Let's take a short walk around the 'Hood.
I've been asked several times, by Amy, why the big interest in birds all of a sudden. It's not too hard to explain...it's fun. I get to see, when I'm looking for birds and I get out and see and, well, all around it's a win-win-win situation.
And, when I say 'see', I mean it gives me something else to look for when I'm out and about whether I'm walking to the store or hiking along a trail.
Oh, and it's a challenge. I am horribly slow at recognizing, framing, zooming, focusing on and shooting fast moving subjects. This challenges me and causes me to react and that's always a good thing. Keep the Ol' Noodle tuned up, y'know.
And even though I can't usually tell you what the heck it is I'm shooting at other than it's a bird, I sure do have fun looking for them, looking at them, and shooting them.
It's fun.
Like this guy I spotted scratching in someone's backyard. It's a Towhee!! And, no, I'm not a voyeur. I can do it cause it's about a bird. Makes it legit.
Before I got off on the 'bird' tangent, I was going to comment on our walks 'round the 'Hood. Quinn and I got to spend the day together Monday and, before we headed on over to Facebook for lunch with Mommy (see a later blog), we went for a short walk through the 'Hood and we were seeing the sights.
We made it around the corner and a couple houses up before poor Ol' Quinnie had a major meltdown. The walk didn't start off well as she was unable to hold my hand. I tried holding Fluffy Ear's one hand while she held the other, and that was about as close as I got.
Well, those things happen to the best of us. I've had my share of meltdowns so I can't be casting no first stone.
Still, I did get to see, and hear, some of the neighborhood birds. Always a fun thing.
Look!! A House Finch!
Tres cool, mon ami.
The houses here, the neighborhood here, is similar to the one I grew up in back in Sun Valley, California. Even kinda like the one in La Puente. It was a deja vu thing, walking through these surroundings. I did a heckuva lot of walking, too, back in those old days.
Maybe the trees weren't as mature and established back then.
These pictures are of several days and several forays out into the 'Hood. I only had the one chance to wander with Quinn and that didn't go as well as I wanted and so the rest of my ambles were solo. Well, just me and my camera.
And, if there's time for bird pictures, then there is definitely time available for some flower pictures.
And whatever this is.
And these. I was playing around with the Nikon and shot this from about 40-50 feet away.
And, back to the birds. You gotta admit, for an ol' House Finch, he's not looking too shabby.
Smile.
And all were here in the 'Hood.
I've been told the name of this plant several times and...it hasn't stuck. Not once. But it is a photogenic plant.
(I have since been informed, again, that this is a flax plant. My bad. You'd think I could remember that, wouldn't you!?!)
I saw this guy several times. And, like the birds, I have no absolutely no idea what the heck it is called. But, like all the others, it is photogenic, nes pas?
(This one, I've been reminded, is a Bird of Paradise)
Another view of the bucolic streets of RWC.
And, some more birds. Hahahaha, life is good.
And, and this is totally unlike Sun Valley when I was a squeaker, they have lemon, orange and pomegranate trees growing all over the place!!
What a kick in the pants.
And this house, right across the street from Amy's, looks a LOT like the house in Sun Valley. An awful lot like the house I lived in from 1st grade through 6th. It's even on the corner in the same orientation as my old place on Cohassett.
And, now for a quick segue from the 'Hood to the 'Fuge...The Bair Island Unit of the Don Edwards National Wildlife Refuge.
And these colorful Characters.
A mated pair of American Wigeons.
Can't accurately name a single one of'em. Nary a one. But I can take their pictures left and right, all day and allllllll night.
(Woo-woo!! I think this is a Black-necked Stilt.)
I can say they are not all Western Gulls. Hahaha, what a genius.
The Bair Island State Marine Park has a number of trails crossing all over the park. Plenty of good trails.
And plenty of waterfowl.
Plus some unidentified bird.
Sandpiper?
Well, it doesn't really matter what they're called as long as I get to see them and get their picture. Hahahaha, I'm a simple guy.
It's a nice park and a great place for some nature walks.
Tranquil and tailer-made for taking pictures of the waterfowl.
Like shooting nerds in a barrel. Tres facile.
And the very last bird picture.
Of a bird.
It is a bird...I'm sure of that. Just what kind throws me.
Random shots throughout a week of just seeing. A week of just walking round and seeing what I could see. And, you know, some of those sights were really cool.
Sometimes you're at a point where life is just simple. It took a while to get here but it's cool. I don't have too many worries nor concerns and so I can go, wander around, and shoot pictures. And sometimes they're not too horrible.
What a time we live in where our biggest concerns are what to do. What a time.
Life is good.
Hooah!!
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