mackeyturner

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More to come (soon)

I’m dismayed to see I didn’t post in 2023. I’m reading a terrific book called Our Wild Calling by Richard Louv – that’s the inspiration (indirectly) for this. I got a couple pictures I really enjoyed last time I was at Pony Pasture (2/25/2024). Here’s one: That – if you’re unaware, or even if you are aware – is a Barred Owl. Its mate was only about ten feet to the right in this scene but the…

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JACLYN took our picture!

JACLYN took our picture!

8 May, 2022 JACLYN took our picture! Me, Turner and Yuki at the river this morning – picture by Jaclyn – thank you! A kind person named Jaclyn took our picture this morning. And I don’t even know if I spelled her name correctly! But she was one of the few people who chose to show up at Pony Pasture this cold, wet May morning, and she was kind enough to take our picture. Thank you Jaclyn! Now –…

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Reasons to be cheerful 

27 February, 2022 Reasons to be cheerful  I read a lot of news, and a lot of it is not cheerful. I am aware that many un cheerful things happen every day – many “reasons to be un cheerful” – but they’re outweighed by the cheerful things. And I recently discovered a web site or news source called “reasons to be cheerful” and it’s worth being aware of. The subtitle is A recipe book for solutions.…

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“They don't call it Habitat for nothing.” - my sister Katie

“They don’t call it Habitat for nothing.” – my sister Katie

16 January, 2022 “They don’t call it Habitat for nothing.” – my sister Katie Thank you Laura! Turner staying up (I think he has sore hips), Yuki resting after our long hike this morning: That’s not (technically) the picture that inspired this blog post title. Though it may as well be. This is the picture that inspired this blog post title:  The ornaments on my Christmas tree are never this…

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Life lives on lives/more than I could swallow

Life lives on lives/more than I could swallow

19 December, 2021 Life lives on lives/more than I could swallow Cormorant at Three Lakes Park with an enormous catfish in its mouth I was hiking with a friend at Three Lakes Park in Henrico County last week when I saw this Double-crested Cormorant (Nannopterum auritum) trying to get this catfish in position to swallow. I presume. The Cornell Lab of Ornithology says that cormorants “are experts…

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Finally got to fly again (and more)

Finally got to fly again (and more)

5 December, 2021 Finally got to fly again (and more) I flew most of the day Tuesday. Viruses don’t affect a plane’s ability to fly, but my schedule was disrupted by the pandemic so I took a break. I finally called out to my old friends at Heart of Virginia Aviation in Hanover (KOFP) and set up some time with a plane and an instructor. I was fortunate to fly with an excellent instructor named…

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Slacking off never pays

Enjoy! A few pretty pictures this week!

21 November, 2021 Slacking off never pays Somebody probably told me that in kindergarten or first grade, second grade at the latest. I’ve been told that in some form or other for the past half century-ish. You can teach an old dog new tricks, but I still haven’t learned that slacking off never pays. Here is a selection of the pictures that have piled up in the six weeks (!) since my most…

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The pictures were piling up

The pictures were piling up

10 October, 2021 The pictures were piling up Plus I was being lazy. Four weeks ago today was my most recent blog post! Awful. Anyway, I’ve gotten a handful of pictures I enjoy. I hope you do too! When this much time goes by it’s difficult for me to pick out a favorite. But I was happy to see this bumblebee right in our front yard two weeks ago today. I know very little about bumblebees but I…

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Back on track - at least for today 

Back on track – at least for today 

12 September, 2021 Back on track – at least for today  Photo by Evelyn who told me “That dog would follow you into a burning building.” Two days later Evelyn and I each went to work in the morning. That afternoon we came home and loaded Mackey in the car and the three of us drove up to our vet’s office. Behind their office is a grassy, shady space surrounded by the building on one side and…

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Dust bath at the borrow pit

Dust bath at the borrow pit

18 July, 2021 Dust bath at the borrow pit I often hike at Three Lakes Park in Henrico County, near where interstate 95 North intersects 295. It’s east of 95 and slightly south of 295. It’s roughly 1.5 miles east of Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. The biggest lake (#1) is 7 acres and #3 is 5 acres. #2 is the nature center lake and is closed to fishing. It appears to be 4 or 5 acres.  I read that…

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Sushi before it's sushi

Sushi before it’s sushi

11 July, 2021 Sushi before it’s sushi    Sushi before it’s sushi I was at Deep Run recently and this hungry Great Blue Heron snagged a large fish. The heron was juggling it around trying to get it down its throat. This may be a catfish. I used to catch them years ago. They have sharp, stiff bony spikes they can extend just in front of their gills. I now see the survival value of those spikes. I…

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“A calming reminder”

27 June, 2021 “A calming reminder” “The lives of many animals are constrained by the schemes of men, but the determination in these lives, their traditional pattern of movement, are a calming reminder of a more fundamental order.” – Barry Lopez – as quoted in Karsten Heuer’s Walking the Big Wild: From Yellowstone to the Yukon on the Grizzly Bear’s Trail  Woodland Box Turtle crossing the trail…

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Two weeks is too long

Two weeks is too long

6 June, 2021 Two weeks is too long A few pictures. Mackey’s not strong enough to walk at the river these days, so I’m not down there as often. I went with my old friend Luna this morning though:  Luna enjoying her Sunday morning stroll. So was I! Most of our magnolia flowers are faded now – they’re quick – but I took this one next to our driveway two weeks ago:  Lovely magnolia next to our…

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Oxtail kolache

23 May, 2021 Oxtail kolache Kroger sunset Tuesday 5/11/2021, two minutes before sunset:  That’s not related to an oxtail kolache, but I took it nearby. I snapped that picture (with my phone) from the parking lot of the Kroger at 1510 Eastridge Road close to my house. I bought the oxtail kolache about four hundred yards away as the crow (or any other bird) flies. Evelyn just calls them “Kroger…

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Flowers and birds and dogs, oh my! 

9 May, 2021 Flowers and birds and dogs, oh my!  And Happy Mother’s Day! Evelyn as always has our yard brimming with spectacular roses. Here’s a beauty:  Nothing says “Happy Mother’s Day!” like Evelyn’s breathtaking roses I think a lot of moms (and dads and siblings et al) also love bluebirds. I mean, who doesn’t?:  What’s not to love? Happy Mother’s Day! There is still no shortage of flowers…

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A house trailer, a jon boat and a blue flame

A house trailer, a jon boat and a blue flame

25 April, 2021 A house trailer, a jon boat and a blue flame I wrote a little blurb at the end of this blog post – it’s worth checking out. If you know my siblings, ask them which parts are true. I go through blog titles and subjects all week. I almost titled this one “Heard not seen/ seen not heard.” Barred owls were calling back and forth our entire hike today but I never even glimpsed one.…

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Flower power! 

18 April, 2021 Flower power!  A friend described my blog to a newcomer as having “lots of pictures of flowers.” If we’d had the same exchange in January she would have described it differently, but it’s April. Lots of flowers. This beauty is a Virginia Spiderwort (Tradescantia virginiana):  Spiderwort at the river this morning: I took that picture at (naturally) Pony Pasture today around noon.…