from the southern USA, Louisiana State Wildlife people have helped establish vulnerable marsh land outside of Lake Lenore, amidst the farmer's fields. Such a diverse bird population over spring through fall.

Some links to birding websites to enjoy (perhaps this is redundant, and you know some or all of these places),
Important Bird Areas, https://www.ibacanada.ca/site.jsp?siteID=SK074
SK birding factoids, https://www.camacdonald.com/birding/casaskatchewan.htm
Lake Lenore Sanctuary, https://tinyurl.com/Lenore-bird-sanctuary
Wildlife rehab efforts, https://livingskywildliferehabilitation.org/tag/birding-guide/

Rosthern slough (huge like a lake but really shallow, is where I saw my first American avocets). Images in the Living Sky link.

OK. Not much about books and reading here, but I do recommend this one,
published in 2001,

P.S. Apologies if my post was too long. I did kind of get on an enthusiastic roll.
And I was birdy counting yesterday... so my headspace was full of id quandaries.

165msf59
Editado: Out 18, 2020, 5:34 pm

>164 SandyAMcPherson:

Happy Sunday, Sandy! That is a bountiful bounty of bird info. I really appreciate it. It sure looks like Saskatchewan is an amazing place to bird. I just have to convince my wife, that that is a good a idea. I will have to look into the bird guide too.

Yes, we have grasslands and prairie here but merlins are still not prevalent here. They remain elusive.

166EBT1002
Out 18, 2020, 6:09 pm

That Eastern Phoebe is so adorable!

>153 msf59: I will be interested in how TTW's new one is. And you cracked me up -- I'm glad the precipitous drop in audiobooks is not enough to make you return to work! You know I'm counting the months in the opposite direction... you're counting how many months into every-day-is-Saturday you are, and I'm counting how many months until the same is true for me. :-)

All your camping and birding look wonderful. I'm enjoying following along.

As you saw on my thread, my current read is Shuggie Bain. So far, it's a worthy novel for the Booker short list.

167SandyAMcPherson
Out 18, 2020, 9:51 pm

>165 msf59: Glad you didn't mind all those urls and what might seems like "selling tourism".
I'm just happy to illustrate that our plains really merge into the whole Central Plateau that some naturalists call "The Colorado Dry".
Our migratory birds can be very ephemeral because they depend so heavily on where the food and water has stayed plentiful. We've had a very droughty 2 years now.

With the border being closed, you have lots of planning time! And do take care with travelling. This virus is going to be around (imho) all next year... camping and independence is sure a good way to move around, though.

168msf59
Out 18, 2020, 10:09 pm

>166 EBT1002: Hi, Ellen. Not far into the latest TTW but I have a feeling it will be a winner. You are a fan of her, right? It looks like a better request Shuggie Bain. Sounds like something I would like.

>167 SandyAMcPherson: I appreciate all the useful info, Sandy. I am sure I will be picking your brain at a later date.

169PaulCranswick
Out 18, 2020, 10:12 pm

Glad to see you reading plenty of poetry, Mark.

Any Louise Gluck planned?

Have a nice Sunday evening.

170msf59
Out 19, 2020, 7:47 am

>169 PaulCranswick: Thanks, Paul. I had a good weekend. No Gluck planned but I will in the near future. I have a Native American volume to get through, plus 2 more collections waiting in the wings.

171msf59
Out 19, 2020, 8:20 am



^My latest "lifer", a Red-Necked Grebe. Actually there were a pair of them. These are rare visitors here. No photos but this was my first big sighting with my new spotting scope. I would not have seen these beauties without it.

"The red-necked grebe is a migratory aquatic bird found in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. Its wintering habitat is largely restricted to calm waters just beyond the waves around ocean coasts, although some birds may winter on large lakes.

172richardderus
Out 19, 2020, 12:31 pm

>171 msf59: How beautiful that one is. I love that these dinosauria have evolved so many ways to be gorgeous in the past ~70MM years.

173SandyAMcPherson
Out 19, 2020, 12:49 pm

>171 msf59: Great photo Mark.
I guess you have awesome camera lenses...

A Canadian birding fellow you might like to follow is Terry Venables ~ his photos are magnificent, main page is http://www.naturalimagescanada.ca/

He hasn't caught on that he should use https, so I use FireFox to open his blog (http://www.naturalimagescanada.ca/blog). Safari tends to send me "insecure" messages for plain http urls.

174m.belljackson
Out 19, 2020, 3:29 pm

Mark - Today, online Outside DESTINATIONS has a "Haunted Hikes" feature.

Not my style, but maybe will interest others.

175msf59
Editado: Out 19, 2020, 4:12 pm

>172 richardderus: God bless dinosaurs & birdies, RD. They bring me joy.

>173 SandyAMcPherson: Hey, Sandy. That is not my photo. The grebe was out of my camera range. I saw it clearly through my scope but didn't even try it with my Canon. I will check out Mr. Venables. Thanks for the suggestion.

ETA- His photos are amazing. I love those hummingbird shots.

>174 m.belljackson: Thanks, Marianne. I will try to track the Haunted Hikes down, although it really isn't my cuppa either.

176laytonwoman3rd
Out 19, 2020, 4:41 pm

>171 msf59: What a beauty.

177msf59
Out 19, 2020, 6:46 pm

>176 laytonwoman3rd: Glad you like the red-necked grebe, Linda.

178msf59
Editado: Out 19, 2020, 6:54 pm



"A magnificent collection of short fiction focusing on the lives of African-American men and women in Washington, D.C., Lost in the City is the book that first brought author Edward P. Jones to national attention. This beautiful 20th Anniversary Edition features a new introduction by the author, and is a wonderful companion piece to Jones’s masterful novel and his second acclaimed collection of stories, All Aunt Hagar’s Children."

^Like just about everyone that read his, The Known World I was blown away by that novel. I did not realize he had written acclaimed short fiction, as well. I decided to grab one Lost in the City from the library. I started it today and it does not disappoint.

179SandyAMcPherson
Out 19, 2020, 7:20 pm

>175 msf59: Terry has a 'hide' built to conceal his camera and can access it from his kitchen door, I believe. I would love to visit his property sometime. It's on the Saanich Peninsula, Vancouver Island. He's a personal friend of my husband's.

180alphaorder
Out 19, 2020, 9:21 pm

Mark -

I get your complaint about The Home Place, birder that you are. Nonetheless, I truly enjoyed his personal story and insight, as it sounds like you did too.

My copy of When Birds Are Near arrived today. You might need that one too...

My weekend reading:
- Finished the poetry collection A Fine Canopy
- Read a forthcoming novel from a writer friend of mine
- and then: What Unites Us, a total salve for the last 15 days of this craziness. Highly recommend. I decided to attend a Politics & Prose virtual event with Dan Rather on 10/30. Can't wait to hear him speak about these times.

I am savoring the last 100 pages of Vesper Flights. And then will dig into the new novel The Readers' Room by one of my favorites, Antoine Laurain.

Be well, my friend!

181benitastrnad
Out 19, 2020, 11:01 pm

>178 msf59:
I read his other book of short fiction. All Aunt Hagar's Children and even though I am not a big fan of short stories, I liked that volume. I appreciated the interconnectedness of them. Sort of like they could have been a novel if he had wanted to finish it, but instead put them out there as short stories. Good stuff.

182msf59
Editado: Out 20, 2020, 7:40 am

>179 SandyAMcPherson: Terry sounds like an intriguing guy, Sandy. I hope you make it to his place, one of these days.

>180 alphaorder: Hi, Nancy. I always love hearing your reading reports. When Birds Are Near sounds particularly interesting to me. I can't wait to hear your thoughts. What Unites Us sounds promising too. How was the poetry collection? Something I would like?

>181 benitastrnad: Thanks for chiming in on Mr. Jones and his short fiction, Benita. I am sure I will be getting to All Aunt Hagar's Children at some point.

183alphaorder
Out 20, 2020, 8:15 am

>180 alphaorder: I think you would. The poet is an environmentalist and lives in the Great Lakes Basin. Lots of nature.

184msf59
Out 20, 2020, 8:38 am

>183 alphaorder: It looks like I will have to request that one. Thanks, Nancy.

185jnwelch
Out 20, 2020, 9:10 am

>146 msf59:, >157 msf59: "Like"

Yes, there will also be singing. About the dark times. Yes - nothing stops the singing, right?

Good morning, Mark. Man, as we discussed, we sure enjoyed that "David Byrne's American Utopia" last night. What an interesting man and musician he is. What a talented group of musicians he gathered from around the world. And how did Spike Lee get involved? I'm going to dig a little today.

Good for you for reading the Terry Tempest Williams and Edward P. Jones books. A Girl is a Body of Water is really good so far; I may end up recommending it to you.

186karenmarie
Out 20, 2020, 9:24 am

‘Morning, Mark, and happy Tuesday to you.

>171 msf59: Congrats on your newest lifer pair. Beautiful bird, and I’m glad your new spotting scope was helpful in the sighting.

187richardderus
Out 20, 2020, 1:26 pm

Hi Mark. Hope the happy is dripping from the walls where you are.

188mahsdad
Out 20, 2020, 1:48 pm

Hey Mark. I see that you finished Utopia Avenue, you passed me going 100 on the outside. :) I still have about 50 pages to go. Excellent read.

189msf59
Out 20, 2020, 1:49 pm

>185 jnwelch: Hi, Joe! Glad you like the poetry. I enjoy sharing it. I knew you would love the David Byrne show. If you can't watch the majority of that, without a grin plastered to your face, something is wrong. I am not sure how Spike Lee got involved. Good question and one worth looking into. Yes, A Girl is a Body of Water sounds like a winner. You like delivering those BBs, don't you?

>186 karenmarie: Thanks, Karen. It was a two-lifer week. I don't get many of those, these days. I would be happy with a lifer every month.

>187 richardderus: No the happy is not exactly dripping but it has been a decent day, despite the chilly and gloomy weather. Birding and voting have been the highlights so far.

190msf59
Out 20, 2020, 1:51 pm

>188 mahsdad: Hey, Jeff. I lost some ground on the reading front, while camping, so I did some power reading the past 4 days and probably read 400-plus pages. Utopia Avenue was a good, solid read.

191msf59
Editado: Out 21, 2020, 5:52 pm



^I met up with few fellow birders this morning, completely by accident. We did not see the target birds they were searching for, but we got some good looks at a pair of female Northern Harriers, (NMP) that were hunting the open prairies. One of my favorite raptors. The other highlight were more than a hundred turkey vultures soaring in clusters. This is called a kettle.


^I also got this taken care of today. Big turn-out for early voting in our county. We NEED a LANDSLIDE! My deed is done.

192mahsdad
Out 20, 2020, 2:38 pm

>190 msf59: I'll try to be vague for those other Mitchell fans who haven't read the book, but what are your thoughts of the "typical" Mitchell-ness that occurred? I was expecting it, but TBH, I'm not sure if it was necessary. (Unless something else is happening in the last 50 pages). :)

193drneutron
Out 20, 2020, 4:03 pm

>191 msf59: Kettling! I've seen that behavior quite a bit around here, though didn't know it had a name.

194msf59
Out 20, 2020, 5:24 pm

>192 mahsdad: Other than tying Utopia Avenue in to the rest of the books, I didn't really see the need for these additions. I think the Jacob segment went on a bit too long, where the Cloud Atlas reference(s) were dropped in pretty quickly.

>193 drneutron: I first learned about kettling, while watching the Sandhill Cranes doing this maneuver. Kind of fascinating to watch.

195EBT1002
Out 20, 2020, 11:02 pm

>168 msf59: I'm happy to send my copy of Shuggie Bain your way after I finish it, Mark. Just let me know.

And yes, I count myself a fan of TTW although I have only listened to one of her works. It was The Hour of Land and I absolutely loved it.

196banjo123
Out 21, 2020, 12:54 am

>191 msf59: Hooray for early voting! And I didn't realize that TTW had a new book out.... there is lots to read, isn't there?

197msf59
Out 21, 2020, 7:41 am

>195 EBT1002: I will PM you right now, Ellen. Thanks. B.A.G.

>196 banjo123: Hi, Rhonda. 2 visitors from the PMW. Yah! Yes, never a shortage of promising things to read. The latest TTW is another good one. She is a favorite of mine.

198msf59
Editado: Out 21, 2020, 7:56 am

Everyday We Get More Illegal

Yet the peach tree
still rises
& falls with fruit & without
birds eat it the sparrows fight
our desert
burns with trash & drug
it also breathes & sprouts
vines & maguey

laws pass laws with scientific walls
detention cells husband
with the son
the wife &
the daughter who
married a citizen
they stay behind broken slashed

un-powdered in the apartment to
deal out the day
& the puzzles
another law then another
Mexican
Indian
spirit exile
migration sky
the grass is mowed then blown
by a machine sidewalks are empty
clean & the Red Shouldered Hawk
peers
down — from
an abandoned wooden dome
an empty field

it is all in-between the light
every day this changes a little

yesterday homeless &
w/o papers Alberto
left for Denver a Greyhound bus he said
where they don’t check you

walking working
under the silver darkness
walking working
with our mind
our life

-Juan Felipe Herrera

From his latest collection Everyday We Get More Illegal, which I recommend.



199scaifea
Out 21, 2020, 8:24 am

Morning, Mark! Woot for voting! Tomm and I have already voted, too.

200karenmarie
Out 21, 2020, 10:08 am

‘Morning, Mark! Happy Wednesday to you.

>191 msf59: Kettling – interesting. Must be a wonderful sight. Voting – human herd behavior at its best.

201msf59
Out 21, 2020, 12:59 pm

>199 scaifea: Hi, Amber! Hooray for voting. I hope everyone gets out there.

>200 karenmarie: "Voting – human herd behavior at its best." Amen to that, Karen. Happy Wednesday, my friend.

202richardderus
Out 21, 2020, 5:32 pm

I have never heard of the verb form "kettling" but it sounds logical...round and round the same patch of sky like a stirred kettle's ripples.

Spend a great Thursday tomorrow.

203msf59
Out 21, 2020, 5:51 pm

>202 richardderus: "A kettle is a term that birders use to describe a group of birds wheeling and circling in the air. The kettle may be composed of several different species at the same time."

I think it should be kept to the word "kettle", not kettling. That was a rookie mistake. "Kettling" has a different meaning entirely.

Thanks, Richard. Tomorrow will most likely be our last warmest day of the year and I will be birding in the morning.

204msf59
Editado: Out 21, 2020, 5:57 pm



^I have not seen many Fox Sparrows, (NMP) in the past but this year they are migrating through in larger numbers and I have seen at least 6 of them, in the past two days. They are quick and elusive but a couple of them I got very good looks at, but no chance for a photo. Large, fine-looking sparrows.

205richardderus
Out 21, 2020, 8:22 pm

>204 msf59: a punk-rocker sparrow! how completely bizarre!

206DeltaQueen50
Out 21, 2020, 11:25 pm

Hi Mark, I finally got my computer back and I am back on-line again. Boy, that was a tough week with no computer to mess about on. I did get a fair amount of reading done though so it wasn't all bad. :)

I haven't yet read anything by Edward P. Jones but I have my eye on his The Known World for the future.

207EllaTim
Out 22, 2020, 7:02 am

>203 msf59: I didn't know it was called a kettle. (Seems somehow too static a word for very active behaviour). But I always love to see it. The birds so high up in the air, and often calling to each other.

208LukeRich
Out 22, 2020, 7:24 am

Este utilizador foi removido como sendo spam.

209msf59
Out 22, 2020, 7:32 am

>205 richardderus: Hooray for the punk-rock sparrow! I do not see the Fox Sparrow very often, so this was a treat, RD.

>206 DeltaQueen50: Hi, Judy. Good to see you. Glad your computer woes are over for now. Yes, move The Known World up in the stacks. It will be well worth it.

>207 EllaTim: I am with you on that one, Ella. I first heard the term after watching Sandhill Cranes circling in the sky together. Interesting behavior.

210karenmarie
Out 22, 2020, 8:48 am

'Morning, Mark. Happy Thursday to you.

Just saw a Carolina Chickadee grab a sunflower seed. Yesterday was Red-Bellied Woodpecker day.

>204 msf59: NC is part of the Fox Sparrow's non-breeding grounds, so I guess I could see them down here. I'll have to ask Louise if she's seen them over the years and/or this year.

211SandyAMcPherson
Editado: Out 22, 2020, 9:29 am

>205 richardderus: Yeah, the bird's feathers do look quite roughed up.
I wonder where Mark snagged the photo?

My birding report is skimpy now that we've had a light snowfall. All the songbird migrations are done, except weirdly this week, we had a flock of Oregon juncos come through.

The Northern Flickers are still around, but as the ground freezes solid, they'll have to move on to where they can find food. The adults don't like our suet feeder but in the spring they "bring" their young who seem to be quite content to cling to a swinging feeder.

Always magpies and blue jays, black-capped chickadees and nuthatches plus the flying mice (English sparrows).

212richardderus
Out 22, 2020, 12:26 pm

Mark and Sandy: Y'all need to know about Julia Zarankin's first book, Field Notes of an Accidental Birder. The CBC bit is really a good sales pitch.

213jessibud2
Out 22, 2020, 1:45 pm

>212 richardderus: - Love that you follow CBC Books, Richard!

214richardderus
Out 22, 2020, 2:02 pm

>213 jessibud2: I read lots of CanLit, especially compared to the typical US reader. Have many sitting about awaiting my full attention, too polite to shout at me the way the Spanish and Russian ones do.

215msf59
Editado: Out 22, 2020, 3:16 pm

>210 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. I would love for you to see a Fox Sparrow but like many prairie/meadow sparrows, I do not think they forage at feeders. Hooray for the Carolina Chickadee!

>211 SandyAMcPherson: Hi, Sandy. I love hearing your bird report. Juncos are starting to show up, here and there but not full throttle yet. The same with the Sandhill Crane migration. Are your "flying mice" our house sparrows?

>212 richardderus: Thanks, RD. Nancy also warbled about Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder: A Memoir, so it is all ready on my radar. Sounds like my cuppa. I read some CanLit but I would like to read more.

216SandyAMcPherson
Out 22, 2020, 4:16 pm

>215 msf59: Are your "flying mice" our house sparrows?
Yes.
We have "House finches" that appear in our backyard/neighbourhood in the spring and late summer. The males are very reddish. And of course look different to the House sparrows. I used to confuse the females with the House sparrows.

The "English sparrows" are Passer domesticus. I grew up (in Victoria, BC) identifying birds with a British-born birder, so learned some IDs that way. She always called these birds "English sparrows" perhaps because they reminded her of birds in her own yard 'back home'. Many birds are transplants, so maybe that's the origin of the name?

217Copperskye
Out 22, 2020, 6:16 pm

>171 msf59: Such a pretty bird! We have Western Grebes (and Clark’s Grebes but they’re difficult to differentiate from the Western and not as common). They float in flocks on the lake and then dive in unison when you get too close to them. Saw a huge flock of cormorants yesterday, along with pelicans and herring gulls.

Our juncos have returned to the yard in full force, a sure sign of winter. The hummers are gone. We have a couple Mountain Chickadees hanging around. They have striped heads rather than the black caps of our much more common Black-Capped ones. They are also a lot more shy. Our red-breasted nuthatches are probably the most tame. I was refilling the feeder this morning and hadn’t quite replaced it on the hook when one landed on it and grabbed a seed.

218msf59
Out 23, 2020, 7:28 am

>216 SandyAMcPherson: Yep, Sandy we call them house sparrows but they might as well be called English sparrows since they were brought to NY, from there in the mid-1800s. I think they are considered the most wide-spread of any bird in the world. European Starlings were also introduced in NY, later that same century. Do you get them there, as well?
Housefinch are also regular visitors to our feeders and are year long residents.

219msf59
Out 23, 2020, 7:33 am

>217 Copperskye: Hi, Joanne. I love getting bird reports, especially from different locales. I have not seen a Western or a Clark's Grebe but I sure want to. I think they may occasionally touch down here but it would be a very rare sighting.
I am so glad you keep up with your feeders and know your visitors. Juncos haven't arrived in full force yet. I have only seen one or two at my feeders. It has been a good fall for red-breasted nuthatches and I have seen them a few times on my walks but never at my feeders, just their cousins the white-breasted.

220msf59
Editado: Out 23, 2020, 8:27 am



Nelson's Sparrow- Rainbow Beach, Chicago lakefront. I did not have my camera with me but my birder buddy Mike, is a terrific photographer took this one, of this beautiful but elusive sparrow. I have seen one in the past but Mike and his wife had not, so this was a lifer for them. I also got to use my spotting scope at this location and since the waterfowl were a couple hundred yards away, out in the lake, it sure came in handy. We saw mainly redheads and coots, probably a hundred or more of each, along with scaups and a few horned grebes.

221jnwelch
Out 23, 2020, 9:25 am

>191 msf59: Wow! "Love" What a photo.

Morning, Mark. Happy Friday!

Another good Herrera poem up there in >198 msf59:.

I like the punk rocker sparrow, and Nelson's.

I suspect it's not your cuppa, but I'm having fun with the Witcher GN. I enjoyed the tv series, with Henry Cavill. Revisiting Plain Janes was a good time, too. I just picked up one that I imagine is your cuppa: Welcome to the New World, about Syrian refugees in the time of drumpf.

Have a good one, buddy. Friday never was the same for you with your ever-changing schedule and Saturday workdays. How's it feel now?

222msf59
Out 23, 2020, 10:20 am

Morning, Joe! Glad you like the harrier and the sparrows. Plenty of joyful things to see out in the great outdoors, if you are looking. I think you would like the Herrera collection. It is relatively short too. Welcome to the New World does sound like my GN cuppa. Thanks. To answer your question about Fridays & Saturdays- I love it, bud. I can do whatever I want, when I want. B.A.G.

223msf59
Editado: Out 25, 2020, 1:45 pm



112) Utopia Avenue by David Mitchell 4.2 stars ER

“Art is memory made public. Time wins in the long run. Books turn to dust, negatives decay, records get worn out, civilizations burn. But as long as the art endures, a song or a view or a thought or a feeling someone once thought worth keeping is saved and stays shareable. “

“If a song plants an idea or a feeling in a mind, it has already changed the world.”

“The morning was muted. The sky was veiled. The woods smelt of autumn. Dead leaves drifted on the liquid wind. Pines shushed and soughed. Crows hatched plots. Faces surfaced from tree trunks. Jasper didn't meet their stares.”

If you are rock music fan, you know that 1967 was a landmark year. Many classic albums came out during this pivotal period, changing the rock n' roll landscape. This novel features the fictional, psychedelic/folk band Utopia Avenue and over nearly 600 pages we follow this unlikely band from it's origins to it's demise. Along this journey, real life rock stars, weave in and out of the narrative, many of them just starting themselves, including David Bowie and Crosby, Stills and Nash. If the reader is expecting vintage Mitchell-Cloud Atlas, The Bone Clocks and Slade House, they may be disappointed but if you keep an open mind and get on board, you can revel in the artistic joy of making and playing music, teamed up with some fine writing/story-telling.

224SandyAMcPherson
Editado: Out 23, 2020, 12:15 pm

>218 msf59: We have starlings, but they're not quite as damaging and as they are in BC. There's perhaps less reason for starlings to roam in massive flocks since our croplands are not like the fruit orchards of the BC interior.
There, the starlings are so aggressive, back yard gardens have huge net cages to protect their fruit. Obviously the orchards can't do that.

One year we hung dried sunflower seed heads (the oilseed variety) in our tree near the kitchen window. The arrival of masses of starlings discouraged our target species of blackbirds and blue jays. Only tried this once!

225banjo123
Out 23, 2020, 2:17 pm

That Fox Sparrow is so cute and perky looking!

226richardderus
Out 23, 2020, 2:27 pm

>220 msf59: Nelson is a pretty boy indeed! And your birder bud did a great job composing that shot on the fly (!) since the littlest dinosaurs are so jumpy.

Great weekend, Birddude!

227msf59
Out 23, 2020, 3:36 pm

>224 SandyAMcPherson: Starlings are not very well liked in the US and like you mentioned, they can do a lot of damage to farming areas, by decimating the crops. They don't seem to do much damage in the city and burbs though. I get them at my feeders now and then but not in vast numbers. I like the way they look, so I am a fan.

>225 banjo123: Hey, Rhonda. Glad you like the Fox Sparrow.

>226 richardderus: Hey, RD. That Nelson's is a beauty. It will be damp and cold this weekend, so I am not sure I will get out much. More time for the books, right?

228msf59
Out 23, 2020, 3:36 pm

>224 SandyAMcPherson: Starlings are not very well liked in the US and like you mentioned, they can do a lot of damage to farming areas, by decimating the crops. They don't seem to do much damage in the city and burbs though. I get them at my feeders now and then but not in vast numbers. I like the way they look, so I am a fan.

>225 banjo123: Hey, Rhonda. Glad you like the Fox Sparrow. I do too.

>226 richardderus: Hey, RD. That Nelson's is a beauty. It will be damp and cold this weekend, so I am not sure I will get out much. More time for the books, right?

229EllaTim
Editado: Out 23, 2020, 5:48 pm

>228 msf59: Starlings can be a real bother of course, but I like their boisterous presence. They are declining here, as are house sparrows:-( Bad stuff.

Listening to classical music today, The Lark Ascending, by Ralph Vaughn Williams. There were larks singing where I lived, when I was a child, all gone now. It's beautiful music, but it made me feel quite nostalgic.

230msf59
Out 23, 2020, 6:02 pm

>229 EllaTim: Thanks for chiming in on the starlings and house sparrows, Ella. I have heard about the house sparrows declining number but not the starlings. Bummer.

Enjoy your music. I have not seen a lark. I do not think they inhabit North America.

231FAMeulstee
Out 23, 2020, 6:31 pm

According to Wikipedia there is one lark species in North America, the Horned Lark:

232Whisper1
Editado: Out 23, 2020, 6:55 pm

I'm writing to say because of your love of birds, I've taken to studying the birds that come to the feeders.

If only I could get the squirrels (of which there are many) to stop spinning around on the bird feeder and eating while they are on their free ride.

Do you have suggestions regarding birdfeeders that make it difficult for these silly critters to leave the food alone?

A few weeks ago, one of these critters shimmed up, and knocked the feeder so hard that it fell on the ground. I did have to laugh because the ground hog, many, many squirrels, a some rabbits joined in the picnic. It was funny to watch the banquet, but now I am frustrated.

This mourning, I looked out, and on the deck, near the door, were two squirrels, picking apart the large bag of birdfeed I placed on a table. I was going to put the feed where it belonged, but lost track of it. What a mess.

I did have to laugh though. There wasn't any food in the feeder, so they somehow found the large bag, and two of them were eating to their hearts content.

The deck was littered with the shells.

I also have lot of deer in the yard. There are woods behind my house. There is a large fence, but those majestic animals jump over.

I feel like I am watching a Marlin Perkins show. Do you remember the Sunday evening Marlin Perkins segments?

233msf59
Editado: Out 24, 2020, 7:51 am

>231 FAMeulstee: Hi, Anita. Great to see you. The horned lark are beautiful. I have seen one after all. There were several feeding in an open area, during one winter. Not a close look but good enough. Thanks for the reminder.

>232 Whisper1: Happy Saturday, Linda. Looks like you are having some exciting times with your bird feeders. Yes, the squirrels are relentless. There are various feeders that have built in features, that squirrels can't get into and there are also squirrel baffles that you can put up to keep them from climbing the poles. You should see if you have a Wild Bird Seed outlet and check with them.

Yes, I recall the Wild Kingdom program with Merlin Perkins and trusty pal Jim. It was one of my favorites.

234msf59
Editado: Out 24, 2020, 7:50 am

>232 Whisper1:





^Here are a couple of examples, Linda. Just make sure the poles are placed far enough away from trees or a roof, so they can't leap on to them.

235karenmarie
Out 24, 2020, 10:09 am

‘Morning, Mark! A very happy Saturday to you.

>215 msf59: You realize that you have to (happily) eat your words about Fox Sparrows not foraging at feeders, right, per your comment on my thread? *smile*

All I see right now is a male Red-bellied Woodpecker who chased off a female Cardinal and a few little grey birds. I did have a squirrel on the bird bath but that’s okay, I don’t begrudge them a drink.

>220 msf59: Your friend sure took a beautiful photo.

236msf59
Out 24, 2020, 2:31 pm

>235 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. Yes, I will gladly eat my words on the fox sparrow/feeder comment. I love being proved wrong, in that direction. What do you think your grey little birds are?

237msf59
Editado: Out 24, 2020, 2:39 pm



"In this hotly anticipated follow-up to the smash hit IQ, Isaiah uncovers a secret behind the death of his brother, Marcus."

Like many of us over here, I really enjoyed IQ, the first in this unique, crime series so I am finally getting around to Righteous which is the follow-up. There are currently 5 books in the series. I will dive in today. I am also continuing to enjoy my audio, Erosion: Essays of Undoing, along with my Native Nation poetry collection.

238Berly
Out 24, 2020, 3:08 pm

Happy Saturday, Mark!!

239weird_O
Out 24, 2020, 3:17 pm

>191 msf59: Holy smokes, Mark. A 100 TVs in one kettle? We see tvs often, but I've always thought of a kettle being 3 to 8 birds. A hundred!?! Whoa whoa whoa.

Good on you for voting already. Judi and I will be voting in the usual place on Election Day. Except for a two or three-year long mixup by voting officials in the county, we've been voting in the same place since 1975. I don't believe there are more than two or three hundred voters in our district, so lines are not what we experience.

I'm leery of voting by mail.

240m.belljackson
Out 24, 2020, 3:58 pm

The cold and damp up in Token Creek hasn't deterred the neighbor's chickens from
crossing the road for the first time this year - to tear up my wood chip paths where they
are hopefully also devouring all the ticks.

Blue Jay, Cardinal, Nuthatches and lots of little brown birds at the feeder.

Squirrels have FINALLY been stopped by this odd arrangement:

1. Buy one of those large (usually beige) METAL things that are supposed to fit around tree trunks to stop squirrels. They never work here.

2. Cut a center hole in an old plastic garbage can lid.

3. Put up a long metal hook that is a bird feeder holder.

4. Hang up lid on hook thru center hole.

5. Fill and Hang up one of the long Squirrel Baffle feeders.

6. Hang up the (see # 1) OPEN Metal thing thru its center hole with the open sides facing down.

Squirrels can jump on garbage can lid, but safely slide down.

&. (I will try to find someone who can send a photo.)

241msf59
Editado: Out 24, 2020, 5:19 pm

>238 Berly: Hey, Kimmers! Good to see you.

>239 weird_O: Hey, Bill. How is my favorite Weirdo? Actually the TV count could have been close to 200. That is the total one of my birding pals came up with. Crazy, right? Never seen the like before. Glad you decided to vote on election day, keeping the tradition going.

>240 m.belljackson: Happy Saturday, Marianne. Did you get any snow? I know our friends in Eau Claire got 8 inches. Wow. Thanks for taking the time, with the squirrel-buster recipe. I hope you can post a photo.

242figsfromthistle
Out 24, 2020, 6:33 pm

>223 msf59: I've seen that one floating around. Looks like a great read. BB for me.
Yesterday, I saw a Tundra swan. Quite beautiful.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

243laytonwoman3rd
Out 24, 2020, 6:45 pm

>202 richardderus:, >203 msf59:, >207 EllaTim: "Kettling" is absolutely a valid term for what birds do when they swirl around like that. I'm most familiar with it in reference to buzzards, because I think that's where I first heard it used. But lots of birds do it...it saves energy when they find a column of warm, rising air and take advantage of it....no flapping required. Margaret Maron's The Buzzard Table used the appearance of a kettle as a clue in a mystery.

244Whisper1
Out 24, 2020, 9:38 pm

>234 msf59: Thanks Mark. I'll be sure to get these feeders. I always load up the feeders in the winter time. I love to see the red cardinals contrasted with the white snow.

I appreciate your time.

245benitastrnad
Out 25, 2020, 12:21 am

I bet you are glad that you went to Colorado a few years back (at least I think it was you) as it won't be nearly as pretty to go to Grand Lake and Rocky Mountain National Park now. My sister says that they are hoping it snows tonight. It has gotten cold enough there so there is hope that this is the end of the fire season.

246msf59
Out 25, 2020, 7:30 am

>242 figsfromthistle: Hi, Figs. Glad I got you with a BB. I do not think I have a Tundra Swan on my list. I am sure it was gorgeous.

>243 laytonwoman3rd: Thanks Linda for confirming and describing a kettle. I think they also use this maneuver to rearrange the flock, as others move forward. Like, I mentioned before I have seen this behavior mostly with Sandhill Cranes.

247msf59
Editado: Out 25, 2020, 7:36 am

>244 Whisper1:



^This is also my suet feeder, Linda. The cage keeps the squirrels out and the birds still have access, even this big Northern Flicker.

>245 benitastrnad: Hi, Benita. Yes, it was definitely the Freeburgs that made the Colorado trip two or 3 years ago. It was a great trip. We especially liked Grand Lake. You are correct, it would not be the same with the fires and now the snow.

248karenmarie
Out 25, 2020, 9:44 am

Good morning and happy Sunday to you, Mark! I hope you have a wonderful day.

>236 msf59: Mostly finches, possibly a sparrow or two. I can always recognize Chickadees and Titmice and of course Cardinals. I’m looking at a bird through the binoculars now that’s mostly brown, with a hint of red/rust around the neck and head and a largish beak. Quite possibly a migrating grosbeak, but not really large enough, so I'm stumped.

>237 msf59: I’ll be interested in hearing what you think of it. I’ve checked it out from the Library, but after the explosive Orphan X series I’m just not feeling it for Isaiah Quintabe right now.

>247 msf59: Excellent pic of the Flicker. Thanks for sharing!

249msf59
Out 25, 2020, 10:22 am

>248 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. It sounds like you are describing a male housefinch. I am sure you have them there. They are regular visitors to my feeders. The flicker photo was from awhile ago, but I recently saw one at the suet feeder.

I am enjoying the 2nd IQ book. This is an entertaining series and one I think you would like.

250benitastrnad
Editado: Out 25, 2020, 10:32 am

I have the first 2 of the IQ series in my collection but just haven't gotten around to reading them yet. I did manage to read enough that I moved Deacon King Kong to my bedside table. I will be getting to it soon. I am about to start the Vanishing Half. That will be the next book I tackle. It is for my book club. It was not a book that I would pick up but we'll see how I like it. These days I am more likely to go for a mystery or thriller.

251msf59
Editado: Out 25, 2020, 12:04 pm

>250 benitastrnad: Happy Sunday, Benita! I am enjoying the IQ series. You should enjoy it too. I really liked Deacon King Kong, so that is good to hear. I also liked The Vanishing Half, much better than her debut, which I couldn't get into. I look forward to your thoughts.

252karenmarie
Out 25, 2020, 12:55 pm

>249 msf59: Ugh. House finch. To offset the finch-i-ness of the birds visiting today, I've seen a pair of Carolina Chickadees zooming in and out of the crepe myrtle, around the feeders, and seeming to be having a good Sunday.

253jnwelch
Out 25, 2020, 12:57 pm

Happy Sunday, Mark.

Good review of Utopia Avenue. If you build it, I will come, and if you post it, I will thumb. :-)

Go IQ! I'm glad those books caught your interest. I really liked Deacon King Kong, too. I feel like it didn't get as much love around LT as I expected. Did I miss some?

254richardderus
Out 25, 2020, 1:00 pm

Happy Sunday, Birddude! Did reading or birding win the afternoon sweeps?

Almost persimmon time!

255msf59
Out 25, 2020, 1:49 pm

>252 karenmarie: Not a fan of the housefinch, Karen? Grins...Our black-capped chickadees have been zooming around lately too.

>253 jnwelch: Hi, Joe. I did post my review of Utopia Avenue the same day, I reviewed it. That is strange. I agree Deacon King Kong deserved more LT love. It is a very good book and deserves better.

>254 richardderus: Hey, RD. I opted for the books, along with some football on, in the background. Did you ever try the IQ series? Fun stuff.

256weird_O
Out 25, 2020, 2:15 pm

Thanks for your message, Mark.

I just discovered that The Good Lord Bird is built on John Brown's massacring in Kansas. I got it (at a library sale, natch) because of the author, but never even read the jacket copy. Something I read in the NYT about a stage production opened my eyes. I may pair a reading of McBride on Brown with a reading of Horwitz on Brown (Midnight Rising). I got the latter book at Gettysburg, when we shared a couple of brews and a really good chat.

257msf59
Editado: Out 25, 2020, 6:21 pm

>256 weird_O: The Good Lord Bird is a terrific novel, Bill. Midnight Rising is a decent enough NF look at Brown and Harper's Ferry but it isn't vintage Horwitz, IMHO.

258Familyhistorian
Out 26, 2020, 1:02 am

I hope you enjoy the second in the IQ series, Mark. You've reminded me that I should pull that one off the shelf. Right now I'm trying to keep up with my library holds which keep on coming in bunches.

259msf59
Out 26, 2020, 7:14 am

>258 Familyhistorian: Hi, Meg. Righteous is turning out be just as good, if not better than the first one. I am sure you will enjoy it. Good series.

260HenryBlack
Out 26, 2020, 7:40 am

Este utilizador foi removido como sendo spam.

261karenmarie
Out 26, 2020, 7:56 am

'Morning, Mark! I hope your birding adventure brings a FoY or a lifer or both. You just never know, do you?

262richardderus
Out 26, 2020, 9:45 am

>255 msf59: Happy Moon's Day, Mark. I'm not sure about IQ...I remember checking it out but not what happened after...? It's still on my radar, though.

263Storeetllr
Out 26, 2020, 11:13 am

'Morning, Mark! It's Monday, and we are not at work. Ain't life grand! Hope you have a spectacular week!

264msf59
Out 26, 2020, 11:49 am

>261 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. No FOY or lifers seen this morning, just cold, wind and snow. Not fun conditions. The birds were tough to locate but a more than a few were seen.

>262 richardderus: Hey, RD. Cold and light snow here. A good day to stay in, but of course I traipsed around in it, for a couple of hours. I am in for the rest of the day though.

>263 Storeetllr: "It's Monday, and we are not at work." Music to my ears, Mary. It sure feels good, my friend.

265mahsdad
Out 26, 2020, 8:42 pm

>262 richardderus: >255 msf59: I read, what I thought was the whole IQ series last year on audio (first 3 books), they were fun reads.. I see, now, there's a fourth out there. I might have to try to get it, after I finish with Pratchett's Long Earth series. (On book 2 Long War

266msf59
Out 26, 2020, 9:17 pm

>265 mahsdad: Hey, Jeff. Thanks for chiming in on the IQ series. Joe has also read and enjoyed the first three. Good series. I have been reading them in print but I think the audio would have been fun.

267benitastrnad
Out 26, 2020, 10:40 pm

I have the first 2 in the IQ series. Perhaps I should get to reading them. It seems to be my year for reading mysteries and thrillers of all ilks.

268Whisper1
Out 26, 2020, 11:25 pm

Mark, November 1 will mark two years of retirement. I spoke to my previous assistant today. I'm happy I retired from academia. Things are quite unsettling. The campus is quiet; the buildings are locked; plenty of parking spaces are available; freshman students have to have food delivered as the cafeterias are shut.

When I left the university, the tuition was $67,000. I imagine parents are hesitant about spending that kind of money for online learning experiences.

The President resigned. A depressed student needed assistance. The person trying to obtain help for the student, had a very difficult time finding a professional on campus.

So, with all of this unsettling atmosphere, I am sad that the university I knew is temporarily very different. And, I am glad that I am home on days like today when there was a lot of rain. Of course, one of the best things about retirement is that I can read and stay in pjs all day.

I do miss the students I knew, and I truly enjoyed my job. But, as you know, when it is time to retire, you know it!

It sounds like you are really enjoying your time away from delivering mail. Is there anything about your previous job that you miss?

269msf59
Out 27, 2020, 7:38 am

>267 benitastrnad: I think you will have a fun time with the IQ series, Benita. Smart, fun and fast.

>268 Whisper1: Thanks for sharing your work thoughts, Linda. Like the nation, schools and universities are navigating uncertain waters. It sounds like you got out at the right time. On Nov 1st, I will have been retired two months. Boy, it flew by.

Honestly, I don't miss much about work, other than socializing with a few of my co-workers and I will try to see them occasionally.

270karenmarie
Out 27, 2020, 9:13 am

'Morning, Mark! Happy Tuesday to you. Enjoy your birding adventure.

I'm going to have lunch in a park with some former work colleagues - I've been retired for almost 5 years already and we used to see each other twice or more per year and go out for Christmas dinner. Today's the first visit since this whole mess began.

271Storeetllr
Out 27, 2020, 11:13 am

Glad you're enjoying your retirement, Mark. I just knew you would! I've been retired for 7 years, and there is absolutely nothing I miss about my last job except, as you said, a few co-workers and train friends with whom I socialized occasionally. Since then, I moved across country, so there'd be no getting together with them now, even if we weren't in a pandemic. I do love being so close to my family - this morning, I hung with Ruby for a little bit while we were both still in our jammies. (She got a kick out of that!)

Have a lovely rest of the week, my friend!

272msf59
Out 27, 2020, 12:21 pm

>270 karenmarie: Hi, Karen. We had another cold, snowy bird ramble this morning but we saw some cool birds. Have a great time with your former co-workers. I am glad you keep in touch.

>271 Storeetllr: Hi, Mary. Yep, retirement has been a great fit. I can't believe it has been nearly two months. I bet it has been wonderful being so close to your daughter and grand-daughter. I am sure they bring a lot of joy.

273msf59
Editado: Out 27, 2020, 12:30 pm



^Male Hooded Merganser (NMP)

Despite the damp, snowy cold weather, I did manage to see some cool birds, the past 2 days, including several of these gorgeous mergansers. I didn't even have my camera with me but the spotting scope sure came in handy, to get long looks at these beauties, among others. We even got a nice look at a Rusty Blackbird, which have been migrating through here:



Rusty Blackbird (NMP)

274weird_O
Out 27, 2020, 12:32 pm

Thanks for the info on the two books about John Brown. Right now, I'm into a steampunk tale from William Gibson and Bruce Sterling, The Difference Engine. (I see the Touchstone gives authorial credit to Gibson alone; not nice.)

275richardderus
Out 27, 2020, 1:57 pm

>273 msf59: "Rusty blackbird"? Shouldn't blackbirds be, oh I dunno, black?

Anyway, the merganser's cool and so stylish! Bird well.

276msf59
Out 27, 2020, 4:38 pm

>274 weird_O: Ooh, I have had The Difference Engine on my TBR stack for years, Bill. I will be watching for your thoughts. In regards to John Brown books, have you ever read the novel Cloudsplitter? If not, I recommend that one too.

>274 weird_O: I don't name 'em sir, just post 'em. Grins...I think they all just fall under the blackbird genus, for whatever reason.

Isn't that Hooded, a dandy?

277msf59
Editado: Out 28, 2020, 7:20 am




"From acclaimed novelist Larry Watson, a multigenerational story of the West told through the history of one woman trying to navigate life on her own terms."

I have been a big fan of Larry Watson since falling hard for Montana 1948 many years ago. He has been quite consistent too and I always look forward to reading his latest. The Lives of Edie Pritchard came out in July. I will start it tomorrow.

278alphaorder
Out 27, 2020, 9:13 pm

>277 msf59:. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts! I read this book in July, which feels like a lifetime ago.

279DeltaQueen50
Out 27, 2020, 11:57 pm

>277 msf59: I'm looking forward to your thoughts on the new Larry Watson as well. I love his writing!

280msf59
Out 28, 2020, 7:23 am

>278 alphaorder: I know you are a big fan and friend of Mr. Watson. I am looking forward to diving into it today.

>279 DeltaQueen50: Hi, Judy. Hooray for Watson fans. He seems to be a favorite around here and I know Joe liked it as well.

281karenmarie
Out 28, 2020, 7:35 am

Good morning, Mark. Happy Wednesday.

Yay for getting to see Mergansers and Rusty Blackbirds. I've never seen either, but live vicariously through your ever-expanding birding activities!

282Carmenere
Out 28, 2020, 7:38 am

Hey Mark! I've yet to read Larry Watson but I really must as I enjoy a good western and also because if he has Mark's stamp of approval, it's gotta be good.

283msf59
Out 28, 2020, 8:05 am

>281 karenmarie: Morning, Karen. Glad you are enjoying my journey through my birding life. Hope to see more today.

>282 Carmenere: Morning, Lynda. Great to see you. I think you would like Watson. I can share this copy with you, when I finish it?

284msf59
Editado: Out 28, 2020, 8:07 am



^I mentioned seeing a Fox Sparrow at my feeders last week. This is my photo. A little blurry, because he was flitting about so much, as he foraged on the ground. First time visitor.

285Carmenere
Out 28, 2020, 8:31 am

>282 Carmenere: thanks but no thanks, Mark. I have requested it from my library.

286msf59
Out 28, 2020, 8:36 am

>285 Carmenere: No problem, Lynda. I hope you enjoy it and try to track down Montana 1948. I think that is his best.

287msf59
Editado: Out 28, 2020, 6:54 pm

113) Blue Pills: A Positive Love Story by Frederik Peeters 4 stars GN

The author meets and falls for a vibrant young woman. He soon finds out that her and her son have tested HIV positive. This is a graphic memoir about true love in the face of great challenges. My first by Peeters and was I was quite impressed with the storytelling and art.

114) Lost in the City: Stories by Edward P Jones 3.6 stars

I loved this author's Pulitzer- Prize-winning novel The Known World and once I learned that he had written a couple of story collections, I knew I wanted to try one. They are stories, centered around his hometown of Washington DC, following the ordinary lives of people, living in the nation's capital. The writing is good but the stories never really resonated with me, the way I hoped.

115) Righteous (An IQ Novel 2) by Joe Ide 4 stars

IQ, Isaiah Quintabe, the big-brained sleuth, returns here, in this second book of the series. This time he ventures to Vegas to save the lives of a couple of reckless gamblers. He is also still digging deep into the murder of his brother, which happened years earlier and continues to haunt him. This is such a smart, fun, fast-paced series. I am looking forward to book 3.

288richardderus
Out 28, 2020, 11:05 am

>277 msf59: Yay!! I'm glad a Watson fan got one and will read it with appreciation for the whole of his work.

>284 msf59: Blurry but still decodeable. Like.

>287 msf59: Good, good readin' there. Keeps us ol' crocks off the streets an' outta trouble.

289msf59
Out 28, 2020, 2:04 pm

>288 richardderus: Hey, RD. Always good to hear from another Watson fan. I did not see much today on my bird excursion, although anytime I can see a Common Loon or two, I am a happy camper.

290quondame
Out 28, 2020, 3:38 pm

>284 msf59: What a darling lbj. I'm trying to remember what it was than came in that delightful brown/white flakes pattern that I dearly loved 50 or so years ago - beads or porcelain - something hard and breakable, but what a delight to see it fluffy and soft.

291weird_O
Out 28, 2020, 4:05 pm

>276 msf59: Cloudsplitter, eh? Another one to look for.

292msf59
Out 28, 2020, 5:03 pm

>290 quondame: Hooray for the LBJs, Susan. Funny, just a few short years ago, I thought all of them were House Sparrows. Grins...

>291 weird_O: Never heard of Cloudsplitter, Bill? Are you a fan of Mr. Watson? If so, I could include his latest, once I am finished with it.

293Caroline_McElwee
Out 28, 2020, 5:46 pm

>284 msf59: He's a cutie Mark, and at your own feeders too.

294msf59
Editado: Out 28, 2020, 6:42 pm

>293 Caroline_McElwee: Yep, I got lucky, Caroline. There is only a short window, when these beauties pass through and I saw them.
Este tópico foi continuado por Mark's Reading Place: Chapter Eighteen.