the Way of the Turtle

HELLO MOON!
1.9 Mile Walk Around Buckingham Lake
Tuesday, February 7, 2012

Stopped at Buckingham Lake for a walk before heading out on some errands, and heard a small group of ducks over on the section of open water back near the marshy end of the pond. It's not the mobs that were there in the spring and fall but it's still good to hear them calling. I was a bit surprised by the cold, especially after the last two days have been very mild - but then the temperature drops rapidly when the sun goes down and reminds us that yes, it is still February.

On my first lap I watched the crows streaming across the sky to wherever they were roosting tonight - always an incredible sight. Since it was getting dark, I had pretty much resigned myself to not seeing much else (other than the occasional dog walker) and then was surprised on my last lap by the sight of a beautiful yellowish full moon rising, surrounded by a few hazy clouds. While there are numerous possible explanations as to why the moon appears larger when it's lower in the sky, the one thing everyone seems to agree on is that it's all in our heads - time lapse photography shows that the moon is the same size as it moves from the horizon to points higher in the sky. All I know is it was quite a spectacular sight tonight, especially since I wasn't expecting it.

JMH