Category: Wildlife

The Plot Thickens

Posted on by Markman
Eastham again.

The story behind the photo: As sunset was approaching, we were driving around Eastham looking for some other viewing places of the bay that were less crowded and came upon some residential area, driving down some quiet local roads. Reaching the end of one of the terminals we encountered this location. So I got out and snapped a few and there it is. It was nice that nobody happened to be there at this particular time. I remember how quiet it was. Perhaps folks who live here were having dinner in their homes at the time. I think we’ll try to get back to this location again.

It would appear that this rabbit that keeps coming on the deck may have something on her mind rather than just checking out what plants are up there. When I look into the dianthus pot there appears to a dug hole. Cut to this morning and I noticed the hold had some fur placed in it. Cut to a few hours later today and now I notice some twigs on top of the fur. Could this bunny actually think about putting some little bunnies in there? Hell of a place for such a thing, with us coming in and out all the time. Still, I am curious to see how this pans out – maybe it’ll be nothing, perhaps a decoy nest possibly – but what if it becomes something?

Today’s movie watch is Doctor Sleep – the sequel to The Shining. I don’t feel it was good as the Shining (but how could it be). Totally different – more like a bunch of vampires type of movie. Not bad in the least, just different and that’s how you have to view it I feel. If you think it’s going to be like The Shining you’ll be disappointed. I especially liked the scene in the Overlook where Dan meets his father who is now the bartender and the conversation that ensues (they couldn’t get Jack apparently so they tried to do it with a sort of lookalike which was cheesy to me), but overall it’s just a different kind of film. Not what I was expecting.

The hummingbird came by again! But once again, only stayed for a second so I couldn’t observe it in detail in time. It’s so weird seeing this thing, the way it moves, hover and fly sort of robotically – up, down, side to side, that it takes time for my mind to process what the hell it is. And by the time you figure it out, it takes off.

Hike and a Return Visitor

Posted on by Markman
Gazebo, Plum Island MA

Today – woke up late changing plans for the day somewhat. Took a drive over to Winslow to drop off some food for the animals, had intention to pick up a “grill box” that a restaurant is doing a few towns over from there. They put it all together and you place and cook it on your own backyard grill. Unfortunately we discovered too late in time to order so it’ll have to wait for another time to try it out. Instead went for a 1.5 mile hike through one of the town’s trails.

  • Lily pads
  • pond vegetation
  • flowers in the water
  • Cedar Waxwing
  • Some butterfly
  • Berries!
Scenes from our hike

Looks like that bunny is coming around again! Carson just watches!

  • Carson watches
  • Seems to like Dianthus leaves!
The intruder returns!

Tonight’s movie watch was Can’t Buy Me Love from 1987 starring Patrick Dempsey. I was saddened to learn that the lead actress in the film had died about 5 years ago from a drug overdose. I really liked her character in the film – I know the role is not the person, but still, it saddened me.

Mother Seal

Posted on by Markman
Mother seal with baby (re-edit).

Went down to Earth-1 today. While I was there there was another downpour, whereby the neighborhood lost power for about an hour and a half, and then the hot water heater pilot went out. But everything’s good now.

I edited my photo of seal mama and baby to give it a different kind of look from the original. Made the greens and blues a little more pronounced.

Grace

Posted on by Markman
Grace, the Goddess of the Garden

Here we have Grace (an eastern cottontail rabbit that’s been hanging around – LD named her, I think it’s a her anyway) getting ready to eat some clover flowers. This particular bunny (a youngster we believe) spends all day in the yard and seems rather friendly and not so scared of people, as long as they don’t get too too close.

I placed the hummingbird feeder back out which had been gathering dust for a year or two now. I also moved it from it’s previous location. It was closer to the patio but I’ve now moved it into the back garden area where it’s more “secluded” and surrounded by natural nectar producing plants. I did this to make them feel safer and should provide me with a better view of actually seeing them. I remember earlier in the year just sitting on the back deck and this thing hovered in front of me with a buzzing sound. It took me a moment to register that it was a hummingbird in front of me! Of course, by the time I realized that, it took off – but it is pretty wild how they fly and hover and move in such varied ways, for a bird. So hopefully, I’ll get to see some more often.

Rando thoughts: Found an old copy of my Watchmen graphic novel from the ’80s. Think I’ll reread that. Setting up a new microwave. Got a simple outdoor inflatable pool yesterday, probably set that up this weekend. Still working on assembling the sideboard – it’s more complicated than I thought, with it’s Ikea-like directions and many parts. Hitting Home Depot to get a new hose and maybe some grilling accouterments, Speaking of grilling, I grilled last night and we ate by the firepit – I’ve become rather adept at it now – I actually prefer the hickory smell rather than the actual fire itself, although there is something meditative about just watching it burn – plus the smoke keeps the bugs away.

I spent the afternoon mowing the lawns, I like to keep it looking pretty, or at least, neat. Went to Volante’s this afternoon and ended up picking up a dwarf rose of sharon and a foxglove, which I planted in the patio area. Then hit another place down the road for a couple of hanging plants also for the patio area. Holy shit, gardening is a lot of work!

Tonight’s movie watch was Crash. Interesting flick – lots of well known actors too.

Intruder Alert!

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Intruder Alert!

I woke up this morning and discovered this little guy causing a little ruckus up on the deck where it doesn’t belong. Don’t worry – I only photographed him and then he scurried out of their on his own. He did appear to take down one of the Borages we had planted in there though. After that I decided to watch a movie I had recorded last night titled Alita: Battle Angel. This effects were good but the story didn’t make that much sense. They all seem to want to get to this city in the sky but they never explain why. I guess it’s based on a manga which probably has more story and it’s set up for sequels but they’ll probably never get made. Kinda cool how they made her eyes like all anime.

Went down to Home Depot in the afternoon to get some more dirt, firewood, and some pots. The dirt was for another raised bed where we plan to transplant the squash and pumpkin seedlings which are starting to outgrow their little containers.

Tonight’s movie watch was the 1st two episodes of Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story. It’s actually pretty good.

Power Puffins

Posted on by Markman
Puffins fly and swim against the shore off of Egg Rock Island.

The story behind the photo: This one was really lucky, LD got us tickets aboard a puffin cruise that goes out of Maine near Booth Bay Harbor that circles a little island in the Gulf of Maine where scientists have been slowly getting the puffin population to return to nesting sites there. We thought this trip might be a bust but then all of a sudden a bunch of these birds just came flying out and all around us. It was one of the best experiences I can remember and a memory I will always treasure. Side note is that puffins are my favorite bird – I just love the fact that these little tiny fighters live in such a cold harsh and arctic environment for much of their lives. A true testament to the force of nature.

And also thanks to Maine Magazine for the feature!

https://www.instagram.com/p/CALpzqIjGQI/

Positive Vibes

Posted on by Markman
Seals bask off the coast of Chatham, MA.

My mantra for today and moving forward: Letting go of negative thoughts. I highly recommend it. Here’s a shot I took a few years back of some seals lazing on a spit. It’s actually a much larger landscape shot with more seals and details but I cropped it for Instagram. I especially like the little baby in the background. I also have some cuter shots of him in other shots. I will probably make the large version available for purchase soon. Anyways my mantra appears to be paying dividends already as today we were able to set up some things and I put the fire pit (which I cannot wait to start using) together. Still more stuff to get done but it is happening little by little.

Hello Deer

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Young does frolic in the woodlands of Maine.

The story behind the photo: Just tooling around various parts of Maine a couple of years ago and must have went down some forestry lanes and somehow or other these two were just moseying along. The day this was taken was probably one of the best I ever had in life as I saw them, various water views, greatest puffin shots I ever took, and a cool lighthouse visit with amorous skunks.

As for me right now I’m going through my budget items and trying to figure out how I’m going to get through the year ahead. I’m finding it a little bit stressful at the moment, but I just have to take things one at a time and remember to breathe.

Juvies

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a nest of ospreys
A nest of juvenile Ospreys, West Dennis, MA

The story behind the photo: I really like this one. Reminds me I need to get back into birding more. Anyways, we had taken a boat cruise around the harbor in one of the Cape towns last year, I think it might have been in Dennis or somewhere around there. And we just happened to pass by this osprey nest. Thankfully I had the foresight to bring my complement of lenses so I switched to one where I could get a closer shot of them. I actually have a bunch of different shots from this but I felt this was one of the better ones. I remember having to try to brace myself as the boat kept wobbling over the waves. I assume they were waiting for their parent although they looked like they were just about ready to head out on their own. The fact that their eyes are still brown rather than yellow also signifies them as juveniles. I like how the two on the right appear to looking directly at me.

Today was the first day I ever applied for unemployment in 30+ years. Hopefully that won’t take too long to start kicking in. Crazy. Mulch arrived but although sunny today it’s kind of chilly – maybe I’ll start putting it down tomorrow or Friday or maybe even over the weekend – days really have no meaning lately so everyday is like a weekend day I guess. Gonna Zoom meet with some friends tonight – not the same as in person, but something nonetheless.

Christmas Eve Eve

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Birds at the feeder

I read this interesting article in the paper yesterday that a bunch of states were re-instituting the teaching of writing cursive. I mostly always wrote out everything in printed letters and still do so a while back I retaught myself cursive because I had found that I had actually forgotten how to form some of the letters like capital Q. The article said kids these days can’t even sign their signature, bad as I was I never forgot how to do that.

My sister is coming over for an overnight! So planning on having some nice meals and chat and games and downtime. Think it might be fun.

Pumpkin Treat

Posted on by Markman
  • “Squibbs” the squirrel enjoying some pumpkin.

The other day we decided to put the pumpkins that Squibbs had starting boring into out in the back yard. This morning this is what we saw!

Later on went to the Xmas Tree store and got some red bows and then ties them to the lighted reindeers out front. Really brings them out more I think – looks pretty good. Unfortunately I had forgotten that the Patriots were playing at home today so getting through Patriot Place was a bit of a nightmare. After that spent a little bit of time at the Sanctuary – it was really quiet but did get to hang with a few animals for a while.

I’m sweating right now helping out the cooking of salmon, tofu, chicken soup, and chili. Yes, four different dishes so we’ll be all set for the week.

I bought a tiny Chamaecyparis lawsoniana ‘Ellwoodii‘ (Lawson Cypress). Basically a little tiny Christmas-like tree in a pot. Says you can plant it outside at some point as it can grow to 20′ tall and 8’ wide. But right now he’s just a little tiny guy living on the windowsill.

Overdoing It and Goat Love

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Goat pals!

What the hell happened to my right forearm? Woke up this morning with it feeling really sore. I suspect it had to do with the shoveling from two days ago, but I usually feel the effects of activity such as that the next day, not two days after! Must be a part of getting older? Also, strange that that’s the only part of my body that’s sore, everything else appears fine to me. Must have twisted it in some way while I was doing it is the only thing I can think of. I think I might have to actually ice it, or place something warm on it, as I prefer that better.

Lately I like to post a photo to go along with the blog posts. I don’t really have any at the moment to reflect the status of my arm (it’s not swollen or anything), so I’m transitioning to an enjoyable pic of Bean and Buckley from the sanctuary! They have interesting stories, as do all the animals there.

Bean came to the farm at two weeks old. He was rescued from slaughter. He needed to be bottle fed when he first came. He is a mischievous little boy, liking to chew on visitor’s shoe laces. Bean doesn’t seem to realize he is a goat. He is being socialized with the other goats nowadays as before he was actually living in the owner’s house. He probably thought he was either a human or possibly a dog for a while.

Buckley, as a baby, was rescued from slaughter too. He was cared for and when his rescuer could no longer care for him as he got older, he was brought to the farm. He is very attached to the volunteers, following them around, and visitors too – especially if he senses a snack around! I find he can be a little pushy. He’s been known to butt me and others at times, but not in a malicious way. Those horns are killer! It’s just the goat way. He and Bean, as can be seen in the photo, have become good companions.

I consider these two to be rather handsome goats! I’ve grown to have a fondness for goats in general now. Growing up in the city, I didn’t have many opportunities to hang out with animals like this, and I find them to very soulful animals.

Happy National Jukebox Day

Posted on by Markman
Jukebox in the house

I know I’ve posted this before but it being National Jukebox Day and all I just had to get it up again. Yes, we will most likely be using this tonight as we prepare for the gathering tomorrow. We need to create some kind of database to keep track of all the records we have and their condition. It would be good to get a census of what he have versus what we’d like to get in there, and could help with rotating the songs in and out. I’ve written the story about how we got this machine before so I won’t rehash that here. Needless to say it’s a great conversation piece and we love it – even if the technology is so mechanical and freakin’ heavy! Moving this thing is a beast!

Made a quick visit to the market this morning, mostly getting some different fruits and veggies, planning on making some kind of cute looking turkey things out of them, much like we made the vegetable skeleton for Halloween a while back. Naturally I’ll be doing all the prep work on that. If it comes out well I’ll take a pic and share it with everyone. Sometimes those things can come out hit or miss, but either way I’ll be eating it anyway. Good to get those things already as the store although wasn’t too crazy, it will probably get worse as the day progresses in terms of activity.

I went ahead and put up the light-up reindeer on the front lawn this morning. I’ll have to consult with LD as to my placement of them but I’m pleased to report that they all move and light up still. Always a challenge trying to figure out the placement and the electrical outlets. Since it’s kinda warm today I figure it’d be good to get them up and out of the basement. I didn’t put them up last year but since we’re having guests tomorrow thought it would be nice to show the setup. Definitely getting into the holiday spirit early this year. Does this mean the tree will come down before February ala last year? Probably not! While I was out there I scared “Squibbs” the squirrel away from his ‘mealtime.’

I was going to work a half day today but lately since losing the contract I was on I haven’t been all that busy so I decided to take the day. Just as well too, it’s amazing how much one can actually get done when you don’t have to spend most of your nine to five someplace else. More updates as the day progresses perhaps, stay tuned…

Strutting My Stuff

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Wild Turkey

I was pleasantly surprised this morning when I saw that Mass Audubon decided to use one of my photos for their Strut Your Stuff article about wild turkeys! I was going to save this one for reposting here actually on Thanksgiving, but here it is a bit early. The story behind this photo is pretty simple. LD and I were driving through Westwood when along the road on someone’s property LD spotted a bunch of turkeys walking around. Believe it or not, this is how a lot of my shots actually happen. So she stopped, I got out, tried to find a good spot real quick, and snapped a few and this was one of them that I thought was the best of the bunch. Just a spontaneous shot that came out pretty well I think. So, I am the cameraman but she’s the director a lot of times!

Chicky Mama

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Mama Hen with some of her chicks.

Yup. Went to the Sanctuary today for a little bit again. I happened upon this scene of a mother chicken tending to her chicks. I find it interesting that they are so different looking color wise. We also hung with a cat named Grayson, where there could be the possibility that we could have him, if we so wanted. He’s very sweet. We’ll see about logistics moving forward to see if it’s a real possibility. Then I had to get back for a work meeting that took and hour and a half.

Chicken Foot

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Went to the sanctuary for a little bit today and to soak up some sun. This city boy got to hold a chicken. Hey, I never held an actual chicken before! Not just any chicken though, this one lost his foot in infancy. Miraculously enough though, he is getting a prosthetic foot made that will fit over his stub!  His name is Petey and he is the chillest chicken I ever met with a bit of spunk.

Petey!

Fall is in the Air

Posted on by Markman
Rockport, MA

Waking up this morning, one could definitely tell that fall is in the air, as it’s starting to get a bit chilly. It’s supposed to be hot this upcoming weekend though. Pretty soon the leaves should change and be starting to fall off the trees. Not sure if the colder weather is doing anything great for my gimpy knee. I’ve been trying to work it out slowly. Seems to be getting a little better – mostly going down stairs is the toughest part right now.

From the archives: A fall scene from 2015.

Anyways, about this shot – how many creatures can you spot in it and of what species? There’s quite a few! I believe this was taken from a water body alongside a major road in Braintree of all places – proving to me that you can pretty much find beauty in most places if you just take the time to look!

Brazen Bunny Chronicles Continued

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So this morning I decided too sit out on the patio early this morning, just sipping my coffee and chilling out when I turned my head to see Brazen Bunny staring back at me from the concrete patio stairs. “Come to get seconds?”, I thought to myself but ignored him basically and went back to my crossword puzzle. Over time I notice this bunny filling its mouth up with grass and straw and running over the the corner of the deck back and forth next to the hydrangea that is there. I believe it is building a nest! Strange thing is this nest location is not all that hidden, basically in a corner just a bit under the hydrangea but in an easily photo-graphical location. So in a couple of weeks or so we may have some more babies to check out!

While cleaning out my stack of old CDs I happened across a classic I had totally forgotten about. It’s the soundtrack to the movie classic “Better Off Dead.” I’m going to listen to this again and re-live the magic.