...by the sea, by the sea

WILD BIRD WEDNESDAY

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Well, I can get some images loaded this morning now that I have a new cable modem!!

These are the nesting terns I posted about yesterday. Tho I didn't see any babies, I did see some immature Least Terns with the adult Terns, so I'll share the photos I took:

This is the area of the roped off beach where the terns' nesting took place. The photo, taken from a goodly distance 'cause the city roped off the area to protect the birds and nests, shows the 'long shot'. The small white 'dots' in the photo along the sandy beach area of the bay are Terns! Both adults, some laying on their nests, while others are immature terns barely getting the adult colorations. Yes, there is trash on the shore also...afterall, tho it doesn't excuse the mess, it IS near the Texas A&M Campus and on campus apartment complexes ---usually a good area for college activities and parties. For some reason they expect the city to come in and clean up after them. :::sigh:::

...zooming in on the area:

Immature Least Terns

Adult Least Tern [left] Immature [right]

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WEDNESDAY HODGEPODGE

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1. What's something people might ask you for help with? Since it's just the two of us these days, it's usually Bud asking for help with his new phone right now. He is not smartphone savvy with the ins and outs of setting preferences. The rest of the 'people' would be family and they usually call when they need 'know how' on computer issues and/or home repair work. That's about it.

2. What's something you might ask someone else for help with? For the most part, I try to be as independent as I can be. Probably what others would call stubborn. It's in my blood. LOL -- -- I do know that if I can't retrieve something that I need stored higher than my reach, and I'm too lazy to get the step ladder, I call Bud to get it for me. When you're married as long as the two of us, we are each others 'extensions' in thoughts and actions.

3. Did your family take summer vacations when you were a child? If so, where did you go? If you're a parent, did/do you plan summer vacations with your own family? Did/do they resemble those you took as a child? To answer in sync here, Yes, we took vacations. We went wherever my parents chose to go. Sometimes across the country to see a particular sight in another state, or other times we would travel for miles/days to see a family member, or maybe a camping trip. As for planning vacations for Bud, me and the kids...we traveled in the summer quite often [had vacations in Autumn and Winter at times also]. Our vacations never seemed like the vacations I took as a child with my parents. Bud, the kids and I most always flew to parts of the USA and Old Mexico, with reservations in hotels and itineraries that were never melded around visiting family nor camping/fishing trips. They were always geared toward sight seeing, historical, or just lazing a week at a beach with room service.

4. Pool, lake, ocean...which one is most appealing to you on a hot summer day? A swimming pool has never impressed me. It's nothing but a cement pond, and only adequate if you're land-locked - costly upkeep too. Lakes are great if shaded and heavily wooded --and especially the mountain lakes where you can sit on the bank and look out from there at a distance and still see a snow-capped mountain framed amidst the pine...in mid-July!! But, ocean-------they've always been a part of the world that draws me to them!!! I love the sound, the smell, the misty salt spray, the color, the sunrises and sunsets. Standing on land, watching a tropical storm come in from the horizon, the emotions of the sea, the turbulence, the calm, the fog--you name it, the ocean is by far the best of nature along any coastal region.

5. Have you ever justified using the expression, 'you gotta be cruel to be kind'? Was it really necessary or were you rationalizing? The expression itself is new to me. Is this something like tough love? If that be the case, then, yes, I've used it often raising two children. I was a strict disciplinarian. If one of my two kids went out of their way to disobey, tough love was the answer often; and justified. There is a part of love when it comes to teaching about rules and regulations as children or teens grow; which is a kindness in the long haul of things. And both Erik and Irene have thanked me several times since they are now adults. This expression tho, in the terms of your question, makes me think that "rationalizing" sounds to be a bit one-sided...a topsy-turvy emotion of your cruel action - your cruelty was on the verge of revenge? Maybe I'm reading into this differently than intended? If you have to rationalize your action after the fact, it wouldn't be justified. Would it? Like I said, I've never heard of the expression before now.

6. The Journal of Psychology recently mentioned the results of a survey identifying the ten most hated foods as-liver, lima beans, mayonnaise, mushrooms, eggs, okra, beets, brussel sprouts, tuna, and gelatin. Of those foods, how many do you actually hate? Anything you'd add to the list? I like 'em all....but one! And that is OKRA. Just this past Saturday when we arrived at the Farmers' Market, standing in line with all the other patrons to pay for our purchases, so many had bags of fresh okra and I cringe at the thought. Ewww.

7. What's your favorite book or movie set in a beach or lake town? Oh I love this movie. The story, the romance, the scenery, the music, the innocence of "Baby" yet her bravery helping a pregnant friend and her own daring secret - all revealed at the end; it's a CLASSIC....

By the way, the movie is "Dirty Dancing"...Added note: I like "Jaws" also! And as for a book, John Steinbeck's "The Pearl" was a good one.

8. Insert your own random thought here. Well, the good connection only lasted about 30 minutes yesterday. Yes, several times I unplugged and rebooted, to no avail. At 9 a.m. I was at the cable company's door; returned the bad modem and got a replacement. It's up and running like a charm. I kinda figured it was the cable modem. Finally -- Fast, furious, and fine!! OH AND BY THE WAY, THE PACIFIC OCEAN IS BY FAR THE PRETTIEST OCEAN!!