Me & Kate

I took my daughter to lunch today. Went out to the valley and picked her up from her old elementary school in Encino where her mom works and we went and had tacos and lemonade at Islands, then before taking her home we went and played a round of miniature golf and a little skeeball …

Next Nest

Yesterday while out back longing for one last look at the first hummingbird chick that flew the coop late in the afternoon, a tiny flurry of activity near the back of the yard got my attention and sure enough there’s a near foot-long bushtit nest veritably buried and well camoflagued in the boughs of the …

Batteries: To Have & Not Need

For a (mostly) Type B personality I have certain over-preparation issues that some might say border on manic. Or at least chuckle worthy. A good example can be found in my first time camping and my first time to Death Valley, a solo trip in February of 2002. I bought a two-burner camping stove for …

A Pocket Revu Of True

Last Thursday I told about my 26-year-old, off-and-on search to see the film True Confessions. From reading various critiques both of the film and the long-awaited April release of its DVD, I wasn’t sure if it was worth such a long wait, but that didn’t stop us from popping it in the player and putting …

Hummingbirds Live!

So it finally dawned on me to set up the laptop and the digicam outside and get some realtime images streaming of the two hummingbird chicks in their nest within the fig tree over our patio. The image below should be the most recent one being served up: [live image removed] If not try refreshing …

Much To Our Pleasant Surprise

It was on several occasions that we’d seen an adult hummingbird hovering among the lower leaves and branches of the fig tree that grows over the backyard patio. Seemingly on the search for some food, I would wonder what the poor bird must be thinking because there’s literally nothing among the tree’s broad green leaves, …