Wednesday, November 08, 2006

a gift

We all received a gift yesterday, a reprieve from the rain. A big wind blew in and took the clouds away. While I was waiting for the dust to clear over at Em's apartment(will explain later!), Emma and I took off to Chase River Estuary for one of our final looks at the running salmon. We had come the day before but had to leave the camera at home due to rains. There were eagles everywhere...everywhere. I must have seen 30 eagles, there for the salmon. They were roosting in old snarled tree limbs trying in vain to dry their feathers. It was most fantastic and I was beside myself for a camera. Yesterday, all I found was this one flying directly overhead. The river is fast and high from all the rains. The salmon that remain here at the estuary probably will not make it to the spawning grounds. They are weak and sick and near the end, and the new-found rush of water is too much for them. I tried to photograph some, but though I can see into the water, it seems my camera cannot.
Found this old Datsun pickup dumped here...the same colour as the sky. I would savour an old Datsun myself. 1972 B510, to be exact, just like my first and favourite car, but an old Datsun pickup would be pretty sweet, too.
Here is our path...a little muddy, to be sure, but passable again.
Another view of Nanaimo...
We walk here at least three times a week, sometimes more. I have passed this tree two hundred times if I have passed it once. Look what I found after all the rain and wind...now that I know there is a nest here, I will keep a watch out this spring and summer to see what happens. Exciting, isn't it?
One very late Wooley Bear Caterpillar...I doubt he'll make it this year, but you just never know, do you? At first I nearly deleted this photo since you can barely see the caterpillar, but after I saw all the sun spots and sunbeams, I realized that it might actually become one of my favourites. What do you think?



And one last note: I received a very last minute invitation...I don't know how in the hell they found me or why they thought I would respond.

Capital High School, class of 1986 reunion, Nov. 10, Pellegrino's Tyee Convention Center, Tumwater. Contact Reunions Unlimited at 360-866-8842, e-mail reunions@reunionsunlimited.com or go to www.reunionsunlimited.com.


HA HA HA HA HA oh, to be a fly on the wall... I did consider putting on dark sunglasses, carrying a white cane, a giant hearing aid and shuffling in just so I could gawk(behind my very dark glasses) ...is that very wrong of me? I couldn't possibly talk to anyone there...but I wonder what CM looks like now.....still dreamy?!?

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

I really like the caterpillar shot too. I'm glad the rains have cleared for you!

School reunions? Shudder...

katy said...

yeah i agree that caterpillar photo is very good, mind all the others are too.

Crafty Missus said...

they are all nice shots. you should reply to the reunion invite with a big YUCK!

Biddie said...

Yup, I love the caterpillar shot, too. I have never been to school reunion, either. Wouldn't go, not for a million dollars. It would be cool to be a fly on the wall, tho....

CindyDianne said...

We have a roosting pair of eagles on the ranch in Oklahoma. I thought it was odd when they first showed up. But, they are super cool. We do worry about the "Head of Ranch Security", Cowboy the Chihuahua, what with the eagles and the coyete there.

I LOVE the wooly catipillar pic, with the sunshine...nice job, that.

ldbug said...

Ahhhh, now I know where all this rain came from! You guys blew it down;-)

I also went to a Capital High...though it's in Montana, and our reunion is this July, yikes!!!

gawilli said...

I have never seen an eagle in the wild. That must be breathtaking. I get tingles just from the hawks. Like the Wooley Bear... many interesting things to see in that picture.

Anonymous said...

I didn't go to my high school's 25th reunion, but my good friend did. She said it was so affirming for her...one of the cute, perky, popular cheerleaders was 50 pounds overweight, was on her 4th husband (having left the captain of the football team in the dust) and was downright miserable. For those of us who lived on the fringes of the "in" crowd and actually liked geography class, miracles do happen. Go, little caterpillar, go!

dilling said...

There are about five people I would like to see...they have not confirmed they are going...everyone I liked enough in high school to stay in contact with, I am in contact with. I had very good friends in high school, most of whom were not actually in my class...like I said, I would LOVE to see what everyone looks like...it is the side of me I don't always like...I want to see the fat cheerleaders, the jocks with paunch... except I want CM to still be buff and beautiful...he was a good guy with a kind heart and STILL the most popular jock...a really decent guy unaffected by cliques... there were a couple of folks like that...but they don't seem to be going to the reunion. I am so overwhelmed with the need to just SEE everyone...but I must recall the words that have completely helped me in my life...
"If you compare yourself with others, you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself."