Friday March 7th - Monday March 10th 2008
Friday I drove to Phoenix. I know I've seen Hoover Dam before as a kid, but I just can't believe how stupendous it really is. The drive also took me through a piece of Joshua Tree forest the first of many desert terrains. I started remembering the various cactuses as this trip progressed.
It took some time but I finally started to realize that the problem with my pictures wasn't only due to shooting through the windows while driving. There had to be something wrong with the camera. Jamie confirmed it when I got to Phoenix. Jamie says that people pay lots of money for a lens with a softening effect. This old camera of Nick's has dust in the lenses. Perhaps it is due to the many dusty places he has taken it. In any case, it takes a great portrait, blurring out any imperfections...
It was fun to stay with Jamie and Sarah! I got there late Friday. On Saturday morning we hooked up with a friend and went to breakfast (fabulous oatmeal!). Next we stopped at the modern marvel of Phoenix public library. We dropped Robert off and went shopping. I found a great digital camera that uses double a batteries. I also got a huge expansion card so I wouldn't have to worry about uploading photos.
Saturday afternoon we visited and hiked around the White Tanks park. I absolutely love the teddy bear cholla cactus. I told Jamie about my walking to Rivendale goal (trying to walk 10,000 steps a day - using a pedometer for counting). Maybe she'll join me on this big hike.
Sunday we went to the wild animal park (mini zoo actually) and out to Brad's to see his horses. The big gray one kept trying to step into the covered porch. There's a 2.5' wall around the porch, but he really could step through if he wanted to. He was WONDERFUL. I really miss having horses around.
Monday was the big visit to Arizona State University-Tempe. It was spring break for them so the place was pretty deserted. I loved the palm tree lined boulevard in the middle of campus.
Jamie had me watch the funniest episode of the series ANGEL. It's the one where Angel is turned into a muppet. I laughed so hard I thought I would cry. We also watched the movie "Take the Lead" with Antonio Banderas dancing the hottest tango I've seen in years.
Hoover Dam: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073380583/
Road to Phoenix: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073398381/
Phoenix Public Library: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604077244253/
Wild Animal Park: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604121985021/
Brad's Horses: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073052870/
White Tanks Park: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604085964689/
Arizona State University: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604111640972/
P.S. The new camera is FABULOUS
Monday, March 10, 2008
Saturday, March 08, 2008
Las Vegas: first stop on the southern sabbatical circuit
This was my first long drive, 8+ hours, mostly on I15. I spent the night at Rebecca's house in SLC so it was a little shorter than it might have been. This was my introduction to interesting bird antics.
First, I'm driving down the road and off to the left is this sign about a ranch being for sale, and there in the process of crossing the dirt road to the ranch is a chicken...
Later in the afternoon I noticed a dirt road paralleling the freeway. This road had a dozen or so crows standing around. Weird. Then about 5 minutes down the road there's another murder of crows standing around on the dirt road. And again, and again, and again. It was like a crow convention with committees of 12-17 evenly spaced. I think there were about 8 committees in all. It was very strange. I wish I had pulled over to take pictures, but I just didn't think there would be so many.
The drive itself was gorgeous.
I ended up staying at the Gold Coast casino, I nice place to visit if you LIKE casinos. For me they're a bit like visiting hell. The slot machine noise and blinking lights are designed to give me migraines and the inevitable cigarette smoke leads to the inevitable asthma attack. Of course, the rooms are only accessible if you walk the length of the casino. The room was gorgeous though and very reasonably priced on a Thursday.
The university library was FABULOUS and more than worth the visit.
I tried to go birding at the Springs Preserve, but it was too hot and too deserted for me. I hit the road for Phoenix.
Salt Lake city to Las Vegas - Photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073211787/
University of Nevada, Las Vegas - Photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073262313/
Clark County Public Library - Photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073291123/
First, I'm driving down the road and off to the left is this sign about a ranch being for sale, and there in the process of crossing the dirt road to the ranch is a chicken...
Later in the afternoon I noticed a dirt road paralleling the freeway. This road had a dozen or so crows standing around. Weird. Then about 5 minutes down the road there's another murder of crows standing around on the dirt road. And again, and again, and again. It was like a crow convention with committees of 12-17 evenly spaced. I think there were about 8 committees in all. It was very strange. I wish I had pulled over to take pictures, but I just didn't think there would be so many.
The drive itself was gorgeous.
I ended up staying at the Gold Coast casino, I nice place to visit if you LIKE casinos. For me they're a bit like visiting hell. The slot machine noise and blinking lights are designed to give me migraines and the inevitable cigarette smoke leads to the inevitable asthma attack. Of course, the rooms are only accessible if you walk the length of the casino. The room was gorgeous though and very reasonably priced on a Thursday.
The university library was FABULOUS and more than worth the visit.
I tried to go birding at the Springs Preserve, but it was too hot and too deserted for me. I hit the road for Phoenix.
Salt Lake city to Las Vegas - Photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073211787/
University of Nevada, Las Vegas - Photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073262313/
Clark County Public Library - Photos at:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604073291123/
Saturday, March 01, 2008
Notes from February's Sabbatical Visits to Utah
At Salt Lake City Public I discovered the new and exciting world of library photography policies. I had no idea such a thing existed. It makes sense though, when you consider all the professional photographers coming into the SLC publilc library to use it as a backdrop.
My visit to Orem included the mandatory stop at La Dolce Vita in Provo, an incredible Italian restaurant.
It is located at:
61 North 100 East
Provo, UT 84606
(801) 373-8482
http://www.ladolcevitaprovo.com/
On the drive to Logan I had an incredible impulse to call my aunt Susan. It seemed a little nuts since I have a brother, sister-in-law and 4 nieces/nephews there and I was going to be stealthy and not visit them. I eventually gave into the impulse and arranged to go to lunch with Susan. I met her at the Utah Festival Opera's building. Susan is the director for 'Opera for Children'. See: http://www.operabychildren.org/. We headed over to Great Harvest Bread Co., for a lunch of sandwiches. In the middle of a great conversation she suddenly looks up and says "there's your brother."
He, of course, loudly exclaims "Aunt Susan!" and comes over. I then get the best double-take I've ever seen from him. And he continues "and my sister!"
It was great to see both of them.
The way out of town was particularly exciting when deer jumped out in front of me on the road. I was driving slowly in part to save gas money and in part because of the 'watch for deer' sign.
Visited:
Salt Lake City Public - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604004657195/
University of Utah - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604000775304/
Provo Public Library - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604005050647/
Utah Valley University - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604000953468/
Logan Public Library - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604001499630/
Utah State University - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604005331249/
My visit to Orem included the mandatory stop at La Dolce Vita in Provo, an incredible Italian restaurant.
It is located at:
61 North 100 East
Provo, UT 84606
(801) 373-8482
http://www.ladolcevitaprovo.com/
On the drive to Logan I had an incredible impulse to call my aunt Susan. It seemed a little nuts since I have a brother, sister-in-law and 4 nieces/nephews there and I was going to be stealthy and not visit them. I eventually gave into the impulse and arranged to go to lunch with Susan. I met her at the Utah Festival Opera's building. Susan is the director for 'Opera for Children'. See: http://www.operabychildren.org/. We headed over to Great Harvest Bread Co., for a lunch of sandwiches. In the middle of a great conversation she suddenly looks up and says "there's your brother."
He, of course, loudly exclaims "Aunt Susan!" and comes over. I then get the best double-take I've ever seen from him. And he continues "and my sister!"
It was great to see both of them.
The way out of town was particularly exciting when deer jumped out in front of me on the road. I was driving slowly in part to save gas money and in part because of the 'watch for deer' sign.
Visited:
Salt Lake City Public - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604004657195/
University of Utah - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604000775304/
Provo Public Library - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604005050647/
Utah Valley University - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604000953468/
Logan Public Library - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604001499630/
Utah State University - Photos at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsemenza/sets/72157604005331249/
Saturday, February 23, 2008
Ogden outing
2-20-08
Birds on the Road to Ogden
I met a fascinating guy at Starbucks. I sat down in a comfy chair across from an older gentlemen and we started talking, now in his mid 70's Tom had a truly interesting life. He is an artist, he helped to restore cars, motorcycles and other vehicles with his airbrush. He worked for Mr. Harrah (of the Harrah Casinos) in Reno, restoring everything from rollsroyces to cable cars. I got to hear about some of the challenges including the researching original art/logos in order to keep things accurate. It was a welcome break from thinking about libraries. Some of the collection can be seen at: National Automobile Museum: Reno
Later that night Krista, Terrial and I went to dinner at the Brazillian Braza Grill. My first time with Brazillian food, it was very yummy.
In the further adventures of Jenny's Keys...
I found a second key to my Echo in the bottom of my suitcase. 'Cool' I thought and reasoned that it would be more useful if I put it in my purse. After all, my purse is now so large that it cannot be hidden in the car and must come with me all the time. So I put it in my purse and continued my day.
On my way home, I stopped at the Lava exit for a break. I was desperate and encumbered, what with trying to find and get my coat on and gloves and grab my bag. I was out of the car with my hands full and the door shut, only to find that I really had locked my keys in the car. There was a moment of panic and then I realized that HEY! I put my spare key in my purse that morning. So I dashed into the quick stop and didn't worry about it.
I visited both the Weber County Main Public Library and the Weber State University Library and got lots of good ideas and stories.
Birds on the Road to Ogden
- 19 Cedar Wings in my tree by the driveway, I thought it was a good omen.
- House sparrows
- Mourning dove
- Swainsons hawks
- Red tailed hawks
- Rock doves
- Crows
- Starlings
- Canada geese
- and lots and lots of Magpies
I met a fascinating guy at Starbucks. I sat down in a comfy chair across from an older gentlemen and we started talking, now in his mid 70's Tom had a truly interesting life. He is an artist, he helped to restore cars, motorcycles and other vehicles with his airbrush. He worked for Mr. Harrah (of the Harrah Casinos) in Reno, restoring everything from rollsroyces to cable cars. I got to hear about some of the challenges including the researching original art/logos in order to keep things accurate. It was a welcome break from thinking about libraries. Some of the collection can be seen at: National Automobile Museum: Reno
Later that night Krista, Terrial and I went to dinner at the Brazillian Braza Grill. My first time with Brazillian food, it was very yummy.
In the further adventures of Jenny's Keys...
I found a second key to my Echo in the bottom of my suitcase. 'Cool' I thought and reasoned that it would be more useful if I put it in my purse. After all, my purse is now so large that it cannot be hidden in the car and must come with me all the time. So I put it in my purse and continued my day.
On my way home, I stopped at the Lava exit for a break. I was desperate and encumbered, what with trying to find and get my coat on and gloves and grab my bag. I was out of the car with my hands full and the door shut, only to find that I really had locked my keys in the car. There was a moment of panic and then I realized that HEY! I put my spare key in my purse that morning. So I dashed into the quick stop and didn't worry about it.
I visited both the Weber County Main Public Library and the Weber State University Library and got lots of good ideas and stories.
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Sabbatical - February
Hi all,
I'm going to try and post my sabbatical adventures to this blog. Right now, I'm still getting my ducks in a row. I have confirmed the schedule for February:
20 Wed Drive to Ogden
Stay with Krista
21 Thu Interview Weber State University 9:00 – Noon
Return to Pocatello
22 Fri Attend candidate presentation at ISU Library
25 Mon Drive to SLC in the morning
Interview University of Utah 1:00 – 4:00
Stay with Jessica
26 Tue Drive to Orem in the morning
Stay with Jessica
Interview Utah Valley State College 9:00 – Noon
27 Wed Drive to Logan in the morning
Interview Utah State University 1:00 – 4:00
Drive back to Pocatello
I'll be finalizing my southern route soon. That'll take the whole of March.
Jenny
I'm going to try and post my sabbatical adventures to this blog. Right now, I'm still getting my ducks in a row. I have confirmed the schedule for February:
20 Wed Drive to Ogden
Stay with Krista
21 Thu Interview Weber State University 9:00 – Noon
Return to Pocatello
22 Fri Attend candidate presentation at ISU Library
25 Mon Drive to SLC in the morning
Interview University of Utah 1:00 – 4:00
Stay with Jessica
26 Tue Drive to Orem in the morning
Stay with Jessica
Interview Utah Valley State College 9:00 – Noon
27 Wed Drive to Logan in the morning
Interview Utah State University 1:00 – 4:00
Drive back to Pocatello
I'll be finalizing my southern route soon. That'll take the whole of March.
Jenny
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Nick's Leg
Sunday Nick came home with a swollen and apparently sprained ankle. But that's just the tip of the story. Let's begin at the beginning.
The geology class instructor didn't arrange for vehicles in time to borrow state ones. So he volunteered to put gas in Nick's jeep if he (that is Nick) would drive. Nick agreed so Sunday morning at 5:30 am he drives down to the campus to pick up some of his classmates. They all drive out to Gray's River, gather up their gear and begin the hike out to the field area. It's a fairly nice day and they're only part way in when they encounter a log. First the log takes out the professor, dumping him on his face. Next the vindictive log takes out Nick, wrenching his ankle badly and painfully. Well, a classmate happens to be an EMT and happens to have an elastic bandage with him, so he wraps up Nick's foot. Nick, brave, pain tolerant man that he is turns around and hikes back to the Jeep with the assistance of a couple of large sticks. It's too bad they didn't toss the log into the river, it certainly deserved it. This was still early in the morning, maybe 9:00 or 9:30.
Unfortunately, there were no plans made to be stuck in a Jeep for the day. Nick did not bring homework, book, headphones for mp3 player or anything. Apparently he spent the day alternately soaking his foot in the river (40 degrees, so that was smart), watching the clouds and horses or napping. I think we can say that he definitely caught up on his rest. He returned home around 10:30.
Since he could put weight on the foot and still move his toes, I just thought it was a bad sprain too. At work the next day one of my colleagues suggested that since we have health insurance an x-ray wouldn't be a bad idea.
Nope, it wasn't a bad idea at all. I was so surprised when the doctor wheeled Nick out into the urgent care waiting room. With strict instructions not to put weight on it. The doctor had put a wrapped cast and splint on the foot and told us to go see an Orthopedist. We also needed to get crutches so off I drove to Albertsons, one of the few places open at that time in the evening. That was Monday night.
Today was the first opening with the Orthopedist. He gave Nick a walking boot cast and basically said to take it easy and let it heal. We're supposed to come back in a couple of weeks to check for ligament damage.
Wow, lots can happen over one weekend.
After later
Jenny
The geology class instructor didn't arrange for vehicles in time to borrow state ones. So he volunteered to put gas in Nick's jeep if he (that is Nick) would drive. Nick agreed so Sunday morning at 5:30 am he drives down to the campus to pick up some of his classmates. They all drive out to Gray's River, gather up their gear and begin the hike out to the field area. It's a fairly nice day and they're only part way in when they encounter a log. First the log takes out the professor, dumping him on his face. Next the vindictive log takes out Nick, wrenching his ankle badly and painfully. Well, a classmate happens to be an EMT and happens to have an elastic bandage with him, so he wraps up Nick's foot. Nick, brave, pain tolerant man that he is turns around and hikes back to the Jeep with the assistance of a couple of large sticks. It's too bad they didn't toss the log into the river, it certainly deserved it. This was still early in the morning, maybe 9:00 or 9:30.
Unfortunately, there were no plans made to be stuck in a Jeep for the day. Nick did not bring homework, book, headphones for mp3 player or anything. Apparently he spent the day alternately soaking his foot in the river (40 degrees, so that was smart), watching the clouds and horses or napping. I think we can say that he definitely caught up on his rest. He returned home around 10:30.
Since he could put weight on the foot and still move his toes, I just thought it was a bad sprain too. At work the next day one of my colleagues suggested that since we have health insurance an x-ray wouldn't be a bad idea.
Nope, it wasn't a bad idea at all. I was so surprised when the doctor wheeled Nick out into the urgent care waiting room. With strict instructions not to put weight on it. The doctor had put a wrapped cast and splint on the foot and told us to go see an Orthopedist. We also needed to get crutches so off I drove to Albertsons, one of the few places open at that time in the evening. That was Monday night.
Today was the first opening with the Orthopedist. He gave Nick a walking boot cast and basically said to take it easy and let it heal. We're supposed to come back in a couple of weeks to check for ligament damage.
Wow, lots can happen over one weekend.
After later
Jenny
Monday, October 15, 2007
Books from Oct 15 2006 to Oct 15 2007
I read Annie's list over at Textual Frigate and I had to create my own. Nick doesn't think I should count the new cookbooks, but I read them too. In any case I read more than I thought, though not nearly as much as Annie. I know her list is really just half of what she read, the ones she remembered. I definitely binged on Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings and Cozy Mysteries.
Non-Fiction: Geology & Natural History
1. America's Wildlife Hideaways by National Wildlife Federation
2. Field Guide to Wildlife Habitats of the Western United States by Janine M. Benyus
3. Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and the Middle Rocky Mountains by J. David Love
4. Creation of the Teton Landscape by David D. Love, John C. Reed, and by Kenneth L. Pierce
Cozy Mysteries
5. Bleeding Hearts (China Bayles Mystery) by Susan Wittig Albert
6. Tale of Holly How (The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter) by Susan Wittig Albert
7. Tale of Cuckoo Brow Wood (The Cottage Tales of Beatrix Potter) by Susan Wittig Albert
8. China Bayles' Book of Days by Susan Wittig Albert
9. Death at Bishop's Keep by Robin Paige AKA Susan Wittig Albert
10. Charmed Death by Madelyn Alt
11. Trouble With Magic by Madelyn Alt
12. Witch Way to Murder by Shirley Damsgaard
13. Trouble With Witches by Shirley Damsgaard
14. Charmed to Death by Shirley Damsgaard
15. Scent to Her Grave by India Ink
16. Blush With Death by India Ink
17. Glossed and Found by India Ink
18. Mournful Teddy: A Bear Collector's Mystery by John J. Lamb
19. Fruit of the Poisoned Tree by Joyce and Jim Lavene
20. Pretty Poison by Joyce and Jim Lavene
More Riveting Mysteries
22. Storm Front (The Dresden Files, Book 1) by Jim Butcher
23. Fool Moon (The Dresden Files, Book 2) by Jim Butcher
Non-Fiction: Self Help
24. Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki
25. The Two-Step: The Dance Toward Intimacy by Eileen McCann
Non-Fiction: Biography
26. Snake Hips: Belly Dancing and How I Found True Love by Anne Thomas Soffe
Graphic Novels
27. Girl Genius Volume 1: Agatha Heterodyne & The Beetleburg Clank by Phil Foglio
28. Girl Genius Volume 2: Agatha Heterodyne & The Airship City by Phil Foglio
29. Girl Genius Volume 3: Agatha Heterodyne & The Monster Engine by Phil Foglio
30. Girl Genius Volume 4: Agatha Heterodyne & The Circus Of Dreams by Phil Foglio
31. Girl Genius Volume 5: Agatha Heterodyne & The Clockwork Princess by Phil Foglio
32. Girl Genius Volume 6: Agatha Heterodyne And The Golden Trilobite by Phil Foglio
33. What's New with Phil & Dixie 1 by Phil Foglio
34. What's New with Phil & Dixie 2 by Phil Foglio
Funny Fiction
35. Nice by Jen Sacks
Harry Potter
36. Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander AKA J.K. Rowling
37. Quidditch Through the Ages by Kennilworthy Whisp AKA J.K. Rowling
38. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone (Book 1) by J. K. Rowling
39. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2) by J. K. Rowling
40. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3) by J. K. Rowling
41. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) by J. K. Rowling
42. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5) by J. K. Rowling
43. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Book 6) by J. K. Rowling
44. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7) by J. K. Rowling
Non-Fiction: Style
45. Don't go to the Cosmetics Counter without Me by Paula Begoun
46. Little Black Book of Style by Nina Garcia
47. Lyn Revson's World of Style by Lyn Revson
48. The Executive Look: How to Get it-How to Keep it by Mortimer Levitt
Lord of the Rings
49. Lord of the Rings Weapons and Warfare by Chris Smith
50. Making of the Movie Trilogy by Brian Sibley
51. Atlas of Middle-Earth by Karen Wynn Fonstad
52. Fellowship of the Ring Visual Companion by Jude Fisher
53. Two Towers Visual Companion by Jude Fisher
54. Return of the King Visual Companion by Jude Fisher
55. Lord of the Rings Official Movie Guide by Brian Sibley
56. Fellowship of the Ring by J. R. R. Tolkien
57. Two Towers by J. R. R. Tolkien
58. Return of the King by J. R. R. Tolkien
Buffy the Vamire Slayer
59. What Would Buffy Do: The Vampire Slayer as Spiritual Guide by Jana Riess
60. Slayer Slang: A Buffy The Vampire Slayer Lexicon by Michael Adams
Cookbooks
61. Making Artisan Chocolates by Andrew Garrison Shotts
62. Truffles: 50 Deliciously Decadent Homemade Chocolate Treats by Dede Books
63. Great Meals in Minutes by Time-Life Books
64. Alfresco: Over 100 Recipes with Menus for Memorable Outdoor Meals by Linda Burgess
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Fun, Full, Weekend
I had a lot of fun on Saturday. It began early on Saturday. Nick and I attended the Riverwalk sponsored by the Museum.
I loved the renaming of a hand lens to "bigger maker"
Next we went over to the Farmers Market where Kristi's band Rhiannon was playing. (See her blog for the Idaho State Journal.) I found gorgeous purple potatoes, onions, bell pepper and garlic.
We drove by the Marshall Public Library Centennial Celebration. But hunger won out and we had lunch at the Pocatello Co-op's Kinport restaurant. (http://www.pocatellocoop.com/) The food is yummy! I highly recommend the croquets.
Later we ran errands, I got a hair cut, visited Robin, Terry and Terry's two daughters and son-in-law. Eventually I took a much needed nap.
To finish the fun filled day we met up with Cheryl, Chantal, Tom and Mira to watch Ratatouille. I gotta say one of the highlights was the sheer glee and unstoppable laughter of Mira watching the preliminary short "Lifted." I also loved the movie. Thanks Leonard for the recommendation.
Sunday Nick went off on a Geology field trip and I stayed home. I opened the blinds letting in all of the sunshine and spend a lazy day cleaning house, doing laundry and cooking. I made tons of stew with the purple potatoes, the last of the carrots from my garden, garlic, onion and other fresh herbs. I also candied some walnuts to use later on a Gorgonzola, Cranberry Salad, and boiled a few eggs for lunch this week.
Nick came home with a sprained ankle. OW OW OW OW I dug out one of my fancy canes for him to use. Apparently he did it while hiking to the field area, so he spent the day in his car waiting for everyone to come back. Poor guy, he didn't have his computer, a book to read or anything. He did get to catch up on his napping, watching the clouds and enjoying the beautiful day. I love that he is so easy going.
After later
Jenny
RiverWalk
Saturday • Oct 13 • 9:00-10:30 am • Taysom Rotary Park
Don’t miss out on our monthly RiverWalk entitled “Autumn Colors” led by Pocatello’s favorite biologist, Dr. Karl Holte. Co-sponsored by the Portneuf Greenway Foundation, RiverWalks are family-oriented field excursions, each focusing on a different natural history topic. Meet at Taysom Rotary Park on Bannock Highway and bring a “bigger maker,” if you have one.
I loved the renaming of a hand lens to "bigger maker"
Next we went over to the Farmers Market where Kristi's band Rhiannon was playing. (See her blog for the Idaho State Journal.) I found gorgeous purple potatoes, onions, bell pepper and garlic.
We drove by the Marshall Public Library Centennial Celebration. But hunger won out and we had lunch at the Pocatello Co-op's Kinport restaurant. (http://www.pocatellocoop.com/) The food is yummy! I highly recommend the croquets.
Later we ran errands, I got a hair cut, visited Robin, Terry and Terry's two daughters and son-in-law. Eventually I took a much needed nap.
To finish the fun filled day we met up with Cheryl, Chantal, Tom and Mira to watch Ratatouille. I gotta say one of the highlights was the sheer glee and unstoppable laughter of Mira watching the preliminary short "Lifted." I also loved the movie. Thanks Leonard for the recommendation.
Sunday Nick went off on a Geology field trip and I stayed home. I opened the blinds letting in all of the sunshine and spend a lazy day cleaning house, doing laundry and cooking. I made tons of stew with the purple potatoes, the last of the carrots from my garden, garlic, onion and other fresh herbs. I also candied some walnuts to use later on a Gorgonzola, Cranberry Salad, and boiled a few eggs for lunch this week.
Nick came home with a sprained ankle. OW OW OW OW I dug out one of my fancy canes for him to use. Apparently he did it while hiking to the field area, so he spent the day in his car waiting for everyone to come back. Poor guy, he didn't have his computer, a book to read or anything. He did get to catch up on his napping, watching the clouds and enjoying the beautiful day. I love that he is so easy going.
After later
Jenny
Tuesday, October 09, 2007
ILA
Wednesday October 3rd is all about driving up to Nampa and the need to pay attention to where one is going. Cheryl and I left mid morning going west into a serious headwind. The day was beautiful and we had every intention of stopping in Twin for lunch. Unfortunately we were talking so much that I forgot to pay attention to the signs and we were at Bliss before I realized I had missed Twin. Rats!
We had two concurrent themes for the trip. Theme one - Raptors, it seemed that every fence post, high point and telephone pole had some kind of hawk lurking about on it. We saw a broad winged hawk, lots of swainson's hawks, many red tailed hawks, a kestrel, possibly a two ravens (I know, they aren't raptors, but they are still cool) and later that evening a golden eagle.
The other theme was Chocolate. I had grabbed a couple of dark mint chocolate bars for snacking and we shared one on the way there (particularly since we missed the lunch turnout). Once at Boise we headed in towards the Co-op. Cheryl spotted the Egyptian restaurant on the Left so we made an impulsive sudden decision and ate lunch there. They have an afternoon buffet that is really great. Next, shopping. We went to the Co-op, Eyes of the World and Cost Plus. Chocolate was found at two of the three places. Eyes of the World, usually has the best jewelry, but this time it was kinda lacking. So we packed up the mobile red suitcase (aka my red car) and headed to Nampa and the hotel.
We found dinner in Meridian at a fabulous Thai place called Sa Wah Dee
Yummy!!! http://www.sawaddeethai.com/ 1890 E Fairview Ave # B, Meridian (208) 884-0701
We arrived late to the ILA reception, but that was okay. We watched a couple of the Ballet Folklorico performances, and all of the Native American Entertainment and Irish Dancers. The Native American guy got us up and dancing in a big circle. As ISU Librarians trickled in we became the most numerous group. WHEEEE.
Later that night Cheryl and I did yoga and finally got to sleep. All in all a very fun day.
For more on my ILA trip see my boring Library Banter Blog Entries:
Keynote Speaker ILA - day one
GIS and Libraries - day one
But I Didn’t Even Like History - Lunch with author Kirby Larson
Podcasting - day one
Joy on the Job - day two
Susan Swetnam - Carnegie Public Libraries - Lunch
Bibliographic Software - day two
The trip home on Friday (we left the conference at the end of the last session) we encountered no wind, but there were no raptors either. A little of the chocolate got us to Twin Falls where we really did get our Thai food. Eyup we love the Thai food. A Taste of Thai http://www.atasteofthai.net 837 Poleline Rd, Twin Falls, ID 83301, (208) 735-8333
The rain came down on us gently as we drove the last hour into Pocatello. We were home by 10:00 that night. All in all I had a great time! Cheryl is a great roommate.
After later
Me
We had two concurrent themes for the trip. Theme one - Raptors, it seemed that every fence post, high point and telephone pole had some kind of hawk lurking about on it. We saw a broad winged hawk, lots of swainson's hawks, many red tailed hawks, a kestrel, possibly a two ravens (I know, they aren't raptors, but they are still cool) and later that evening a golden eagle.
The other theme was Chocolate. I had grabbed a couple of dark mint chocolate bars for snacking and we shared one on the way there (particularly since we missed the lunch turnout). Once at Boise we headed in towards the Co-op. Cheryl spotted the Egyptian restaurant on the Left so we made an impulsive sudden decision and ate lunch there. They have an afternoon buffet that is really great. Next, shopping. We went to the Co-op, Eyes of the World and Cost Plus. Chocolate was found at two of the three places. Eyes of the World, usually has the best jewelry, but this time it was kinda lacking. So we packed up the mobile red suitcase (aka my red car) and headed to Nampa and the hotel.
We found dinner in Meridian at a fabulous Thai place called Sa Wah Dee
Yummy!!! http://www.sawaddeethai.com/ 1890 E Fairview Ave # B, Meridian (208) 884-0701
We arrived late to the ILA reception, but that was okay. We watched a couple of the Ballet Folklorico performances, and all of the Native American Entertainment and Irish Dancers. The Native American guy got us up and dancing in a big circle. As ISU Librarians trickled in we became the most numerous group. WHEEEE.
Later that night Cheryl and I did yoga and finally got to sleep. All in all a very fun day.
For more on my ILA trip see my boring Library Banter Blog Entries:
Keynote Speaker ILA - day one
GIS and Libraries - day one
But I Didn’t Even Like History - Lunch with author Kirby Larson
Podcasting - day one
Joy on the Job - day two
Susan Swetnam - Carnegie Public Libraries - Lunch
Bibliographic Software - day two
The trip home on Friday (we left the conference at the end of the last session) we encountered no wind, but there were no raptors either. A little of the chocolate got us to Twin Falls where we really did get our Thai food. Eyup we love the Thai food. A Taste of Thai http://www.atasteofthai.net 837 Poleline Rd, Twin Falls, ID 83301, (208) 735-8333
The rain came down on us gently as we drove the last hour into Pocatello. We were home by 10:00 that night. All in all I had a great time! Cheryl is a great roommate.
After later
Me
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Yellowstone daytrip
Nick and I went to Yellowstone (West Yellowstone to Mammoth). The drive was absolutely gorgeous. The fall reds and yellows and forest greens... breathtaking.
We saw a few birds on the trip including a new one for me. The elusive and much sought after Clark's Nutcracker!!
Other birds include:
Canad geese
Rock doves
House sparrows
Swainson's hawks (everywhere)
Brewer's blackbirds
Red winged blackbirds
Starlings
Crows
Western meadowlark
Belted kingfisher
Mountain bluebirds
Gray jays
Bald eagle
and tons of Ravens
We also spotted bison, elk and a coyote. Nick took lots more pictures than I did. It was a fabulous day.
after later
We saw a few birds on the trip including a new one for me. The elusive and much sought after Clark's Nutcracker!!
Other birds include:
Canad geese
Rock doves
House sparrows
Swainson's hawks (everywhere)
Brewer's blackbirds
Red winged blackbirds
Starlings
Crows
Western meadowlark
Belted kingfisher
Mountain bluebirds
Gray jays
Bald eagle
and tons of Ravens
We also spotted bison, elk and a coyote. Nick took lots more pictures than I did. It was a fabulous day.
after later
Sunday, September 16, 2007
Upper Mesa Falls
I took myself to Mesa Falls. The drive was gorgeous, the aspen are turning yellow and gold. The skies were clear and the birds were all over. I got to see one new bird: White Throated Swift.
I also saw:
Eastern Kingbird
Red Tailed Hawks
Turkey Vultures
American Kestrels
Brewer's Blackbirds
Red Winged Blackbirds
American Crows
Canada Geese
Mallards
House Sparrows
House Finches
Rock Doves
Mourning Doves
Common Mergansers
Red Shafted Flickers
Robins
California Gulls
Yellow Rumped Warblers
Double Crested Cormorants
Belted Kingfisher
Bald Eagle
Franklin's Gull
Barn Swallows
Bank Swallows
I scouted the Warm River campground and drove all over the place, just checking things out and enjoying the scenery.
After Later
I also saw:
Eastern Kingbird
Red Tailed Hawks
Turkey Vultures
American Kestrels
Brewer's Blackbirds
Red Winged Blackbirds
American Crows
Canada Geese
Mallards
House Sparrows
House Finches
Rock Doves
Mourning Doves
Common Mergansers
Red Shafted Flickers
Robins
California Gulls
Yellow Rumped Warblers
Double Crested Cormorants
Belted Kingfisher
Bald Eagle
Franklin's Gull
Barn Swallows
Bank Swallows
I scouted the Warm River campground and drove all over the place, just checking things out and enjoying the scenery.
After Later
Saturday, June 09, 2007
Home again Home again
On the way to the airport we diverted off to White Rock Lake in Dallas. I finally got to see the infamous Monk Parakeets!!!! I don't care how sick I was, that was very cool.
The plane ride home was mostly uneventful. I didn't get stopped for having an expired driver's license. I only had a couple hour delay at one airport. Jessica and Doug picked me up in SLC and drove me to my car at Rebecca's house. I drove home in a very calm state of mind, reminiscing about all the birds and the lovely family I have in Texas.
Note to self: Don't go to Texas in the Springtime when all the flowers are in bloom. They are lovely to look at but you are really allergic to them.
The plane ride home was mostly uneventful. I didn't get stopped for having an expired driver's license. I only had a couple hour delay at one airport. Jessica and Doug picked me up in SLC and drove me to my car at Rebecca's house. I drove home in a very calm state of mind, reminiscing about all the birds and the lovely family I have in Texas.
Note to self: Don't go to Texas in the Springtime when all the flowers are in bloom. They are lovely to look at but you are really allergic to them.
Friday, June 08, 2007
Birding, Birding, Birding
Mom, Melinda (driver), Nanette and I went birding all over today. We were in Italy, Hillsboro, Waco and the back of beyond. We saw field after field of gorgeous wildflowers. The weather was gorgeous and it was lovely. I don't care how sick I was feeling. Thanks Melinda!!!
American Gourd Flowers
Water Lilies
Basket flowers
Indian blanket
Sunflowers
and more...
- Mocking birds
- Barn Swallows
- Eurasian Collared Doves
- Starlings
- Lark Sparrows
- House Sparrows
- White Winged Dove
- Eastern Phoebe (Wood St. Italy Tx)
- Scissor Tailed Fly Catchers
- Turkey Vultures
- Black Vultures
- Dicksissel
- Cardinals
- Mourning Doves
- Great Blue Heron
- Eastern Meadowlark
- American Crow
- Brown Thrasher (new)
- Painted Buntings
- Bob White
- Red Tailed Hawk
- Western Kingbird
- Cowbirds
- House Finch
- Inca Dove (new) (Waco)
- Common Grackles
- Great Tailed Grackles
- Rock Doves
- Golden Fronted Woodpecker (new) (Cameron Park Zoo)
- Pileated Yellow-Striped Flat-Billed Sparrow Eagle
American Gourd Flowers
Water Lilies
Basket flowers
Indian blanket
Sunflowers
and more...
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Airplanes, Errands and Doctors
Take Erika to airport
Shopping (or rather quick pickup of Tshirt) in Hillsboro
Lunch at the Lone Star Diner
Doctor's office (cause I've gotten dreadfully sick)
Purple martin in Italy with dad!!
Day After Tomorrow movie
Shopping (or rather quick pickup of Tshirt) in Hillsboro
Lunch at the Lone Star Diner
Doctor's office (cause I've gotten dreadfully sick)
Purple martin in Italy with dad!!
Day After Tomorrow movie
Wednesday, June 06, 2007
Not feeling well
Hang out, sleep in, read,
Mom went shopping
Probably the laziest day I had on vacation.
I didn't go birdwatching today
I did get to sit in the living room and watch the wind, clouds and pond.
Mom went shopping
Probably the laziest day I had on vacation.
I didn't go birdwatching today
I did get to sit in the living room and watch the wind, clouds and pond.
Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Workout!
Working out with Mom at her gym. First time I've been swimming in awhile. It was sooo much fun!
Ice cream, pre-workout (gotta have fuel, HONEST) I'm really glad we don't have as many ice cream stores at home.
Grocery shopping
Stop at Kay Jones'
Supervolcano
I know I saw birds, but none were new. Still I'm getting better with Eurasian collared doves, and Scissor tailed flycatchers are sooooooo cute!
Ice cream, pre-workout (gotta have fuel, HONEST) I'm really glad we don't have as many ice cream stores at home.
Grocery shopping
Stop at Kay Jones'
Supervolcano
I know I saw birds, but none were new. Still I'm getting better with Eurasian collared doves, and Scissor tailed flycatchers are sooooooo cute!
Monday, June 04, 2007
Out and About with Jeff, Randi and Melinda
Melinda and I drove up to Dallas to the Arboretum. Melinda has seen all kinds of birds there in the past and I was really looking forward to seeing the common blue jay again. We just don't see those birds out here in the west. Stellars jays, Scrub jays, Gray jays but no plain beautiful Blue jays.
On the way there we saw:
House sparrows
Scissor-tailed flycatchers
Great tailed grackles
Common grackles
Chimney Swifts
Eurasian Collard Doves
Mourning Doves
Rock Doves
Turkey Vultures
Red Tailed Hawk
Great Egrets
We arrived a little early so we grabbed some breakfast from the local shop and sat at one on the outdoor tables to watch and wait. Right away we were greeted by a Baltimore Oriole and some Mockingbirds.
Jeff and Randi go there. They look so good, happy, healthy. I miss having them in Idaho! Anyway we went strolling through the gardens. It was just GORGEOUS! We didn't see a lot of birds but I did get to see some new ones and some old favorites. I just can't get enough of the Cardinals. We don't have them in Idaho either.
Baltimore Oriole
Mockingbirds
Blue Jays
House Wren
Eastern Phoebe
Starlings
Cardinals
Cottontail bunny
Plants of interest:
Red Yucca
Hibiscus Syriacus
Tanzania (native shrub)
Vitex Agnus-Castus
Leucophyllum frutescens
Chilopsis linearis
Citronella
Hydranga
Angel Lace (Hydrangea macrophylla)
Lavendula
St. Oechas
After wandering we decided to drive out to their house in Plano so I could see it. It's a beautiful ranch style home in a nice neighborhood. For lunch we went to a nearby Mexican place and made more plans
It began to rain a little, but not too bad
We thought we'd go back out to White Rock Lake (by the Arboretum) and see if we couldn't find the Monk Parakeets that nest there.
Only one problem with this plan. Rain. Lots of Rain. I've never seen a gullywasher before, but now I truly know what it means. We did not see any Monk Parakeets and Melinda is one of the best and bravest drivers I know.
We canceled our plans to go out to the zoo and drove back out to Plano and dropped Jeff and Randi off. It really was nice to see them.
I had every intention of getting together with them again. But that was not meant to be.
In any case, Melinda and I headed for home. Through rush hour traffic. We changed our mind and got off the wet, crowded freeway at this very Tony and upscale mall. We went into a Nordstroms the likes of which I had never seen. The necklaces on sale on the aisle filling tables were marked down to the low, low price of $247.00. The really cheap ones were around $78.00. EEEEEEEEEE
We went and looked at all of the gorgeous dishes. There were plain ones, and fancy ones; classy ones, and whimsical ones. There were dishes for every occasion and recipe. It was a wonderland of dishes!
It was a great day. I can't thank Melinda enough for coming and especially for driving.
On the way there we saw:
House sparrows
Scissor-tailed flycatchers
Great tailed grackles
Common grackles
Chimney Swifts
Eurasian Collard Doves
Mourning Doves
Rock Doves
Turkey Vultures
Red Tailed Hawk
Great Egrets
We arrived a little early so we grabbed some breakfast from the local shop and sat at one on the outdoor tables to watch and wait. Right away we were greeted by a Baltimore Oriole and some Mockingbirds.
Jeff and Randi go there. They look so good, happy, healthy. I miss having them in Idaho! Anyway we went strolling through the gardens. It was just GORGEOUS! We didn't see a lot of birds but I did get to see some new ones and some old favorites. I just can't get enough of the Cardinals. We don't have them in Idaho either.
Baltimore Oriole
Mockingbirds
Blue Jays
House Wren
Eastern Phoebe
Starlings
Cardinals
Cottontail bunny
Plants of interest:
Red Yucca
Hibiscus Syriacus
Tanzania (native shrub)
Vitex Agnus-Castus
Leucophyllum frutescens
Chilopsis linearis
Citronella
Hydranga
Angel Lace (Hydrangea macrophylla)
Lavendula
St. Oechas
After wandering we decided to drive out to their house in Plano so I could see it. It's a beautiful ranch style home in a nice neighborhood. For lunch we went to a nearby Mexican place and made more plans
It began to rain a little, but not too bad
We thought we'd go back out to White Rock Lake (by the Arboretum) and see if we couldn't find the Monk Parakeets that nest there.
Only one problem with this plan. Rain. Lots of Rain. I've never seen a gullywasher before, but now I truly know what it means. We did not see any Monk Parakeets and Melinda is one of the best and bravest drivers I know.
We canceled our plans to go out to the zoo and drove back out to Plano and dropped Jeff and Randi off. It really was nice to see them.
I had every intention of getting together with them again. But that was not meant to be.
In any case, Melinda and I headed for home. Through rush hour traffic. We changed our mind and got off the wet, crowded freeway at this very Tony and upscale mall. We went into a Nordstroms the likes of which I had never seen. The necklaces on sale on the aisle filling tables were marked down to the low, low price of $247.00. The really cheap ones were around $78.00. EEEEEEEEEE
We went and looked at all of the gorgeous dishes. There were plain ones, and fancy ones; classy ones, and whimsical ones. There were dishes for every occasion and recipe. It was a wonderland of dishes!
It was a great day. I can't thank Melinda enough for coming and especially for driving.
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Church, Birds and Chaos
I haven't been to church in a very long time. I wasn't sure this morning if I wanted to go, but I got up and got ready. I was rewarded by seeing a Eurasian Collard Dove on our way to the car. The drive to the church included more birds. The service itself was nice. Kinda fun to watch Dad officiate.
The best part was on our way home we saw two strange birds in a field. Mom and I both guessed common and wrong birds. Melinda turned the car around and was right there were two Crested Caracaras. WOW! (see list below for full birding info)
I made dinner (with assistance from Nan and company) and Mike, Tessa and their 4 kids came over. Chaos ensued. It's a good kind of chaos that only 5 small children (Mikey, Sydney, Katy, Evie & Frankie) can make. Of course it didn't help that Nanette the instigator was egging them on to louder and funnier antics. I have the cutest nieces and nephews.
After later
Jenny
Eurasian Collared Dove (new)
Dicksissel
Cardinals
Painted Bunting
Barn Swallows
Turkey Vulture
Mourning Doves
Mockingbirds
Common Grackles
Great Grackles
Eastern Meadowlarks
House Sparrows
Scissor Tailed Flycatdcher
Western Kingbird
Crested Caracara (new)
Green Heron
Starlings
Cliff Swallows
Red Bellied Woodpecker (new)
Red Tailed Hawks
Black Vultures
Snowy Egret
Great Egret
The best part was on our way home we saw two strange birds in a field. Mom and I both guessed common and wrong birds. Melinda turned the car around and was right there were two Crested Caracaras. WOW! (see list below for full birding info)
I made dinner (with assistance from Nan and company) and Mike, Tessa and their 4 kids came over. Chaos ensued. It's a good kind of chaos that only 5 small children (Mikey, Sydney, Katy, Evie & Frankie) can make. Of course it didn't help that Nanette the instigator was egging them on to louder and funnier antics. I have the cutest nieces and nephews.
After later
Jenny
Eurasian Collared Dove (new)
Dicksissel
Cardinals
Painted Bunting
Barn Swallows
Turkey Vulture
Mourning Doves
Mockingbirds
Common Grackles
Great Grackles
Eastern Meadowlarks
House Sparrows
Scissor Tailed Flycatdcher
Western Kingbird
Crested Caracara (new)
Green Heron
Starlings
Cliff Swallows
Red Bellied Woodpecker (new)
Red Tailed Hawks
Black Vultures
Snowy Egret
Great Egret
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Birding
Melinda, Mom and I went birding today. It was marvelous!! I saw lots of new species.
Our total list includes:
Jenny
Our total list includes:
- Downy Woodpecker
- Cardinals
- Great Tailed Grackles
- Common Grackles
- Mourning Doves
- Mockingbirds
- Black Vultures
- Turkey Vultures
- Barn Swallows
- Carolina Wren (new bird)
- House Finch
- Caroline Chickadee (new bird)
- White Winged Doves (new bird)
- House Sparrows
- Starlings
- Yellow Billed Cuckoos!!! (new bird)
- American Crow
- Scissor Tailed Flycatcher
- Killdeer
- Chimney Swifts
- Cowbird
- Song Sparrow
- Mallards
- Muscovy Domestic Ducks
- Eastern Meadowlark
- Dicksissel
- Eastern Kingbird
- Snowy Egret
- Common Night Hawk
- Great Crested Flycatchers (new bird)
- Pileated Woodpecker (new bird)
- Western Kingbird
- Black Throated Blue Warbler (new bird)
- Lark Sparrows
- Guinea Hens (domesticated)
Jenny
Friday, June 01, 2007
Sleep and the big dinner
Spent most of the day hanging out, catching up on sleep, and talking. For dinner we went up to Waxahachie to a place called Fire Mountain with all of the family. In attendance were:
Mike & Tessa + their kids: Mikey, Katie, Evie, and Frankie
Nanette + her kids: Sydney and Erika
Mom & Dad
Melinda, Myself, Andrew, and the guy from Bulgaria who's visiting to talk about Domes
I'm pretty sure the Bulgarian hadn't seen an american all-you-can-eat place before. I hadn't seen anything like this either. It was PACKED! And they had a huge variety of food. So Mikey could have pizza and Frankie could have pudding and all the rest of us could eat whatever we wanted.
Go me, for having small portions and no seconds. :) :) I gotta say I'm proud of myself.
After Later
Jenny
Mike & Tessa + their kids: Mikey, Katie, Evie, and Frankie
Nanette + her kids: Sydney and Erika
Mom & Dad
Melinda, Myself, Andrew, and the guy from Bulgaria who's visiting to talk about Domes
I'm pretty sure the Bulgarian hadn't seen an american all-you-can-eat place before. I hadn't seen anything like this either. It was PACKED! And they had a huge variety of food. So Mikey could have pizza and Frankie could have pudding and all the rest of us could eat whatever we wanted.
Go me, for having small portions and no seconds. :) :) I gotta say I'm proud of myself.
After Later
Jenny
Thursday, May 31, 2007
Bridge over the Mississippi
This was an amazing bridge. I love crossing the Mississippi. There were riverboats and huge ocean going vessels in the water under this bridge. -- Jenny
To Baton Rouge
The really, really, Really long bridge crosses the Atchafalaya River. It was gorgeous. -- Jenny
Baton Rouge
I got up really early this morning (4:30 am) so we could be on the road by 5:00. Dad needed/wanted company on the drive to Baton Rouge Louisina. It was a great drive. We talked and drove and looked at the trees lining the road. And then we talked some more and continued to drive and look at the trees lining the road. I've now driven crosswise (or diagonally) across Louisiana and what I know for certain is that they have trees and roads. Oh, and lest we forget, Cattle Egrets. Those birds were everywhere. In breeding plumage with the butterscotch feathers they were gorgeous.
Eventually we drove across the longest bridge imaginable. I've been across the Key's 7 mile bridge. I think this one is longer. It crosses mushy land, swamp, creeks, and a river. After 7 hours of driving (yes we did take breaks) we arrived at our destination in Baton Rouge.
Dad was meeting with the Pastor, her husband and assistant to talk about building a church. She was the brightest spark I've met in quite awhile. I'd love to add her to my collection of friends, but it seems unlikely since I can't seem to remember her name. So they talked, and I listened for 2.5 hours.
And then, guess what we did... Wait for it... Eyup, we DROVE, back to Texas. Wheeeeeeee. So I crossed the Mississippi River twice, and the Atchafalaya River twice (at least) and the crosswise of Louisiana twice, and.... I've seen Shreveport, Alexandria, Lafayette and Baton Rouge, from the road. :)
It was fun talking with dad. And I'm particularly greatfull that Nick gave me his MP3 player. Very useful when Dad needed to sleep and I got to drive.
After Later
Jenny
Eventually we drove across the longest bridge imaginable. I've been across the Key's 7 mile bridge. I think this one is longer. It crosses mushy land, swamp, creeks, and a river. After 7 hours of driving (yes we did take breaks) we arrived at our destination in Baton Rouge.
Dad was meeting with the Pastor, her husband and assistant to talk about building a church. She was the brightest spark I've met in quite awhile. I'd love to add her to my collection of friends, but it seems unlikely since I can't seem to remember her name. So they talked, and I listened for 2.5 hours.
And then, guess what we did... Wait for it... Eyup, we DROVE, back to Texas. Wheeeeeeee. So I crossed the Mississippi River twice, and the Atchafalaya River twice (at least) and the crosswise of Louisiana twice, and.... I've seen Shreveport, Alexandria, Lafayette and Baton Rouge, from the road. :)
It was fun talking with dad. And I'm particularly greatfull that Nick gave me his MP3 player. Very useful when Dad needed to sleep and I got to drive.
After Later
Jenny
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
The Key to Shopping...
Today Mom and I went to Hillsboro to do some shopping. I'm in desperate need of jeans. They have a Lane Bryant outlet and I succeeded in finding Jeans, and even a Navy tshirt. After the marvelously garrulous lady rang up our purchases we discovered that Mom had locked the keys in the car.
She had handed me her small wallet to add to my purse, then carefully tucked the car keys into her purse and tucked it under the car seat. We proceeded to lock the car doors and go in. If any one reading this remembers my many key misadventures, well, here's another one. Mom never does this. So the only answer is that I was due for another "locked out" moment.
Luckily they had another key up at the office, so 30 minutes later we had it and were on our way, to more shopping.
I've never been to a Dress Barn store before. The outlet was amazing! Better still was the saleswoman who brought me over every top in my size that was $10 and of the right hue (orange, yellow, green, blue). WOW! I couldn't believe how well things fit. I'm definitely going to go back AND I'm going to look at their online store.
I won't detail the list of purchases. Let's just say I got some real LOOT. :)
After Later
Jenny
She had handed me her small wallet to add to my purse, then carefully tucked the car keys into her purse and tucked it under the car seat. We proceeded to lock the car doors and go in. If any one reading this remembers my many key misadventures, well, here's another one. Mom never does this. So the only answer is that I was due for another "locked out" moment.
Luckily they had another key up at the office, so 30 minutes later we had it and were on our way, to more shopping.
I've never been to a Dress Barn store before. The outlet was amazing! Better still was the saleswoman who brought me over every top in my size that was $10 and of the right hue (orange, yellow, green, blue). WOW! I couldn't believe how well things fit. I'm definitely going to go back AND I'm going to look at their online store.
I won't detail the list of purchases. Let's just say I got some real LOOT. :)
After Later
Jenny
Tuesday, May 29, 2007
Arrival day birding
Melinda, Mom and I went out birding in the evening. We saw an amazing number of birds including Painted Buntings!!
We saw:
Whoo Hoo 23 birds, 6 new birds, and 3 mammals
Jenny
We saw:
- Green Heron
- Mourning Dove
- Scissor Tailed Fly Catcher (new bird)
- Lark Sparrows (new bird)
- Mockingbirds
- Eastern Meadowlark
- Barn Swallows
- Broad Winged Hawk (new bird)
- American Crow
- Great Blue Heron
- Great Egrets
- Great Tailed Grackle
- Common Grackle
- Dicksissel (new bird)
- Chimney Swift (new bird)
- Starlings
- Cardinals
- House Sparrows
- Western Kingbird
- Kildeer
- Common Nighthawks
- Painted Buntings (new bird!!!)
- Bob Whites (new bird)
- Skunk
- Jack Rabbit
- Cottontail Rabbits
Whoo Hoo 23 birds, 6 new birds, and 3 mammals
Jenny
I'm flying on a jet plane, part 2
So I finally made it onto the plane. I had read my ticket and it said two stops. But I didn't have to change planes. I had no idea that two stops didn't mean Salt Lake City and Dallas, but Salt Lake City (where I began), Phoenix, Oklahoma City, AND THEN Dallas.
Okay, So I'm totally blonde. I'm really looking forward to the return trip where I have two stops and a change of planes in Dallas. I had movies with me, and headphones. I thought that would make the trip easier. And it would have if I had been able to hear anything. On a plane, noise canceling headphones would be very helpful. Definitely a thing to buy on my big shopping list.
So I landed and then took the long way to the baggage claim where Min and Nan met me. Getting my bags off the baggage carousel I ripped the leg off of one of my suitcases. This is the same suitcase with the rip in the canvas. I guess I'll be buying a suitcase while I'm here.
Interestingly, during the last hop from Oklahoma City to Dallas one of my seat mates was an employee for a major gas and oil exploration company. He's a specialized computer dude. He said that if someone wants to do exploration geology they either are graduates from the 5 year bachelors program from the Colorado School of Mines, or they have a masters degree...
After later
-- Jenny
Okay, So I'm totally blonde. I'm really looking forward to the return trip where I have two stops and a change of planes in Dallas. I had movies with me, and headphones. I thought that would make the trip easier. And it would have if I had been able to hear anything. On a plane, noise canceling headphones would be very helpful. Definitely a thing to buy on my big shopping list.
So I landed and then took the long way to the baggage claim where Min and Nan met me. Getting my bags off the baggage carousel I ripped the leg off of one of my suitcases. This is the same suitcase with the rip in the canvas. I guess I'll be buying a suitcase while I'm here.
Interestingly, during the last hop from Oklahoma City to Dallas one of my seat mates was an employee for a major gas and oil exploration company. He's a specialized computer dude. He said that if someone wants to do exploration geology they either are graduates from the 5 year bachelors program from the Colorado School of Mines, or they have a masters degree...
After later
-- Jenny
I'm flying on a jet plane
Well, that was interesting. Rebecca and I left her house at 4:30 am. She dropped me at the airport and I started the standing in line process. I had baggied my liquids and was ready. I got to the head of the line and hand the lady my boarding pass and driver's license. She looks at me and says, 'driver's license expired'. I didn't know this so I look at the license and sure enough it was expired. YEEEKS. Well, she asks if I have another ID. But NO in order to save space I left my ISU ID card at home. So she sent me to the 'special line'.
In the 'special line' I got to put all my stuff in bright red bins. I got to be escorted to a glass booth where they puff air at you. Kinda like an all body glaucoma test. I got to walk through the metal detector a couple of time, not that I beeped. And THEN, the poor lady had to look through my purse and computer bag and swab every piece of electronic device. I had a cell phone, an mp3 player, a digital camera, a computer and a palm pilot. Lucky for her I left my Nintendo DS at home. :)
Eventually, they handed back all my stuff and I got to get on the plane. Shanna is sending me my ISU ID by second day air. I hope that will get me on the return trip plane without the 'special line' services.
More about my exciting trip to Texas in a moment. -- Jenny
In the 'special line' I got to put all my stuff in bright red bins. I got to be escorted to a glass booth where they puff air at you. Kinda like an all body glaucoma test. I got to walk through the metal detector a couple of time, not that I beeped. And THEN, the poor lady had to look through my purse and computer bag and swab every piece of electronic device. I had a cell phone, an mp3 player, a digital camera, a computer and a palm pilot. Lucky for her I left my Nintendo DS at home. :)
Eventually, they handed back all my stuff and I got to get on the plane. Shanna is sending me my ISU ID by second day air. I hope that will get me on the return trip plane without the 'special line' services.
More about my exciting trip to Texas in a moment. -- Jenny
Monday, May 28, 2007
SLC and Jessica
Goodbyes are hard. I drove to SLC to catch a plane for Texas. Nick is leaving for field camp on the morrow. Beautiful lazy drive, arrived at Rebecca's and went to visit Jessica. She has such a cute house and a great husband and it was wonderful to see them. The three of us went to dinner at Ruby Tuesday's. Something I haven't done since visiting Jen B. in Denver almost 10 years ago.
I spent the night at Rebecca's she dropped me off at the airport at an unreasonable morning hour.
Nick is keeping a blog at http://geoscirockhunter.blogspot.com/ and he'll be available by email. We're just tooo cheap to get a second cell phone.
I spent the night at Rebecca's she dropped me off at the airport at an unreasonable morning hour.
Nick is keeping a blog at http://geoscirockhunter.blogspot.com/ and he'll be available by email. We're just tooo cheap to get a second cell phone.
Sunday, May 20, 2007
First (and last) boating trip of the spring
Nick is leaving for field camp soon and will be gone till July. I'm heading out for a vacation in Texas for two weeks. We had to go out on the river at least once this spring. I just love the grebes.
We loaded Barkley in the car and drove to Massacre Rocks. How come I never remember Arlo Guthrie's pickle song exists? We listened to Guthrie on the way out. Alice's Restaurant being one of my all time favorites from riding the school bus to school in Shelley.
Barks was very excited about the whole trip thing. He was very good on the boat. He is a linear thinker. The world is flat and solid to him. He'd be watching the grebes and then suddenly they'd vanish and he'd cock his head to one side then the other. You could see him trying to figure out where and how the bird went. It was just soooo funny! He liked the pelicans too.
Didn't see that many birds other than the grebes and pelicans.
Birds:
Redwinged blackbirds
Starlings
Mallards
Kingfishers
American White Pelicans
California Gulls
Western Grebes
Robins
Osprey
Crows
Magpies
House sparrows
Rock doves
We loaded Barkley in the car and drove to Massacre Rocks. How come I never remember Arlo Guthrie's pickle song exists? We listened to Guthrie on the way out. Alice's Restaurant being one of my all time favorites from riding the school bus to school in Shelley.
Barks was very excited about the whole trip thing. He was very good on the boat. He is a linear thinker. The world is flat and solid to him. He'd be watching the grebes and then suddenly they'd vanish and he'd cock his head to one side then the other. You could see him trying to figure out where and how the bird went. It was just soooo funny! He liked the pelicans too.
Didn't see that many birds other than the grebes and pelicans.
Birds:
Redwinged blackbirds
Starlings
Mallards
Kingfishers
American White Pelicans
California Gulls
Western Grebes
Robins
Osprey
Crows
Magpies
House sparrows
Rock doves
Saturday, March 24, 2007
Birding with Melinda, Nanette, and Erika
We went birding at Market Lake, and Camas Wildlife Refuge. We had a ton of fun and saw:
- Rock Doves
- Starlings
- Magpies
- Canada Geese
- Red Winged Black Bird
- California Gulls
- House Sparrows
- Mallards
- Pied Billed Grebes
- American Robins
- Northern Roughwinged Swallows
- Northern Harriers
- Coots
- Sand Hills Cranes
- Western Meadowlark
- Song Sparrows
- Red Headed Duck
- American Wigeon
- Mourning Doves
- Canvasbacks
- Trump Swan
- Gray Partridge (new bird)
- Red Tailed Hawk
- Common Raven
- Kestrel
- American Crow
- Moose
- Squirrel
Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Holiday party the third...
Christmas eve and an invitation from Terry and Robin to come for a visit and simple dinner. We had a lot of fun, even if I was pretty out of it. Yes, I'm still fighting the sleep causing illness whatever it is called. They fed us fabulous soup and munchies, played games and we were generally merry. Mary Lou was also in attendance which was also delightful. Personally, I had a great deal of fun asking and answering Harry Potter questions with Terry. Nick said it was fun and relaxing and Shanna only played on her game system a little.
Harry Potter trivia question: What was the name of Harry's Aunt's bulldog? What was the Aunt's name?
Jenny
Harry Potter trivia question: What was the name of Harry's Aunt's bulldog? What was the Aunt's name?
Jenny
Friday, December 22, 2006
Holiday party the second...
Or rather, the one that didn't happen. We're postponing it due to snow and sleep. :) We woke up and the world had gone white. Supposedly we were going to Logan to visit Nan and some of my other siblings tonight. Every Christmas Eve, Eve for the past 7 or so years Nan and I have gotten together to celebrate the season and family. The plan was to do it again. The weather had other plans. I think that if I hadn't been so tired because of this stupid virus I might have taken the jeep and risked it...
Still, it means we get another party after later. I think we're going to wait till Melinda gets back from Texas and then try again. So we'll see the official Holiday party the second post after Christmas.
Back to bed
Jenny
Still, it means we get another party after later. I think we're going to wait till Melinda gets back from Texas and then try again. So we'll see the official Holiday party the second post after Christmas.
Back to bed
Jenny
Monday, December 18, 2006
Holiday party the first....
Well, the first Semenza holiday party of the season went off quite well last night. We invited a bunch of friends over for a potluck dinner with an Italian theme. There was so much food. Nick made his famous Carbonara (bacon, butter, cream, pasta). I made a Risotto Primavera (rice w/veggies), Torta (rice, egg and parmesan pie) and Minestrone. Friends made homemade ravioli, lasagna, salad, asparagus, cheese fondue, brownies, Panatone (fruited bread), Panforte from Sienna (chocolate, honey, hazel nuts, almonds and mushed) which was AMAZING, Fuccidati from Sicily (like a filled pastry/cookie) also yummy, salad, antipasta (salami, mozzarella, mushrooms, anchovies, olives etc...) AND sourdough French bread from San Francisco that Nick's dad sent me home with. I'm still full this morning. I can't believe how good all of the food was. Next year, we're going to have to hold this party at a larger location!
Everyone who attended was interesting and fun to be with, I just wish I could have spent more time talking to everyone there. The house was packed with 17 of us, (though you know my Christmas tree really counts as another person or two). We had people eating and talking all over, though it did make a problem to go from living room to kitchen.
The pothos plant I had on my mantle, outgrew it this season. So I took him off and spread a lit garland of greens, gold leaves, white lights and red jingle bells. Then Nick and I took a coupon to Lowes and bought a huge pre-lit wreath also decorated with gold and red and he hung it over the mirror. :) I thought everything looked fine. I also finally figured out what to do with all the bears. I removed most of the normal doodadish decorations and replaced them with bears. SO there were bears on the shelves, and behind the plants, in with the pinecones and stuffed in the endtables, under the tree and at the front door, bears, bears everywhere. This year, for the first time ever, I think they finally looked like they were really part of the theme.
After Later
Jenny
Everyone who attended was interesting and fun to be with, I just wish I could have spent more time talking to everyone there. The house was packed with 17 of us, (though you know my Christmas tree really counts as another person or two). We had people eating and talking all over, though it did make a problem to go from living room to kitchen.
The pothos plant I had on my mantle, outgrew it this season. So I took him off and spread a lit garland of greens, gold leaves, white lights and red jingle bells. Then Nick and I took a coupon to Lowes and bought a huge pre-lit wreath also decorated with gold and red and he hung it over the mirror. :) I thought everything looked fine. I also finally figured out what to do with all the bears. I removed most of the normal doodadish decorations and replaced them with bears. SO there were bears on the shelves, and behind the plants, in with the pinecones and stuffed in the endtables, under the tree and at the front door, bears, bears everywhere. This year, for the first time ever, I think they finally looked like they were really part of the theme.
After Later
Jenny
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Back on the Road Again … Saturday October 28
Up at 5:00 am and gone by 5:30. Ron stuffed the car (or as I would like to call it, the big red traveling suitcase) completely full of stuff. This stuff included: a wall hanging, serving platters, 4th of July decorations, the family ravioli platter, a down filled vest for Nick, salami, and bunches of french, sourdough and grissini bread. Over the mountain and across the plains we drove. For the first time since the trip began, we finally felt, talked out and put in one of the books on tape. We chose Guns Germs and Steel, a book Melinda had to read for a class and that we had talked about off and on through the trip. Listening to it required one to really pay attention. It was interesting, but the guy reading it had the most soporific voice. Melinda got a couple hours of sleep and missed some of the reading and then we switched and I got to doze for a couple hours and miss other parts. Overall though, we got a sense of the book, though it was just a review for Min.
Jenny
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Family… Friday October 27
We did not get to see the ocean today. This picture is from Thursday. There’s a sea otter playing with its food there to the lower right of center. It looks like a piece of driftwood in this version of the photo. Click on the photo and check out the larger version of this picture on my Flickr account.
We both slept in today. I had never been to a Kohl’s before and Elisa and Georgie had been talking about how nifty it was. So today was spent shopping for beads, baubles and baggage. Okay, we didn’t really buy bags, though we did fill our baggage with more loot. Melinda and I found the softest sweaters, jewelry, and oddments. Elisa found Shanna a scarf that Shanna is now wearing pretty much every day. It was a fun to hang out with Georgie and Elisa. For dinner, Ron got out the “Panini sandwich machine” and we all made these big, tasty sandwiches. Check out the Panini machines available here on Amazon.com
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Birds and Beads … Thursday October 26
We slept in. I tried to be vewy, vewy, quiet when I did get up, not because I was hunting wabbits, but so that Min would be able to sleep longer. Eventually, we had to get packed and get going. We started with Pacific Grove Beach then headed towards Moss Landing. I took a fortuitous wrong turn and we saw a White-Tailed Kite up close and personal. He was hanging out on a telephone pole wire near some farmer’s field. Beautiful!
At Moss Landing, we ate at our favorite Mexican Restaurant: The Whole Enchilada. In the parking lot, a humming bird was zipping about. At first we thought it might be a new species, but nope, just another stunning little Anna’s. We got to see a lot of different birds even though we did not do any trudging (reference to a previous adventure where we ended up hiking through sand for several hours). We stopped at Elkhorn Slough, Kirby Park, Pajaro City and drove over hill and dale and around the twisty trail.
- Western Gulls
- American Crows
- Great Egrets
- Brandt's Cormorants
- Snowy Egret
- Brewer's Blackbirds
- Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon race)
- Heerman's Gulls
- Brown Pelicans
- Red-tailed Hawks
- *White-tailed Kites
- Ferruginous Hawks
- Anna's Hummingbirds
- Mallards
- Black-necked Stilts
- Lesser Goldfinches
- Avocets
- Eared Grebes
- Marbled Godwits
- Willets
- Say's Phoebe
- Sanderlings
- Greater Scaups
- Great Blue Heron
- Double Crested Cormorants (chasing eared grebes)
- Golden-crowned sparrows
- Hundreds of Least Sandpipers
- Black Phoebe
- California Gulls
- Western Scrub Jays
- American Robin
- House Finches
- American Kestral
- Peregrine Falcon
- Turkey Vulture
- Ring-billed Gull
- *Glaucous Gull
:)
Jenny
Sunday, November 12, 2006
All work and no play … Wednesday October 25
Unfortunately, Melinda had to stay and do homework without distraction today. She got to see from our balcony the following:
Yellow-rumped (Audubon's Race) Warbler
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
American Crow
Prairie Falcon
I had a very different view from my favorite seat at the conference center. There were librarians as far as the eye could see… I ended up eating lunch at the hotel restaurant. If you love fish and chips Monterey is THE place to get them. I got back to the hotel around 4:00 pm and we headed for the Monterey Bay Aquarium walking to the aquarium we spotted an Anna’s hummingbird. We got there late enough that they gave us tickets good for that evening and the next day. I love this aquarium. I’m constantly surprised by their innovations and displays. Every time is different, and yet there are constants, like the jellyfish displays, the kelp gardens and Melinda’s favorite shorebird habitat and my favorite Sea Otter area.
The birds were pretty fun to watch. Buffleheads are one of my favorite ducks and the juvenile in the exhibit was quite active and entertaining. We were able to see up close (which helps in identification later in the wild).
- Empidonax Flycatcher
- Semipalmated Plover
- Ruddy Ducks
- Bufflehead, juvenile
- Black-necked Stilt
- Sanderlings
- Least Sandpiper
- Semipalmated Sandpiper
- Killdeer
- Avocets
- Black Oystercatcher
- Willet
- Whimbrel
- Snowy Plover
- Short-billed Dowitcher
- Black Bellied plover
- Marbled Godwit
- Ruddy Turnstone
- Black Footed penguins
- Common Murres
- Red phalaropes
- Red-necked Phalaropes
From the decks of the aquarium, overlooking the bay we saw:
- Great Egrets
- Pelagic Cormorants
- Brandt's Cormorants
- Brown Pelicans
- American Crow
- Rock Doves
And Sea Otters
Melinda took a lot of pictures, this is one of the very peaceful looking jellyfish. I however know that not all jellyfish are peaceful. The trip we took to Hawaii in 1978 made it impossibly clear that Man-O-War jellyfish are not to be trifled with. Ow, Ow, Ow!
We made our way to a nearby restaurant by the name of The Fish Hopper. Here, I think we had steak. Ironic, I know.
So we’re sitting at this table near the windows, looking out at the ocean when a Western Gull comes up and lands on the sill near our window. His mouth is packed with this fairly large pink starfish. There’s much laughing and pointing and picture taking from the tables around us, until he flies away. Later as we’re eating, he comes back with his jellyfish walking around, mouth full, showing off. He takes flight again only to return and deposit the starfish near the window. This time he flies away for good. Apparently it is hard to eat a starfish.
Meanwhile, during the first visit by the starfish bearing gull, I struck up a small conversation with an Indian woman at a nearby table. When Melinda got back, I asked her (the woman alone) if she would like to join us. She did. Come to find out she’s a librarian too. She’s from New York City and is a librarian for a commercial real estate office. WOW. That’s a library job I didn’t know existed. Her name was Vandy and she was fascinating. After dinner we dropped her off at her hotel (she had walked over from the conference center and it was quite dark).
As we exited the restaurant, we found (or rather Melinda found) a date palm tree full of birds. Min was able to identify them as noisy roosting starlings.
When we got back to the Hilton, I got online and posted all of my blog entries as Melinda continued with her homework. Later we went over to the Hotel restaurant for dessert. Then back to the hotel for sleep. Okay, I got sleep. Min got homework. She finally got to sleep somewhere between 5 & 6 in the morning, after she emailed her paper to her professor’s assistant. EEEEEE
More later
Jenny
Friday, November 10, 2006
Conference and Wharfs … Tuesday October 24
We got up early so we could go look for birds before the conference started. First was the Commercial Wharf. This was so fish stinky that we had to hold our noses as we rounded the end. We did see a few more birds:
- California Gulls
- Willet
- Heerman's Gulls
- Pacific Loons
- Common Murre
- Brown Pelicans
- Rock Doves
- American Crows
- Pigeon Guillemot
And a Sea Otter
We got breakfast at the bright yellow bistro on the wharf. This bistro was my lifesaver a few years back when I had that keys & bay incident. It was still too early to get to the conference so we headed for the coast guard pier, where we saw more birds and to add to the stink, pikes of really, REALLY, stinky sea lions. One black turnstone was walking along the edge of the pier wall. He was really brave and bold and we got to see him up close.
- Brewer's Blackbirds
- American Crows
- Brandt's Cormorants
- Black Turnstones
- Great Egrets
Finally, we went over to the conference center for homework and workshops. “Back to the Convention Center for a day of classes and homework. Jenny and I decided this day to eat close by to the Convention center because of a short lunch time. We walked much farther than we expected and found a tiny Mediterranean diner serving the best vegetarian lentil soup.” –Melinda.
Much later we had dinner at this amazing Mexican restaurant, then drove to and walked through El Estero Park to see a few more birds. Melinda has a great picture of a goose on the water with a beautiful wake trailing after.
- Double-crested Cormorants
- American Coots
- Canada Geese
- Mallards
- Pied-Billed Grebes
Back at the Hilton for more homework for Melinda: I watched television, played computer
games and basically rested and slept. It was fabulous.
After later
Jenny
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Conference & Ocean ... Monday October 23
I felt a lot better this morning after a solid 12 hours of sleep. Melinda and I headed to the conference center. We parked up on a hill behind the hotel and walked down to the front doors. I picked up my registration tags and loot and headed for my favorite conference room. Min, went out to one of the many tables and comfy areas to work on her paper.
I have finally found a new methodology for choosing a conference session. Every session they offer is interesting to me. So instead of deciding on a session, I choose the comfy room. Most conferences are held in hotel ballrooms with narrow seats all crammed together. This conference center has those kinds of rooms, but it also has this stadium room with comfy kinds of seats and those hinged pop-up desktops. So I only went to sessions that were held in that room.
Over the course of the conference I went to many sessions. I took notes over on my Library Banter blog. Be aware that these can be incredibly boring entries. But I am really greatful for the notes:
- Search Engine Report
- Search Tips
- Searching the New Digital Formats
- Federated Search
- Overview of Podcasting
- Video Podcasting
- Listen Up!: Podcasts...
- Off the Rack: Podcasts...
- Introduction to Video Blogging
- Fun with flickr
- Flickr in Libraries
- My Space
- In Your Facebook
- Introduction to Wikis
- Fostering Collaboration
- An Agreeable Wiki
- Don’t Call it a Wiki!
- Wiki as a Research Guide
- What’s Hot in Social Softwr
- Syndication and Website Content
- Using Blogs for Internal Communication
- Public Libraries & Web Logs
At lunch time, I found Melinda and we walked down the wharf looking for someplace to eat. She had spotted a Mexican restaurant earlier so we ended up there, looking out at the harbor, the sea lions, otter, pelicans and multitude of gulls.
After the conference sessions we trudged up to the car. Melinda was at this conference center with Jessica and they entered from the top floor near where we parked. So tomorrow, we're going to find another way in...
Melinda really wanted to go out to the beach at Pacific Grove. I was tired. After all, I hadn't really slept for 2 or so weeks (excepting last night). On the other hand, I really, really wanted to watch the ocean. It was gorgeous, we even spotted a sea otter eating and cavorting in the waves.
There were a lot of gulls flying about. Melinda had a lot more energy than I did. I was back in the car reading and dozing early and she was still walking and looking.
Birds of the day:
(Melinda saw in the morning from the balcony at the Hilton -- Townsend's Warbler, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Slate-colored Junco and Western Scrub Jay.)
- Brewers Blackbirds
- Starlings
- Rock Doves
- Brandt's Cormorants
- Pelagic Cormorants
- Brown Pelicans
- Pied-billed Grebes
- Willets
- Whimbrel
- Black-bellied Plover
- Heerman's Gulls
- Western Gulls
- California Gulls
- Black Phoebe
- Black Turnstones
- Crows
- Great Eagrets
- Canada Geese
- Domestic Mallards
- American Coots
- Western Meadowlark
We had dinner at the nearest, interesting restaurant advertising steak, seafood and pasta. What we didn’t see from the road was the “Latin” menu, which made Melinda quite happy. When we got back to the hotel, I, of course, fell into that comfy bed early and slept very, very well.
More soon
Jenny
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Birding on the Ocean ... Sunday October 22
Well, I didn't sleep well the Saturday night, so getting up at 6:00 a.m. was a bummer. Still, I LOVE the ocean and the prospect of being out on a boat was exciting. We got dressed and checked out. Following the directions and signs we made it to the parking lot in plenty of time. Unfortunately, the automated ticket taker wasn't giving out any more tickets. Some Yahoo had broken the arm thing. We gave up (after Melinda took pictures as evidence that we tried) and drove on in and parked the car.
Then we walked down the pier to the shop we were supposed to gather at. Apparently we were the first ones to complain about the broken parking station. The guy convinced us that we'd still need to go get a ticket and to try the other entrance. He also assured us that since he was the captain of the boat, he wouldn't leave us. Anyway, we trudged back out to the parking lot. The first parking station we came to, didn't go to the right parking lot. So more trudging ensued, we finally came across another flock of birders and they said, since there were so many of us (who hadn't gotten a stub from the ticket booth) not to bother. So back to the shop. This time when we talked to the guy, he sheepishly allowed that we were fine and he gave us a validation paper thingy to hand in.
Next we congregated at the boat dock. There were a LOT of people waiting for this boat. Normally, Melinda and I have gone out on a weekday, when there aren't that many people free from work. Normally, we also only go out on Whale Watching cruises. Since this was a Birding Cruise things would obviously be different.
After clambering onboard we learned how different. Apparently this very boat had spotted three rare birds on the ocean the previous weekend (Brown Booby, Manx Shearwater, and another one who's species name I don't remember). So there were approx 15 die hard birders, most with really big cameras ready to go look for birds.
This cruise includes a number of guides, who don't get paid, but do get to go out on the ocean for free. One of the guides was this very knowledgeable woman who came up front with us. Although the side of the boat really does show off the birds to great advantage, sitting was more important for us. The female guide, (I think I will call her Superbirder) kept up a running commentary about birds, and her son (who was also there) who studies birds and where he has gone to study. He was also a great guide.
Superbirder was willing to point out each bird species and help us learn to identify it on the wing. I can now probably spot pink footed shearwaters and bullers shearwaters, but the nuances of the black vented shearwaters escapes me still. In any case, I think we were very lucky to have her with us in the front for so long. She finally gave up the front when her knees gave up.
We saw:
Brewers Blackbirds (on land)
Eared Greabes
Western Gulls
Brown Pelicans
Western Grebe
Brandt's Comromrants
Heerman's Gulls
Black Turnstones
Surf Scoters
Great Egrets
Common Murres
+Pigeon Guillemot
Elegant Terns
Common Loons
*Sooty Shearwater
Northern Fulmars
+*Pomerine Jaegers
*Pink-footed Shearwaters
+*Short-tailed Shearwaters
+*Cassin's Auklets
*Rhinocerous Auklets
*Flesh-footed Shearwaters
+*Black-footed Albatrosses
+*Black-vented Shearwaters
+*Bullers SHearwaters
+*South Polar Skuas
+*Manx Shearwater
Bonaparte's Gulls
Rock Doves (on land)
American Crows (on land)
Red-necked Phalarope
OTHER MARINE LIFE
Harbor Seals
California Sea Lions
Sea Otters
Mola Mola (a fish)
Blue Sharks
7 (YES SEVEN) Humpback whales
+*Northern Fur Seal
+*Stellar Sea Lion
(those with an asterisk are new for Melinda, those with a plus sign are new for Jenny)
Yes for all those die hard birders who had joined our cruise we did see a Manx Shearwater, and there was much rejoicing. :) I couldn't believe how nice this was. Usually Melinda and I are trying to identify birds as the boat is moving. This time the boat would try and put the sun in the right spot for us to really see the birds. AND the leader of the expedition made sure we had all seen the Manx before we moved on to another location.
On the boat we were told to "pay no attention to the flashy mammals (meaning the humpbacks -- they were right by the boat) we are here for the birds." I couldn't help watching the whales though. I must say that I really, truely love the whales. I saw seven of them. One I saw as I was walking back to another part of the boat. I was the only one on that side (the birds were on the other as were the people). And this whale came up, not that far from the boat. I yelled Whale, and pointed, but no one cared or came. That was just too weird. I watched him until flukes out he dove into under water. Another one was frolicking and actually came over to check the boat out. What I did like about this was that I never felt like we were harrassing the whales. Very cool.
The blue shark was pretty amazing too.
I ended up attempting to take a nap in the early afternoon. It didn't work very well, but at least I tried. We left the harbor around 7:30. We headed back in around 3:00. I was ready to head back to the harbor around noon. We disembarked and were walking on the wharf around 4:00. Eight+ hours on the ocean is a very long time for people who had just been in a car for 14 hours. A lot of motion. We were tired kittens.
We ate literally at the closest restaurant we could find. And then drove to the grocery store for breakfast and dinner snacks and then to the Hilton to check in.
The Hilton was gorgeous. It had these HUGE pillow top beds with feather beds over that, and down comforters and pillows and I tried to stay up, but at 7:00 (shortly after we got there) I went to sleep and for the first time in a couple of weeks, really and truely slept. Ahhhhhhhhhhhh
More to come...
Jenny
Monday, November 06, 2006
Driving with Melinda... Saturday October 21
On Saturday October 21st Melinda and I headed for Monterey. We left Rebecca's house early in the morning (around 7:30 or 8:00 am) and with the sun rising behind us we headed west. West across the Bonneville Salt Flats, which I had never seen. They are amazing, all white and shiny. It had rained the day before so they weren't blinding (good). The ground sparkled as the sun reflected off those little cubic salt crystals.
Driving through Nevada and the salt flats we saw many curious things.
And thus commenced the California part of the trip. We decided to try a shortcut to Monterey, instead of driving over through San Jose and the cluster of other cities, we drove down I5. For awhile, ... a long while. I'm not altogether certain it's a shortcut, but you never know. So I5 to 156 and 156 to 1 and Monterey. So we continued to drive and drive and drive...
Melinda is trying new things. :) At the quick stop where we gassed the car at the junction of I5 and 156 (it's dark now, approx 7 pm California time) she decided to try these spiced lima bean snacks. :) Sounded good to me too. After all, I love lima beans and spicy ones could be fabulous. The gagging and spitting next to me changed my mind. Apparently they're the worst things imaginable. So Min decided to toss them out the window for the birds. So we're driving down the dark freeway with all this California traffic and she's tossing lima beans out the window, and the wind is whipping them around her and back into the car and smacking me. :) :) TOO Funny. (2 weeks later and I'm still getting lima beans out of the car. *grin*)
We arrived at the Motel 6 in Monterey around 9:00 pm their time. I had to wait a long while to get our room cause everyone was looking for a hotel that night and everything was full. Thank heavens for reservations. Hooray, we made it!
I didn't sleep well that night, a holdover from the stress of the previous week I guess.
Bird list:
Jenny
Driving through Nevada and the salt flats we saw many curious things.
- Ravens on fence posts. Lots of Ravens on fence posts.
- Curious arrangements of old electrical wire insulators.
- One very large sculpture
- Dark rocks in various arrangements, I heart X, words and designs
- An emergency training facility that looked like a prison without a fence
- Fernly (an oasis of trees in the desert)
- Pronghorns
- One white couch on the salt flats
And thus commenced the California part of the trip. We decided to try a shortcut to Monterey, instead of driving over through San Jose and the cluster of other cities, we drove down I5. For awhile, ... a long while. I'm not altogether certain it's a shortcut, but you never know. So I5 to 156 and 156 to 1 and Monterey. So we continued to drive and drive and drive...
Melinda is trying new things. :) At the quick stop where we gassed the car at the junction of I5 and 156 (it's dark now, approx 7 pm California time) she decided to try these spiced lima bean snacks. :) Sounded good to me too. After all, I love lima beans and spicy ones could be fabulous. The gagging and spitting next to me changed my mind. Apparently they're the worst things imaginable. So Min decided to toss them out the window for the birds. So we're driving down the dark freeway with all this California traffic and she's tossing lima beans out the window, and the wind is whipping them around her and back into the car and smacking me. :) :) TOO Funny. (2 weeks later and I'm still getting lima beans out of the car. *grin*)
We arrived at the Motel 6 in Monterey around 9:00 pm their time. I had to wait a long while to get our room cause everyone was looking for a hotel that night and everything was full. Thank heavens for reservations. Hooray, we made it!
I didn't sleep well that night, a holdover from the stress of the previous week I guess.
Bird list:
- Black-billed Magpies
- Mallards
- Western Grebes
- at least a Hundred of Common Ravens across Nevada
- Red-tailed Hawk
- House Sparrows
- Starlings
Jenny
Wednesday, October 25, 2006
Monterey and the Internet Librarian's conference
Melinda and I are sitting in the hotel working on our respective computers right now. She's finishing a paper and I'm catching up on my blogs. I have a new one, for library stuff at: http://librarybanter.blogspot.com The conference has been very interesting, if you like internet stuff and social software. Just ask me about wiki's or blogs sometime... :)
We've had a great time eating at fabulous restaurants, watching birds and hanging out. Tomorrow, Melinda will be through with her paper, and I will be through with my conference so VACATION is definitely on the menu. I think there's a good chance we'll go birding. We're staying with Nick's wonderful parents tomorrow (Thursday) and Friday. Early Saturday morning we'll get in the car and head back to Utah.
So what's happened so far? There's so much to cover, it'll have to wait.
:)
After later
Jenny
We've had a great time eating at fabulous restaurants, watching birds and hanging out. Tomorrow, Melinda will be through with her paper, and I will be through with my conference so VACATION is definitely on the menu. I think there's a good chance we'll go birding. We're staying with Nick's wonderful parents tomorrow (Thursday) and Friday. Early Saturday morning we'll get in the car and head back to Utah.
So what's happened so far? There's so much to cover, it'll have to wait.
:)
After later
Jenny
Monday, September 18, 2006
MIA
I've been missing in action for awhile. Just too darn busy to post. So it's time for an update.
Shanna and I have been taking a middle eastern dance class together this fall. So far it's been a great deal of fun. She recently purchased a notebook computer for herself, which is so cool. She's taking philosophy and english this semester also.
Nick has been hiking straight up the hills and mountains near us with his geology classes. He's taking paleontology and spending a lot of time in the lab drawing fossils. The other night he picked up my chambered nautilus and started talking about it. Very interesting. I can't wait to get out my shell collection again. :)
Me? I'm working. A lot. Today was the last of the deluge of subject specific workshops. So far this semester I've taught:
undergraduate education
graduate students in education
phd students in education
undergraduate sports law
graduate sports science
undergraduate business
graduate geology
undergraduate engineering
Most of the time there are 2-4 classes for each of these topics. I've had to learn how to do research in law, business, education, geology and sports science. I think my brain is full.
To further complicate my life they're working on the building. They felt it necessary to attach the brick facade to the building. I think they were worried about killing people with falling brick during an earthquake. Funny how things like that seem important. Don't they know I have ALLERGIES and am suffering immensely because of all the dust, debris and fumes they are causing???
In cool news, work decided I could be the test case. I no longer have a big desktop computer. Instead I have this amazingly fast notebook computer with a docking station. It's waaaaay spiffy.
Barkley has become a mountain dog, happily following Nick up any mountain he wishes to climb. Boo has become a house dog. Apparently this past weekend she could not get into the jeep on her own, and followed Nick back into the house (I think he was getting her a stool). In any case he just left her there. She's got arthritis and is just tired. She's also old at 12 or 14. I can't ever remember which.
This weekend we're working on a float for the homecoming parade with other librarians (my house, Friday evening). Saturday we're going to Logan to party with all the relatives. Mom and Dad are coming up from Texas. I get to meet the new baby Thomas (Dave & Jen's newest addition) . And last but certainly not least, we get to celebrate Jessica's marriage to Doug. They're getting hitched on Thursday, but I have class that night till 7 and teach first thing in the morning on Friday. Theretofore, I can't go to that, but I can make the party. ;)
Wow, I've actually made an entry on my blog. I must be feeling better...
After later
Jenny
Shanna and I have been taking a middle eastern dance class together this fall. So far it's been a great deal of fun. She recently purchased a notebook computer for herself, which is so cool. She's taking philosophy and english this semester also.
Nick has been hiking straight up the hills and mountains near us with his geology classes. He's taking paleontology and spending a lot of time in the lab drawing fossils. The other night he picked up my chambered nautilus and started talking about it. Very interesting. I can't wait to get out my shell collection again. :)
Me? I'm working. A lot. Today was the last of the deluge of subject specific workshops. So far this semester I've taught:
undergraduate education
graduate students in education
phd students in education
undergraduate sports law
graduate sports science
undergraduate business
graduate geology
undergraduate engineering
Most of the time there are 2-4 classes for each of these topics. I've had to learn how to do research in law, business, education, geology and sports science. I think my brain is full.
To further complicate my life they're working on the building. They felt it necessary to attach the brick facade to the building. I think they were worried about killing people with falling brick during an earthquake. Funny how things like that seem important. Don't they know I have ALLERGIES and am suffering immensely because of all the dust, debris and fumes they are causing???
In cool news, work decided I could be the test case. I no longer have a big desktop computer. Instead I have this amazingly fast notebook computer with a docking station. It's waaaaay spiffy.
Barkley has become a mountain dog, happily following Nick up any mountain he wishes to climb. Boo has become a house dog. Apparently this past weekend she could not get into the jeep on her own, and followed Nick back into the house (I think he was getting her a stool). In any case he just left her there. She's got arthritis and is just tired. She's also old at 12 or 14. I can't ever remember which.
This weekend we're working on a float for the homecoming parade with other librarians (my house, Friday evening). Saturday we're going to Logan to party with all the relatives. Mom and Dad are coming up from Texas. I get to meet the new baby Thomas (Dave & Jen's newest addition) . And last but certainly not least, we get to celebrate Jessica's marriage to Doug. They're getting hitched on Thursday, but I have class that night till 7 and teach first thing in the morning on Friday. Theretofore, I can't go to that, but I can make the party. ;)
Wow, I've actually made an entry on my blog. I must be feeling better...
After later
Jenny
Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Quiet but Busy
I've been quietly busy for the past couple of weeks. Over the weekend Nick and I went to Palisades (more on that to come soon, with pictures!). Work is speeding up as we get ready for the impending semester. It kinda feels like the sword of damocles is hanging overhead. We've been re-writing/working the library web page and once it goes online, we'll have to change every one of our instruction handouts, guides, powerpoints and worksheets. EEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!
We miss Sarah and Jamie, they were here for most of three weeks. One entire day was spent with Jamie on the computer and me on the couch, watching middle eastern dance videos. Sarah and I got to spend mornings talking, evenings hanging out and one particular night watching the WORST disaster movie ever. It was so bad I've deleted it from my Librarything account and am giving it to the DI.
Well, more updates soon
Jenny
We miss Sarah and Jamie, they were here for most of three weeks. One entire day was spent with Jamie on the computer and me on the couch, watching middle eastern dance videos. Sarah and I got to spend mornings talking, evenings hanging out and one particular night watching the WORST disaster movie ever. It was so bad I've deleted it from my Librarything account and am giving it to the DI.
Well, more updates soon
Jenny
Friday, July 28, 2006
Townsend's Ground Squirrel
Last weekend was very busy, we packed the equivalent of 8 days into 3. On Friday afternoon we went up to Scout Mountain with one of our friends for an overnight. Nick was off hiking around when this little ground squirrel started moving about the campground. He was way to forward and has obviously been given food. I thought I'd scare him off with a pointy stick (3' hot dog fork with 5" tines) but all he really wanted to do was lick the ends. He's located at the top just left of center on this picture. Slapping the fork on the ground chased him away. Being this unafraid of humans is not good for wildlife. We didn't feed him. And he didn't come back to visit us again.
I also went to Idaho Falls to visit with another friend. Shopped, cleaned house, caught up with my sisters who were/are visiting. ...
This weekend may be just as fun filled. :)
After later
Jenny
I also went to Idaho Falls to visit with another friend. Shopped, cleaned house, caught up with my sisters who were/are visiting. ...
This weekend may be just as fun filled. :)
After later
Jenny
Hot Springs in Palisades Reservoir (July 2006)
A couple of weekends ago (14, 15 & 16 of July) we went back to Palisades. We were out on the lake early enough in the morning to spot this strange phenomenon. Steam rising from the lake. Apparently there's a hot springs that is emptying into the lake. I got out and swam around later in the day and yes indeedy the water near this stream was significantly warmer than elswhere. We took GPS coordinates so we can find our way back. We didn't catch fish, but we had a LOT of fun. Go check out my Flickr account if you want to see more pictures from this trip.
After later
Jenny
After later
Jenny
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Digital Natives Conference
Hi all,
I'm posting on Kris' blog Russet Vixen http://russetvixen.blogspot.com/ about the library conference we're both attending. Go take a look. :)
Jenny
I'm posting on Kris' blog Russet Vixen http://russetvixen.blogspot.com/ about the library conference we're both attending. Go take a look. :)
Jenny
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