02/07/2006

Crows, the bird park and movies of morning light


It's early. Well, for me it's not early or late. I'm in the twilight zone these days, me and my knee. But the light is still young, the kind that falls at an easy angle and quickens what it touches. Nevertheless, before leaving to work out, Mr. Lee closed down the house, shut night's graciously flung open doors and windows, and lowered the blinds in preparation for the oncoming heat ... closed all but my window that is, the one by my bed. We compromised on that. My window gets to remain open about a foot, blind to the opening, until he gets back. After that it too closes. It's enough. I am delighted. I see the quiet light, and hear the occasional bird. Just so you are prepared, I did a little movie of the light this morning and will post it later. No, it's not 5 minutes long. It's about 30 seconds long. This one is made for Americans, my concession after Mr. Lee bitched so much about having to watch the 5 minute video of cold tubbing pigeons.

Speaking of birds, my poor Bird Park is all but shut down since my knee operation. Mr. Lee has a very different philosophy about birds. It goes something like this, "They're wild and should stay that way". I freely admit that I lure birds here for my own selfish pleasure. I'm not a "bird watcher" like people who know the names of all the birds, their habitats and interesting quirks. Perhaps it is even true that I am disturbing the balance of nature. Perhaps there are generations of birds coming here who would not otherwise have survived. Good! Anyway, I'm not so sure that the "Balance of Nature" doesn't include a friendly hand here and there. Anyway, I need a little life around me and birds are easy to bribe. I also freely admit that I have a rather obsessive idea of keeping feeders filled and water fresh. I mean FILLED, twice a day when it comes to the seeds and clean, scrubbed tubs and fresh water as needed. Sure birds drink dirty water but so would I if I had to.

So my Bird Park has fallen on hard times but it's happened before. In fact, the little bastards don't have much loyality in the first place. When things get low, off they go back to Dwayne's. He is my neighbor with the big trees and lawn. The birds prefer his place to our scrubby, desert not-landscape but I don't blame 'em. Worms and bugs hang out in nice, moist areas. Dwayne even has a quail family living in his giant, sprawling, nest of a Navaho willow. The babies are too little to make the fense yet but their parents come over here for a little of the sunflower seed action, but I know they're just slumming.

Minerva is different though. In the first place, crows don't mind harsh terrain. They're big and tough and just hop over crap. Quail are sweet but they are putzes who don't even like to fly, what to speak of hop, if they even could. Maybe they would be more inclined to hop if they wore baseball caps instead of those haute Paris creations but no. Quail insist on being dapper at all times. But back to Minerva. She is loyal and has been coming around for more than a year. She dropped in the other day and I actually hobbled out to give her some peanuts while she watched from the top of Dick's house. You may wonder how I knew that this particular crow was Minerva. I wish it was because I have special crow mojo and know their language etc. etc., but I don't. Minerva has a whitish feather on her left shoulder and a funny, irregular feather sticking out of her right wing. She travels alone or with one friend and comes in the afternoon, not with the squawking brunch bunch. She's older and has aged noticably since last year. The hard winter, I suppose. She is an irregular regular at the Bird Park and gets special treatment. Otherwise, things have grown pretty quiet here. Not much kibitzing in the tiny trees, although a little black bird did sit on one of the 2 foot junipers the other day. That's initiation for a tree. They'll be back though. Oh yes. Once I can get outside and start pumping the seeds into the system, the little bastards will be back.

One last thing about crows and loyality. The other day Mr. Lee was mountain biking up in the Pine Nuts when he came upon a flock of crows circling above a particular spot in the desert. They weren't disturbed to see him so he got off his bike to see what they were hovering over. Usually it's something tasty like a dead mouse or bit of rabbit but this day it was not. Mr. Lee tells me they were circling around and around a particular, small, black, pyramid-shaped stone. He said they told him they wanted me to have it. They also told him to make clear to me that it's on loan.




01/07/2006

Beatbaby #4



Happy July 1st!
This is a special day for me marking a Flight to Freedom that, it could be said, I'd have been better off not needing to take in the first place. But you never know. I don't want to underestimate the value, or is it the necessity, of the long, winding road. It was a hard won escape that I, we, took which I celebrate today. Here's to freedom!


I spent a little time hanging out over at the Phrontistery (FRON-tis-te-ri) this morning, (n a thinking-place). Forthright's (a.k.a Steve Chrisomalis) language treasure trove. Great place if you haven't been there. I just found out about it this morning myself. Anyway, when digging around in his Compendium of Lost Words I found "fabrefaction", a word which vanished from the English language in 1678, only 26 years after it first appeared. It's a fine word and obviously eager to be part of things again because it followed me home and immediately worked itself into this latest episode of Beat Baby.














30/06/2006

Driftwork submissions deadline


Monday July 10th as the submissions deadline for the first issue of Driftwork. The release date is July 13th. This publication is digest-sized and saddle-stitched with a card stock cover, like most little magazines. Page count will depend on amount of quality work we have by the printing deadline. This issue will be, like any other, from one to multiples of four pages.

We are open to any subject, any style: poetry, black & white art and photography, fiction, flash fiction, biography, rants, reviews, serialized work...etcetera. Previously published and simultaneous submissions are okay.

Contributors will be notified whether or not they have been accepted by the 12th of July. Payment is 2 copies with extra copies at cost. The price for this first issue is currently undetermined but it is safe to say it will be less than the cost of a kidney transplant or knee surgery.

Please email submissions to: driftworkATgmail.com. Be sure to include a three line bio. Attachments are NOT acceptable. Initially, only send work in the body of your email. If we want to see more we will contact you for an attachment.

Submit your work without fear of rejection. The best of writers have sometimes papered their walls with rejection slips they have received along the way. We may not be able to use an excellent piece simply because it does not fit into the drift of a particular issue. Please consider sending something.









29/06/2006

An inconvenient truth, global warming


An Inconvenient Truth is the name of Al Gore's latest book. A documentary, same name, has also just been released. Laurie Lennard (Larry David's wife) is one of the producers. You may have already watched it but if not, here are links to an interview Jon Stewart did of Gore on the 28th. Between them they cover a lot of ground. It's very interesting, well worth your time and worth passing along to your friends. I hope you do.

I have a lot of respect for Gore. He seems to have actually stepped out of the ring for this. I've been wondering if he might run for president again, but after listening to this interview, I don't think so. Too bad. I like him. He gets it. How very rare.


Part 1
Click to view

Part 2
Click to view




28/06/2006

Cold tubbing in the rain




"Plenty of tubs, no waiting!
That is my personal guarantee!"
~ Louie, Guardian of the Bird Park"


I'm working on those Campeche photos again today but will have to post them later because I have managed to complicate the hell of the the project. In meantime, I did another video of the ongoing adventures in the Bird Park. I don't know what I'd do without the birdies to help distract me from myself.

In today's exciting episode, a couple of portly pigeons are cold tubbing together in the rain. They are pretty laid back until one bird gets tired of the other's preening and stretching and just generally being a big, fat tub hog and decides to bump him out and into an empty tub nearby.


 A couple of pigeons cold tubbing in the rain. No laugh track.











27/06/2006

Photos from Campeche


It's been six days since my knee surgery and my leg is still pre-tee sore. I worked in my office for several hours today but then was suddenly overcome by a deep fatigue and napped for about an hour. Since then I've been having a fine old time doing things I'm generally too busy for such as ... paying attention to details. Perhaps this reconstruction and recuperation thing is generalizing.

Among details I've slowed down to notice are the 10,000 photos I took in the Yucatan last fall. This afternoon I sorted through a few and will post today'’s batch between Flickr, my website (the Mexico Diary is meager) and here. I focused on Campeche, one of my all-time favorite cities and places to live. In my mind. Campeche has a lot of problems. But it also has some of my favorite qualities. Campeche is sea-swept, ancient, hip, beautiful and ambiguous. Even its mold participates in the town's implied art life.

Mr. Lee and I are going to watch a movie now so here's one photo for tonight and a promise of more tomorrow.