For BL Basketcase

I saw this on Break.com and immediately thought of you.

Open Blog - Thursday

Howdy-do.

"The People vs. Winter"

Unfortunately, I can relate to that video. You probably can, too.

American Tree Sparrow

Migrants from the north, the American Tree Sparrows are often found in weedy fields with the Dark Eyed Juncos.

Not to be confused with the over abundant, aggressive and invasive House Sparrow, the American Tree Sparrow are more of a rural bird than their Old World cousins. Wisconsin is home to 27 different sparrow species and I have documented 13 of them so far. I know that identifying sparrows can be difficult, so bear with me while I try to explain as we go along. The first thing noticeable thing about the American Tree Sparrow is the rusty red cap and rusty (not black) eye line on a gray head. They have a streaked brown back, and a smooth gray to buff breast in both male and female. American Tree Sparrows give an overall impression of reddish-brown and gray. A dark smudge in the center of the unstreaked breast is common. Plus they have a bicolored yellow and black bill.

Their closest relative of the American Tree Sparrow is the Chipping Sparrow. They also have rusty cap, but instead of a rusty eye line, they have a black and white one and NO markings on its chest. Chipping Sparrows also have a solid black bill. On top of that, the Chipping Sparrows are summer residents while the American Tree Sparrows are the winter birds. I hope this helps

Look for small flocks of American Tree Sparrows hopping along on the ground in winter in weedy fields with hedgerows or shrubs, along forest edges, or near marshes and roadsides. They readily visit backyards, especially if there's a seed feeder.

The top picture was taken at Cliffside Park on 12/1/2012. This little guy just happened to be on the trail I was on for an easy picture. The bottom picture was taken to Richard Bong State Recreational Area on 1/12/2013. This dude just happened to be on the roadside for another easy picture.

"Dolphin Rescue Hawaii"

Mary mentioned this video in today's Open Blog, so I thought I'd post it. Poor dolphin.

Huge Bear Surprises Camera

Click here to see bear invade campsite

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my noble savages!  How are you?  We finally got some real winter temperatures and I don’t like it.  Brrr.  When it gets this cold, I worry about my car starting and I worry about myself getting started in the morning.  I just want to stay in bed.  Tell me again why we live in Wisconsin.  I forgot.  Brain freeze.

Since our illustrious and magnificent Green Bay Packers are no longer involved in the postseason, I don’t much care who does or doesn’t win the Super Bowl.  The Packers’ season is over and so is my interest.  The commercials are the best part of the game.

This past Saturday, Señor Zanza, Junior, and I went to see the snow sculptures on Monument Square.  What a sight they were!  Simply gorgeous what they do with the snow.  There were ice sculptures, too, in front of businesses on Main and Sixth Streets.  They also were beautiful.  Because of our weather, I think most of the sculptures are still up and relatively unscathed.  Stop by and check them out.

I’ve been reading and hearing a lot about Mr. Mayor Dickert’s efforts to turn over the management of CAR25 to one of his buddies.  Tsk, tsk.  Why always the crooked way, Mr. Mayor?  Why always the con?  You and your cohorts should be ashamed of yourselves.  Bilking a city is not something to be proud of, Mr. Mayor.  Please stop lying to us, please.  Please be a man for once and speak the truth.

I use Mr. Mayor and his lies as a teaching tool for Junior.  Over and over, Mr. Mayor provides an example of what not to do.  Over and over, I point that out to Junior.  In fact, I’ve told Junior that he could live an honorable life simply by doing the opposite of whatever Mr. Mayor does.

Finally, my dears, here is a funny Mr. Jimmy Kimmel video on the cold weather:

Thank you, my sweethearts, for reading my blog this week.  It’s always a pleasure to have you visiting.  I look forward to it every week.

How cold is it?  Find out: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

The temperatures are supposed to rise a little later this week, but it’s January and it’s Wisconsin, so make sure you dress appropriately for the weather.  Watch out for those darned icy spots.  Be careful out there.  Filipendulous!

Open Blog - Wednesday

Let's dance.

"Sports Illustrated Kids 2012 SportsKids of the Year: Conner and Cayden Long"

That's a heartwarming and inspirational video.

Silverback Gorilla

Amazing Video.......SER

CHURCHES LOST DURING HURRICANE SANDY

When hurricane Sandy struck the East Coast, even houses of worship were not spared.

A local television station interviewed a black woman from New Jersey and asked how the loss of churches in the area would affect their lives.

Without hesitation, the woman replied, "I don't know 'bout all those other people, but we ain't gone to Churches in years. We gets our chicken from Popeye's."

The look on the interviewer's face was priceless.

Crazy Marriage Proposal

"Audi's automatic driving for parking"

Impressive? I don't know. The video below impresses me more.

Open Blog - Tuesday

Thank freakin' you!

A Couple of Birds For Drew

I was in Florida last week for my annual Disney Marathon trip. Thursday was a cool, windy day in and I went to Emerson Point Preserve near Palmetto. Lots of birds out that day and thought I would post a couple of pics for Drew and the other bird fans here. First, a pelican of some type (is there more than one type of pelican? Surely there must be).

Next, I know what this is. It is a roseate spoonbill. I love these guys, great color.

 

Here's another one where you can see the shape of the bill better.

See, I can take pictures of things that aren't in the sky too!

The Jupiter-Moon Conjunction Photos

Okay, I blogged about the close pairing of the Moon and Jupiter so here are some photos. The first one I got about 3:00 in the afternoon, but I prefer this one I took about 3:30pm.

Jupiter is to the lower left of the Moon. I went out for sunset as well. This is the first time I photographed sunset with my new Canon 60D. Wow! A bit different than my old camera! Shoots a lot faster and the sensitivity is different. Managed to get the differences sorted out in time to get a green flash. I am sure I will get better as I practice with this camera.

As soon as the Sun set, I turned to the Moon and Jupiter. 

About 8:00pm, I went back out and got this shot. The exposure was short to bring out details on the Moon. You can see the Montes Jura chain extending into the dark side of the Moon (upper left part of the Moon).

And I took one more with the Moon overexposed to bring out the Galilean Moons. Ganymede is to the left of Jupiter and Io and Callisto to the right. Europa was transiting in front of Jupiter at the time and not visible.

I hope you got to see the conjunction. Another one will happen on February 18th, but it won't be quite as close as this one.

Reprinted with permission from the Half-Astrophysicist Blog

Eagle Sightings

The above snapshot is a pair of Bald Eagles that I've seen on the break wall in Carre Hagel Park last November. Since then. I've been increasingly aware that a pair or more of Bald Eagles hanging around in the Racine County area. More than two dozen sighting have been reported....

To give an idea what is going on...

On November 4, I saw two eagles at Carre Hagel Park. Later on, in the SAME morning, I saw ANOTHER one by the lighthouse.

On November 10, I saw one perched in a tree at Smolenski Park. 

 Just after Thanksgiving, I saw another by the lighthouse with members of the Hoy Audubon.

Just before Christmas, Tender Heart and I saw fly over Hwy 100 in Oak Creek. It was heading east.

Two weeks ago, Tender Heart and I saw one fly over Carre Hagal Park.

Last Thursday, Tender Heart saw one fly over 4 Mile Rd. It was heading north.

Over the weekend, we again saw another near the Festival site.

That's just a few reported sightings....  I've heard of some being at the Pugh Marina, Carthage College, Echo Lake out in Burlington and other place around here.

A good way to find these eagles is to keep an eye the gulls and geese. If an eagle appears, they will manically fly up into the skies creating a chaotic confusion  Remember, a birds' eyesight is very keen.

I'm aware of that some readers may have never seen an eagle, now is a good time to keep an eye on the skies.... Good luck!

Useless Information

Did you know:

There were 6 presidents still alive at the same time twice recently in history.

One was at the time of Bill Clintons Inauguration in 1993 still alive were:
Richard Nixon
Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
George H. W. Bush
Bill Clinton

Even more recently, George Bush Junior at the time of his inauguration:
Gerald Ford
Jimmy Carter
Ronald Reagan
George H. W. Bush
Bill Clinton
George W. Bush

Open Blog - Monday

Enjoy your day.

Dark Eyed Junco

Shifting gears here away from the rare and unusual to something more plain and common. Something we ALL may have seen.... the Dark Eyed Junco.

Dark-eyed Juncos are neat, even flashy little sparrows that flit about forest floors of the western mountains and Canada, then flood the rest of North America for winter. They’re easy to recognize by their crisp charcoal grey markings, white underbellies and the bright white tail feathers they habitually flash in flight. One of the most abundant forest birds of North America. Not only just found in forests, but in fields foraging for seeds with American Tree Sparrows, parks, backyards and even under feeders. They are everywhere...

Dark-eyed Juncos are birds of the ground. They hop around the bases of trees and shrubs in forests or venture out onto lawns looking for fallen seeds. You’ll often hear their high chip notes, given almost absent-mindedly while foraging, or intensifying as they take short, low flights through cover.

This picture was taken this afternoon at the nature center in the Richard Bong State Recreational Area. Tender Heart and I had been birding there for four hours with great success. I liked this picture especially the way it was looking up at me as if to say, hello.... The picture below was taken in my backyard on 10/19/2012. That's about the time of the year that they arrive in Wisconsin. They'll stay here until about April before heading back to the Great White North.

  

Lying John Writes Commentary for the Journal Times, Lies

Lying John has written a piece about CAR25 for the Journal Times in which he continues to lie:  http://journaltimes.com/news/opinion/commentary-car-needs-to-spread-positive-news-about-city/article_736b281c-634f-11e2-947b-0019bb2963f4.html The lying mayor states that tax dollars are used for CAR25.  That's a lie. It's funded by fees from Time Warner Cable and AT&T.

Why does lying John feel that he can lie to us with impunity?  Look at the last time he tried to lie his way out of a situation - it costs us hundreds of thousands of tax dollars in legal fees.

Why doesn't the Journal Times call John on his lies?  Why do they knowingly publish his lies?

We're a fucked up city, lied to by our "leaders." The FBI can't get here soon enough. 

Look Up You First Car

This is really cool. Click here  to Find your first car or the one you drove to high school or college; hopefully your car brochure is available. This has to be one of the neatest web sites whether you have gasoline in your veins or not. This is a website featuring the original factory brochures for nearly every American car you have ever owned. Pick the manufacturer, the year and the model.

"How to Make a Baby"

Canadian photographer Patrice Laroche surely will have no trouble explaining to his kids about the birds and the bees. During his wife Sandra Denis' pregnancy, the artist created an explanatory photo series titled "How to Make a Baby."

 

Road Rage

No more road rage for me !!!!!

 

Open Blog - Weekend

Meow.

"Thomas Holmes owner of Park 6 Racine WI."

That's right, Mr. Holmes won his court case in October. The city has known from the start that Wahlen did not properly swear out a complaint. That was pointed out by then-Ald. Marcus way back when. Still the city pursued Dickert's vendetta. Now lying John is going to cost us again, just like the Bielefeldt settlement. More lawyers getting rich on our tax dollars. We can't afford Dickert.

"Trailer stolen from unsecured lot"

From The Journal Times.com:

"CALEDONIA — A 53-foot trailer was stolen from the Hribar Trucking lot, 13629 Northwestern Ave., between Monday, Jan. 7 and Wednesday, Jan. 9, according to a Caledonia police report.

"The owner of the trailer said he had permission to park his semi in the lot for mechanical service, according to the report. The lot is fenced, but was reportedly not locked. When the trailer’s owner returned to pick up his vehicle after it was repaired, it was gone.

"There are no cameras on the property."

Read more:  http://journaltimes.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/police-reports-driver-charged-with-owi-after-head-on-collision/article_aba2c460-60a7-11e2-be0e-0019bb2963f4.html


Thank you, Journal Times, on behalf of the crooks out there looking for unsecured lots with no cameras.  How about you post your home addresses, too?

Four for Fridays

Hello everyone and welcome back! It has been another quick week. This one has been quiet as well. Not much to do except watch television. Anyways, here are some questions....

1)  What is the first thing that you learned how to cook?

2)  What is the most interesting biography you have read?

3) What electronic device that you CAN live without?

4) What vegetable do you hate?

Enjoy your weekend!

Open Blog - Friday

Have a good day, mates.

"Xpogo - New York City"

I did not own a pogo stick. I tried others' pogo sticks and always fell off, so I figured screw it. I would be able to do none of these tricks.

Three beautiful children

I saw her standing there and I told her she had three beautiful children.

She didn't have to get all pissed off and threaten me with Jihad. It was just an honest mistake.

Open Blog - Thursday

Yum, yum.

"'THE NFL : A Bad Lip Reading'"

http://www.youtube.com/user/BadLipReading/

Looks like you can get a Bad Lip Reading of just about anyone.

Northern Shrike

One of things that draw me into birding is not only the rare, but the unusual. In this case, the Northern Shrike...

Also known as the "butcher bird" this predatory songbird is infamous for impaling its prey of mice, small birds and reptiles, and insects on thorns and barbed wire fences for later eating. This robin sized passerine is identifiable by its pearl grey back, white underbelly, black "robber" mask and a hooked beak. Breeding in Canada and Alaska, the Northern Shrike winters in open country with tall perches, including shrubby fields, wetlands, and forest edges in the northern United States.

Finding them is not easy. I learned this the hard way. They can be found perching on the top branches of tall trees and shrubs, often just looking like a small bird or a leaf in the distance. They best viewed through the binoculars, because they seem to be very skittish and fly away quickly.

This above picture was taken at Bender Park in Oak Creek on 12/16/2012. I had long wished to see a shrike out in the field. I had missed out an opportunity to see one found at Cliffside Park two weeks prior to this picture. A birding friend suggested I try Bender Park. With my luck, not only I succeeded in finding one, but took a picture my first shrike! That was not easy.... I spotted this guy as I pulled into the parking lot on a top of a solitary tree near the lot. As I approached the bird, it flew away! Luckily, it flew to a nearby tree. Had to find its comfort zone and quickly! After playing a game of cat and mouse, I finally nailed him. Victorious! Since then, I've seen two more shrikes... I can only hope to find more.

The bottom picture is NOT mine. It took it from the Audubon site to give viewers a better idea of what they look like.

"Would You Miss CAR 25?"

From Mount Pleasant Patch:

"Racine's public access cable channel may disappear, if the city goes along with an alderman's proposal.

"Alderman Greg Helding wants to see the money the city spends on CAR25 put into the contingency fund, according to The Journal Times, and used to potentially keep future cuts in services from happening."

Read more: http://mountpleasant.patch.com/articles/would-you-miss-car-25

Also see:  http://car25.pegcentral.com/


I would miss CAR25's moderating power.  Councilmen and others who are aware they are being filmed are less likely to act like swine.  Of course, you could make the case that that drives all of lying John's backdoor deals, like the one he is trying to swing here by replacing the people who run CAR25 with his cronies.  I am so sick of a lying mayor playing dirty with us all of the time. That also goes for his lying cousin and the ass-kissing Ald. Helding.  Those three little pigs are destroying Racine.   

Dumb ass Movies

Have you ever watched a movie that is so frig'in stupid you can't turn it off because you want to see what the idiots are going to do next?

Dear Madame Zoltar

Hello, my spirits and sprites!  How are you?  The weather has turned a little colder, but for the middle of January, I’d say that we’re not doing too bad.  Like last winter, there’s been little snow.  I hate saying this, but, for our own sake, we need more snow.  The drought has screwed up everything, resulting in higher prices for everything.  It seems like you can’t win.  Oh my.

Speaking of not winning, our illustrious and heroic Green Bay Packers fell to the San Francisco 49ers last Saturday, thus ending their postseason play.  It’s tragic.  Next season I’m going to get “more involved,” no matter what my ethics say.  I placed third in the Irregular Football League.  Perhaps I should hire out to the Packers as a consultant?  I can give players readings while teaching them new plays.  Hmm, I have to think about this...

Junior was so upset by the Packers’ loss that he threw his football at the TV in his bedroom.  Now he’s upset that he has to pay for a new TV.  That’s too bad, but my child is going to learn to take responsibility for what he does.  There is always the TV in the living room for him to watch, as long as others agree on the show. 

I was going to comment on some of the goings-on at Racine’s City Hall, but that gets distasteful quickly.  Odious is the word that comes to mind.  I refuse to feel sorry for myself, but I do feel bad for my fellow taxpayers.  Many hardworking people have watched the value of their homes plummet while the city assessment goes up and up.  Ptooie!

Locally, Alderman Keith Fair was named “Man of the Year” for 2012 by the Insider News: http://issuu.com/1661insider/docs/website_version   Huzzah, huzzah!  Let there be rejoicing throughout the First District.  

There is the New Car Show at Festival Hall this weekend.  (Who can afford a new car?)  There is also the Big Chill Winter Snow Sculpting Competition on Monument Square: http://www.journaltimes.com/calendar/the-big-chill-winter-snow-sculpting-competition/event_6d58c9e4-5368-11e2-8f5d-0019bb2963f4.html  I’ve seen a couple of those before.  The sculptures were wonderful. It’s free and it’s fun. 

Thank you, my dears, for reading my blog today.  I’m grateful that you stop by.  I look forward to your visits each and every week.

Have a deep, dark question?  Get a deep, dark answer: madamezoltar@jtirregulars.com.

Watch out for the patches of ice on the sidewalks and the streets.  I find myself doing the little mince-walk across ice in an effort to avoid falling on my butt.  Thank goodness that I eat so much chocolate.  Lalochezia!  

Open Blog - Wednesday

It's about time that Betty show up.

"Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Video by Scott McKinley"

No punch line this time, just a beautiful video.

Barbie Turns 50

They walk among us

Cookies.......

Morning........

 

 

Open Blog - Tuesday

Yes sir, Mr. Willis, sir.

Useless Information

Did you know:

During WWII the government put a halt on industries manufacturing alarm clocks so they could save the materials for the war effort.

The Truth!

Yes this is the sign in the window of Sentry Foods on Washington Ave in Racine Wi. It is a really sad time for all of the employee's right now.

What I want to let everyone know is the true reason why Sentry closed it's door. We had a store meeting back in November about the store closing and the owner was there letting us know what was happening. He is the one that told us the true reason of the store closing. That reason is the owner was losing five percent every year the store was open. This owner was in town for five years and every year he has lost money instead of making money. All the employee's had sixty days notice that the store was closing which I thought was really great. Some of the people had found new jobs before the store closed.

The reason why I am letting you know the truth is because I am so tired of hearing everyone blaming it on Wal-Mart moving across the street from there. That is not the reason because Wal-Mart has not even broke ground yet. That is all I heard for the last two months at work and I could not say the true reason to the customers they also kept saying that they would not shop at Wal-Mart anymore.

I worked until the last day on Friday and I can say that when I was saying good bye to everyone it was really sad. As I walked out the door to go and pick up Drew from work I started to cry because I am going to miss everyone I have gotten to know over the last year and a half.

I hope this helps everyone understand the true reason of the store closing. I was not allowed to say anything while the store was still open so I figured now it is closed and I will let you know.

Open Blog - Monday

Thank you, Mr. Cupcake. The same to you.

Purple Sandpiper

Sometimes birds end in places where they just don't belong.... In this case, of two Purple Sandpipers I saw this afternoon.

Extremely rare in Southeast Wisconsin, the Purple Sandpiper breeds in extreme Northern Canada and Iceland. They are late migrants and winters along the rocky Atlantic coastlines as far south as North Carolina. Occasionally, they will make it to Georgia and northern Florida. These guys seem the favor the cold weather. Identified by it's bi-colored slightly curved bill, purplish plumage and orange feet, this 'peep' probes the rocky shorelines for gastropods and crustaceans.

So why are they here? Honestly, I don't really know. Sometimes storms move birds long distances away from their normal range. I don't think it's the case with these two vagrants. The two we first sighted yesterday before the storm came. Besides, there was a pair sighed in the same spot a year ago. Whatever the reason is, I'm glad that I saw them. A lifer.

These pictures were taken this afternoon at the Wind Point Lighthouse just before the first pier by Shoop Park. I had read a report from my friends at the Hoy Audubon about their sighting yesterday, so naturally I went out to find these sandpipers. After spotting them on the rocky beach, some familiar faces found me taking pictures. It was one of the guys that I ran into yesterday at Bong while looking for Short Eared Owls. (Yes, I saw them) Other birding photographers poured in. It seems the word has traveled....

    Purple Sandpiper sightings

"Trombone Alpine Skiing"

And now for something completely different:

Packers Lose

San Francisco 49ers - 45, Green Bay Packers - 31