May
14
2015
The snowy egret was perched on top of a nesting box. There was, maybe, half a dozen such boxes on the perimeter of the marsh. Every time I pass this marsh by car I quickly glance up and down the waters top(???) see what I could spot. Sometimes there are deer drinking water on its edge. I have seen an occasional great egret or snowy egret on its perimeter. That was an odd place to see an egret perched on a nesting box.
Apr
21
2012
Every time I pass a stream or a river I gaze downstream (or upstream). To me the body of water represents mystery. If I am on foot I want to see if I spot any fish or other creature in the water. By car, I am on the outlook for any kind of duck or egret or other bird. I am always curious what I will see. There is a marsh nearby and I am always looking for a snowy egret or the much larger great egret there. I could not believe it when I flushed a blue heron who was drinking the water of the small creek less than an hundred yards from my house. I face nature with a sense of wonder. There is always the sense of mystery. I know the Almighty has instilled that in me and every child has it and far too many lose it. To view this universe without a sense of awe is a great loss. With it, you will discover wonders and beauty all around you. All you have to do is open your eyes with a sense of expectation.
Feb
27
2012
The only thing I saw on the River was the ubiquitous gull. I crossed the busy highway to take a closer view of the River but that was all I saw. With a little luck I thought I might spot one of the bald eagles who nest on the opposite mountain. Not this time. I keep looking for them but I never have seen them in the vicinity.
Later on I might occasionally spot a snowy or great egret on the fringes of the nearby islands. It is still too early in the season for that. I just wanted to view the expanse of the River. There were many gulls but that was about it. They could be found here year around.
Later on I will walk around my land and see what plants are starting to come out of the ground. The daffodils, of course, are five or six inches tall. I am wondering whether any of the row of tulips planted last year will come up. There are always surprises. Spring is now three weeks and some days away. We will see what comes up.
Feb
17
2012
There are many visitors I am waiting for. At some point, sometime soon I will put out nectar I have prepared for the hummingbirds. The first sighting is usually not before the end of April but I am awaiting them. The regal great egret will come back. Maybe, I will see flocks of goldfinch under the tree, again. I don’t understand it but they stopped coming to my thistle feeder but during the beginning of spring I see the most–often a dozen or two at one time. I will put out fresh thistle. Snowy egrets I will see, again, along the river. And about now I will keep my eyes open for the first sighting of a robin. And that is a short list. And includes only the birds.
Apr
9
2010
I made a few discoveries today. When I drove to the post office and passed the meadow nearby I spotted two male red winged blackbirds dive bombing each other. I am not sure what they were doing except they may have been fighting for their own territory.
To see two at one time was a real treat and so close to home. Then when I was driving to Newport along the Juniata River I saw what appeared to be a blue heron perched on a branch on this side of the river.
Later in the distance at the mouth of a tributary a great egret was wading in the water. I also used to see a blue heron always in the same pond, same spot.
I realized last winter something was wrong when it was still in the same spot after the pond froze over. To my chagrin I was looking at a statue of one all along.
Those were a few of my bird discoveries today. A turkey vulture reluctantly left the road and his prey when I came across it. I watched it fly away slowly. I never know what bird I will see and always have my eyes open for the next discovery.
Mar
19
2010
Every time I pass a river or creek I want to look upstream or downstream. I don’t know always know why. On certain bridges, I hope to spot a great egret or a snowy egret, a considerably smaller bird, although both are completely white.
It always has something to do with the unknown. I never know exactly what to expect. Even when the river is parallel to the road I still try to peer between the rapidly passing trees to see what I could see.
Every body of water fascinates me from no matter from what vantage point I view it–car, train, whatever. I have been this way as long as I remember.
I keep my eyes peeled for any ducks or other kind of birds that I pass always wanting to identify them. I was amazed that one of two visiting friends (from NYC) could not identify a bird as common as a male cardinal. I guess you do not see many birds in the middle of the city.
I have always made it my business to name the birds I see. And if I see one I don’t recognize, I try to remember some distinct feature of it so I can consult my bird book and properly identify it.
I always pay attention to the birds around me. I grew up in the city but my Mom had a garden with all kinds of things in it including tomatoes and all kind of flowers, an apricot tree and even a fig tree. And that is, of course, an incomplete list.
On weekends my Dad often took us to the mountains and seashore and lakes. I owe both of my parents a great debt for introducing me to nature. I grew to love birds and took care studying them and loved to identify them–even from a speeding car. I learned to respect nature and the wild.
Oct
17
2009
I still watch birds after all these years. I love identifying them and seeing a new species for the first time. I have four feeders which I can view from my large living room window.
The one filled with suet is placed near the trunk of my large white pine tree. I still get a kick out of watching the downy woodpeckers come and go up and down the trunk of the tree seemingly at attention.
The beauty of the larger red bellied woodpecker still takes my breath away. Other species of woodpeckers have come but usually it is only the downy woodpecker and the occasional red bellied.
I spotted a grosbeak feeding on the ground the last two days but I am still trying to pin down the exact species. I had never seen one before.
I was driving once on a major highway and a ruffed grouse literally “exploded” in front of me missing my windshield by inches.
Every time I visit a friend there is the same blue heron wading in the same spot in the same pond as if it had not moved an inch in weeks.
It was not until I had moved to this state did I see a great egret, a big majestic white bird. Now I search for a glimpse of him every time as I travel along the Susquehanna River. They migrate South in the Fall. The egrets usually can be found wading at the perimeter of the islands. Usually I see the smaller white snowy egret, though.
God has made so many types of birds and I glory in his creations. When I least expect it I see a new species. I still love watching and identifying birds after more than a half of century. I feel old now.
Apr
24
2009
I love my local diner. For the first five and a half years I did not even set foot in it. It is a mere three miles from my house. Finally I started going there. I was waking up early and frankly was lonely. My wife was not up yet.
At first, I would just get a cup of coffee there. I was learning about the lives of the waitresses (I do not like the word server) in dribs and drabs. I learned that Sharon had almost worked there for thirty years. She loved what she did. And there was Jane and others whose lives I slowly entered.
They were making a living from serving me (and others) but it was more than that. They had running relationships with most of their customers. The local diner’s rules were pretty relaxed: I saw customers going in back of the counters and serving themselves coffee because the waitress was just too busy at the moment.
I would sit at the counter taking in all the conversations around me. You might say I was eavesdropping without being too obvious about it. I heard some big tales especially about hunting. This county shuts down when hunting season for deer starts the Monday after Thanksgiving. In fact, this state ranks two in the nation for bear hunting. Some of the tidbits and snatches of conversation I heard were fascinating.
I would not talk to too many people. I could tell some customers, particularly the men, were curious who I was. I would take my time, let them take me in. One waitress asked me if I had just moved here. It was only last summer when my town had their 200 year anniversary. I realized I had to do things a little differently if I wanted to meet people in this town.
I started watering the plants in the post office and gradually grew to know the postmaster and the other clerk: we became friends after a period of months. I would water the plants six days a week. And not only that, I would run into other people.
I started going to a local church where I felt very comfortable and met people in my community there. Going to the local diner was just another step in my involvement into the community.
Going to the diner had other ramifications: I would occasionally go to the the Susquehanna River which was less than an hundred yards away. I went there today and mist was rising in swirls from the surface of the water. It took my breath away. I have spent more time visiting the River in my town since I started going to the diner the last four weeks than in the first five and half years I have lived here. All because I am occasionally getting my morning coffee at my local diner.
It is an absolutely magnificent River. It is another world. You never know what you are going to see there. It could be a bald eagle or a great egret or some other exotic bird or creature. Usually when you least expect it. I missed having being able to walk to it which had been a five minute walk from my house in Duncannon. Now I am back. There are so many reasons visiting the diner has changed my life. Visiting The River is only one reason.
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