I know we’re maybe supposed to talk to the cats about catnip… But it’s too much fun and they’re all having a good time. Jenny in particular, likes to chew on her toys. Especially after I place them in the catnip jar and shake it…
Chew, hug and toss ’em. This last time, of course, she farted when I reached down to pet her…
Today is Earth Day and a time to volunteer to clean a park, or the beach or any other favorite place. It’s also a day to teach our children about caring for our beautiful planet and the awful effects of climate change.
The first Earth Day was held on April 22, 1970. According to http://www.earthday.org:
The idea came to Earth Day founder Gaylord Nelson, then a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin, after witnessing the ravages of the 1969 massive oil spill in Santa Barbara, California. Inspired by the student anti-war movement, he realized that if he could infuse that energy with an emerging public consciousness about air and water pollution, it would force environmental protection onto the national political agenda. Senator Nelson announced the idea for a “national teach-in on the environment” to the national media; persuaded Pete McCloskey, a conservation-minded Republican Congressman, to serve as his co-chair; and recruited Denis Hayes as national coordinator. Hayes built a national staff of 85 to promote events across the land.
As a result, on the 22nd of April, 20 million Americans took to the streets, parks, and auditoriums to demonstrate for a healthy, sustainable environment in massive coast-to-coast rallies. Thousands of colleges and universities organized protests against the deterioration of the environment. Groups that had been fighting against oil spills, polluting factories and power plants, raw sewage, toxic dumps, pesticides, freeways, the loss of wilderness, and the extinction of wildlife suddenly realized they shared common values.
Here’s a film clip from that day. Sorry about the quality.
Lastech and I try to use the lessons of Earth Day all year. When we go hiking, we pick up trash. It’s not only ugly, but it’s harmful to the wildlife. I encourage everyone to do the same. Every little bit helps and Mother Earth is more fragile than she appears.
It was one of those WTF moments. We sat on a bench on a hill to enjoy the view. Then we looked up. 🙂
The bottle wasn’t the only thing in the tree. Lastech spotted this one.
Three squared years ago, Lastech and I tied the knot. Since then we have shared magnificent views and wonderful kitties.
There has been plenty of wildlife viewing right here in the City of San Francisco.
Lastech is very patient with me when I’m yelling STOP! Actually, I try to keep it from sounding like impending doom and thus scaring the crap out of him as he’s driving. I’m not always successful. This pic is the result of one of those moments. 🙂
We have even gone storm watching on Bernal Hill.
The last nine years have been wonderful and I look forward to the next nine.
Today, we hope 2013 will be a turning point for marriage equality.
Forty-three days until the beginning of Spring, we are ready to say goodbye to bad colds and high gas bills, aching bones and gray mornings. As Winter plays its last notes like water on metal…
… The Sun is barely warmer than the Moon.
Naked branches without color…
Damp earth holds on to bird tracks for warmth…
Yet, already the ice has begun to crack.
Give us a few months of color before we welcome Winter back, only to curse again.
I was suddenly reminded by a Facebook friend that I had these photos. The only thing they have in common is that they were taken on the same day in Golden Gate Park and involved water.
The American Coot has very cool feet
Happy New Year!
Now is the time to take a minute and look back on this past year, and the ways it affected the JBoD microcosm.
We spent much of 2012 watching sunsets and wildlife (fins!) from local beaches, but in April, we chose to visit the neighboring hill known as Bernalwood where stunning California poppies in full bloom awaited. On another more recent trip, amazing clouds treated us to an ‘air show’…
In May, we finally managed a trip to see the California Academy of Sciences. The albino alligator named Claude is a real beauty.
I took a lot of photos, so it’s in four parts. One, two, three and four.
In May, our glorious Golden Gate Bridge turned 75 years old. I’ve lived here for ten years and I never get tired of seeing her.
In June, a contractor working a few doors down from our home base cut into a gas line, resulting in a gas explosion and fire. Purely by chance, prevailing winds minimized the spread of the damage, a very good thing considering how long it took to shut off the gas. The kind of scene best left in movies, not real life. The Pointy Eared people weren’t amused…
Then in July, we lost our sweet, comical tyrannical food thief Kitsy to FIP. It was sudden and awful and I still haven’t been able to write a proper post for him. As for Lastech, he is still coming to terms with the possibility that the virus which took him might have been introduced by Miss Jenny. So little is known about FIP and no test being available, it remains a painful mystery.
In August, we went to the park on a foggy morning and came across some wildlife with a pissy attitude.
In September, Miss Nightshade Jenny brought me a most bizarre gift.
Later in September, we got to see the Space Shuttle Endeavor fly over the Golden Gate Bridge. Incredible!
In November, we went to the Japanese Tea Garden and Arboretum for a bit of zen. We wound up having a wonderful surprising encounter with a hawk.
A week or so later, we went exploring the Coastal Trail near the Golden Gate Bridge. We encountered another hawk, a couple of hummingbirds, a slug and a wonderful sunset.
We finished off the year by exploring the cliffs around Battery Mendell, a coastal battery that was built before WWI.
That was our 2012 for the most part. Some was good and some was bad. Hopefully, 2013 will be an even better year.
Happy New Year from JBoD
Rudha-an, Lastech, Tito, and Miss Nightshade Jenny
Tito and Jenny are both nervous wreck kitties. In Tito’s case, it has taken him 4 years to learn to relax…mostly. He’s still terrified of shoes and he smacks the crap out of anything that doesn’t look right to him. Aside from smacking inanimate objects that make him nervous, he doesn’t have a mean bone in his body. He’s a gentle soul and he adores Miss Jenny.
I managed to get some photos of him practicing the dead bug. He’s getting quite good at holding the position for a long time. Miss Jenny is still too nervous to attempt this position.
Speaking of dead bugs….
YouTube video by Carmichaellynch
I had fun with these.
Counting down to Halloween on this gloomy Tuesday morning, let’s stroll through Autumn, Ray Bradbury’s country.
I hope you’ll enjoy these photos as I do, taken between the beaches of San Francisco, Golden Gate Park and the Shoreline at Mountain View, CA.
“That country where it is always turning late in the year. That country where the hills are fog and the rivers are mist; where noons go quickly, dusks and twilights linger, and midnights stay. That country composed in the main of cellars, sub-cellars, coal-bins, closets, attics, and pantries faced away from the sun. That country whose people are autumn people, thinking only autumn thoughts. Whose people passing at night on the empty walks sound like rain.”
― Ray Bradbury, The October Country
Continue reading “Moody Tuesday: silver skies and grey waters”
