The Ponds and the Critters

Went for an early morning, before-breakfast walk to the ponds, and another one a short while ago. Still playing with the camera, getting used to it, and most of all, learning to hold it steady when I'm using the strong telephoto.

 Early morning, this family of geese made pretty patterns in the still water.

It was barely daylight out there -- sun hadn't made its appearance yet.

Contrast a few hours later in bright sunshine!

Got into a rather lengthy standoff with this pair of geese protecting their babies. I couldn't get back to the sidewalk without passing them, finally made it. They can be a bit aggressive where their babies are concerned, so I didn't want to push it too much.

Coming home, this osprey and its chick were posing very nicely! Doesn't happen often. The platform is high up on a pole, next to a telephone pole, right alongside the busy road. I was happy with the sharp image this time, considering it was pretty high telephoto. It's actually better than it looks here, since Blogger seems to make photos smaller with fewer pixels. But, it's progress, with me and the camera and the zoom lens.

So, I've walked over 9,000 steps today already. 10,000 is the goal, and I'll make that easily today. Hiking tomorrow, so don't want to push the footsteps too much today.

New camera!

Some of you may remember that I got a new camera awhile ago. It was supposed to be the end-all be-all, but as it turns out I didn't like it, so I returned it. Since then, I've been thinking about getting one they showed me when I returned the first one, but I always came up with excuses of one kind or another. But a couple of days ago, I decided to Just Do It! And so far, I love it.

As you can see, it practically fits in the palm of my hand, has a great Zeiss lens and a 30x zoom that works great. I still haven't figured out how to hold that little thing steady when it's zoomed out that much, but it does a good job. When I first got it I went out into the garden area to test in on a variety of different subjects. It has great color, works really well in extreme close-up. These were my two favorites from that test. Does well in bright sunlight, shade, and mixed.

 

I love this peony, especially the dark shadows and streak of sunlight.

 

Simple photo -- but it shows how well it captures bright, rich colors.

I was under the weather yesterday, but this morning I went on a long walk for some other tests. The sky was heavily overcast the entire time. Some of my favorites from this morning. The sleeping duck was right on the trail -- no zoom necessary. He never moved, though I walked past him twice.

 

This is close up, no zoom. Would have been better with sunshine, but you gotta work with what  you have to work with.

 

These are Mergansers, according to a couple of birdwatchers who brought my attention to them. This was heavy zoom, though not full zoom. Biggest problem was following them with the lens in zoom mode, since they were swimming rather fast. They were also in a small, shaded section of the ponds and hard to see, let alone photograph. It could be clearer, but under the circumstances, I'm happy with it.

 

Later: Went for another walk this afternoon, to the Delta Ponds, found these, with a little more sunlight.

 

Western Pond Turtles, basking in the sun. Hundreds (thousands?) of them here.

 

I could be wrong, but I think this guy is a Wood Duck. Heavy zoom on this one.

Far end of the ponds, almost directly across the street from where I live, but only accessible via a nice, long trail through trees and daisies.

 

 

So that's my story for today. I look forward to more wildlife, more flowers, more everything. Hopefully on a less overcast day than today.

Today is the first time in awhile that I haven't felt any need to do something specific, something generally unpleasant, other than a hike with a friend. That was nice.

Thursday I felt awful, but needed to return the camera to the store as that was the last date it was eligible for refund. I didn't want to go, didn't look forward to it at all, aside from not feeling well. I don't like returning things and always feel guilty. I returned it because I just wasn't thrilled with the quality of the photos I was getting from it, and there was no more time to experiment with it. Plus the lens didn't have enough zoom and I couldn't afford to buy a new one. I felt better immediately after leaving the store, which was a good sign.

Yesterday I had to return a few large 3-ring binders to Office Depot, which I also didn't look forward to because one of the clerks is rude and bossy. Naturally, she's the one who 'helped' me. But, I got the job done and then I may never enter that store again! I've been in the middle of a big genealogy project the last few weeks, as I might have mentioned. Got my three big binders shipped from Cedartown and then set about printing out new info sheets, and putting everything into plastic protector sheets, as I had before. And throwing out a lot of no-longer-needed stuff from the binders, and reorganizing, and expanding, etc. I bought a package of 200 of the protector sheets, and used many of the old ones as well, and there are only maybe 5 left. I'd planned to put these into large binders, and I did that, but then realized that they were heavy and unwieldy and hard to use, so I had to regroup. I've tested various sizes, have had to return others to OD, before settling on what worked. Ordered what I expected to be [and was] a better quality binder from a major company via Amazon and that arrived Thursday, definitely a better product. Hence returning all the remaining binders to OD and ordering 4 more from Amazon. Those will arrive tomorrow, but in the meantime I have 4 of them finished, and all I'll have to do tomorrow is transfer the stuff into the new ones and make labels.

Just having this [and the camera] behind me feels wonderful. But then after getting my laundry done early this morning, my day is totally free of any obligations to anyone. I think it's the first time this week, and I'm loving it.

Gonna head back to the comfy chair and continue reading now. Smiles all over.

 Still playing with the new camera, getting a feel for it. This morning, went for a hike in the fog, and this photo reminded me of many I took on foggy trails down on the southern Oregon Coast near Brookings. This hill, Skinner's Butte, is actually in downtown Eugene and has lots of hiking trails with plenty of steep uphills. I'm not actually in love with the focus [or lack thereof] in this shot, but I think that's more operator error than camera error. I just noticed I didn't have it set on fully automatic, and that might have made a difference.

On the other hand, took this one this morning, same trail, and focus is good, so go figure. At least, on my computer before uploading to Blogger the focus was good. Same with all of these, to some degree.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was in our garden area a few days back when it was sunny. Even manipulated and resized so I could crop it a bit, it has really sharp focus. I don't remember whether I used auto-focus or manual on this one, probably auto. I've learned that using manual focus, with my old eyes, doesn't work very well.

This one [above] from the ponds last Saturday.  Maybe I'm crazy, but I expected tighter/better focus on all of these photos. My old Nikons, simple cameras, did a much better job. But maybe there's more I need to learn yet.

What's the furry critter?

 

I treated myself to a new camera last week, as my old one was on its last breath and no longer taking decent photos. Saturday morning I went for a walk to the ponds to take a bunch of test shots, just to see what I can expect from the new toy.

Imagine my surprise when I walked up to the parking lot railing and saw the circular ripples, watched until the maker surfaced again. Zoom isn't very strong on this new lens, which is a problem for another day, and since he wasn't waiting around to pose for pictures, I had to snap a quick shot, then enlarge it to get a better look. That face is adorable, with a long body. I don't know if river otters get that large, or particularly if minks get that large. There's a beaver dam 40' away, but it doesn't really have that rodent look to it, with that face.

I've spent hours over there during the past 4.5 years, and this is the first time I've had a good look at any furry critter. Whatever it was, it was frolicking and having a good early-morning swim until it saw me, then it spooked a bit and swam off, surfacing again further away.

Camera is nice, except for the aforementioned lens. I suspected I'd need/want more of a zoom, and this walk certainly confirmed that. I could either spend $300 for a second lens that takes over where this one leaves off, or $600 for a lens that combines both of them. Not loving either idea, at the moment. I'll play with it some more for awhile, see how I feel later.

All is well here. I am now fully vaccinated against Covid [one of the rare benefits of old age is that we get in line sooner] and have escaped the winter in good health.

Leftover Carnitas turn into magic

 Hi, Y'all.  Thought I'd share my lunch today with you. Continuing the recent obsession, last week I made more carnitas, and am pretty sure this was my best yet. Seared, then slow-braised in oven for 5 hours with garlic, onion, bay leaves and a few dried peppers of various kinds. So good, I could have devoured it all in one setting, I think, straight from the dish in which I shredded it. Afterwards, I put everything left in the braising pan into the blender and whirred it up good, saved it. Also delicious, though I had to reduce it for a very long time before it gained any thickness, and who wants a watery sauce? Froze leftover meat and sauce.

Yesterday on some forgettable show on Food Network I saw something that gave me a good idea. No carnitas involved, but I instantly saw how they could be. So today I heated some of the leftover meat in this little pan, put a perfectly fried egg over the top, added some of the sauce and some of my favorite Oaxaca cheese and stuck it under the broiler for a moment to melt.

I practically inhaled this! Could have eaten twice this much, however this much alone had 540 calories, not counting the sauce because I really can't even approximate such info about it. So no, I didn't need any more.  But again, YUM.

After a sucky week, a little success, a victory, feels pretty good.

Merry Christmas!

 

Hopefully, no ice storms in Eugene this year!

Happy Birthday to Me

 

Funny how so many of my posts are accompanied by photos of flowers! This is not a particularly good photo but it's the best of several efforts on my part this morning.

Yesterday, probably against many odds, I reached yet another birthday. Number 78, this time. Who'd've thought? Certainly not me! For years, I thought I probably wouldn't live past 50, yet here I am. I don't remember my reasoning or rationale for any of that, if there even was any. Probably because of my crazy lifestyle and my penchant for doing things that had a bit -- or a lot -- of risk involved. Driving fast cars on snaky mountain roads; offshore sailing in heavy winds and an occasional storm; bicycling thousands of miles hugging the shoulder of busy roads (those could also be snaky mountain roads, or flatland roads, or once even on an Interstate when there was no option) or, if there was no shoulder, claiming my bit of the traffic lane. The list goes on, but you get the idea.

These lovely flowers came from my daughter and granddaughters, which made them more special than the ordinary flower, by far. Between them, they changed what is usually a low-key, even depressing, day into a day filled with love and caring. I'm glad I lived to experience this, and hope for many more years to come.

This and that

Hello out there. Is anybody still there? Hello to all that are.

It's been a quiet few months for me on Blogger, probably because I've been distracted with my 'new found' family. So much goodness! All of our health has been good, thankfully.

I donated blood for the first time in my long life a couple of days ago, and have been knocked into a weak puppy as a result. Normal reactions, I'm told. So far this morning, I'm feeling fairly normal. A good, long night of solid sleep probably helped. Today will be quiet, too.

Perhaps the most consequential thing in my personal life this past year, aside from losing my dearest friend and gaining a daughter and granddaughters, is that I have finally managed to defeat the weight gain that started with a vengeance back in early summer of 2009, when I first 'retired' to the sweet southern Oregon town of Brookings. Despite daily walking -- lots of it -- and hikes exploring beach trails, inland trails, redwood trails, and any trail I could find, my waistline began expanding at a shocking rate. No medical reason. Over the intervening years I've tried all kinds of things. Severe calorie cuts (those happened in Brookings, but were ill-advised and didn't last too long) to more reasonable calorie cuts, combined with lots of walking or other exercise, including a local gym. Did that both in Georgia and then continued it here. 1200 calories per day for about a year here in Eugene, while walking the serious hills around the condo I shared for that year. Lost some weight during that, I must admit, but once I left there and was in a few temporary places for a few months before this apartment opened up, much of it came back, and over time all of it came back, despite continuous exercise, always with a local gym membership that I made almost daily use of.

During those years I wanted to try the Keto diet, but quickly realized that doing all the calculations and percentages of that diet was beyond what I would or could do, so it didn't last long. You try to calculate the carbs, fat, and protein of everything you eat in the course of the day, as a percentage of the total calories you eat every day! So about a year ago when I got serious about trying it because nothing else had worked, I knew I was going to have to spend some $$ to get an app. The app was free, but I needed something to run it on, and I didn't have that (or, I thought I didn't. Turns out it works just fine on my computer). So I bought an iPad (I'd been wanting one anyway, but couldn't justify the cost as a mere toy). And I got the app. Started the diet as of Jan 2 (no way I'm going to do that on a day when our Oregon Ducks are playing in a Bowl Game, so the diet had to be postponed!).

Fast forward a year, and I've lost over 30 pounds! The app does all the calculations, and I plan my days food intake every morning, adjusting as needed to meet the requirements. My calorie intake is based on my activity level, which is still fairly high most of the time, so I'm certainly not starving and I can eat anything I want as long as the total meets the requirements. Mostly, I pay attention to the carb maximum and don't go over that, as it's the key point. Occasionally, as at the moment, I raise my settings from 'weight loss' to 'maintenance' so I can eat more of everything for awhile. That's good for the soul, and I've never gained weight during one, usually even lose some. Right now I'm not so active because of weather and having no desire to go to a crowded gym even if it were open, so I may not lose any this time.

I committed for a year, which is not quite up, but I've reached my first goal and could happily stay here, but since it's been so easy I've reset that goal for the next 5 pounds, which shouldn't be all that difficult or take all that long. After that, we'll see. The diet approximates the way I like to eat anyway, so it hasn't been too difficult for me. Although in 'real life' I'd eat more carbs than currently allowed, and my body has never liked carbs. Once I reach a point where I'm willing to stop, I'll go on maintenance for a good long while and eventually, probably onto a less restrictive diet of some kind. The app offers all kinds of them, so I'll never have to do all those calculations again.

I hope this awful year of 2020 has kept all of you safe.

Hiking and .... granddaughters!

 

Hi, all. Yes, I continue to live, have just been lazy. After the fires and smoke cleared, I've begun the local hikes again, and it's good to be back outside.

Photo is from view partway up Mt. Baldy, a smallish mound on the southside of town, with a long stretch of straight uphill walking right from the parking lot. A lovely round trip, and then we crossed the road to hike through a rolling fir forest trail so that we got our 90 minutes in. My hiking buddy took the photo with her camera, which did a pretty good job.

The sun was more red than white, to our human eyes, a result of high smoke from the California wildfires rather than our own. The fog on the lower hills is so lovely, though. 

A couple of weeks ago I unexpectedly ran across a person on a genealogy site who I suspected was my granddaughter, and it turns out, I was right.  I lost touch with my daughter back in 1996 when I moved from Atlanta and ended up here in Oregon. In the process of moving, I lost her unlisted phone number in Sacramento. I had her address, and wrote there a couple of times telling her how to reach me. This was in pre-cellphone days, of course. But, I never heard from her and didn't know if she ever received those letters. I would search for them over the years, but never found them.

Turns out, they'd had a little girl in the late summer of 1996, born with a heart defect, who eventually died a couple of months later. Understandably, it was a difficult time for them and in the process, she lost my contact information. Now we are all in touch and happy to be back together and I have two beautiful granddaughters in their early 20s. 

 Life really turns in a moment, doesn't it?