3.2 Mile Walk at Five Rivers EEC
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Sunday, July 31, 2011
Friday, July 29, 2011
That's a Lot of Honeybees...
Friday, July 29, 2011
Over the last 50 years there have been alarming reductions in the numbers of both wild and beekeeper-supported honeybees. This hit the news about 5 years ago when entire colonies of honeybees began dying off (Colony Collapse Disorder) for no apparent reason. I know some folks look at that and think "What's the big deal? They're just bees..." but the truth is honeybees are very important in both the pollination of wild plants (allowing them to reproduce) and many agricultural crops (I had never realized prior to reading about CCD that there are commercial beekeepers who travel with their hives to farming operations to provide bees for crop pollination.) Honeybees are a vital part of the ecosystem and the agricultural system.
I got word last night that this week the Albany Academy (my employer) had a company in to remove a honeybee hive from under part of the roof. The company that did the removal is called Everything Honey Bee Inc and performs live extractions - they save as many of the bees as they can, as well as removing the hive and honeycombs. Big kudos to AA for taking this approach when it probably would have been cheaper to just bring in an exterminator to kill all the bees and then a contractor to remove the hive and repair the damage.
Everything Honey Bee's youtube video of the removal/extraction gives a good idea of not only what a big job this was but also the sheer size of the colony living under the roof...
JMH
Friday, July 29, 2011
Over the last 50 years there have been alarming reductions in the numbers of both wild and beekeeper-supported honeybees. This hit the news about 5 years ago when entire colonies of honeybees began dying off (Colony Collapse Disorder) for no apparent reason. I know some folks look at that and think "What's the big deal? They're just bees..." but the truth is honeybees are very important in both the pollination of wild plants (allowing them to reproduce) and many agricultural crops (I had never realized prior to reading about CCD that there are commercial beekeepers who travel with their hives to farming operations to provide bees for crop pollination.) Honeybees are a vital part of the ecosystem and the agricultural system.
I got word last night that this week the Albany Academy (my employer) had a company in to remove a honeybee hive from under part of the roof. The company that did the removal is called Everything Honey Bee Inc and performs live extractions - they save as many of the bees as they can, as well as removing the hive and honeycombs. Big kudos to AA for taking this approach when it probably would have been cheaper to just bring in an exterminator to kill all the bees and then a contractor to remove the hive and repair the damage.
Everything Honey Bee's youtube video of the removal/extraction gives a good idea of not only what a big job this was but also the sheer size of the colony living under the roof...
JMH
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Distracted... Excreting?
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Be warned... this topic is more than a bit different from the things I usually write about... though I do tie it in to one of my most common complaints/concerns at the end...
On my way back to Albany this evening I walked into a Thruway Service Area restroom, as I often do (it is a 3 1/2 to 4 hour drive, after all.) Tonight, though was a first, when I was greeted by the sight of a guy at one of the urinals, presumably doing what guys do at a urinal - with his phone out texting.
I know I'm a luddite when it comes to cell phones and texting, but I'd like to think this would seem like too much even to the texting-savvy folks I know. I'd ask... but then I might find out that this is more common than I realize... oodle of people all over the world texting "Peeing now..." to each other, ack!
Of course, afterwards I had plenty of time to think of other possible explanations... maybe he was a congressman sending a photo (yuck... and another reason why I believe cell phones should be put away while in restrooms.) Or maybe this was his first time using a urinal and he was googling instructions (which caused me to flash on a 2nd season episode of the superb science fiction program Farscape, "Out of Their Minds", where one of the alien characters has switched minds with the human lead and needs directions on how to urinate: "Unzip. Pull it out. Point it like a gun... and shoot.") Maybe his urine was an unusual color and he was looking up possible medical explanations to see if he had any hope of surviving to reach his eventual destination.
Or maybe he was just the latest example of a multitude of people who apparently can't survive without being distracted every second of every day...
Sigh.
JMH
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Be warned... this topic is more than a bit different from the things I usually write about... though I do tie it in to one of my most common complaints/concerns at the end...
On my way back to Albany this evening I walked into a Thruway Service Area restroom, as I often do (it is a 3 1/2 to 4 hour drive, after all.) Tonight, though was a first, when I was greeted by the sight of a guy at one of the urinals, presumably doing what guys do at a urinal - with his phone out texting.
I know I'm a luddite when it comes to cell phones and texting, but I'd like to think this would seem like too much even to the texting-savvy folks I know. I'd ask... but then I might find out that this is more common than I realize... oodle of people all over the world texting "Peeing now..." to each other, ack!
Of course, afterwards I had plenty of time to think of other possible explanations... maybe he was a congressman sending a photo (yuck... and another reason why I believe cell phones should be put away while in restrooms.) Or maybe this was his first time using a urinal and he was googling instructions (which caused me to flash on a 2nd season episode of the superb science fiction program Farscape, "Out of Their Minds", where one of the alien characters has switched minds with the human lead and needs directions on how to urinate: "Unzip. Pull it out. Point it like a gun... and shoot.") Maybe his urine was an unusual color and he was looking up possible medical explanations to see if he had any hope of surviving to reach his eventual destination.
Or maybe he was just the latest example of a multitude of people who apparently can't survive without being distracted every second of every day...
Sigh.
JMH
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
Monday, July 25, 2011
2 Days & 4 States...
Monday, July 25, 2011
... though, to be fair, I only drove through 2 of the states (NY & MA.)
Drove a total of about 700 miles over slightly more than 2 days (about 7 hours more.) Ugh.
Ran one race, 13.1 miles, at a glacially slow pace... sigh.
Walked 7.2 miles in 5 different parks in NH and 5.5 miles in 4 different parks in ME.
But it's still nice to be home again.
JMH
Monday, July 25, 2011
... though, to be fair, I only drove through 2 of the states (NY & MA.)
Drove a total of about 700 miles over slightly more than 2 days (about 7 hours more.) Ugh.
Ran one race, 13.1 miles, at a glacially slow pace... sigh.
Walked 7.2 miles in 5 different parks in NH and 5.5 miles in 4 different parks in ME.
But it's still nice to be home again.
JMH
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Saturday, July 23, 2011
2 Mile Walk at Odiorne Point State Park
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Got off to a later start than I originally intended, plus my GPS didn't have the right address for the Seacoast Science Center (it was actually several miles up the coast from where the gizmo thought it was) so I didn't reach Odiorne Point State Park until a little after 6. But that still left plenty of time for a bit of walking before the gates would be locked at 8 PM.
The drive up the coast along route 1A brought back memories of running along there back in 2006 at the Eastern States 20 Mile road race... maybe it's getting to be time to tackle that one again (of course, it helps that the section I drove today is the most scenic part of the course... the really tough miles were the last 8 or so, running through the shoreline towns in March...) I was surprised at how much cooler it was along the shore, and also glad that I wasn't stopping before the park, since there were people everywhere.
The park wasn't very crowded, probably in part due to the late hour... I walked along the shore line and enjoyed the views of the ocean. There were cormorants out on the rocks off the southern end of the park, and further north I found a spot with quite a few gulls and a large number of some sort of duck (including quite a few youngsters.) And of course the rocky shoreline has its own beauty, even if there were far too many boats out in the water for my taste.
Also passed several historical sites, including a marker commemorating the first English settlement and an old WWII Seaman Battery bunker, built during the war to protect the nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Unfortunately I didn't have a trail map with me, so I didn't walk as far as I might have otherwise - I turned around about halfway out to Frost Point and didn't see the second bunker. Another time...
The only minus to walking here was the flies... little buggers that swarmed me whenever I stopped to take pictures and occasionally bit... pretty unpleasant. I had foolishly left the bug spray in the car, so they encouraged me to keep moving and kept me hopping when I was trying to get photos of the birds along the shore. Another point to remember for next time...
JMH
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Got off to a later start than I originally intended, plus my GPS didn't have the right address for the Seacoast Science Center (it was actually several miles up the coast from where the gizmo thought it was) so I didn't reach Odiorne Point State Park until a little after 6. But that still left plenty of time for a bit of walking before the gates would be locked at 8 PM.
The drive up the coast along route 1A brought back memories of running along there back in 2006 at the Eastern States 20 Mile road race... maybe it's getting to be time to tackle that one again (of course, it helps that the section I drove today is the most scenic part of the course... the really tough miles were the last 8 or so, running through the shoreline towns in March...) I was surprised at how much cooler it was along the shore, and also glad that I wasn't stopping before the park, since there were people everywhere.
The park wasn't very crowded, probably in part due to the late hour... I walked along the shore line and enjoyed the views of the ocean. There were cormorants out on the rocks off the southern end of the park, and further north I found a spot with quite a few gulls and a large number of some sort of duck (including quite a few youngsters.) And of course the rocky shoreline has its own beauty, even if there were far too many boats out in the water for my taste.
Also passed several historical sites, including a marker commemorating the first English settlement and an old WWII Seaman Battery bunker, built during the war to protect the nearby Portsmouth Naval Shipyard. Unfortunately I didn't have a trail map with me, so I didn't walk as far as I might have otherwise - I turned around about halfway out to Frost Point and didn't see the second bunker. Another time...
The only minus to walking here was the flies... little buggers that swarmed me whenever I stopped to take pictures and occasionally bit... pretty unpleasant. I had foolishly left the bug spray in the car, so they encouraged me to keep moving and kept me hopping when I was trying to get photos of the birds along the shore. Another point to remember for next time...
JMH
Thursday, July 21, 2011
So Much For Borders Books & Music...
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Well, the writing was on the wall and now the fat lady is getting ready to sing... back at the start of 2011 Borders filed for bankruptcy and closed about 1/3 of their stores in hopes of reorganizing and finding financing to move forward. This week it's become clear that all those efforts have failed and they're starting the process of liquidating their remaining stores and stock. As a Rewards member I received an e-mail from the company CEO explaining that the sales start tomorrow; sounds like all the stores will be closed by the end of September.
I can't say I'm surprised... it's been fairly obvious that Borders continued to be in a lot of trouble, from all the in-store efforts to rearrange things to disguise a distinct decrease in stock levels to the hefty discount coupons I've been receiving. Truth be told, I've found my visits to Barnes & Noble to be much more productive than those to Borders - B&N just plain has a much larger selection these days, including new titles that Borders wasn't getting due to some publishers' unwillingness to ship books to a business that already owes them a boatload of money. So why do I even care?
Partially due to nostalgia... I've spent a lot of fun hours in various Borders stores buying books and music since they first opened around here back in the early 1990's. I miss the Borders of old, with great selections of the varieties of books that I enjoy (at that time, better than Barnes & Noble) and even music I enjoy (not many brick-and-mortar stores carry celtic music... Borders used to have a fantastic selection.)
Partially because I love books and this is another blow to the publishers... there are going to be huge repercussions to their losing a sizeable chunk of shelf space. Publishers downsizing means fewer books and much tougher times for new authors, some of whom might be capable of writing amazing work that I'd really enjoy... if they get the chance.
And partially due to the loss of venues for the book-shopping experience... it's more than just a matter of going somewhere and buying a book I want (after all, I can use Amazon for that from the comfort of home or work!) I have no idea how many times I've shopped at Borders or B&N and ended up stumbling across a book I'd never heard of - that's much more difficult to do on-line. That's why I'm sure I'll be shopping at B&N more often in the future (heck, I'll probably even pay for one of their member cards now, since I started paying for the one at Borders.) Though I have to wonder... how much longer do they have, in a society that seems to place less and less value on actual reading (as opposed to browsing on the internet.)
Then again, perhaps ten years from now I'll have embraced the whole e-books thing and will wonder why I ever put some much time and money into all those silly paper books...
Regardless, I'm going to miss shopping at Borders.
JMH
Thursday, July 21, 2011
Well, the writing was on the wall and now the fat lady is getting ready to sing... back at the start of 2011 Borders filed for bankruptcy and closed about 1/3 of their stores in hopes of reorganizing and finding financing to move forward. This week it's become clear that all those efforts have failed and they're starting the process of liquidating their remaining stores and stock. As a Rewards member I received an e-mail from the company CEO explaining that the sales start tomorrow; sounds like all the stores will be closed by the end of September.
I can't say I'm surprised... it's been fairly obvious that Borders continued to be in a lot of trouble, from all the in-store efforts to rearrange things to disguise a distinct decrease in stock levels to the hefty discount coupons I've been receiving. Truth be told, I've found my visits to Barnes & Noble to be much more productive than those to Borders - B&N just plain has a much larger selection these days, including new titles that Borders wasn't getting due to some publishers' unwillingness to ship books to a business that already owes them a boatload of money. So why do I even care?
Partially due to nostalgia... I've spent a lot of fun hours in various Borders stores buying books and music since they first opened around here back in the early 1990's. I miss the Borders of old, with great selections of the varieties of books that I enjoy (at that time, better than Barnes & Noble) and even music I enjoy (not many brick-and-mortar stores carry celtic music... Borders used to have a fantastic selection.)
Partially because I love books and this is another blow to the publishers... there are going to be huge repercussions to their losing a sizeable chunk of shelf space. Publishers downsizing means fewer books and much tougher times for new authors, some of whom might be capable of writing amazing work that I'd really enjoy... if they get the chance.
And partially due to the loss of venues for the book-shopping experience... it's more than just a matter of going somewhere and buying a book I want (after all, I can use Amazon for that from the comfort of home or work!) I have no idea how many times I've shopped at Borders or B&N and ended up stumbling across a book I'd never heard of - that's much more difficult to do on-line. That's why I'm sure I'll be shopping at B&N more often in the future (heck, I'll probably even pay for one of their member cards now, since I started paying for the one at Borders.) Though I have to wonder... how much longer do they have, in a society that seems to place less and less value on actual reading (as opposed to browsing on the internet.)
Then again, perhaps ten years from now I'll have embraced the whole e-books thing and will wonder why I ever put some much time and money into all those silly paper books...
Regardless, I'm going to miss shopping at Borders.
JMH
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
1 Mile Walk at Tinker Nature Park
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
After running a bunch of errands this morning Ann and I swung by Tinker Nature Park for a short walk in the sweltering heat... no great surprise, not too many other people there! We walked over to the pond and watched the fish swarming a couple of pieces of bread that someone had tossed into the water for them, and spotted a few birds here and there, but for the most part it seemed like even the critters were hunkered down to beat the heat. The woods were a bit cooler, but between the deer flies and having already been blasted by the heat we decided to keep the walk short, and I reconsidered my plans to go for a run this afternoon...
JMH
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
After running a bunch of errands this morning Ann and I swung by Tinker Nature Park for a short walk in the sweltering heat... no great surprise, not too many other people there! We walked over to the pond and watched the fish swarming a couple of pieces of bread that someone had tossed into the water for them, and spotted a few birds here and there, but for the most part it seemed like even the critters were hunkered down to beat the heat. The woods were a bit cooler, but between the deer flies and having already been blasted by the heat we decided to keep the walk short, and I reconsidered my plans to go for a run this afternoon...
JMH
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Evening at Lock CS-1 & Montezuma NWR
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
On our way west we decided to make a side trip to Lock CS-1 and of course Montezuma, to see what we would see... our first surprise was a pair of minks or otters dashing across the route 20 just before we passed the main entrance to the refuge! No photos, unfortunately...
Not much happening at Lock CS-1, lots of swallows swooping around, fish splashing in the lake... and two adult eagles perched in the trees a short way down the lake shore. Must be a lot easier for them now that they don't have to feed their two youngsters.
Back at Montezuma, we were surprised to see water in the pool near the Visitors Center... when we were there Friday that area was dry. Lots of gulls out on the water, as well as a few small wading birds like sandpipers - I've got to get an ID on those, because we saw them on Friday and I watched several of them at the Crossings of Colonie park back in the spring. Two osprey on the nest near the river, and while we were there we saw what looked like another osprey fly off carrying nesting materials.
Along the wildlife drive we saw tons of herons, more waders, and lots of geese, including a group that had parked themselves in the middle of the road. We also spotted several deer coming down to the river to get a drink. The work in the marsh facing the Thruway is proceeding well... by next year there should be some nice new pools over that way.
May's Pool was very busy - herons, swalllows, ducks, a few swans, and what looked like egrets (seems a bit early for them, but what do I know?) We also had several large raptors fly by... one juvenile bald eagle who was starting to get his adult colors, and two young eagles still in the all brown stage, plus what were probably a couple of osprey. And herons. And more herons. And still more herons. In the water, flying over, even off in the trees in the distance. The rookery about ten miles away seems to be doing very well, if the number of herons we saw tonight is any indication.
JMH
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
On our way west we decided to make a side trip to Lock CS-1 and of course Montezuma, to see what we would see... our first surprise was a pair of minks or otters dashing across the route 20 just before we passed the main entrance to the refuge! No photos, unfortunately...
Not much happening at Lock CS-1, lots of swallows swooping around, fish splashing in the lake... and two adult eagles perched in the trees a short way down the lake shore. Must be a lot easier for them now that they don't have to feed their two youngsters.
Back at Montezuma, we were surprised to see water in the pool near the Visitors Center... when we were there Friday that area was dry. Lots of gulls out on the water, as well as a few small wading birds like sandpipers - I've got to get an ID on those, because we saw them on Friday and I watched several of them at the Crossings of Colonie park back in the spring. Two osprey on the nest near the river, and while we were there we saw what looked like another osprey fly off carrying nesting materials.
Along the wildlife drive we saw tons of herons, more waders, and lots of geese, including a group that had parked themselves in the middle of the road. We also spotted several deer coming down to the river to get a drink. The work in the marsh facing the Thruway is proceeding well... by next year there should be some nice new pools over that way.
May's Pool was very busy - herons, swalllows, ducks, a few swans, and what looked like egrets (seems a bit early for them, but what do I know?) We also had several large raptors fly by... one juvenile bald eagle who was starting to get his adult colors, and two young eagles still in the all brown stage, plus what were probably a couple of osprey. And herons. And more herons. And still more herons. In the water, flying over, even off in the trees in the distance. The rookery about ten miles away seems to be doing very well, if the number of herons we saw tonight is any indication.
JMH
Monday, July 18, 2011
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Close Encounter on a Dark Country Road...
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Driving down Route 2 in Grafton at 1:30 in the morning and spotted a critter in the middle of my lane - I'm pretty sure it was facing away from me and looked back over its shoulder just before I wrenched the wheel to try to avoid it. Didn't feel any impact, though I scared the heck out of Ann who was dozing in the passenger seat.
Turned around a little ways up the road and went back to see if there was anything in the road... no sign of the critter, so maybe it made it away OK. Turned around again and we finished the trip back to Albany. I wasn't all that sure what I'd avoided hitting, except that it didn't look like a raccoon or anything else I'm used to seeing... maybe a porcupine? If so I'm bummed, because I've always wanted to see one in the wild and this was way too brief a glimpse...
When we went out to the car this afternoon it became very clear that it was indeed a porcupine and that it had a much too close call with my front tire:
I certainly hope the porcupine made it through the experience OK (other than leaving a bunch of reminders of our early morning encounter in my tire.)
JMH
Sunday, July 17, 2011
Driving down Route 2 in Grafton at 1:30 in the morning and spotted a critter in the middle of my lane - I'm pretty sure it was facing away from me and looked back over its shoulder just before I wrenched the wheel to try to avoid it. Didn't feel any impact, though I scared the heck out of Ann who was dozing in the passenger seat.
Turned around a little ways up the road and went back to see if there was anything in the road... no sign of the critter, so maybe it made it away OK. Turned around again and we finished the trip back to Albany. I wasn't all that sure what I'd avoided hitting, except that it didn't look like a raccoon or anything else I'm used to seeing... maybe a porcupine? If so I'm bummed, because I've always wanted to see one in the wild and this was way too brief a glimpse...
When we went out to the car this afternoon it became very clear that it was indeed a porcupine and that it had a much too close call with my front tire:
I certainly hope the porcupine made it through the experience OK (other than leaving a bunch of reminders of our early morning encounter in my tire.)
JMH
Saturday, July 16, 2011
Friday, July 15, 2011
Monday, July 11, 2011
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Saturday, July 09, 2011
Friday, July 08, 2011
Wednesday, July 06, 2011
Monday, July 04, 2011
Sunday, July 03, 2011
Saturday, July 02, 2011
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