Natural Self Reliance

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Turkey Vulture stalling in the wind on a clear Delta day.

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waterbirds#

Egret#

Great Blue Heron#

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Happy New Year!

This past Saturday I wrote a blog then trashed it because it was one of those that took on a life of it’s own making not much sense. It had no ending in site let alone be interesting to anyone, we had a rainy day. Overcast sky blah blah blah, our weather is nothing compared to the rest of the country. Yesterday was dreary as well but the bottom line is who cares. I spent the days watching mud…

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Random Acts of Kindness? No it's more like being thankful for the help.

Random Acts of Kindness? No it’s more like being thankful for the help.

It’s one of those dreary days that is good for sleeping at night and all day if one is so inclined. For the rest of us it’s not a blizzard it’s just nasty enough to keep the TV hummin’ and the fire going. Daytime TV isn’t too bad if one enjoys Ghost, Big Foot and the continual political bombs falling. But it’s good to have a choice when the weather is not co-operating with life. I do have breaks…

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Life is complicated.

I read once, I forget when but one line has stuck with me all these years. “If one is over the age of 50 and doesn’t think he was an idiot when he was young, he’s still an idiot.” I think about that line quite a bit luckily I realize my idiocy, I’d like to say it was isolated in my teenage years but I’d be mistaken. Don’t think for a minute I matured any time before I was 40 years of age. I am…

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Pelicans showed up today.

Pelicans showed up today.

Pelicans visited Taylor Slough yesterday, how they found it in the fog is a mystery to me. I was fortunate to be set up when they swam past my dock. Several mug shots were taken as well, after a bit of developing and editing they are nice. White subjects are nice to work with when the sky isn’t too bright, this light is shielded in fog acting as a dispersing screen. Pelicans are the ultimate…

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To Be or Not to Be; a Child Again.

To Be or Not to Be; a Child Again.

One of my Grand Kids asked me if I wished to be a little kid all over again. No. Simple answer end of blog. Actually I really don’t but I must admit after I was unable to work any longer after a few years I asked myself what my goal in retirement is. That a least beats when one of my brother in law asked my older brother how does he save money in retirement. I have been thinking about that for…

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Bad Weather

During stormy weather as it has been this winter I believe it’s human nature to recall the worst weather we as individuals have dealt with. I’m sure most of us have experienced really bad weather. Every type of weather condition exists in the United States; and some that occur no where else. I live in the San Francisco Bay Area where it’s claim to fame is Earthquakes; I’ve been in a few. I was…

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Yes I see Ghosts.

Yes I see Ghosts.

Daytime TV could be a severe time sink with few of the programs worth taking a look at. I will turn it on every day for a short time, mostly Documentary programs produced by National Geographic. Cable channels have some interesting shows but as with everything we all don’t have the same tastes. Big Foot, Lake Monsters and Ghost Hunting are common on several channels. I’ve never seen a Big Foot or…

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Kingfisher.

I was surprised by the results of this photo session, after I took them I was certain they were out of focus. They are a bit but still are good images. They are fast small birds with 6 species in North and Central America. There were two of them flying past me the front runner was in focus the second not so much. They fly so fast it makes me wonder if there are ever head on collisions. With…

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I've been thinking of Time Traveling somewhere.

I’ve been thinking of Time Traveling somewhere.

Fog to me is the most unpleasant weather condition and we have been socked in for 3 days. Heavy fog not the lite hazy stuff that can be seen through; it makes a nice backdrop for photographs. Plenty of people in this world have much worse conditions and fog is merely aggravating I won’t sit outside in the wet stuff. That’s my entire beef about that; it’s aggravating but OK. Now I have to…

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I searched my Ancestry for 15 years; was it worth the effort?

I searched my Ancestry for 15 years; was it worth the effort?

In the beginning of my search for my family history I was confused as to how to proceed. Everything in my family was a big secret my Dad never spoke of his relatives or heritage. I was initially able to follow the lineage to my Great Grandfather, with that, unknown to me was the answer to the reason it was a mystery. However I was not able to realize that for another ten years or so. I found that…

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A Bit about Fusion and Books.

A Bit about Fusion and Books.

I don’t read as much now as I did when I was younger, I read everything that was available. I read comic books all of the time, having no favorites but I marvel now at the prices of those I read are now at collector level costs. I liked reading History, Science Fiction and Physics. Inquiring minds want to know I suppose is one way to sum it up. I am now reading (audio book) the complete…

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Camp Cook.

Cooking is one of those tasks many people take on only because they have to. Unless if you’re like me and have a wife that is not only a great cook but she enjoys it. I used to cook but I’m what would be called a “Camp Cook”, Chili Beans, Hot dogs and Oat meal are among my special dishes. In my younger years I (along with my kids) would go backpacking in the Sierras. It’s an extremely satisfying…

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It rained and we didn't go to the show.

It rained and we didn’t go to the show.

The West is getting a bit of rain for the past week and the weather report predicts it will be off and on for the next two weeks. It won’t end the farmer caused drought we’ve been in for the past 100 years; it will help however. Ms. Lebec is in a seniors dance group they are older very talented dancers performing at playhouses and theaters in the San Francisco Bay Area. They had a show yesterday,…

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Whew eee, What's that smell?

Whew eee, What’s that smell?

I live next to a slough that eventually joins the San Joaquin River; on the California Delta. It consist of 1500 miles of waterway winding it’s way from the Sierra Nevada’s (near Fresno) North 300 miles to the San Francisco Bay. I joke about how there is one sneeze for each weed lining it’s banks. However there is one other sensory element that the river people ignore. Smells are varied some…

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