A Governor To Trust

Warning!  This post looks innocent, but I think it's what we bloggers call a rant:) I wanted to delete it but the topics all connected together so nicely:) During our trip to Wisconsin, the big vote was happening.  Would Scott Walker be recalled or would he stay?  We decided to skip Illinois in case the borders were closed due to massive fighting between various sides of the recall.  We hid in a little village called Dodgeville and ate cheese curds and sausage sticks until the vote was over.  Thankfully everyone behaved and no one threw tear gas at one another.  We stayed in the Piney Lodge which felt more like a retirement home.   But what could we do for a day?  In recognition of the Governor and all the cheesehead craziness, we headed to Governor Dodge State Park.  It's one of the largest state parks in Wisconsin.  It has some of the best preserved prairie land around the state. 

Most people go to Governor Dodge for the waterfall, but you won't see that here on this blog.  BORING!!!  Well to be honest, my pics were kind of bad.  The lighting didn't work with me:) BUT the action was happening on the prairie grounds with the birds, butterflies, and crazy bugs!! Oh and let's not forget the fields of Lupine!!!!  What an incredible display of wildflowers all around!

Common Buckeye

Word has it that the bees are making a comeback again and the population is on the increase.  A mite was found to be passing the disease onto hives around the country.  Apparently a little strip inserted into a hive will keep this mite from infiltrating the colonies of bees all over the world.  I'd hate to miss out on pics like this one below. 

Desert dwellers are always shocked to discover the cute little chipmunks that live in Wisconsin forests.  If I had to sum up Wisconsin critters, I'd have to say that they are full of every type of rodent you can imagine!  My Dad discovered a Woodchuck for the first time and people are always trying to figure out the various rodents.  It's not uncommon to find people drinking beer and discussing what they may have seen in their backyard.  My father sat with his buddy Tex on the porch looking at the Woodchuck. Was it a beaver, muskrat, groundhog, etc etc?  It came down to the tail and after another beer, my dad was finally able to identify the critter as a woodchuck.  PS.  Tex is as colorful a character as his name suggests.  My Dad is recently retired and needs a hobby.  If I lived back home, I'd haul his butt with me on my walks.  I know he likes to do this stuff but he is um....not so motivated:)

And look at this nest below!!!!  I think it's made of spit from a bug, but I could be wrong.  I had forgotten about these alien constructions, but very cool to see out in the wild!

Gypsy Moth Nest

There are a lot of trails around the park and even a spot to go horseback riding!  But these are the boring details.  It's more about the experience, right?:)  While on our hike, I noticed a strong cigarrette smell.  Wisconsin loves cigs because everywhere I turned I could smell the nasty fumes!  I HATE smoking.  Most of my family smokes or chews tobacco.  We've done a good job at respecting each other's air space.  I just don't want to be around it and they are good about doing their nasty deeds in private. But it always shocks me to see smokers leaving their truck with a hazy cloud pouring out behind them as they get ready for their hike!!!  And then they walk by and smell terrible!  Please understand that I hate smoking and not the people who enjoy smoking.  Otherwise, I'd have to disown most of my family:)  I write this because in Tucson, you don't notice smoking as an issue much. In Wisconsin they have designated areas for you to smoke at nature centers, museums, etc and they will state this outloud to everyone on the walks/guides.  In fact, they seem to have figured out the stops where people can take a break and smoke. Very clever.  In Tucson,  it rarely if ever is mentioned. Smokers band together here and protect each other from the nasty looks and remarks from others. The attitude difference?  In Wisconsin, smoke away!  We've got a spot for you.  In Tucson,  you've got a serious problem and we will not acknowledge your issues:)  Again this is just a generalization, but they are observations from our trips:)  The teenagers with clouds of smoke around them on this day just made me sad.  Apparently they didn't get the message.  Is it the cold weather that makes people more willing to smoke?  Or was it the Marlboro man?  Because he's dead now.  Plus it's expensive!!  A year supply of cigs is like a round trip ticket to most places in the world!

And whether we agree with something or not doesn't matter because it will happen regardless.  We went to Madison(because I am a curious man) to see if the capital would have some protesting AND  we found them:)  They screamed, "Indict WAAALLLKER."  School trips were still going on and parents quietly walked their children away and went to the security and asked them to remove the protesters.  They were removed from the building and did the screaming outside.  There are many people that would still like to punch Scott Walker in the face.  I am a Tucsonan so I had nothing to do with the vote:)  But I will tell you about my own family.  There are 14 adults and it was split down the middle.  Educators, health care providers vs. the parents.  It was messy but my family moved forward after the recall.  A lot of families had the same issues around the state and it was really fun to hear the discussions going on between everyone at breakfast.  Both sides had their points.  And in the end Walker won.

When we came back to our own home in Tucson, my faith in our city was rewarded with the news that Ron Barber would take over for Gabriela Gifford and it felt good.  I loved Giffords very much and I hope Barber will be a great replacement.  As for Jan Brewer......well I'd much rather not go there:)  This post is all over the place.  And people wonder why we hike and enjoy nature:) Governors come and go....but Governor Dodge has been there the longest:)  It must be his universal appeal to everyone.  More tomorrow....

Happy 4th of July!

During an evening near Chase field in the downtown area, we witnessed a wonderful display of fireworks over the field.  So I grabbed my camera and did some more work from my abstract series.  I've shown you Holiday Rush with Christmas lights, Fire Spirits and Fire, and now we're going to take a look at some abstract work using fireworks.  Today's post is more focused on evening photography. 



Have a wonderful and safe 4th of July.  And watch where the kids are shooting those bottle rockets off.  In Tucson, fireworks are illegal due to the dry conditions. More tomorrow.....

House On The Rock

One of Wisconsin's premiere tourist attractions, House on the Rocks is a random and unique adventure outside of Dodgeville.  I've been here several times during my lifetime and each time I come back with more haunting images than before!  What scares me?  I'll show you.  My photography challenge during our visit was tricky.  I was filming mostly in the dark which has its own challenges.  But the biggest challenge?  Looking at something that made me sad or angry and forcing myself to examine why it scared me or why I felt sad. Most of us do this as we walk away from images that disturb. These shots today are some of the most interesting reflection pieces I've taken for this blog.  I'll keep the writing down a bit so that you can look at the gallery of pics.  There is haunting music played in all 3 parts of this museum of authentic and replicated pieces.  But it doesn't matter what's real or not....it's how its all put together that delights crowds from around the world.  Join me on this very twisted tour....

There is something wrong about capturing butterflies or birds and putting them on a display like this.  When I see these pics, I think Silence of the Lambs with all the moths.  But mostly, butterflies are meant to fly and this image/display terrifies me.

Created by Alex Jordan, his vision and dream began back in the '40's.  Here is a little personal info.  The first time I came to visit this place was with my Grandparents.  I remember having nightmares for years about this museum. But as a kid, it was a cool experience. Around 1998, I went back again to visit and reclaim those random images as an adult.   My Grandfather had helped this man with his place at some point very early on with the construction.  As a kid, I remember several things.  Being happy with my Grandparents here,  having vanilla ice cream by a giant whale, and meeting this man.   My Grandfather had wanted to meet him again after all the years had passed but Mr. Jordan didn't remember Grandpa at all and that made Grandma very upset.  I remember the car ride home and Grandma sharing her disappointment.  The cool part?  I met the creator before he died.  The sad part.  The realization that people are used and forgotten.  The very sad part?  All 3 of them are no longer here anymore

Creepy!

Dark streets of our past....

Masks....

The Infinity Room

Clowns scare the crap out of me.....

.....as do dolls!  Did you know that they used real hair back then to make dolls?  Even creepier.

On your death bed.

Here I'm having some fun artistically with the camera.  Still creepy.

My favorite part to this entire exhibit?  The Carousel!!!!  It's huge and magical and a must see.

The exhibit is broken up into 3 parts and is quite fascinating.  There is a lot of walking so bring great shoes.  Tickets were around 30 dollars for all 3 parts.  It will take you a good portion of your day so if you have other things planned, get there early:)  The gardens around the place do not resemble the home at all.   I'm not sure if I'll ever go back here again but we had a fun visit and it was more about vacation.  We had a lot of good laughs and scares. Hope you enjoyed the tour. More tomorrow....

Sulphur Bellied Flycatcher

Dear blogger friends,  today is the last of the Ramsey canyon adventure.  But I'm sure we'll be visiting again soon considering this is a hummingbird magnet....and is VERY VERY cool compared to the Madera Canyon craziness.   But I think this post sums up why I bird.  Today I discovered a new bird to add to my list.  It's a lifer and I hope I've captured the magic of this event.  This is what Las Aventuras is all about.  Today I present to you all the Sulphur Bellied Flycatcher!

A rare bird to find in the US but one of the signature birds of Ramsey Canyon.  It's one of the very few places you can spot this fascinating bird.  AND it's as unique as the Elegant Trogon.  So today we have found ourselves with a jewel of a post.  I would click on the pics to make them bigger. The ears picked up on something and then my eyes caught yellow splashes up in the large Sycamore trees. I had noticed some weird flight pattern going on.   We stopped to watch and as we did I was shocked by what these adults were doing from their nest. 

Every two minutes, the parents would enter this nest high up.  As they did, they would feed their kiddos and then "shoot" like a cannonball out of the hole.  Drop down.   And fly off.  The photography was tricky so I observed their flight patterns several times to track and guess how and when they'd shoot out of the nest.

The most distinguishing characteristics of this flycatcher are the heavy streaking of its plumage, and its pale yellow belly. The bird also shows a rusty brown tail, and a black eyestripe. Its call sounds like noises made by children's or pet's 'squeaky-toys'.  And this is the important part of identifying the bird on a trail.....listening for a squeaky toy.  That's what caught my attention in the first place and helped me close in on the activity.

In and out they went.....

....in a very graceful pattern......

.....and then they'd "shoot" out of their "canon" and drop down.....

.....and fly to a tree while the other parent went to check them out.  A minute would pass and the younglings would call out and the parents would return....repeating the routine.

Our Wisconsin adventures begin tomorrow:)

The Chuparosa Challenge-A Crowning Achievement

During the last challenges, I spoke about idenityfing female hummingbirds and before that I wrote about the Magnificent hummer.  So, I thought I'd recap with closer Magnificent hummer shots that I was able to snap off at Ramsey Canyon.  Again, I was on the hunt to find a new hummer to add to my hummingbird list in North America. 

Magnificent Hummer

The Magnificent Hummer is everyone's favorite.  It's larger and much more colorful than the rest of the crew.  Well that's not true.  They all are pretty cool birds but this one strikes a chord with the birder audience.  If you head to the canyon areas this time of year, your chances for spotting this colorful number is pretty good.  So let me tell you about my experience for the day and introduce you to a new member that I can check off my list.  It sounds so cold.  Let me restate.  This is for my photo journal and one that I hope to see more of during the monsoon season:)

I really take all of our birds here for granted.  When I travel to other areas, I am expecting to see these little guys flying around all over.  And I miss their sounds. Cheep  cheep and VROOOM! past your head.  One of the things you may or may not like about birding are of course the people.  Some just go to look at birds and chat.  Some just want you to shut up and watch the birds.  I'm one of those who can do both.  The nice thing with hummingbird observation is that they'll come and feed while you're chatting.  The issue?  You may not be paying attention to capture them before they zoom off.  And this was my own personal challenge for the day.  So are you ready???  Here is our new member to add to our hummingbird family......The Violet-crowned Hummingbird!!!

This beauty is a rare find.  It reminds me of a dolphin with wings because of the very white gorget/frontal area.  It's also one of the easiest to identify of the species in both the male and female form.  Some of you may be surprised but I've actually seen this hummer here in midtown Tucson at our El Presidio gardens!!  Of course they were here only for the monsoon season in July and August.  It was unusual to see them and I remember them because of their white white front.  It wasn't our typical Anna, Costa's, or Black Chinned sightings. So I began to research and was introduced to this species several years ago when this blog first began. 

This particular hummer is really cool at hovering.  Thankfully I was able to spot him during my conversation with an Indiana woman.  She was so excited to see so many wonderful hummers and all of them were new for her.  So we spoke and I helped her identify them as they came to the feeders.  It was sad really because she only had so much time and had just discovered Ramsey Canyon.  Her husband was the Downer Debbie as he dragged her off to church.  He sat there bored out of his mind and reminded her that she had ten minutes left.  She had asked a question which was something like, "Can we come back here again?" No. "Is there any way?"  No.  Okay now.....church vs hummingbird viewing?  That's a no brainer for me.  Hummingbirds all the way!  If you believe, isn't God all around us? So aren't you kinda in church anyway?  Just saying.  Well he dragged her off and I felt bad for her.  I have a suspicion that if he hadn't been around, she would have played hooky with us.  Maybe he saw me as the Devil.  Speaking of the Devil, I am still searching for that elusive Lucifer!!!!!

The one thing that the lady from Indiana said as she watched the hummer show was how much diversity there was around the feeders here.  And then she said the line that many say from outside of Arizona. You know the one:) "All we have there are those Ruby Throated Hummingbirds."  And I replied, "At least you have those hummers in your area.  We don't have them here:)" I'll speak more about this in the upcoming weeks.  The Ruby Throated Hummer was not as easy a find as I thought when we were home in Wisconsin.  They have certain requirements:) But more on that later...

I continue shooting the hummers as they go to the feeders because I never know who will show up.  There was a report of the Plain Capped Starthroat in the area and at first, I thought I may have captured this hummer as well, but alas.....no.  I am conflicted.  There is a place where I know I'll find the bird but the owners are unusual and crazy and they use language I don't approve.  I will break down and try the place out though just to give you my perspective.  If I don't come back alive, you'll know why:)  Okay but back to this pic above.  If you look at the throat, you notice a patch of pink....or something.

Turns out this is a Female Anna's hummer.  On the next Chuparosa challenge, I'll speak about feeders, disagreeing with my mother:), and other interesting things.  My final post on Ramsey Canyon will be tomorrow.  I hope you enjoy it as it was the real gem of our visit.  And like always, more tomorrow.....