a pic or too

Waiting for shepherds pie to warm, lets see how much I can send ! Guess I will give up at Harlan's Hawk. An hour to download thems

a pic,Pye alost friend

Not many birds. a pic.
Ten years ago, one friday night I stopped at the pound. Why ? I have no God damned idea. They were closing down. There was a black kitten gazing out the window. Mine.foot in the door. Literally, he was one day over the Death tank gone by Monday.I named him Pyewackit after the familiar in Bell Book and Candle, a finer cat I could not have designed. He adopted Samuel H Adams, also from the pound on a whim.
Found Pye run over outside my yard this morning
Picture is of 2 best friends, Cat/Dog Black/white Old /young.. He usually comes in about now, and a dog and cat pile up ensues,ending with the cat asleep on my monitor. Funny how you do not miss "Familiar objects" until they are missing. Tomorrow is a "nother day"

This being the third part of a Trilogy, in at least four parts, concerning the CRBC

Ahh, peace in my time.
SWMBO is off playing Horse Grandma. NOT BEEN AROUND SINCE FRIDAY.I could get to like this.
I have eaten what I wanted when I wanted. Had the joy of not getting into a "Hospital" bed for 2 nights. Just left it alone, and crawled back into the nest of pillows, dogs and rumpled sheets. Why mess with a good thing ? I have not put the cap back on the toothpaste. One toilet seat is up, and one is down, To suit my mood.Floors work as well as shelves for storing books. And the very nice lady , who asked me "Please could you turn the music down a bit?" was right you could hear The Low spark of High Heel Boys by Traffic in her front room ! I only had it on 3, and my speakers go to 11..
Not much in the way of birds, a couple of pics attached. NOW...................
DISCLAIMEER.
No-ONE will be named, OOOOO stands for rarity committee member past or present, and no personal comments as to personal hygiene, sexual proclivities,sports teams nor eating manners will be made !
Why snivel about a Black Headed Gull, after all I have older Euro bird books that called it "The Common Black-Headed gull" Why sweat a Common bird, you ask?
Well as I have admitted , that brief onanistic moment, makes up for all the sweat, money and effort to get there. Still life in the old dog !The record will shew up somewhere and you could be part of that catch all cop out "NO pattern of wild occurence has been established".
This as we all know means no OOOOO has seen one, so it can not be true. That sent me off on the great Caracara bitch. Once everyone had seen one. it was accepted.
I am working on a list of CA birds that are one sighting records, which should not be counted. One sighting only. The imm caracara I watched in Blythe with more than a dozen folks. Made it through several categories of rejection, including "Possibility of escape not ruled out", Who in christs name breeds Caracaras in Brawley? Finally they where everywhere. Finally it appeared in print "Rare birds in California" 2007 14 years later. Glad I lived long enough to confirm my sighting !
How can this be topped we ask our selves. Well read on as I did in the aforementioned tome.
Alder Flycatcher
Under close control by Phill "Extimous" Unitt, I collected a number of specimens for the SDNHM's study of migratory birds.One of which would be SDNHM 47934 28 sep 1991.
In 1995 (?) or there abouts Unitt published an account of finding out that this in fact was an Alder Flycatcher in Western Birds It resurfaced again in 2003 in "Birds of the Salton Sea"(An essential purchase) as Californias fourth record and only specimen. Some of the Louisiana museum mind set, would say "Only undisputed record " given the difficulty of ID ing, making it a first record for CA. But four works.
So on to Alder Flycatcher in the "Rare Birds of California" 2007 page 301 "ALDER FLYCATCHER-in Circulation". This dead bird is still being circulated after 16 YEARS Jesus Christ. What happens if a 00000 dies, during the almost 20 year process of accepting a DEAD BIRD? We aren't talking sonograms, personal background checks, reliability evaluation, whether you hate me or not. It has a label, it is in a tray, it has been dead for 16 frigging years. So off I went again.
It was assigned 2007-112, and appeared in the "Update to Rare Birds of California" and remains the only specimen for CA, and who knows, possibly the only indisputable record!
Well it is almost six, time for Huevos Rancheros me thinks and a mornin' birdin'.

Hop back in time

You will find Part 2 of my CRBC rant dated 19th of January. It has a Ferrug landing as its pic. Started it, was side tracked and finished it today. Something like "Why I.......'
Oh well heres a pic from a birdishly quiet Blythe.

why life is fun if you pay close attention,

After school I restepped some of my traces. My pondering was correct. Loggerheads are all over the place. In a four mile stretch at Ave 2 Refuge 11. Heres a young un.


Is this my final grade for the semester? Yes. Will this appear on my College transcript? Yes. If I get to college and decide to major in science can I come back and take your class again? No. Oh.

A Guy drives around the 2nd street refuge every day blasting away across the fields, and scaring away every friggin bird. After finally finding a BLM guy I was assured it was legal, and was planned to keep the birds out of the refuge, until the corn was grown up. What about migratory birds that love young corn. What about the more than 6 N Harriers, 2 Praries, a Merlin, and 2 Ferrugies who feed on the winter BBirds You can't make this up. At which point those birds that have the courage to return, will be met by corn with their drivers licenses. It will take a year to recover from this daily shoot over. Lets build a mandated Restoration Project to help river birds and drive around all day driving them off because they are eating the food we planted to bring birds into the..


Lastly. Brilliant idiot talking head on Headline something like "Obama,the tax bill and the Union of gay marriage in crisis "

"And these simple given ideals appear to be visibly missing"
Like I said you can not make this up.
regards rh

Audobon 100 best bird pics! Clear up no birds

Well that was like a waste of time. It stirred my creative spirit as much as a Penthouse calender. I am sure that given the equipment, time, money, and staked out subjects, and skillfull pic adjustment a la picsells. anyone could do the same. Totally cold, no involvement. Oh nice, oh thats nice. Toss it away
Why don't they do something Audobons 100 best photographs by people who work for a living, and have never published a photo for money before. SWEAR you would get better pics, Just go to Surfbirds.com and look through the ameteur pics. Way, way better.Some true stunners. "Tree sparow on corn head" Mrs Hangus MeCoatup, Chipping Sodbury" Just a face in the crowd.
No "This magnificent picture was taken by Professional bird photographer Otto von Frufru and his assistant Lady pain-de-beurre, during their safari in Africa. Otto laughed "it was on the last day of our 4 month visit to study the birds
That I got e-mail from my photo lab technician in Rome saying we got a winner. My rig,? Oh nothing special. I had Kodak and Zeiss and Sony and Swarovski. Throw together a little number for me. See this red button. Cool huh. Green one ? NO idea.Any way got to rush off , got to squeak in E Australia before the Polo season.

Oh my picture?
Hand held $300 camera. Shutter priority, 1/1000 sec, auto focus.150 mm. A lot of blue sky but you can get halfway lucky sometimes. Do you know how fast these bastards go !
No birds of note , totally dead. 3M and 5 fem Goosanders good value at the drop. Oh, 95 to the drop is shut off. Ever heard of Jim Hernandez on River Lane? No. Neither had the CHP officer apparently to avoid a display ignorance he waived me through "with his groceries" Funny I have never heard of him either.
regards rh.

Tornado : Life tick

Well the weather has been playing silly bastards 2 up with us all week.I lost half of my latest defrocking of the CRBC. Try and regroup and do that tomorrow
We lose land line connections and phones the minute a drop of rain is seen to fall, 2 drops there goes power for 24 hours. Remember all you folks out there blythe has no Verizon Wireless any goddam thing and if you get behind someones shadow the cell phone service turns to shit. Computers , landline only, the accompanying picture took 23 minutes to dowmnload. If I had tried about 18 hours ago. it would have taken 18 hours and 23 minutes. No Power. I have a fridge full of lab experiments to prove it. The janitor rushed in around 3:15 ish and said Higson lets leave my battery radio says we are going to be hit by a tornado. The lights started flickering as I started turning off my computers. He opened the door and almost got blown away totally weird. Scrambled back in. Then my clogged sinusses started to cause agony, incredible drop in barometric pressure, watching on my weather station, as it plummeted. The lights were flickering again. The most bizzare experince in my life happened, (ok after the penguin a jar of pickles four girrafes a loofa a tub of Marmite and the Mormon Tabernacle choir, but if they don't talk neither will I)

My class has a drop ceiling , the ones where they take a peaked roof and flatten it out inside instead of out side. By building a network of steel and dropping fibre acoustic tiles into the holes provided. You know the ones they have in Drs offices and you count all the holes in each one?
Any way they all started lifting up and rattling, and bobbing around, the pressure dropped that fast that they where being sucked upwards. I pointed this out to the janitor , he ran out the door awesome.. I followed , got knocked to the ground three times in the 100 feet to get to my truck , hammered by the rain, freezing cold.
Headed home. I have a Chevy s 250 Long Bed V8 pick up with a shell on it. Twice in the driving rain I was pushed back and once for a moment the left side left the surface. I arrived home terrified.
NO power, not going out into it, candle lit sandwich night. Got up this am . NO power =s no water=no toilets or cooking= a sick day. PLus I have 2 large trees in/on the roof ? and a slightly out of alignment satellite dish. As in aligned with my house. Took the pic out back as we where figuring what to do next. The sun came out M went to look for her horse place and I photod this. MOst exciting
Roger

Why I storm the bastions of the CRBC

Now why would I start slowly dissecting the CRBC and what set me off. As I start treading on toes, naming no names. Remember 00000 refers to CRBCR members past and present
I can guarantee there will be theories, so lets kill them now. Its quite simply childish, I am better than you are kiddy EGO. No more and no less.I admit it The prom queen who got stood up, self centered personal, left at the alter childishy-ness.
It is not of any social and scientific virtuos derivation, . So quit now if you think this is trying to press the limits of scientific research, its not
I finally got nudged over the top, by a stupid response, and the latest edition of American Birds.
Now you have a day free to go birding, nothing else.
"My god I have Jack shit to do all day but rush out and help build a wider knowledge of bird distribution by taking meticulous notes on Savannah Sparrow distribution, and mailing them to the AUK. My piece of aid to the the avian jigsaw."
HELL no you do not !
BUT if you can look in the mirror and say that with out shrieking with laughter. Then please stay away from me and no I do not want to see your collection of Crimean battle scenes built entirely from Dust Bunnies, ear wax,used Q Tips and hair spray.
You go out to find something different and exciting, and that will pick your day up, and provide a little ego building I found it I identified it I be BAD !
If its a rary there is that little bounce in the step, if its a photographed rarie,a bigger bounce, and is ASSIGNED A CRBC NUMBER. My goodness the day is over the top.
The thrill has just hit town !! All those hours worked looking , I found me a GOODY, wait until this doozy hits the press. "Submit to American birds". Gloat peurilely , whilst awaiting ones issue. Not so much for the personal joy (immense) but for the mega huge joy of knowing your peers will realise you are not dead yet and stiil finding birds. So it arrives, race to the California section. NOthing, not a "possible." nothing, nada.So I go to my usual read, a bit like scanning the obituaries in reverse. I look for names of folks I have met , over the last almost 40years of US birding. Narca watching escaped Raptors in AZ, hasn't Oldenettal photographed every sodding bird in New Mexico yet, Cardiff and Dittman, finding everything in the south, does Lehman actually have a home. is there any one left for J Dunn to drive crazy with Gull id, where did X go. Most entertaining.
BUT NO ME.
The bird I was hoping for a mention of was a Common Black Headed Gull. Now I know where you live in California you see them all the time. In Blythe they tend to cause a bit of a stir. You know with it kind of being in the desert and kind of. At least I thought, one of the rarer inland gulls. A query as to its omission? Response "Under review by CRBC"
F33K that rubbish. Why can the record not be published in context with the season ?
Every state has provisos, in that issue. Go check "Pending acceptance by" "The record will be reviewed" "If accepted this would be" "A remarkable sighting if confirmed was a ..."" Although a one person sighting , the pictures suggest"

NOT in S Cal apparently.
So I dragged out my copies of AB and Rare Birds of CA.And compared "Record Published dates in AB" ie "A Great tree Warbler was seen by ooooo and ooooo in Death Valley July 23,1978 thus providing Californis with its fourth record, and one of the west coasts few July inland sightings".
Sound familiar ?
Go to "Rare birds of California" ( A stunning book on sale.Get one)
Look at the CRBC acceptance #
HMM, He pondered aloud
# 1979-12.. I guess after all you can publish records in AB before they are cleared by the CRBC.
But then that, as my next missive will shew you, is to be expected.
SO for what it means, to those who read this rubbish. Black headed Gull. Pictures in my previous CRBC rant I DID SEE ONE, honest.
Do not expect to see it appear anywhere you would look. Just wait for the Update of the Rare birds of California,in 7 years , it will mesh in with the current download, which contains my 5th record CA Alder Flycatcher.
The bird had only been laying dead in SDNHM since 28 Sep 1991, an article published in Western Birds by my chum P Unitt, and ........a lot more.
Anyway 17 years later it was accepted. But I will go into that, next snivel.
As I said this is carefully thought out, applies only to me, and if the shoe fits , wear it.
Regards rh

what makes them "Blue birds of happiness"

Before you get upset,and prudish and claim you do not know what is going on etc etc..... I kept it PG and did not stick any black strips of tape on the naughty bits.
rh

A thoughtful ponder on the validity of the CRBC.Careful over several days

I decided I would write a very lucid, carefully thought out note, in several loosly linked chapters on why the CRBC needs to be changed.
I thought "It is time the onanistic,inbred,self serving, mutual masturbating, more perfect than thou, legends in their own minds get the heave ho and realise that the new birders are here to stay. They have far better equipment and access to knowledge than you had before you backed into your iron castle of ineptitude, and shut them out. Thankyou for your efforts, now let the young Turks through and purge the backed up toilet that Ca birding hierarchy has become"
BUT, I realised that all though that is true, one should never write that nor agree,as one might as well come and join me in Blythe, hm you could do worse, so I won't.Thus saving annoying any one.
Instead I will nibble at the edges, and base it on personal experience. Above you will see 2 seperate species I saw in Blythe in 2009. PLease draw your own conclusions as to the id.. They are items #1 #2, ie the Gull and the swallow in that order. See how careful I am !
Item #3 Is acceptence of submittal #2007-112.Or specimen SDNHM #47934. Which languished in a tray since I shot it in my front yard on 28 sep 1991. Oh, fifth record for CA of Alder Flycatcher.
What started this penny-ante pissing match to start with ?
I hate bullies and gangs. It does not have to be physical. It does not have to be verbal.
Simply "Have you heard that 0000 (That will stand for CRBC member from now on) says the record is stupid, and why did you submit it, to someone in the field" " I have"
Any one else heard that ?
Another up coming birder carefully deflated and removed from the arena.
Do not kid your selves these people have a swarm of sycophants following them around anxious for a mere morsel tossed there way. I was at a WFO conference in Tucson several years ago, and there where the usual dregs literally hanging at the service entrance. None participators/payees. Waiting for the rare bird info to chase the next day. Streak Backed Oriole was nesting I heard. As I sleep lightly I ran in to "the group" The next early am. Three of which I thought were some what friends, and asked what the stealth rush was about could I come? Blown off.They returned a while later to stun the audience with their viewing of Streak Backed Orioles nesting. I politely asked where they were? Oh we can't tell you.
NOW Follow this logic if you may
WHO said that these people said I could not know ? Obviously not the land owner, or they would not have known the location. So what harm would me going there to watch them cause any one?.....Think carefully.
If you guessed , we now have a bird on you all in AZ thus proving what good birders we are, You win
Does not matter they never found it, but they can now let those they choose through to see it. Thus generating more Sycophants. I have heard their discussions.
Scenario. Point Loma. Hi, anything around ? NO its been dead all day. Oh did you see the Kakapo last week in DA's yard ? NO. did not even know there was one. Gosh I am sorry OOOO called ME and told me about it.
OK Bonus ego points for OOOO pushing him up the stuff of legends birding totem, and points for the name dropper, and a kick in the teeth for the "Unchosen Beginner"
The other thing I hate is name dropping.
Did you know I actually birded with Eric Hosking,James Fisher, Bill Oddie,dim Wallace. and "Spiny Norman" at Cley etc etc etc Does it make me a better birder ? Hell NO.
I have birded with people here and at the Sea over the last years who have been to,every friggin Warbler/wader/ aou/ wfo symposium from Point Pelee to Alaska.They have stood at the back while the the crowd pointed their bins in randomn directions and saw everything the "Learned CRBC' leader told them they saw. Could not id a bird if it sat on their hand !
Which brings up a seperate problem I have with the entrenched experts. For instance lets say we are the doyen of Seabirding.And we have charged $400 to float around on the ocean with these experts who make their living doing it, and you are on your first trip. I guarantee some one on the boat will see something.Not saying that the published pics are fake. But there will be a Did every one see that? Moment and the boat will turn around and chase it !. Thus allowing those who paid to go back hoome and say You should take that trip, I missed a Bulwers, I was at the back of the boat. Ouch I digressed.
APAUSE BEFORE I DRIFT AWAY FROM MY THEME ! Yes my theme .
The alteration of the CRBC as we know it.
I will send this as an intro for a rather long discussion , basicly with myself, which others are allowed to read , ponder and ,YES join in on. I have known many of the protaganists for over 36 years and grew up in CA birding with them. The Jon Dunns, Kimballs Oldenettals etc, many are dead. My Valley Center mentor Alice to The last of the McIntoshes. I want it to be perfectly clear this is not meant as a personality smearing word battle. This is simply a personal observation from someone who has spent a third of a century birding california, sounds like a lot of time put that way !!. Like me , like me not, beleve my observations believe them not, but I think I have contributed enough to Ca Birding to at least be heard out.
And if you are a birder whose feelings have been shattered by Guy McAskie, and expect me to complain about it on your behalf, forget it. Guy has been a family friend for years introduced me to Ca birding the week I landed in this country. Is an absolute Gentleman to my kids and family, always welcome at my table and has the patience of a Saint. I am lucky, I grew up with bad tempered scots men, and Guy is a pussy cat !
So ponder those self induced parameters. Read this and my commentary will unfold.
Christ will someone stop playing that infuriating music from Masterpiece theater in the background. All in fun

Results from my experiment. Despair all who enter

NOTE all NUMBERS are PERCENTAGES unless noted
I will now disclose the future leaders of the USA results of the easiest test they will ever take. I hope you are sitting down.
Several states are pushing to lower the passing rate from 60 to 50. Thus rewarding mediocraty and not providing a challenge to rise above the unwashed and uncouth. Hey welcome to LOOSianna were your average JO six pack is ok "With us". Why test ?
I had at least 20 students ask me why do I have an F, I have handed in all my work and come to class often ?
They get upset when I say, Your work you handed in is crap.
One girl said "You read what I give you ? At my last school in LA we got credit if we just handed something in" AWESOME
Shame on those of my profession who think that is OK.
So illiterate half wits make it up the chain on social promotion, there is no palpable proof that these kids are doing what they should be doing.
Job evaluation based on student performance.K-8 Oh all of mine passed, good job. The high school gets these hand me downs, and all of a sudden the state holds us accountable for test scores. What am I supposed to do ? Teach them how to read , write and spell in one year as well as Earth Science.
One edjerkator said have your class read aloud once a week from the book.
Quit that, after 2 weeks of frustration. (A third refused a few tried, and managed the sound it out bit by bit on tough words like theory. You know THE-THEo-THEor-THEEOREY, pause was in-incon- long pause , kids sniggerring who would not take part. Why humiliate the kid, at least they tried ?!
OK Here we go. AS I said all numbers percents , based on 208 students
ABSOLUTELY NOTHING .........7..no name and/or test #. Drew designs on Scantron.Went to special ed for help, returned with 100 and/or went home.Sat and tore test into little pieces, I threw him out, as I was starting to stare in fascination as he tore them smaller and rearranged his piles. 1% Told me to fuck off and walked out. Thrown out for classroom disruption, and/or drawing on desks
Good start, you reckon?
1-10 5
10-20 7
20-30 8
30-40 18
40-50 17
50-60 20
Now those who passed. 60% being the standard D
60-70 14
70-80 3
80-90 <1
90-100 <1
So I got 18%
Abysmal,so bad teacher Roger no pay raise on probation.
No consideration of the pablum and horse shit the unaccountable early grade teachers PASS on.So, to keep my ass in a job and show how wonderful I AM, and my administrators are, we drop to 50% passing grade Voila, Damn good job roger with a difficult group. You doubled your success rate from last year, be teacher of the year take a few days off.Have a pay raise Like I told the Governer a few modifications and our pass rate will go through the roof, look at old Higson there, man are we doing a good job. The whole education thingy is back on track.
I like the 50 % pass rate idea, all for it. Why?
I can dance around it and keep my job untill I retire!
May come back if it hits "Fill out this form in a legible manner with your name, id #, home address and the Subjekt you just completed in college. Yes sir I know you have not had access to your video console in the last 35 minutes you have been without tweet and face book and texting in line. But we need your attention. Medics get a Palm Pilot over here, inject him with 50 free play minutes..........You are ok now sir . Because of your upset and inconvenience we would like to give you this pHD
The devolution and dumbing down of America is happening even as I type this. DO NOT KID YOURSELF OTHERWISE.
I may not know much of anything , but having been involved with academia and science for more than 55 years,it is sad to see the dichotomy developing in society. In the not so distant future I see the idle rich dabbling in science,the arts, and whatever whilst sweat shops and peasents producing merchandise for those in their mansions to live off. You laugh?
Please read your History book backwards, look at the direction the % of rich is rapidly going and the % of un educated homeless poor is going.And the rapid production of an uneducated poverty stricken work force in third world countries It may not be obvious to those in La Jolla. But if you are among the masses it is sadly obvious.
UNemployed? Will you work for less than minimum wage?
Yes.
There you go. Will you work for food ? All of a sudden we are a mere 250 years back in time.
Just mere speculation, please go back to tweeting, saves thinking.
Oh MY GOD, yu know the sun just came out. Gone birding
rh

You can't teach STUPID.

OK,
Here comes the rabid critique.You won't win so do not even try to correct me.
I have spent the last six months banging my head against the pure ignorance,illiteracy stupidity, reading and writing level third grade max. and total indifference of 210 9th graders, less the ones in jail, home pregnant, or miss class because they are whacked out from chemicals or just "Did not feel like coming to school" I love to put a hooker question on my final. "is Blythe in .a North America, b asia, c south america,d the european union " Hysterical South America wins every time, go figure, it might as well !
So.
My final is set out as a serious experiment on the intelligence of the upcoming rulers fof america.
I will record the results accurately and provide and an analysis.
My hypothesis.
You can give the current youth as much rope as they need to avoid their own hanging from a 12 foot tree branch, and they will not get it right.
My final is open book, They have 49 questions in 90 minutes, It is multiple guess questions. They have had them at least 3 times before. I have given them the chapters to look in and they will be in that order and will be in order of the information in the chapter. Bubble in the scantron.
I promise I will give you the correct results. I will start off the betting.
$100 says 10 forget to put their names on the scantron.
$500 says a kid comes to me the next day and says "Can I take it again I did not know it was open book"
$500 Three students before friday come and ask if they can take it again, as they think they could do better. Am I missing the definition of the word "FINAL"
Stay tuned, the "No child left behind " bullshit from 1/2 wit and the "VE muss rely on ejucation for der future idiot' who hacked school funding. Are pretty soon going to see the results of their stupidity.
Stay tuned and figure out who will be paying your SocSec retiremnt !
regards rh

Awfully quiet birdwise, and a new dawn in Blythe

An absolutely stunning day to be out. Flat calm, clear,perfect light for taking pics, crisp awakening of the day warming up to a somnulent 70 degrees. Picture perfect day, for a stroll along the river with your amour, a picnic in the park and all that
Utter dead loss for birding. Apathy set in around noon around the time, perfect timimg, I got called to a Brisket BBQ. Crisis , what to wear. Clean underwear in case I get run over walking the 100 yds, everything else worked for the last week, why panic.Shortly there after, one of the young girls who is in SWMBOs riding group, Grandmother called. (She is raising this awesome little rider and her 4 brothers, typical us family today, living on the fringe. Crack head mother in Jail in Florida for murder, husband splits, Grandma gets them and does the best she can )

A quick side track. I tend to overstate and occaisionally make events a little more florid to entertain the reader , the facts are true always, but a dash of bravado adds to the tale.
When it comes to kids in my school there is no poetic licence.
At least 10% do not know where they will sleep tonight. Ponder that.
25% have one parent in jail, or on probation,
30% are from sinngle parent families, or living with a relative.
This is no brave new world, America your children are not standing on peoples shoulders and striving for a brave new america except on TV shows. They are stealing drugs from your medicine cabinet, screwing at 13 in the school bathrooms and parents funded a 4 kegger head blast party for a girl in my fourth period who turned 16. Go figure . My budget for 220 kids to teach hands on Earth Science is $420 dollars.

Oh rant over.

She has lingua and tripos soup in a big pot for me. I am going to adopt this lady.This xmas she gave me some Tamales. Possibly the only thing to remember from 2009. New Years Eve different stuff "Traditional mexican dish, you split the pigs head and...." frankly I do not care. To die for, home made tortillas and a little goat cheese and salt and lemon. Oh my goodness. Soup is on its way. Drooling in the keyboards.A perfect reason for living on the outskirts of what goes for the civilized California world there are many others, I can go in the little store and take what I need and leave the money on the counter, with a note, if I am under I make up, over she keeps track. Everyone knows everyones buiseness, after you have been here 5 years they all know it, so gossip ends. Mostly because,every ones life is just as screwed up as yours, and a simple harmony exists.
You don't go in the hair salon and say hey did you know the Jones son is a Junky, they all know and 20% of them probably have one in the family.
But in the civilized world on the West Coast, it's all speculation. I lived in a house for 6 months and never said a word to my neighbour, but we waved. Odd.

We picked up the dialogue again on BINARY DAY 01,10,10. .
Did any one else notice that ?
The world ends this October , at exactly 10;10:10 PM on 10/10/10 dumb ass mayans or whom ever it was that ran out of rock for their merely cyclical calender based on coincidences and nothing more. Or it could be AM (phew an escape clause)
Anyway I fell safe in saying the there is definitely a 50/50 chance it will happen that day. So send me all your money and I will look after it. 50/50 ? Kids don't understand . It will or it won't.
Some very nice people from the Buena Vista Aud Soc came down and birded the valley. I think they enjoyed themselves, I know I enjoyed chatting with them and pointing them at birds. I guess they sneaked out over the border while the "Uber-meister of San Diego birding" was hounding some other beginners, or quiet "Nature Lovers"

Who knows, any more. The weather was stunning. 71 in January, works for me. 11 Tundra Swans at the drop turned to four as seven left. Working with Alan Sandage and THe Shoemakers sure done taught this country boy his guzintas, and minuses !
Gotter go watch az whip Green Bay. I am looking forwards to the Super Bowl. San Diego vs either Cardinals or Saints. Beait. BUrrowing Owls appearing at their usual burrows. Most of them left. Pics on the way somewhere. Oh . Great pic of N Harrier methinks
rh

My NEW YEARS resolutions, and a cactus wren.

NEW years resolutions. After far too many years of college like stupidity,hanging out with scots, and Aussies I learned to wait until the 2nd to make them.In my youth,I usually broke them before the First was over, if I could remember them. This leads to 364 days of remorse and depression caused by talk show hosts admonishing me for lack of moral strength and hypocrisy for making them in the first place. People like fat ass Oprah "Losing weight, (I admit I did not make it butt wait until next year)", and Phony Docter Phil "You must stay faithful to your wife,(only until she catches you and you realise you are going to lose half of everything in divorce court)"
Excellent resolution models. Notice how their resolutions include bracketed exclusions (We are not aware of) ? So as I wait for the sun to come up, I will disclose mine.
Well just 2 of them as examples
I will not take up the game of golf because it causes you to marry swedish nannies, and make 30 million a year And stray from the straight and narrow (Thus allowing me to stray from the straight and narrow, as long as I do not play golf,marry a swedish nanny etc etc catching on)
I will control my intake of salt, especially on Albertsons Green tomatoes that I fry in too much butter (easy one, did not say sea salt,did not specify pan or deep fry, brand of butter, Did carefully specify Albertsons Green tomatoes. Do not get between me and Priscillas home grown heirloom tomatoes)
If you want to make frightningly all encompassing ones.
Be very politically and legally correct.Such as
I WILL ABSTAIN FROM SEX THIS YEAR.
And you get caught in a cupboard on a State jet in Barbados, when you were supposed to be hiking, with a 17 year old spanking you with a Herring. Just smile and say, I did not say specifically with what, and how "
Works for politicians. The sun has dragged its feet over the HorizonNeed to go look at Sparrows. Got the "goes, but not far vehicle" today. I had the long range one yesterday. I did the entire route of my Patch as depicted in Schrams guide, including a variation. Cuts in at 38.3 milles

And away we go. 2010 . A mega -rary !

Ended 2009 with some prizes. Being where I am, you either believe my camera or me, or in the case of a couple, the folks stood with me ! Blythe is not known for its hordes of people who look for other peoples birds. I guess one of the deficits of birding on the fringes, but one of the benefits. I do not have to kiss anyones butt !
And please remember, if you believe me or not it is not going to screw up anything of any importance. My father firmly he believed he saw a ghost of a Monk in Lincoln Cathedral. I believe him.2009 Fly over Caracara driving hwy 95. Mag Frig Bird, fly by for 3 of us standing on Joes Dock. Photo Cave Swallow, Western Gull ,Cardinal x2 RBGbeak, Swans, Bobolink, Flycatcher sp "OLivaceous" type.Purple Finch at last.
And the bird , FOR ME, here in the middle of the damn desert.
Black Headed Gull.
There were other bits and pieces but what the hell, the above stand out.Well here comes 2010.
My 12 days of xmas died with 109 sp. My new year started off with 70. I attach some pics from my day. I quit at noon.

And away we go. 2010 . A mega -rary!