Believe me, neither can I sometimes, and I was born and raised here.

Maggie was a boxer who belonged to the guy who used to cut my hair. She was always with him, and she was such a good dog. She--Maggie--usually had her nails painted. Quite elegant and so appropriate for where she "worked!"

Another new venture for me. This is for #RedWed. #photography #Canon #Boxer
This paw belongs to the estimable Maggie. See ALT text for Maggie's story.

A tiny waterfall on Dead Horse Creek, on the same-named trail, at Mt. Rainier National Park. That name Dead Horse Creek, has always intrigued me, and many years ago I promised myself that one day I would write a story about it. Fictional, of course! Getting on time I did so... Oh, and of course that is the famous mountain beyond the meadows. I managed to be there at the right time for the wildflower bloom the year this was taken. It was the lupines in bloom, in particular, that entrapped me. I love the state I live in, but for me, this place is its, and my, heart and soul.

Venturing into something new today. This is for #WaterfallWednesday
#ECK #WCK #PNW #WashingtonState #waterfalls #MRNP #MtRainier #DeadHorse #photography #Canon
See ALT text for more.

For today's #BirdOfTheDay #SplashingAround #photography #ECK #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #WCK #Canon #birds #ducks #Mallard
Always a favorite pass time, and a challenge, trying to catch a good splash!

Legacy media in context-free freakout over ‘Democratic power grab’ in Virginia The Washington Post is deeply concerned that Virginia’s “yes” vote Tuesday to allow a new congressional map is a “Democratic power grab” that “plunges America deeper into the gerrymandering abyss.”

Democracy Docket’s coverage of Virginia has taken a different approach — making clear from the start the obvious and crucial point that the redraw is an effort to level the national playing field in response to Trump’s scheme.
www.democracydocket.com/news-alerts/...

Thank you!

For today's #BirdOfTheDay Alt theme: #WhatTheFlock #photography #ECK #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #WCK #birds #Canon #HoodedMerganser
These guys remind me of warriors, armed & ready--it's the white stripes on their backs--makes me think of sharp knives. Their "hoods & beaks" complete the impression.

“In fact, it is even more evident today than in years past that the proliferation of armed conflicts is often driven by the exploitation of oil and mineral deposits, occurring with no regard for international law or the self-determination of peoples.” - Pope Leo

As seen in the Seattle Asian Art Museum.

I only saw the Mandarin Duck that one time. It wasn't too hard to identify as it's so distinctive, but then too, later on, I made a positive I.D when on a museum visit:

For today's #BirdOfTheDay #ABCD #photography #ECK #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #WCK #birds #Canon
American Robin, Barn Owl, American Crow, Mandarin Duck (per Sibley Birds West)

Click on the first two pics to expand them--especially the second one.

Whoops! Forgot to click post on this yesterday...for yesterday's #BirdOfTheDay #DucksOutOfWater #photography #ECK #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #WCK #birds #Canon

‪For today's #BirdOfTheDay #FeederFriends + alt. #Waders #photography #ECK #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #WCK #birds #Canon #HouseSparrow #GreatBlueHeron
Saturdays my friends & I used to walk the lake, & we usually stop at a local bakery, where this house sparrow forsook feeders for a table watch...

Rob, you need to either compile your pics and alt text in a book, or just write a book! I'm sill laughing and smiling...

To state the obvious (but being forgotten by many), we didn’t need to go to war to open the Strait of Hormuz. It was already open. To claim this outcome as a war achievement is paradoxical.

#TheatreFriday - The Theatre of Arykanda (SW Turkey) is striking not for its size but for its dramatic setting on a steep mountainside overlooking the valley. Built in the mid-1st century BC for 3,000 people, it blends natural terrain with Greco-Roman design and hosted performances and civic events.

Photo of Mary Robinette Kowal speaking

Photo of Mary Robinette Kowal and Ken Liu on stage at Beyond the Cradle with their panel moderator.

Photo of Mary Robinette Kowal and Ken Liu on stage

The Beyond the Cradle stage with astronauts sitting in conversation.

I want to thank MIT for inviting me to be a guest speaker at Beyond the Cradle: Envisioning a New Space Age 2026. It was lovely sharing the stage with Ken Liu, and there were so. many. astronauts.

More Crops Grown for Fuel and Livestock Feed Than for People, New Study Finds Cutting back on beef and biofuels could help improve food security and mitigate climate emissions.

Cutting back on beef and biofuels could help improve food security and mitigate climate emissions.

Congress Votes to Extend Expiring Law on Warrantless Surveillance for 10 Days

It's so funny to me that Trump pushed the GOP to extend FISA after bitching for years that it was used to "spy" on his campaign. Surveillance on thee but not on me! www.nytimes.com/2026/04/17/u...

“You gotta learn AI or get left behind!” is a bit galling given that the entire purpose of AI seems to be to steal our work and fuck our brains and shit up the planet, which is to say, its GOAL is to leave us all behind. That, in order to make its owners rich.

17/4/18 On this day: Queso between wags!

17/4/21 On this day: Tropical cheese 🌴

17/4/22 On this day: Guac was not impressed with his bunny ears

White sheep and lamb walking along a sandy beach. Lamb in front ewe behind. Green hills in background

A walk on the beach #Shetland

“If I finish a book a week, I will read only a few thousand books in my lifetime, about a tenth of a percent of the contents of the greatest libraries of our time. The trick is to know which books to read.”

― Carl Sagan

Read the text of this invite below. It is crazed.

'Ellison’s decision to spend time in Washington “honoring” a White House that has made demonizing the press central to its playbook has outraged staffers at CBS News.' www.status.news/p/david-elli...

It should be mandatory for every Republican in Congress & the admin to write out one week of groceries for a family of 4 - everything they need - then drive to a grocery store and put each item in a cart, then pay for those items with their own money, then get a full tank of gas.

Then get back to us about how great everything is.

"The masters of war pretend not to know that it takes only a moment to destroy, yet a lifetime is often not enough to rebuild. They turn a blind eye to the fact that billions of dollars are spent on killing and devastation, yet the resources needed for healing, education and restoration are nowhere to be found." -Pope Leo XIV

As far as I can tell, this is a hybrid duck. The head is brown, similar to a Mallard's. It has its head turned with beak buried in the feathers on its back. Those feathers are a mixture of white ones mixed in with various shaded brown feathers. The background is solid, though is grey water. A few long, pointed green leaves are seen on either side of the duck.

A head shot of a male Mallard in the sun, green head shining, beak open, with a bead of water dripping off its lower beak, with greenish-brown water behind.

A closeup of a lady Mallard, head in the sunshine with water dripping off her beak. Shallow water is behind, with the lake bottom visible in some parts of the background.

A Great Blue Heron, in as near a closeup as could be managed. It's next is curved a bit, with its long beak pointing down a bit.

For today's #BirdOfTheDay #HeadShots #photography #ECK #EastCoastKin #WestCoastKin #WCK #birds #Canon 3 ducks: a hybrid, 2 Mallards, & a Great Blue Heron. I've done the best I could with the lens I have. Say that I aspire but despair of having anything more than a 300mm.