By Ted Grussing … it was a beautiful day on Lake Pleasant today and a distinct absence of humans on the lake … the birds came out to play and celebrated having the lake pretty much to themselves and put on a celebratory display of silliness like this shot of a great blue heron doing I know not what, but obviously enjoying himself. We drifted up quite close to him and he just posed for us … then it was like all heck broke loose for about 30 seconds. Glad we got to enjoy the big kerfuffle . A greater…
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By Dave Myers Sedona AZ (December 9, 2021) – Happy holidays from the Oak Creek Apples Macintosh User Group (OCAMUG). There will not be an Oak Creek Apples meeting in December 2021. Plans for January 2022 will be announced in early January. The OCAMUG is exclusively an educational institution for the public on the use of Apple Computers and other iOS devices, including maintenance, security, and software applications. OCAMUG is a 501.c.3 organization and donations are tax deductible. Membership in the Oak Creek Apples is open to anyone who wishes to belong. Thank you for your interest in and support of…
By Ted Grussing … I have had a lot of questions lately about feathers and their functions and the ability of a bird to control them. There are numerous types of feathers that a bird has and they serve different functions … some like the downy feathers nearest the body trap body heat and are covered by other feathers called contour feathers which also serve the purpose on the wings of providing the aerodynamic shape of the wing and overlap the flight feathers which are controlled by the bird in flight to give it extreme control over its flight. The…
By Ted Grussing … there is a certain freedom in flight and I was thinking about that today as I stopped at the ponds to get some shots on my way to pick up some groceries at Basha’s … yeah, I know it is really out of the way, but it was a nice day and I don’t have any commitments for a while. I got some nice shots of herons in flight and a few other species … looking at the grace they display in flight I went back through some of the shots of me flying AZ2 my…
Flagstaff AZ (December 7, 2021) – Logging operations will begin this week in an area just west of Interstate 17 across from Munds Park as a result of the Munds Park Timber Sale. Perkins Timber Harvesting will be operating in the area with heavy machinery to harvest logs in the area, which will benefit the forest ecosystem by thinning overstocked stands of ponderosa pine. Thinning all improves foraging habitat for wildlife and reduces catastrophic wildfire risk to the community of Munds Park. Log truck traffic will be prominent along Forest Roads 253 and 253B, with trucks entering and exiting I-17…
By Ted Grussing … this hen common merganser was having a little problem deciding whether or not to take off and in the photo above she is showing her hesitancy to leave the surface of the lake and commit to airtime. She was kinda halfheartedly running and flapping her wings and ultimately decided that she would remain on the water. In this shot you can see her doing a wing beat and the water being splashed all over the place … and she looked so regal while doing it. Aborted takeoffs by planes are not nearly so graceful … The…
By Amaya Gayle Gregory Nothing I say will get you there. There is no there; no you to get there and yet as in all of life, there is the very valid, exceedingly real, preciously potent appearance of a there and a you and the you who appears to be, appears to want to get to the appearance of there. Everything I say will automatically come out wrong. Words are dualistic in nature and minds hear through their current best understanding so even if words were gate keepers it still wouldn’t matter until they aligned exactly with the trajectory of…
Camp Verde AZ (December 5, 2021) – Music in the Stacks returns on Thursday, December 9th at 5:30 pm in Camp Verde Community Library’s Fireside Room. Music in the Stacks is a showcase of local and national musicians who entertain regularly in Northern Arizona. There are 3-5 different performers during the show, with a rotating variety each month. December’s free concert features the following talented local musicians: Gary Simpkins, a performer/singer/songwriter with a smooth voice and unique guitar style; Christy Fisher, singer/ songwriter and multi-instrumentalist with powerful vocals; Mike McReynolds, singer-songwriter who enjoys writing and singing in all genres of music from blues, folk to rock; and Arizona fiddle icon Tony Cook. Camp Verde Community Library…
Sedona AZ (December 5, 2021) – Earlier this year, Sedona bronze wildlife sculptor and gallery owner Ken Rowe was chosen as an Elected Sculptor Member of the National Sculpture Society, a 120-year-old New York-based nonprofit that promotes the knowledge of excellence in sculpture inspired by the natural world. Founded in 1893, NSS was the first organization of professional sculptors formed in the U.S. The prestigious Elected Sculptor Member designation allows artists to place NSS at the end of their name to signify the achievement as well as participate in significant exhibitions. Ken says he hadn’t seriously considered applying for the…
By Ted Grussing … there is no question about it … Lo III, our current resident bobcat, has her mind up and she is going for the kill, but since I am still here, it is likely that she was just reminding me of the consequences of screwing her portrait up … perhaps she would have liked it better had I put out a photo of her smiling? I was sitting on the ground about ten feet in front of her and we had a conversation. In the photo below, we have Leroy the Harris’s hawk in a rather relaxed…
Sedona AZ (December 2, 2021) – The Sedona Heritage Museum is hosting two free special holiday activities for members of the public during December. First, holiday decorated vignettes have been set-up around the park providing holiday photo opportunities from December 1 through December 30. The exterior scenes are available during daylight hours and the interior scenes from 11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m., which are regular Museum hours. The different vignettes include the historic firetruck and an antique buggy decked out with red bows and ready for their close-ups. The Museum’s traditional tumbleweed ‘snowman’ will greet all guests at the front door and…
By Ted Grussing … is it safe to go in? are the wildlife cops around? Nope, it looks like it is safe to come off the perch on the metal handrail on one of the steel docks that protrude into the ponds at Bubbling Ponds Fish Hatchery in Page Springs and our female grackle leaves her perch for the forbidden fruit that lies just below her. In the photo below she is double checking and scanning the area … she knows that photographers are safe, but perhaps considering dropping a load on my lens so that there will be no…
By Amaya Gayle Gregory I don’t know about you — I never do. No one but you does, no matter what they say — but I was not conditioned to say no. I was conditioned to say anything other than no, regardless of the circumstance. My time upon the spiritual path only upped the ante. You see, saying no was frowned upon. It meant you weren’t enlightened, weren’t even close, that you hadn’t gotten it yet. If you had, you wouldn’t be reacting to anyone’s stuff. After all, it’s theirs not yours. Right? What a crock! Spiritual paths, non-spiritual paths,…
Sedona AZ (December 1, 2021) – If you have a piece of wood and a wood carving knife, come to Monday at the Museum at Sedona Heritage Museum on Monday, December 13th, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and join the Verde Valley Woodcarvers. Hundreds of people have tried their hand at carving with this group since its founding in 1997 by Norm Knight. The group consists of carvers ranging from beginners to master carvers. Come by with your own equipment or just come to watch these artisans do relief carving, chip carving, and bark carving. There is no fee for…
Sedona AZ (December 1, 2021) – On Sunday, Dec. 5 at 4PM, enter the enchanting world of internationally known pianist Sandrine Erdely-Sayo and her special young guests in Sounds of the Season. They will lead the audience in a heart-warming medley of Christmas carols, popular standards and classical favorites. Ms. Erdely-Sayo has delighted audiences around the world with her virtuoso playing and improvisation at the piano. The Sedona United Methodist Church will host the free program which will include eight-year old Camilla telling the Nutcracker story with Ms. Sayo’s sparkling accompaniment. Short classical selections from Bach, Liszt and Chopin will…