It is dark outside. No dawn yet in the east. But a Cardinal in the distance thinks otherwise and begins to sing. And then a nearer one. And now a Titmouse. I look out the back patio door. The black night is gone, and there is gray light in the eastern sky. And now a Mockingbird […]
Yearly Archives: 2021
An Imaginary Rabbit Hole
Sat, 6 Mar 2021, 08:42 PM (-06:00)
Here is a rabbit hole for Saturday. In the morning, I click on a few links that lead me to an article in Quanta magazine discussing how imaginary numbers might after all be essential elements of reality rather than mere mathematical conveniences. This is a big deal for me. It has consumed hours of my […]
Brown Fuzzy Jacket
Sat, 6 Mar 2021, 08:10 PM (-06:00)
1. Late Thursday Thursday after the seventh period bell had rung and the students had left the room and the hallways were empty, I walked through the room picking up the few pieces of paper and dropped pencils that sometimes decorate the place after a hard day of algebra. I realigned the tables and wiped […]
On the Other Side of the Storm
Sun, 21 Feb 2021, 11:45 AM (-06:00)
1. Burying Compost The compost pile was no longer covered by a four inch crystalline cap. I was digging in the leaves burying the week’s compost. I confess that even though I had shoveled a little snow, scraped ice off the windshields, tried (and failed) to make a snowman, and picked up slushy ice with […]
Morning Melt
Fri, 19 Feb 2021, 07:44 PM (-06:00)
The sky was clear. The ice-clad trees cracked in the morning breeze. Sunlight sparkled in the treetops. The shining sun began to melt the ice on the branches and the snow on the ground, where the green of just a week ago revealed itself.
Still Closed
Thu, 18 Feb 2021, 03:26 PM (-06:00)
Yes, Café Trudy is still closed. Please return for the 70 degree weather they’ve promised us next week.
Rescue
Thu, 18 Feb 2021, 02:46 PM (-06:00)
There was ice on the patio under snow under ice. And then it started snowing again. I stood at the patio door and looked out. At the Desert Willow which seemed to be bearing its ice burden well. At the Apple Trees which had begun blossoming a week ago and might be toast. At the […]
A Cool Pergola
Wed, 17 Feb 2021, 05:39 PM (-06:00)
This is the pergola over the back patio. We’ll need to remember this when summer comes around. Now. If we could just get some water to come out of the faucets.
A Wintery Mix
Wed, 17 Feb 2021, 03:14 PM (-06:00)
A winter has descended on Austin unlike any I have seen in the (many) decades I have been here… 1. Finches and Birdseed The bird feeders have been well stocked (and millet-free) since before the snow started falling, thanks to the fair and industrious Trudy. Although in the early afternoon Starlings scare everyone else away, […]