Category: hobbies

  • Finally Got Pics of Gray Catbirds!

    Finally Got Pics of Gray Catbirds!

    I finally got pictures of gray catbirds this morning! They’re swooping around our back porch, like a lot of other birds have been doing lately. See my video from yesterday about the sassy robin! The last time I got photos of them was about a year and a half ago. As Mr. Charles Muntz said…

  • A Robin Attacks Our Windows!

    A Robin Attacks Our Windows!

    Tonight, a female robin attacked our windows. My guess is that it’s attacking its own reflection. A lot of backyard birds are out, nesting, stealing our herbs, pooping on our deck. Sena saw a Baltimore oriole and we both saw a female goldfinch trying to do the same thing as the robin—bite the screen. We’ll…

  • Rambling About the Clear Creek Trail

    Rambling About the Clear Creek Trail

    I put 2.5 miles on the step counter today walking on the Clear Creek Trail, so my feet are complaining a bit more. Sena didn’t come with me on the walk today because of some gardening she had to do. She deals with foot issues and has been trying shoe inserts lately. Trimming them is…

  • Why Did the Killdeer Cross the Road?

    Why Did the Killdeer Cross the Road?

    We hit the Terry Trueblood trail yesterday and caught pictures of several birds including a hilarious family of killdeer herding babies around the parking lot. At first, we weren’t sure how many chicks there were because they were difficult to see in the grass. Eventually we counted 3 chicks. It was a comical show as…

  • Three Photos to Share for Mental Health Awareness Month

    Three Photos to Share for Mental Health Awareness Month

    So, I have to hurry up and get these 3 photos posted for today because it’s getting pretty late. Recall the Iowa Healthiest State Initiative calendar along with my photos to share: The images are important features of events in my life or my sense of humor. I’m a birdwatcher and many different species of…

  • Juggling Concentration Meditation

    Juggling Concentration Meditation

    I haven’t done a juggling YouTube video in a while, and lucky you I made one. When the daily news gripes me or gets me down, juggling forces me to concentrate on just that—juggling. If I break my concentration for any reason, I literally drop the ball. I’m limited a little in our new house…

  • Wonderful Windy Day

    Wonderful Windy Day

    Well, the forecast was for a very windy day, more windy than we’d like. On the other hand, it was bearable on the Terry Trueblood Trail. However, the forecast is for high winds and hail and we’re not looking forward to that. The highlight was seeing a leucistic Canadian Goose for the first time. They’re…

  • Fifty Degrees in Iowa City Yesterday!

    Fifty Degrees in Iowa City Yesterday!

    It was fifty degrees in Iowa City yesterday so we went for a walk on the Terry Trueblood trail yesterday. Other people got the same idea. One guy was jogging in shorts! Yeah, it’s fifty degrees, but there’s still snow on the ground (in places) and there’s ice on Sand Lake. About that ice on…

  • Bird Watching Stories Are Like Fishing Tales

    Bird Watching Stories Are Like Fishing Tales

    We finally got a couple of videos of a goldfinch! It has been years since I’ve been able to catch a brilliant male goldenrod and it happened last week on the Clear Creek Trail. In fact, we saw a few birds with the usual idiosyncratic behavior. Goldfinch are rocket fast and hate getting caught on…

  • Practicing the Reverse Cascade Juggling Pattern

    Practicing the Reverse Cascade Juggling Pattern

    I’ve been practicing the reverse cascade lately. It’s slow progress but faster than the shower pattern. You start with the regular cascade pattern and gradually work into making every throw over the top instead of under. I still do a lot of windmilling. I’ll get there-I think.