Miles went “Hobo Classic” this Halloween – every kid has to do it at least once (rite of passage?) Here’s the mean-face version.
Only a hobo…
Paper Wasp Nest
Found yesterday in Miles’ fort. If I can find a good way to remove the wasps safely without getting stung, planning to take it down and turn it into a night light.
Hornet nest (?) found in Miles’ fort!
Thistle Fluff
Two hours of ukulele and another fantastic hike with family on the Havey Canyon Trail, El Cerrito Hills. Caught this amazing cluster of thistles trapping all of their own fluff, which had blown off in recent winds. The fluff glows when afternoon sun filters through it.
Two houses of ukulele and a great hike. Thistle fluff on a lovely Sunday.
Vancouver Island 2012
Spent 10 days in the Pacific Northwest in August 2012, traipsing around Vancouver Island with family. Blessed and blissed with fantastic weather and more natural beauty in a week than anyone has a right to. Old growth forests and craggy cliffs, a wild sea full of salmon, sea lions, humpback whales, otters. Sea kayaking, touring through the Broken Group islands, hiking some of the most amazing trails I’ve ever witnessed. One peak experience after another.
Vancouver Island may be an island, but it’s a big island – it was ambitious of us even to try and circle its lower half in a week. And distances are longer than you think, with one-lane roads being the norm, as well as frequent closures for maintenance, accidents, etc. If we had it to do over, we’d probably cut  a couple  cities out of the itinerary and stay put more. But we did get a great “Whitman’s sampler” overview of what the island has to offer.
Once again frustrated by the quality of smartphone photos in forest conditions, but managed to salvage a hundred or so keepers. This is the last time I’ll do a major trip with just an iPhone for a camera. The convenience is tops, but Apple just can’t seem to solve the forest/greenery problem.
I’ve scattered a few images from the trip into this post – check the Flickr set for more (slideshow option).
Continue reading “Vancouver Island 2012”
Calveras, Mercer Caverns, Pipi Creek
Frabjous long weekend in the High Sierras – camping at Calaveras (near Arnold with friends of the family, then with parents near Pioneer. The only escape from heat was to play in the Stanislaus river, where I promptly stubbed a toe HARD on a submerged boulder. Nearly broke it, and bloodied two pairs of socks, but managed to limp through the rest of the weekend.
Continue reading “Calveras, Mercer Caverns, Pipi Creek”
Leonard the Corn Snake
A bit ago, Miles took a fresh interest in the reptile cage in the garage, which resulted in a trip to the local pet store, where he immediately fell in love with a baby corn snake. A few days later, we ended up at the East Bay Vivarium, learning all about the vicissitudes of snake ownership, why constrictors make the best pets (their natural coiling reflex makes them want to hang on to your fingers rather than darting away), the process of “pinkie” feeding, etc. And just like that, we’ve got a new family member.
After a three-day waiting period for the Motley Corn Snake to settle in and get comfortable, we fed him his first live baby mouse – a visceral but fascinating process that went smoothly (some baby snakes can be picky eaters, but we got lucky). Blew our minds how a 12″ snake with a tiny jaw could wrap its jaws around something twice the diameter of his own body, but he did, effortlessly.
Gave him two days to digest, and were then able to start handling him. He’s a squirrelly little bugger, anxious to escape and not yet comfortable being handled, but since we’re raising him from a pup, we’ll have the opportunity to acclimate him to humans daily.
He’ll eventually grow to 4-5′ long, and will graduate through the ranks of eating pinkies, fuzzies and hoppers. With luck, he’ll be with us for 15-20 years, well into Miles’ adulthood.
Name is still unsettled, and M’s idea “Repticepticle” has already been bypassed in favor of “Leonard.” Remains to be seen whether that one will stick. But for now, welcome to the family Leonard!
Hike Gone Wrong
Miles and I decided to try hiking down from Inspiration Point (Wildcat Canyon) to San Pablo Dam today. Looked easy enough on the map – a nice wide trail curved its way right on down. Less than two miles, ending in a nice waterside retreat, so only packed one liter of water for the two of us (thought I’d refill at the bottom before the climb back up).
Walking with my Son, East Bay Hills
Feel so blessed to have so many great hiking trails in our own back yard. Caught this one of Miles and I traipsing around near Schmidt Lane in El Cerrito recently at the golden hour, sun long in the sky, enjoying the heck out of each other’s company.
Miles and I on a sunset hike, long evening shadows. Frabjous day.
Dad Recalls Life on Coast Guard Cutters Chautauqua and Taney
Growing up, my brother and I were sometimes treated to amazing stories from the time our Dad spent on Coast Guard Cutters Chautauqua and Taney in the 1950s (see also: His home movie of the hazing ritual young recruits went through upon their first crossing of the Internal Date Line: Pollywogs). Recently, he wrote down some of his memories of working in the boiler room on an original steam ship, the intensity of the seas they endured, and the life of an old salt. It’s an experience that’s largely gone from this modern world, and I wanted to share it here for posterity (with his permission).
Jim Hacker served in the US Coast Guard from 1955-1959. He was on the Taney in 1955 and the Chautauqua 1959, Cape St. Elias Lighthouse 1957 and various buoy tenders in-between.
Continue reading “Dad Recalls Life on Coast Guard Cutters Chautauqua and Taney”
Flying Minecraft Octopi
Is this a bug or a feature? Seems like every time an octopus gets cornered, it eventually finds its way out of water and into the air. Once airborne, you can give it a nudge and it will glide forever until it encounters an obstacle. We’ve tried, but it’s seemingly impossible to get it back into the water once it starts gliding. Not that I mind – they’re friggin’ awesome.
