Social Phenom Lost

The character Michael Scott

Tonight was the next to last episode of The Office as it was originally configured - a situation comedy with a large cast that has run since

The cast of Bloom County

2005. There were times when the scripts got a little too crude, but in general, and good time to watch - some shows make you laugh, some make you cringe from the stupidity, others leave you just smiling (1). The series will continue, but the main character, Michael Scott, will move on after next week's episode - we will see how long the series lasts without him. Our daughter and son-in-law introduced us to the series several years ago when visiting. As we were coming upstairs after turning off the television, I commented that The Office ranks up there with the Bloom County and Calvin and Hobbs -

Bloom County comic strip banner

comic strips that have come and gone their own way after a solid run of me following them. Such it is. "You will move on," my wife said. These virtuosos are their own reward (2) - art in motion, enjoyed while it lasted in that space of time.
_____________________________
(1) This scene was a off-take from a viral YouTube wedding dance video - over 64-million hits.

(2) The title of guitarist Leo Kottke's song from his album A Shout Towards Noon.
_____________________________
You can view a Washington Post post mortem of the last episode with Steve Carell, click here.

Aurora Borealis Entertainment

I have only seen the Aurora Borealis once - on a Northwest Airlines flight one night from Minneapolis or Detroit to Portland. While browsing over the Baltimore Sun on line this evening, I saw a time lapse video by Terje Sorgjerd titled The Mountain set to music. One look, and I was hooked on his work and that of the composer Ludovico Einaudi (1). I then saw The Aurora. An Aurora is luminous phenomenon of Earth’s upper atmosphere that occurs primarily in high latitudes of both hemispheres; auroras in the Northern Hemisphere 

Aurora Borealis

are called aurora borealis, and in the Southern Hemisphere, aurora australis. Auroras are caused by the interaction of energetic particles from outside the atmosphere with atoms of the upper atmosphere. Such interaction occurs in zones surrounding Earth’s magnetic poles. During periods of intense solar activity, auroras occasionally extend to the middle latitudes; for example, the aurora borealis has been seen as far south as 40° latitude in the United States. Auroras take many forms, including luminous curtains, arcs, bands, and patches. The uniform arc is the most stable form of aurora, sometimes persisting for hours without noticeable variation. However, in a great display other forms appear, commonly undergoing dramatic variation. The lower edges of the arcs and folds

Earth's magnetic field

are usually much more sharply defined than the upper parts. Greenish rays may cover most of the sky poleward of the magnetic zenith, ending in an arc that is usually folded and sometimes edged with a lower red border that may ripple like drapery. The display ends with a poleward retreat of the auroral forms, the rays gradually degenerating into diffuse areas of white light. Auroras receive their energy from charged particles traveling between the Sun and Earth along bundled, ropelike magnetic fields. The particles are driven by the solar wind, captured by the Earth's magnetic field, and conducted downward toward the magnetic poles. They collide with oxygen and nitrogen atoms, knocking away electrons to leave ions in excited states. These ions emit radiation at various wavelengths, creating the characteristic red or greenish blue colors of the aurora. (2)
_______________________________
(1) Ludovico Einaudi composer and pianist, his songs deeply evocative and emotional impact it has made ​​today one of the artists most appreciated and popular on the European scene. (translated from the composer's Facebook page using Google translate. Artist Biography: Pianist and composer Ludovico Einaudi was born in Turin, November 23, 1955. His mother, also a pianist, would play for him as a young child, planting the seeds for what would become a fruitful, illustrious career. Einaudi studied under Luciano Berio at the Conservatory of Milan, graduating with a diploma in composition. In 1982 his talents would win him a scholarship to the Tanglewood Music Festival. The experience opened Einaudi's ears to new ideas like minimalism, world music influences and aspects of pop music. He spent the next several years composing for the ballet, including Sul Filo d'Orfeo (1984), Time-Out (1988) and The Wild Man (1991). Einaudi turned a corner in 1996 with the release of his first collection of solo performances, entitled Le Onde. This record started Einaudi down the path towards becoming one of Europe's best selling pianist/composers. 1999's Eden Roc and 2001's I Giorni, both for BMG, captured the solo piano world's attention, both remaining best-sellers for years to come. While seemingly at the top of the composition world, Einaudi ventured into the world of film composition, a journey punctuated by his Best Film Score award in 2002 for his work on Luce Die Miei Occhi. Einaudi noted interviews during that period that he missed concretizing, and began performing again regularly. New works blossomed from this effort, including 2004's Una Mattina and 2006's Diario Mali. 2007 welcomed Einaudi's seventh studio album, titled Divenire, where he is accompanied by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. ~ Evan C. Gutierrez, Rovi

(2) Adapted from Encyclopedia Britannica on-line (click here).

Natural Portrait Lighting Effect

Brown-headed Cowbird

This image of a Brown-headed Cowbird reminds me of a formal portrait sitting where the subject's head is highlighted by directed lighting. Of course, the effect here is due to the brown head color difference from the jet black rest of the bird's body. This is my first sighting of this species - there was one male (the subject) and two females. The females kept working the seed feeder, while the male was perched on the supporting pole. There was a little action on the ground as well, but the three of them were off after about five minutes. As usual, if I hadn't looked out the kitchen window when they arrived, I would have never seen this trio. Like the Red-winged Blackbirds earlier in the year, I think these were transients passing through - maybe the result of the strong winds that came with last night's storm.

Rusty Caps - Chipping Sparrow

The week before last, there was a new bird in our backyard. Many of the sparrows are similar - LBB's (little brown birds), but I am starting to get used to looking for specific markings that are unique to the different species. It was easy to see that this was a new one - a rusty capped sparrow? No, that is the page title in the RTP field guide (1) - Chipping Sparrow was the correct identification. The following description is lifted from Wikipedia and gives a good description.

In eastern North America, Chipping Sparrows breed in woodlands, farmlands, and suburban and urban districts. In western North America, the Chipping Sparrow prefers conifer forests for breeding. The Chipping Sparrow is partially migratory, with almost all mid-latitude and high-latitude breeders withdrawing in winter to the southern United States and Mexico. On the wintering grounds and during migration, Chipping Sparrows are gregarious, forming tight flocks with other Chipping Sparrows or loose assemblages with other 

Chipping Sparrow

species such as Eastern Bluebirds and Pine Warblers. Throughout the year, Chipping Sparrows forage on the ground, often in loose flocks. Their diet consists mainly of seeds and crumbs of mostly any food, especially those fallen on the ground. Chipping Sparrows frequently forage directly from forbs and grasses, too. At any time of the year, especially, in spring, Chipping Sparrows may be seen in trees, even up in the canopy, where they forage on fresh buds and glean for arboreal arthropods. Although they are wary, Chipping Sparrows often allow close approach. A quiet observer can often get to within 50–100 feet of one or more Chipping Sparrows feeding on the ground. When spooked, Chipping Sparrows fly a short distance to the nearest tree or fencerow. In early spring, the first migrants return from their wintering grounds in March, but the bulk of migrants arrives throughout April. Males set up territories right away, and their trilled songs make them conspicuous. Breeding begins as early as April, but again, most nesting activity occurs from late April to early May onwards. Molt in the Chipping Sparrow follows the "Complex Alternate Strategy" as usual for American sparrows. It consequently has two molts per year as adults and three molts in their first year of life, also called their first plumage-cycle. The Chipping Sparrow's two adult molts occur in late summer and late winter. Although this bird's original habitat was probably coniferous forest, especially the eastern subspecies has adapted well to the changes brought about by increased human population in its range.
___________________________
(1) RTP field guide: Roger Tory Peterson, A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America (hard cover, of course).

Wisconsin Prespring Birding

I had a meeting in Madison earlier in the week, so flew into Milwaukee and drove up to Hilbert in Calumet County to visit my uncle for a few hours while on my way. We got together about 22 months ago when I

Ancient Army warrior in USNA cap

had another meeting in Madison, but everything was in full leaf then and the area looked exotic, almost alien - this time the trees were still bare, and by my uncle's account, the lawns had just greened up that week. We drove up to Forest Junction to a favorite restaurant of his - all the waitresses know him - had a lunch special, and then headed out for an afternoon of driving around the county seeing Lake Winnebago, the two large mega-dairies, the Veolia Hickory Meadow Landfill that is now the 

Birds of Wisconsin place mat

highest point in the county, a cousin in Brillion, and lots of rolling corn and soybean ground - bare still with stalks standing brown where they have been since autumn - red barns with field rock foundations, and white farm houses. Lake Winnebago still was mostly frozen, as were the small water bodies like Bullhead Lake. Minnesota may be called the Land of Ten Thousand Lakes, but it seemed that Wisconsin could hold a close second. As for America's Dairyland, the days of a dairy with 50 cows for every 100 acres are over.

The ruralness of the drive from Milwaukee to Hilbert to Madison and back to Milwaukee stood out more this trip than last. So much so, that I drove the entire time with the radio off. I just observed the countryside, reading the road signs, being careful of my speed - some of the small towns along the way obviously use their village boundaries as income generators, and the rolling topography is better than a curve along a freeway to hide a patrol officer's car and waiting radar gun. To go along with all of the open spaces was my running check-off list of birds sighted.

Dead Golden Eagle 

along northbound Interstate 43,
they are really large close up,
speeding by at 65 mph.

Peregrine Falcon (1)

on top of a tree,

to the right of Highway 151 -
Madison an hour away.

Red-tailed Hawk,

American Kestrel.

Red-wing Blackbirds,

every five seconds driving, 

everywhere. 

Canada Geese, 

not as many as the blackbirds, 

but many on ponds and flooded fields
and formations in the sky.

Mallard Duck

Long-tailed Duck

Tundra Swan

and Great Egret.

Glaucous Gull,
white beneath its wings,
flying overhead.

American Robin,

 Eastern Meadowlark, only one,

Downy Woodpecker.

Tree Swallow,
darting in and out of its nest box,
 in front of a small wetland,
mega dairy barns in the distance,
five thousand cows resting.

American Crow and

Turkey Vulture.

Lots of other small birds, 

impossible to identify while driving.

I wondered once, 

a flash of blue, 

would that have been my first 

Eastern Bluebird.

A good Website with a list of Wisconsin bird species and their status is found here, which is a from the All Bird Plan - a part of the Wisconsin Bird Conservation Initiative. Photographs for a Wisconsin bird list can be found here, a site hosted by the Wisconsin Society for Ornithology.
____________________________
(1) Interestingly, today in the Portland Oregonian newspaper, there was an article about how well Peregrine Falcon are faring in the urban environment there - front page Web news. Click here, to view the article.

Aves de Guatemala en Tela

As usual, the timing and the place weren't exactly right for serious outdoor birding during my short business trip to Antigua in Guatemala. Little did I know the most diverse birding opportunity I would see was in the El Mercadito across the street from the Central Park. However, I 

Central Park in Antigua, Guatemala

did get to see some new live birds - the first were seen while taxiing after landing at Guatemala City airport - Great-tailed Grackle that were frequenting the turf areas next to the tarmac. While driving from the airport to the hotel in Antigua - about an hour drive with mid-day traffic - there were many more grackle along the way as well as House Sparrow. Even though I went prepared for this trip - I had briefly gone
through my copy of Howell and Webb's Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America to become familiar with the different kinds of families - my brain hickuped, because I didn't take my travel binoculars.

Embroidered birds on woven cloth (detail)

Regardless, I still got some decent viewings. Along with many more grackles were White-winged Dove and Clay-colored Robin. There were also hummingbirds, but without binoculars and good lighting, it is impossible to even take a guess at which species I saw - there are 37 species of hummingbirds in Guatemala, far more than I would have imagined until I looked at a bird list for the country. The most exotic sighting though, happened while a group of us were sitting out on the patio at the hotel, when a blueish-colored bird flew in front of us, across the length of the grounds. I got a good look at the bird during its few second flight from left to right - after checking my birding guide, I decided it was a White-crowned Parrot. There were other smallish species, but without binoculars and time to stalk or sit-and-wait, there was little chance to figure out what I saw.

Guatemala, and especially the area around Antigua, is know for the sales of products sold by local artisans, especially textiles. Vendors are found all spread out along the streets selling small blankets or scarves - along with many other handicrafts. After having a late afternoon coffee

Artesanias Gloria holding a loom

at a small bistro, we went into the El Mercadito to view the different wares that were for sale inside there. I specifically wanted to look for peasant art. As I began to stroll past the booths, vendors standing in front would call out prices whether you made eye contact or not. After a short time, I knew I wanted to focus on folk paintings and woven cloth. A trick I learned in China was to keep asking vendor after vendor what price they wanted for a kind of item I was interested in - that typically would establish the range of starting prices the sales people were working from. (I emailed a friend of mine from work who has traveled extensively what was a fair negotiating price, and received a reply the next day that when ready to buy, begin offers at 25% of the starting

Many embroidered birds

price, and not go above 30%.) After walking straight to the end of the first hallway between vendors, and then up an incline to the left and then right, I walked to the end of another lane of vendors and made a jog to right and then straight ahead. At the end on the left (before turning right and then down a decline) was a display of textiles made by Mayan Cakchiquel people and tended by Artesanias Gloria. One of my companions was fluent in Spanish, so we asked questions about what she was selling, how much, and her willingness to negotiate prices. There was a sign at the entrance of El Mercadito that read "No Photographs," so we asked if it was alright to take some pictures - she smiled and said "Si." When she asked if we wanted to buy, we said not today, but that we would return "tomorrow." In Spanish she said we had nice faces, and offered prices that were lower than the beginning quotes, and gave both of us a woven book marker.

We didn't have time the next day, but did return to El Mercadito the last evening of our trip. Again, we  checked the prices as we walked along the rows of vendors in front of their stalls, stopping to look at

Quetzal, Coffee, and Mayan Temple

pieces of interest and asking prices. After looking at several displayed textiles, I made my way back to Gloria's stall - the quality of her textiles were noticeably of higher quality than the others we had looked at. It came down to deciding: the piece with the many birds, or another showing a pair of matching Quetzal (Pharomachrus mocinno) birds along with coffee plants and a Mayan temple that represented a mountain - the detailed piece with the many birds was more than 1,000 Quetzal (1), the later with only two birds, 500 Q. Even though both of these were hand made, I didn't want to pay more than $50, so Gloria and I settled on 400 Q for the less elaborate piece - we were both satisfied.

Like the elusive plentiful tropical species of birds found in Guatemala, so was the purchase of my first choice of a textile with many birds as the subject. If I return to Antigua and El Mercadito, and if Gloria is still tending the wares made by the Cakchiquel people, I think I will get a piece with all of the different birds of Guatemala - no matter how poor of a price negotiator I am. (2)
_______________________________
(1) The Resplendent Quetzal, Pharomachrus mocinno, is found from

Pharomachrus mocinn

southern Mexico to western Panama. This bird is well known for its colorful
plumage, and plays an important role in Central American mythology. It is Guatemala's national bird - an image of it is on the national flag and coat of arms, and it is also the name of the the local currency. The use of an important symbol for the name of a nation's currency reminds me of how in Botswana, a very arid country, the name of its currency is the Pula, the same word for water.

(2) Another topic I will research ahead of time before my next trip is finding out whether a vendor represents a cooperative that ensure fair trade pricing and return of value to the people who produce the products.

Spring Has Sprung

A few flowers in the backyard have already bloomed, but the tulips and daffodils are still lagging behind. My neighbor has been plugging holes in his house's siding that have served as nests for house finches (a). We had the same problem four years ago when we first lived here, but I covered the entrances back then, and other than a few scratching sounds when the birds have tried to catch a foot hold, there have been no incidences since. The crocus have passed their time in bloom, but these two bulbs (b, c) and the periwinkle (Vinca major) (d) are what were out today. My neighbor pointed out when using an insulation foam to plug holes in the siding, it is important not to scape off the excess cap of foam too soon before the entire load has dried underneath. Otherwise it comes oozing back out like a small magma flow through a lava tube, and then cascades down the side of the house. No problem, just extra work with a paint scraper.