A Life With Covid

With trips cancelled and covid the norm now here in Arizona, we've been in isolation.  I hate TV so much.  It's SO boring.  I'd be outside gardening but it's HOT.  Today, our temps will reach 114 degrees!  Last night we had our first rain storm which was rather exciting.  So, what's a birder to do? After years of not tackling our ceilings and walls, I am now forced to do so!  There is a silver lining to it all even though I'd rather be birding in Panama. 

My exploration days have come to a halt for now.  A lot of the money that I would have used for travel is now being invested into projects that I needed to get done. I have had a lot of projects sitting inside my brain waiting to get done from over the years!  When we first moved into our place I had electrical work done in 3 rooms.  And we removed popcorn from the ceilings!  Well, ONLY now, some 13 years later, I am forced to deal with those ugly cuts in the drywall!  

It began with this room.  I couldn't travel to Panama so I worked on the place that inspires me, my office. This is the place that transports me to all of my favorite Spanish speaking countries.  And a tin ceiling went up and covered the ugly patchwork.  Then it was onto Covid Project 2, the Eared Quetzal and laundry room. 

Our laundry area, in the hallway, had a nice spot for some of my photography BUT there was an ugly ancient intercom that blocked part of the wall and didn't allow for a nice framed picture.  I took the non-functioning intercom off the wall which revealed a huge hole, patched and stuccoed it all.  Once that was done, I pulled out my paints and found the right green tint and touched up the white areas.  Meanwhile, as I finished ceilings and walls, I worked at night organizing pics from my work that I wanted to hang on the walls for Covid Project 3. 

Gotta include butterflies!  This is the Western Tiger Swallowtail from the Tijuana Slough

 It is absolutely time consuming, but the end results are amazing.  It's trying to pick a balanced group of themed pics for each room that is the challenge.  It can't be all birds.  I will say that the Eared Quetzal was an exception.  It will probably mark the ONLY highlight of the 2020 birding season.  I have added 3 lifers this year so far and I'm okay with this reality.  

Now I'm working on Covid Project 3, the other bedroom.  As you can see in the above pic, there are cuts in the ceiling that I want covered.  

So I have been working on this project now.  This material is trickier as it is vinyl planking.  This room will be the coastal room.  It will have lighter elements mixed in with the darker insides of a lighthouse.  I love lighthouses and this theme works well in super bright Arizona.  In some cases, the darker rooms are very important and necessary to let your eyes recover from the blinding light outside.  Some of the photography that will be used here are not Arizona birds!  Instead, I'll be using work from Maine, California, Wisconsin and Wales. 

Northern Gannet-the white against the blue

It's really difficult to choose wall art.  Or at least, it's difficult to pick a favorite because of the lack of wall space. While I was in Wales, I fell in love with my friend Bonnie's place.  Her home is so cozy and happy.  Every inch of her walls are covered with wonderful birds.  If you can't travel, you can bring those experiences into your home. 

A pair of Atlantic Puffins

 These works will be arriving soon and I can't wait to put them up on the walls.  This room attaches to the catio that opens up into our beautiful garden.  I still have much work to do in the other rooms.  The dining room will have grouse.  

Crested Caracara-still trying to figure out where to put this one

 The living room will have a Madera Canyon theme utilizing hummingbirds and a very special owl, the Mountain Pygmy-Owl(still titled Northern Pygmy-Owl, but it's not the same species-calls and looks are different).  It is my absolute favorite owl of Arizona.  

Ruffed Grouse is one of the grouse that will be featured in the dining room

 It's hard to pick and choose a favorite, but there are some birds that make me smile more than others.  Grouse and sparrows are my favorites.  I'm still trying to figure out a way to put together a sparrow collage!  

Mountain Pygmy-Owl

This is what happens at night, these endless nights.  I put together canvas works and remember these amazing experiences. I measure spaces on the wall and am excited about how the wall will come alive with MY work, not someone else's stuff. In a way, it's a good pause in life to reflect.  In many other ways, I find myself going stir crazy!  At least I'm being constructive and not giving up.  

The coastal room will include these amazing birds PLUS lighthouses, sea lions and other coastal delights.  

Razorbills

 Then I think about why I'm putting these themes together.  Why the hispanic room(rain forest)?  Why the coastal and montane themes?  Because I think these areas, including the grasslands, are some of my favorite places to bird. 

Marsh Wren

 These projects haven't been too expensive.  Each room is around 500 dollars, including the photography, paint and ceiling materials.  I get into my OCD mode and am a perfectionist.  I can't stand looking at unfinished work so I push myself to get it done.  Then I take a break from the projects until I'm ready for the next one.   

American White Pelican

 If you've never been inside of a lighthouse, you'd be surprised by how dark the inside can be.  The top is beautiful with bright and open airy windows. I'd love to have my office up in that room.  But the bottom floor is also very cozy and dark.  It reminds me of a cave, except you can hear the waves crashing against the shore outside the building. 

Now onto the official news. During the last week of June, we contracted covid.  It was hell.  The coughing and breathing were real issues.  Non-believers called it the flu, but I lost my taste and smell so I knew it wasn't the flu.  For one week, we both slept away our lives and lost lots of weight.  Here in Arizona, we are the hotspot of the world.  I don't know how we got it, but it was nasty.  We are mostly recovered now as the infection rates continue to rise in the state.  Our governor is an idiot, but not as stupid as the one in Florida. Even the Texan governor looks a tad more intelligent than Ducey and that's not saying much.  We badly need a change in our government here in the US.  We are finally beginning to see people switch sides against this current administration.  They are all about the money and could care less about human life.  Welcome to the Republican Party.  November can't arrive fast enough.  In short, we don't trust anything our state or government officials are saying and have to go to real sources, like the CDC.  Meanwhile, the death rate continues to climb as do the infections. And people are still ignoring the recommendations.  It's such a strange time. We just lost someone to covid in our family this morning from Micheal's side.  I continue to isolate.  I am so grateful for the love and support from our family and friends.  I work inside the house and dream of birding. But I am back to feeding my birds and watching them from our windows.  Today we had a Brown-crested Flycatcher visit our fountain. Stay safe everyone wherever you are.  And let's hope for a cure by the end of the year!  Until next time, I'll continue working on birdy home projects:)

To Live Each Day

Pima County has really seen numbers of Crested Caracaras jump.  I can't believe how many times I've seen these birds this year.  I finally have a shot I can make into a larger photo for the wall. 

If you knew what your "end date" would be, how would you live your life?  Would you wait for it to come?  Would you seize the moment and live it the best that you could? Would you say your good-byes to friends and family? How would you do it?  Back in the summer of 1987, I saw my past, present and future flash before my eyes.  I learned a huge lesson from my Grandpa who was looking forward to retirement and passed away before his time, seize the day.  

All of it ended with a massive heart attack while working outside in his backyard. For the years I knew him, he was a happy man, most of the time:)  We found adventure around every corner of their backyard along the river and woods, or while boating on Lake Michigan, or while eating at a restaurant in town....and even while gardening with grandma! Sometimes I hated it because she had a HUGE garden! Even breakfast in the morning was fun because we looked forward to visitors joining us telling us what they were going to do for the day. 

I remember sitting that first Christmas without him.  Nothing was quite the same again.  It was as if life had lost its flavor.  The holiday had also died for me on that day. A similar situation happened while standing outside in the snow while I looked into my parent's home at my grandma surrounded by family and relatives. I saw my grandma, dad, his brother, and her niece all standing together.  My little sister joined me and I told her to memorize that moment.  The following year, my grandma passed away.  As a child, I memorized every little space of their home and gardens. The dinner smells, the Sunday drives, the conversations, the games we played.....and the toys in that hallway closet. They were all very special moments

Like most of us, we learn from our families and if we look close enough, there are lessons to be learned from each of our friends, siblings, parents and grandparents.  I write about these two individuals because they were some of the people who helped me define how I looked at life. One was looking forward to retiring while the other waited for death to happen. During our weekly conversations, Grandma Rohrer had once told me that living longer than her friends and husband was awful, especially when she couldn't see or use her hands due to arthritis. Four of her favorite past times were reading, cooking, gardening and the thing that isn't quite sewing. Crochet? Anyhow, they both taught me to live life NOW.  Sometimes, it may seem in the eyes of others, selfish but I don't want to be on that bed dying regretting not having lived. I became a teacher so that I didn't have to have kids of my own and explore the planet for study.  My siblings have more than made up for the nephews and nieces count:)

My third year of teaching on the island of Santiago in Cape Verde off the coast of West Africa

I was struck recently by this quote "Because it's not enough to just live.  You have to have something to live for."  For some, it's having children.  For others, it's something else. For me, my purpose is through teaching, conservation work and the exploration of the unknown.  I know that when I'm gone, I will have left my mark. 

My little sis and I enjoy a fun trek to Rio Dulce in Guatemala

Fortunately most people get to enjoy their retirement.  But I think retirement can also be a little like this covid era living. With a lack of focus and the unknown, every day seems like one endless day after another. Often many people get depressed. I deal with this stress by going out birding, but with the 100+ temps now, it isn't easy.  Many people have felt locked up and lost. At the beginning of my writes since this lock down, I wrote about how nice it was to get this break in life. I may have changed my tune a bit:)

In 2008, we hiked the Inka Trail to Machu Picchu

As this has all gone on now for some time, I have also noticed entire life changes happening for friends who have found their way of living forever altered. For 10 years, I have assumed that I would have a long time to bird around the world.  I have also assumed that others would be able to do the same thing, or for at least a longer time.  It doesn't work that way and it's that realization that's beginning to sink in now. 

I'm super disappointed that I won't be able to see this guy again, Ivan from Gamboa, Panama this year.  Maybe next year. 

Last year, it struck close to home when both my father and friend's husband had to go through major surgeries. Our plans changed and we made it work. It was a lot of fun. Last October, my health took a turn for the worse. And this year Covid put an end to our planned Panama trek.  We got the phone call on Wednesday that all flights into Panama were cancelled.  In some ways, it was a relief helping me organize Plan B. But even with that, there have been personal complications.  And at the moment, if I am to be completely honest, I feel lost. However, something deep inside of me tells me to get into my vehicle and go.  It's a bit scary and it shouldn't be.  I used to do it all the time.  Ah age! It makes us a bit more wary. 

Photo by Alan Van Norman; to see how good I am at taking nightjar photos....here's my attempt below!  LOL.  I've seen these birds a lot, but I never can get this kind of photo:)  Nor do I really try.  I just like listening to their staccato song. 

Over the past week, I helped a friend with a client who had survived covid. We went to a remote area along the border that requires a bit of security. It was a beautiful evening as we went into the remote canyons far far away from civilization.  There we sat under the starry sky and listened to the Buff-collared Nightjar.  Absolutely wonderful.

The day before, I was in Ajo with my friend Celeste and Cheroot.  We went into the Alamos Canyon area of Organ Pipe and as we exited the canyon, Celeste's vehicle began to experience a really bad grinding sound. A stupid rock got caught between her brakes! We didn't want to do further damage to the vehicle, which I believe it would have done had we kept driving.  Thankfully, we were able to flag down some border patrol agents in this very remote area. We did have plenty of food and water with us, thanks to Celeste. Poor Cheroot had a very long day as we were towed back into Tucson.  

Luna helps me unpack my canvas prints from my tropical series from Trinidad and Costa Rica

Life is always full of good and bad surprises.  The older I get, the more I think it gets to be a bit more unpredictable.  I completed my room project during this time off.  My photography only makes me want to get back into the field even more.  For now, I have postponed the dream.  If October happens, I will treat myself to a monk's sanctuary in Guatemala to celebrate my birthday. It will be a spiritual retreat. And if December happens, I plan on going with my other half to Hawaii.  There are still so many unknowns in every sense of that word, but I will seize the day and live a full life.  We will reschedule our Panama trek for next year.  I mean after all, finding a Harpy Eagle is on my bucket list. 

They say Ferruginous Pygmy Owls are all over Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument  😉
Why pay a million dollars in Texas to go to King's Ranch when you can see much more for free here? Just saying.

So we have rescheduled for next year.  It will be a big event as I mark a very important milestone in my life, the anniversary of embracing the life of a birder. I have changed as a person.  And my life has changed because of it. Until next time....

I stand on a hillside overlooking the town of Antigua, Guatemala with an active volcano in the background.  It continues to remain one of the places on this planet that I feel most connected to spiritually.  Mexico, Guatemala and certain spots around Central America hold some amazing places

From Scratch

Crested Caracara

Every year, as birders, we start over at zero bird species seen. All of the species we saw back in 2019 are locked into the 2019 vault.  And we simply start over at zero in ebird. 

People ask me if it gets old searching for already seen bird species.  And my answer is simply, "No."

Black Vultures

Perhaps if people went to the same spots year after year.  Then that would get old for me. But I like to mix it up.  Plus there are always new rare birds to find here. 

Nothing beats a nice winter walk out in the open.  

This year, we took a walk down in the town of Arivaca.  And we discovered these ruins!

Cheroot always is happy to volunteer his time to help us bird new places. 

Happy Cheroot

The thing is that you never know who's going to fly by your radar.  Take for example, these Crested Caracaras(below).  While not super common for Pima county, they seem easier these days to find on the outskirts of town.  Their population may be growing. 

And of course, when I see these beautiful birds over and over again, I like to pause and take a longer look. 

Vermilion Flycatcher

It never gets old. January is a lovely month to stroll out in the open and observe nature in action. I just wish I had more daylight!  But that too will come, along with the heat! So no rush. I'm just glad to be outdoors.  Until next time....

Winter Has Come

Verdin

It is now a quieter time of birding here in Arizona. This is not to say that there isn't any great birding.  Far from it!  But with most people distracted by the holidays, many public and natural areas have less human traffic thanks in part for their need to shop. 

Great deal on Friskies Pate!

For birders, we just need to keep our eyes on the road for erratic driving.  I already have had someone dent my car from the Black Friday madness.  All I wanted was some pate for my cats!:) We, of course, forgot it was Black Friday and by that time, it was too late for us to escape. 

Lesser Scaup

The cooler temps and storms begin to usher in a new group of wintering ducks, cranes and raptors. 

Canvasback

Birders change their focus from mountain tops to water areas. We begin to head to local watering ponds to search for such rarities as Long-tailed Ducks or Horned Grebes. Maybe even a rare gull?

Cooper's Hawk

Some birds that are naturally difficult to see during the summer become a bit more visible as they feed from seed that has fallen to the ground. 

One of my favorite bird groups, the sparrows, begin to arrive back in great numbers.  This Brewer's Sparrow(below) is so plain and yet I think it's a gorgeous bird. 

Brewer's Sparrow

We also begin to scour the ag fields in places like Avra Valley or the infamous Santa Cruz Flats.  When I first began birding, these places were intimidating to me because their areas were so vast.  Today, it's all second nature. 

A random Osprey at the sod farm of Tweedy and Pretzer roads

As we comb the sod farms, groves of pecan trees, cattle ranches, drainage areas and barren desert expanses, we discover that all of our regular wintering guests such as the Mountain Plovers and Crested Caracaras have come back. 

Northern Harrier

We also note that there are several hundred Lark Buntings feeding from the miles of sorgum along the stretches of dirt roads.  

Crested Caracara

Cotton trucks cover us in layers of dust as we try to get a fix on the nearly invisible Mountain Plovers zig-zagging on the sod farms.  They are perfectly camouflaged as they feed from the lingering green vegetation. 

Mountain Plover

 As we exit the Santa Cruz Flats, we stop at Arizona City Lake.  Over the years, I have tried to figure out this strange community.  It is built around an artificial lake. The homes all looked rather nice at one time, but there appears to be some wear and tear now.  The fountain at the center of the lake no longer sprays regularly and now acts more like a desert island for cormorants, gulls and pelicans.  Yes, this is a great birding hotspot. 

A rare Horned Grebe. Normally rare, but this year it seems like there are more Horned Grebes than the similar looking  winter molts of the Eared species

 It's a fantastic spot for lots of rarities such as this Horned Grebe above.  Every time I see the now defunct fountain, I imagine it's where the residents bury their dead.  

The Arizona City Lake fountain used to look like this.....but not anymore.  Now it just sits like an ancient pyramid where they bury their dead. 

Well.  I do have an active imagination. The truth? It was too costly for them to run all this water all the time. Plus it's a waste of water. If residents individually want the fountain to run, they can pay for it themselves and will sporadically do so.  But I think, burial ground makes it more interesting:)

Yes, winter has finally arrived here in Arizona.  Joggers can jog.  Bikers can bike. Birders can bird. And everyone can smile and not worry about dying from heat exhaustion after 15 minutes of outside exposure:) Birders can sleep in late until 7 AM(when the sun rises) and bird until 5(when the sun sets). With a little more than a month to go before the year ends, Las Aventuras will try to make it to the 500 bird mark.  I'll leave you all with some recent visits to three of the places we visited this past week.  

Count 1. The Avra Valley area

Snow Goose in Blue Molt

Count 2.  The Santa Cruz Flats

A stunning male Vermilion Flycatcher

Count 3.  Arizona City Lake

Until next time........