DVOC Trip to Panama March 2011
Participants: Bert Filemyr, Art McMorris, Ann and Mac Scott, Barbara Thorp, Connie Goldman, Susan Schuur, Jack Plotkin, Bob Cohen, Jane Henderson
Day 0, March 9, 2011: We fussed around in the morning till Barbara and Kurt picked us up at 1:00 PM. We shot to the airport (EWR) and met Bert, Connie and Art when we were emerging from security. We hung out at the gate, and then Jack and Susan turned up. They’d been there for some time, coming from Detroit, and waiting elsewhere. The flight was uneventful, but warm and stuffy. When we got to PTY, Ann and Mac had already arrived. In the midst of arrival security, Susan lost track of a bag, but was able to retrieve it. We were met by a guy and a bus, equipped with a trailer for our stuff. We arrived at Gamboa around midnight, checked in, showered, and went to bed.
Night: Gamboa Resort
Day 1, March 10, 2011: We had Continental breakfast at 5:00 AM, and were picked up by Hernan and driver at 6:00 AM. We went to Soberania National Park and to the tower at the Discovery Center, and stayed there for over two hours. The canopy was very active that morning. Blue Dacnis, Blue Cotinga, Red-legged honeycreeper, assorted tanagers and pigeons. Then we walked a trail near there till it was time for a picnic lunch at the Discovery Center, a nice place. Then afternoon birding at Pipeline Road. It rained on and off, but we got to see some nice birds. We wound up at Gamboa Ponds. There were some great birds there: White-throated Crake, Wattled Jacana, Fork-tailed Flycatcher. We had dinner in the restaurant at Gamboa. It was Jack’s birthday, and he got a small cake and we all had sparkling wine. To bed early.
Night: Gamboa Resort
Day 2, March 11, 2011: We had Continental breakfast at 5:00 AM and left at 5:15 for Metropolitan Nature Park. Foolishly, Bob and I did not spray for insects, and both wound up with chigger bites, his worse than mine. We did a long walk around the park, and then took turns going up in the Smithsonian crane. We were in the second group. We didn’t see as many birds from the crane as we had two years ago, but it’s a pretty awesome experience. We had a big lunch at Miraflora Locks. We went to Summit ponds and saw Boat-billed Heron. We had dinner at Gamboa, and did checklists there in the library. Rebecca turned up for that.
Night: Gamboa Resort
Day 3, March 12, 2011: We walked down to the jungle boat and went out into the Chagres River and the canal. We saw some nice birds, including a great look at a Snail Kite, and had a close encounter with monkeys. We had a picnic lunch on one of the little islands. Rebecca was with us again. We left Gamboa at 1:30 PM and set out for the local airport. Lots of Cuna Indians were waiting to go home to San Blas. The women wore elaborate woven stockings. Hernan said their men like women with thin legs! There was no place to sit down, and was pretty hectic. It took forever for everything to settle down so we could take off. A yellow bus met us in David, and as soon as we got on the road we had a flat tire. The guys fixed it in no time. We got to Finca Lerida at 6:45 PM. It’s a very nice place. We had dinner at 7:30 PM. Very good food.
Night: Finca Lerida
Day 4, March 13, 2011: We got up early and walked Baru National Park, on the boundary of Finca Lerida, all morning. We had Wattled Bell Birds all over the place, and decent looks at Resplendent Quetzals, and an iffy look at a male. We had lunch at the finca (too much food!) and then took a short tour of the coffee works there, courtesy of Cesar, who had also helped with the morning birding. Everyone went down to the platform feeders in the late afternoon. It was cold and drizzly, and I left before the others did. We had dinner at the finca, and enjoyed watching “typical” dancing and music. Hernan danced a bit. To bed, packed for tomorrow’s departure, at 10 PM. It would have been nice to spend more time at the finca. It’s one of the nicest places.
Day 5, March 14, 2011: towards Volcan: This was a strenuous day of birding. We set out early from Finca Lerida and headed towards Hotel Dos Rios. We stopped at a couple of places, Caldera Road and Querevalo Road, along the way. Our destination was La Amistad International Park. We had a lot of good birds there. It was a long, hard walk, up and down, over rocks and slippery roots and mud.
Night: Hotel Dos Rios
Day 6, March 15, 2011: We packed up and headed for Tapir Canyon Road. This was a very good birding spot. We had lunch at Cielito Sur, a really nice place, and then a short visit to Finca Dracula. We had a brief guided visit to some of the orchids. There weren’t many birds around this time. We drove back to hotel Dos Rios to pick up our baggage and check out. Hernan was a bit upset with himself for not checking out when we left in the morning. We drove in a bit of a hurry to the airport in David to fly back to Panama City. We got there around 5:30, and began the long drive to Hostal Casa de Campo, a weird bed and breakfast. We had dinner at 8:45, served by a surly waitress in a “mammy” outfit, and were watched over by the proprietor. Our room had a bathtub with shower, but there was no shower curtain, and water poured all over the floor. We were finally in bed at 11:00 PM. I didn’t sleep much that night.
Night: Hostal Casa de Campo
Day 7, March 16, 2011: After a pretty good breakfast at Casa de Campo, we took a long hike on an up and down trail at Chagres National Park. We had lunch at Birders View, a local Audubon place. We watched hummingbirds for a while, and then began the long drive to Burbayar Lodge, a very nice place. We had a little thatched-roof cabin to ourselves. We had dinner, did checklists, and turned in early. The generator goes off at 9:30.
Night: Burbayar
Day 8: We had a big breakfast at Burbayar Lodge and then set out on a 2 km muddy hike, up and down some severe hills. We did see some birds, but not enough to justify the long hike, I thought. We had lunch at Burbayar. Hernan asked me to tip El Jefe, Jose. I thought this was the last straw. He owns the place! This seems to be another of the trips where we’re asked to tip someone every time we turn around. Around 2:25, we headed for the Country Inn in Panama City. We got there at 4:30 and then had free time (!) until 6:30 when we were picked up by Justo to go to dinner at a big restaurant on the water. We had drinks (I had a margarita) and dinner. Nice time. We were back at the hotel at 9:30 PM. It was good to be in a regular hotel for a change, we thought. Nice room, nice shower (with two taps!)
Night: Country Inn, Panama City
Day 9, March 18, 2011: We drove to “the mangroves” in the city and saw a bunch of birds, some new, while dodging traffic and breathing in dust and exhaust fumes. They’re tearing everything up to make room for expansion of the city. From there we drove to the Pacific Coast and saw many species of shorebirds. Then to the historical ruins. We had lunch in the cafeteria. Then we transferred to a smaller vehicle to the top of Ancon Hill and walked down, dodging traffic. Eric, one of our bus drivers, picked us up for the first of two farewell dinners (for Connie, Jack and Susan) at a nice restaurant in Second City. He had a heck of a time getting there because many of the roads were blocked off for some kind of festival. There were many detours and police blockades. Hernan had something to say about all that. The dinner was excellent – a great assortment of different kinds of food. Then back to the Country Inn to sort out what would go to the Darien, and what would stay behind.
Night: Country Inn
Day 10, March 19, 2011: Connie, Susan and Jack left early for the airport. The rest of us had breakfast there, and then left for the Embera Village in the Darien. We were transported much of the way in a wooden motor launch. We got a hot lunch on the way. The Embera people live in a traditional style, in thatched-roof huts. We all stayed in tents in our hut, accessible by a primitive ladder, which was tricky to negotiate, especially at night, when there were no lights except for the moon. We shared a toilet and cold-water shower. The Embera women and girls were summoned by conch shell, and sat around in a big circle, some breasts covered, some not. They all displayed handcrafts, mostly baskets. I bought a tiny basket. Others bought a ton of stuff. It was a good day for the crafts people. Most of our people enjoyed this experience. Bob was so frustrated by it (heat, hot tent, primitive toilet) that it upset me, too. I think I would have fared better alone on this one. I took tow Ativan, and had a decent sleep. Bob said he didn’t sleep at all. We were both aggravated that we hadn’t been better prepared for this rustic experience.
Night: Embera village
Day 11, March 20, 2011: We began the long trek to see the Harpy eagle in the early morning. It was a hard slog, 7 km there, 7 km back, with roots and slippery places. We finally saw the bird when it was nearly time to turn around. It’s an awesome creature. We had lunch at the village, and took off by boat to Punta Petino. The lodge is a nice place, but nothing worked in our cabin – AC, lights didn’t work, and the toilet tank wouldn’t fill. Bob was furious that we weren’t getting our money’s worth. He went ballistic over the electrical problems. It took forever for “Frankling” to get the lights and AC to go on. We thought we were OK until everything went off again. To bed at 9:00 PM
Night: Punta Petino lodge
Day 12, March 21, 2011: I had a decent night’s sleep, thanks to Ativan. Bob said he didn’t sleep at all. No wonder, since he was so agitated. Hernan switched cabins with us. Everything was working in his. We took two long walks, on trails near the lodge. Good scenery, good birds. After dinner we took a pauraque walk, and didn’t see anything, though they had been calling all over the place before and after. We left the walk early. Julia got covered with ticks. To bed at 9:30 PM. Basically it’s a lovely place. Too bad they can’t get the electrical and plumbing problems under control.
Night: Punta Petino Lodge
Day 13, March 22, 2011: We left Punta Petino at 6:30 AM and started the long boat ride back to Gamboa. We stopped once to get out and look at Fort Lorenzo, and another time so Hernan could buy some fish. Then a long bus ride back to Gamboa (after helping Mr. Wong get out from under his bus with flat tire. It was a potentially disastrous situation. He was nearly pinned under the bus and refused help. Thank goodness Hernan and Justo helped anyway. The passengers didn’t seem to realize how dangerous their situation was). We got to Gamboa at 5:00 PM. We met for drinks and dinner and Bert supervised the checklist in the library.
Night: Gamboa
Day 14, March 23, 2011: We met Hernan here at 5:30 for a trip to the Discovery Tower. The birding was pretty much of a bust this time. We had lunch at the Discovery Center, and then walked Pipeline Road. We saw some birds, but nothing new. There was nothing at the pond, either. Back on hotel grounds we had a lot of good birds – Golden-hooded Tanager, Olivaceous Trogons into and out of a termite nest. We had dinner at Hernan’s house, which is pretty much like a museum. We had chorizo, hamburgers, cake, and wine and assorted liquors. A very nice time. We left Hernan a very generous tip, and a few thank-you notes. We were back at Gamboa at 9:30 PM.
Night: Gamboa
Day 15, March 24, 2011: Justo picked us up at 5:30 AM for our 10:05 AM flight. (He had to be awakened by the guy at the desk). Ann and Mac had gone to Tocumen earlier, bound for Miami and their house in Venice, FL.
Bert and Art got picked up by Jim; Barbara, Bob and I were met by Kurt. (Barbara was delayed a bit when a cute beagle sniffed out an apple in her carry-on. She had to go to the horticulture place to be checked out. Thank goodness I thought about my apple before it got to that point). We got home around 4:45 PM. We had dinner at Cisco’s.
Night: Flourtown
Saturday, March 26, 2011
2011 Trip to Florida
Winter Trip 2011
Day 1 Sunday, February 13, 2011
We left home at 7:00 AM in our almost-new Toyota Rav4. It was cold, and we were dressed in winter clothes. There was still a lot of snow on the ground at home. Bob was so happy when the snow finally disappeared when we got to southern Maryland. We stopped a few times along the way for food, gas and bathroom, and arrived at Jerry Cochran’s house in Salisbury, North Carolina around 2:30 PM. We sat around in his kitchen over glasses of wine, and then went to dinner at Outback. We all had prime rib. Very good. Night at Jerry’s.
Day 2 Monday, February 14, 2011
We left Jerry’s around 8:00 AM and set out for Decatur, Georgia. Again, we made several stops along the way to stretch our legs. We arrived around 3:00 PM, after getting the northern salt off our car at a carwash. After greeting Rafe and Ilze, we had some tea while watching the Eastern Screech Owl peek out of one of their owl boxes. Their yard is amazing: two screech owls in residence, Pine and Myrtle Warblers, Brown-headed and White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpecker, Purple Finches, Eastern Bluebirds, Northern Cardinals, Brown Thrasher, Cedar Waxwing, White-throated Sparrows, Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmouse, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Red-shouldered Hawk. We took a walk around the neighborhood with Rafe, and found out all about local goings-on.
We had tuna and noodles for dinner, and settled in for the night.
Day 3 Tuesday, February 15, 2011
In the morning, we all took a walk at the Clyde Shepherd Refuge. There weren’t a whole lot of birds there. Many, many American Robins, but not much else except for one Golden-crowned Kinglet. We went back to the house for lunch. In need of some exercise, I asked about a local walking trail. As it turned out, a rather large recreational area is being developed nearby. So Rafe, Bob and I drove over there. Actually, we could have walked. It’s less than a mile away from their house. At any rate, we parked the car and set out. The boardwalk is partially completed and we walked it for a mile or so. We took a detour to Mason’s Mill, a defunct water works, covered with elaborate graffiti. It was a very interesting walk, and we’ll be sure to do it again next time we visit.
We enjoyed “sandwich night” after watching their two screech owls leave their boxes to go out and hunt for the night.
Day 4 Wednesday, February 16, 2011
We left Rafe and Ilze’s at 7:00 AM. We followed “Fred’s” (reliable GPS) directions, and basically took I-75 all the way to Venice, Florida. It’s a 500 mile-long, pretty easy drive. There was very little traffic. We arrived around 4:00 PM. at Ann and Mac Scott’s very nice, quite large rental house on one of the lakes. Debbie and Lewis Barrett were also staying there. We had snacks and drinks, and then dinner around 8:00 PM. To bed at 10:45.
Day 5 Thursday, February 17, 2011
We were all up at 7:00 AM. We had breakfast at the house, and then headed for the Celery Farm near Sarasota. We saw a Limpkin land in a tree close to us shortly after we arrived, and thus ended the “Limpkin Curse” for this trip. (We saw several of them after that.) We saw several waders, an assortment of ducks, one Sandhill Crane, and a Savannah Sparrow, which we struggled to identify. It was skulking in the grass, rather unusual behavior for that species. We took a break at the local library, a very nice structure, and each bought some books from their $1.00 used book shelves. We had lunch at Chick-Fil-A, and then headed for Myakka River State Park. We walked several of the trails, but there wasn’t much bird activity at that time of day. It’s a great place. We’d been there once before a few years ago. We came back to the house for a while, and then went to the beach for the sunset. Ann made dinner for all of us again. Debbie and Lewis got ready to leave early the next morning.
Day 6 February 18, 2011
We said goodbye to Debbie and Lewis at 8:00 AM, and afterwards took a nice walk along the Myakka River. We found a group of assorted warblers – Black-and white, Palm, Pine, and also Blue-headed and White-eyed Vireos at one spot. We had sandwiches at the house, played a couple of games of Chicken Foot, which we’d brought for them, and took off for Naples and the Cushes. We got to their house around 3:30 PM. We watched some golf, had dinner, watched the original “True Grit” with John Wayne, and went to bed around 11:00 PM. It was good to see Tom and Mary, Biz’s in-laws, again. When they lived in Dresher, PA we used to do stuff with them all the time.
Day 7 February 19, 2011
Bob and I left around 9:30 AM for Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. We had two gorgeous male Painted Buntings at the feeder first thing. We did not see the females at all this time. There were lots of Red-shouldered Hawks with us all the way round, perched, flying overhead, and calling. No Swallow-tailed Kite this time. They had not turned up yet, though they’re “supposed to” on February 18. No Barred Owl, and no Wood Storks either. In one spot we had a number of warblers: Pine, Black-and-white, Parula, Yellow-throated, “Baypoll”, Common Yellowthroat. Also White-eyed and Blue-headed Vireos, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Baltimore Oriole. All the usual waders, Anhingas and Double-crested Cormorants. We walked around twice.
We watched “Endurance” about the Shackleton Antarctic Expedition after dinner. It’s an amazing film. It made me want to go to the Antarctic. Too bad it’s so hideously expensive.
Day 8 February 20, 2011
We spent all day with Tom and Mary. We drove to Marco Island to see Burrowing Owls, and did see one peeking out of its hole. We walked around a small craft show before having lunch at Pelican Larry’s. We all had oysters, some raw, some fried. All good. We played Chicken Foot all afternoon. Fun. We had a spaghetti dinner at the house, and watched part of “Born Yesterday” with Judy Holliday, and part of “My Fair Lady”, both on TCM, before going to bed.
Day 9 February 21, 2011
We left Tom and Mary’s at 8:30 AM and headed east on Route 41 to Shark Valley. We hadn’t brought bikes on this trip, since we thought there wouldn’t be enough opportunities to ride this time. Also we hadn’t had a chance to try out the new bike rack on the Rav4. It has to be mounted oddly because of the spare tire. The parking lot was already full, so we parked on the street. We walked a couple of miles down the trail, and took a few pictures. There was nothing spectacular or unusual, but we had some nice views of Purple Gallinule, the usual waders, and lots of alligators. We saw distant Snail Kites across the road after we’d gone back to the car. We left there around noon, and ate lunch under a tree (it was getting hot by then) in the big Indian casino parking lot. There were lots of RVs in the lot. We headed for Brian Piccolo Park, a “sure spot” for Burrowing Owls, and learned that the county parks would be closed till 5:00 PM Wednesday for Presidents Day weekend! What a silly idea. I guess they’re strapped for funds, too. We drove to Markham Park for snail kites, but that one was closed, too.
We got to the Sleep Inn at Dania Beach around 4:00 PM. I had a message from Marco in Panama that something was up regarding the Darien extension to our trip. He requested that I call him, because of a “sensitive” issue relating to the extension. I finally got through to him, and found out that the Cana part of the trip has been cancelled due to poor conditions at the Cana air strip. At this point, our itinerary will have to be adjusted to eliminate the Cana portion, and a new itinerary is to be proposed.
Alvin and Marie picked us up at the Sleep Inn and took us to a nice fish restaurant. Parking the car in the crowded lot was a circus, but Alvin managed with the help of the parking lot assistant. We had a very good dinner. We sat at a table next to a nice, young black couple, who were very interested in Alvin and Marie’s long history, including Alvin’s service in WW II. They bought us dessert.
Day 10 February 22, 2011
We checked out of the Sleep Inn in Hollywood and got sandwiches and stuff at the local Publix, just like old times. Our first stop, heading north, was Green Cay. It’s a wonderful place, but it was a little disappointing. We’d heard such great things about it. Lots and lots of people use it for walking exercise. It’s a rather new waste water treatment facility, about 6 years old. The visitors center is quite elaborate. We went from there to Wakodahatchee, where we’d been many times before. There were lots of nesting birds on the islands, as usual. We had a nice look at a Sora, and got some decent pictures of it. We ate our sandwiches in the car, and headed to Grassy Waters to look for Snail Kites. We found the place all right, and walked the very nice new boardwalk, but the only bird there was a Great Egret. We asked some folks about the kites – they had easels set up and were painting – and they had no idea what we were talking about. One guy said the kites are not here this time of year. Nice try.
We headed north towards Fort Pierce. We’d been invited to spend the night at Sam Freed’s place, but we decided to soldier on to the Viera Wetlands (Bob calls them “Viagra Wetlands”) and come back to Sam’s. It took longer than we’d thought to get to Viera, so we booked a room at “America’s Best Value Inn” motel (pretty sleazy) in Melbourne and drove on after calling Sam to say we wouldn’t be staying this time. Nearly all the motels around there were booked up, even before we left for the trip – combination of Daytona and the shuttle launch. Viera Wetlands is wonderful. I wish we’d had more time there. We did see a Sora and an American Bittern, and lots and lots of coots and moorhens. I’m sorry that we didn’t get to see Sam’s house. Oh, well.
Day 11 February 23, 2011
We were out of the sleazy motel by 7:30 AM. It was actually clean enough, just shoddy. Everybody else staying there was either black or latino, and in the construction business, or so it seemed at breakfast. We made another trip around Viera Wetlands. It was very foggy. The only “new” bird for us there was a perched Peregrine Falcon. We headed north from there, and made a detour at Merritt Island NWR Black Water Drive. The whole refuge was very dry, and bird life was minimal except for hundreds of Dunlin and a few yellowlegs. A volunteer at an eagle watch said there has been a severe drought and they do the best they can to get water from one area to another. We got on the road for real at 10:30, after stops at Publix and Walgreens. We made a couple of stops, and got to the Fairfield in Florence, SC around 6:00 PM to find that they had no record of our reservation. Fortunately they had a room, and then I had to figure out what happened to our reservation. We had a terrible dinner at the Outback. The meat was old and dry, and we complained. We weren’t charged for it. We were back in our room at 9:00 PM.
Day 12 February 24
Florence to home. Long drive, lots of traffic. We were home around 4:00 PM.
Day 1 Sunday, February 13, 2011
We left home at 7:00 AM in our almost-new Toyota Rav4. It was cold, and we were dressed in winter clothes. There was still a lot of snow on the ground at home. Bob was so happy when the snow finally disappeared when we got to southern Maryland. We stopped a few times along the way for food, gas and bathroom, and arrived at Jerry Cochran’s house in Salisbury, North Carolina around 2:30 PM. We sat around in his kitchen over glasses of wine, and then went to dinner at Outback. We all had prime rib. Very good. Night at Jerry’s.
Day 2 Monday, February 14, 2011
We left Jerry’s around 8:00 AM and set out for Decatur, Georgia. Again, we made several stops along the way to stretch our legs. We arrived around 3:00 PM, after getting the northern salt off our car at a carwash. After greeting Rafe and Ilze, we had some tea while watching the Eastern Screech Owl peek out of one of their owl boxes. Their yard is amazing: two screech owls in residence, Pine and Myrtle Warblers, Brown-headed and White-breasted Nuthatches, Downy Woodpecker, Purple Finches, Eastern Bluebirds, Northern Cardinals, Brown Thrasher, Cedar Waxwing, White-throated Sparrows, Carolina Chickadees, Tufted Titmouse, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Red-shouldered Hawk. We took a walk around the neighborhood with Rafe, and found out all about local goings-on.
We had tuna and noodles for dinner, and settled in for the night.
Day 3 Tuesday, February 15, 2011
In the morning, we all took a walk at the Clyde Shepherd Refuge. There weren’t a whole lot of birds there. Many, many American Robins, but not much else except for one Golden-crowned Kinglet. We went back to the house for lunch. In need of some exercise, I asked about a local walking trail. As it turned out, a rather large recreational area is being developed nearby. So Rafe, Bob and I drove over there. Actually, we could have walked. It’s less than a mile away from their house. At any rate, we parked the car and set out. The boardwalk is partially completed and we walked it for a mile or so. We took a detour to Mason’s Mill, a defunct water works, covered with elaborate graffiti. It was a very interesting walk, and we’ll be sure to do it again next time we visit.
We enjoyed “sandwich night” after watching their two screech owls leave their boxes to go out and hunt for the night.
Day 4 Wednesday, February 16, 2011
We left Rafe and Ilze’s at 7:00 AM. We followed “Fred’s” (reliable GPS) directions, and basically took I-75 all the way to Venice, Florida. It’s a 500 mile-long, pretty easy drive. There was very little traffic. We arrived around 4:00 PM. at Ann and Mac Scott’s very nice, quite large rental house on one of the lakes. Debbie and Lewis Barrett were also staying there. We had snacks and drinks, and then dinner around 8:00 PM. To bed at 10:45.
Day 5 Thursday, February 17, 2011
We were all up at 7:00 AM. We had breakfast at the house, and then headed for the Celery Farm near Sarasota. We saw a Limpkin land in a tree close to us shortly after we arrived, and thus ended the “Limpkin Curse” for this trip. (We saw several of them after that.) We saw several waders, an assortment of ducks, one Sandhill Crane, and a Savannah Sparrow, which we struggled to identify. It was skulking in the grass, rather unusual behavior for that species. We took a break at the local library, a very nice structure, and each bought some books from their $1.00 used book shelves. We had lunch at Chick-Fil-A, and then headed for Myakka River State Park. We walked several of the trails, but there wasn’t much bird activity at that time of day. It’s a great place. We’d been there once before a few years ago. We came back to the house for a while, and then went to the beach for the sunset. Ann made dinner for all of us again. Debbie and Lewis got ready to leave early the next morning.
Day 6 February 18, 2011
We said goodbye to Debbie and Lewis at 8:00 AM, and afterwards took a nice walk along the Myakka River. We found a group of assorted warblers – Black-and white, Palm, Pine, and also Blue-headed and White-eyed Vireos at one spot. We had sandwiches at the house, played a couple of games of Chicken Foot, which we’d brought for them, and took off for Naples and the Cushes. We got to their house around 3:30 PM. We watched some golf, had dinner, watched the original “True Grit” with John Wayne, and went to bed around 11:00 PM. It was good to see Tom and Mary, Biz’s in-laws, again. When they lived in Dresher, PA we used to do stuff with them all the time.
Day 7 February 19, 2011
Bob and I left around 9:30 AM for Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary. We had two gorgeous male Painted Buntings at the feeder first thing. We did not see the females at all this time. There were lots of Red-shouldered Hawks with us all the way round, perched, flying overhead, and calling. No Swallow-tailed Kite this time. They had not turned up yet, though they’re “supposed to” on February 18. No Barred Owl, and no Wood Storks either. In one spot we had a number of warblers: Pine, Black-and-white, Parula, Yellow-throated, “Baypoll”, Common Yellowthroat. Also White-eyed and Blue-headed Vireos, Blue-gray Gnatcatchers, Baltimore Oriole. All the usual waders, Anhingas and Double-crested Cormorants. We walked around twice.
We watched “Endurance” about the Shackleton Antarctic Expedition after dinner. It’s an amazing film. It made me want to go to the Antarctic. Too bad it’s so hideously expensive.
Day 8 February 20, 2011
We spent all day with Tom and Mary. We drove to Marco Island to see Burrowing Owls, and did see one peeking out of its hole. We walked around a small craft show before having lunch at Pelican Larry’s. We all had oysters, some raw, some fried. All good. We played Chicken Foot all afternoon. Fun. We had a spaghetti dinner at the house, and watched part of “Born Yesterday” with Judy Holliday, and part of “My Fair Lady”, both on TCM, before going to bed.
Day 9 February 21, 2011
We left Tom and Mary’s at 8:30 AM and headed east on Route 41 to Shark Valley. We hadn’t brought bikes on this trip, since we thought there wouldn’t be enough opportunities to ride this time. Also we hadn’t had a chance to try out the new bike rack on the Rav4. It has to be mounted oddly because of the spare tire. The parking lot was already full, so we parked on the street. We walked a couple of miles down the trail, and took a few pictures. There was nothing spectacular or unusual, but we had some nice views of Purple Gallinule, the usual waders, and lots of alligators. We saw distant Snail Kites across the road after we’d gone back to the car. We left there around noon, and ate lunch under a tree (it was getting hot by then) in the big Indian casino parking lot. There were lots of RVs in the lot. We headed for Brian Piccolo Park, a “sure spot” for Burrowing Owls, and learned that the county parks would be closed till 5:00 PM Wednesday for Presidents Day weekend! What a silly idea. I guess they’re strapped for funds, too. We drove to Markham Park for snail kites, but that one was closed, too.
We got to the Sleep Inn at Dania Beach around 4:00 PM. I had a message from Marco in Panama that something was up regarding the Darien extension to our trip. He requested that I call him, because of a “sensitive” issue relating to the extension. I finally got through to him, and found out that the Cana part of the trip has been cancelled due to poor conditions at the Cana air strip. At this point, our itinerary will have to be adjusted to eliminate the Cana portion, and a new itinerary is to be proposed.
Alvin and Marie picked us up at the Sleep Inn and took us to a nice fish restaurant. Parking the car in the crowded lot was a circus, but Alvin managed with the help of the parking lot assistant. We had a very good dinner. We sat at a table next to a nice, young black couple, who were very interested in Alvin and Marie’s long history, including Alvin’s service in WW II. They bought us dessert.
Day 10 February 22, 2011
We checked out of the Sleep Inn in Hollywood and got sandwiches and stuff at the local Publix, just like old times. Our first stop, heading north, was Green Cay. It’s a wonderful place, but it was a little disappointing. We’d heard such great things about it. Lots and lots of people use it for walking exercise. It’s a rather new waste water treatment facility, about 6 years old. The visitors center is quite elaborate. We went from there to Wakodahatchee, where we’d been many times before. There were lots of nesting birds on the islands, as usual. We had a nice look at a Sora, and got some decent pictures of it. We ate our sandwiches in the car, and headed to Grassy Waters to look for Snail Kites. We found the place all right, and walked the very nice new boardwalk, but the only bird there was a Great Egret. We asked some folks about the kites – they had easels set up and were painting – and they had no idea what we were talking about. One guy said the kites are not here this time of year. Nice try.
We headed north towards Fort Pierce. We’d been invited to spend the night at Sam Freed’s place, but we decided to soldier on to the Viera Wetlands (Bob calls them “Viagra Wetlands”) and come back to Sam’s. It took longer than we’d thought to get to Viera, so we booked a room at “America’s Best Value Inn” motel (pretty sleazy) in Melbourne and drove on after calling Sam to say we wouldn’t be staying this time. Nearly all the motels around there were booked up, even before we left for the trip – combination of Daytona and the shuttle launch. Viera Wetlands is wonderful. I wish we’d had more time there. We did see a Sora and an American Bittern, and lots and lots of coots and moorhens. I’m sorry that we didn’t get to see Sam’s house. Oh, well.
Day 11 February 23, 2011
We were out of the sleazy motel by 7:30 AM. It was actually clean enough, just shoddy. Everybody else staying there was either black or latino, and in the construction business, or so it seemed at breakfast. We made another trip around Viera Wetlands. It was very foggy. The only “new” bird for us there was a perched Peregrine Falcon. We headed north from there, and made a detour at Merritt Island NWR Black Water Drive. The whole refuge was very dry, and bird life was minimal except for hundreds of Dunlin and a few yellowlegs. A volunteer at an eagle watch said there has been a severe drought and they do the best they can to get water from one area to another. We got on the road for real at 10:30, after stops at Publix and Walgreens. We made a couple of stops, and got to the Fairfield in Florence, SC around 6:00 PM to find that they had no record of our reservation. Fortunately they had a room, and then I had to figure out what happened to our reservation. We had a terrible dinner at the Outback. The meat was old and dry, and we complained. We weren’t charged for it. We were back in our room at 9:00 PM.
Day 12 February 24
Florence to home. Long drive, lots of traffic. We were home around 4:00 PM.
Wednesday, November 17, 2010
A Wedding Brings Family and Friends Together
A day later than originally planned (see last blog) Bob and I left our house at 4:25 AM and headed for Pacifico where we would be leaving our car while we went to Tyler, Texas for James and Sharesa's wedding. Our plane left at 6:40 AM, pretty much on time, and we got to DFW around 11:00 AM. We picked up a Chevy Cobalt from Alamo and were on our way. We'd been told that the drive from DFW to Tyler would take about 45 minutes. Wrong! It took nearly two hours. We checked into our motel at 1:00 PM. When we learned that Tyler is a dry town, we drove to Coffee City, about 40 minutes away, for some booze. As it turned out, we never opened the bottle.
After a false start, we headed for Villa Felicita where the wedding rehearsal would be held the next day. It's a very pretty place, inside and out, and is a popular venue for weddings. Our only meeting with the bride had been via Skype, so we were very happy to finally meet the real person. We connected up with friends and family, and then joined the others in helping to decorate the villa according to Sharesa and James's wishes.
After the rehearsal, where we all got to take our positions and practice our lines, we headed for the rehearsal dinner at Villa Montez. We'd been told it was quite close by. It was then that we learned about Texas distances. The bottom line: things are much farther away from one another than one might think. We went back and forth, and round and round on the loop road around Tyler many times that weekend.
About 50 people showed up for the rehearsal dinner, which was held in a wine cellar type of environment. Bob and I, and Lee (my ex) and Mary sponsored the dinner, which turned out to be a very nice affair indeed. We all milled around for a while, enjoying the wine, beer and snacks that were offered, and met members of Sharesa's family and some of her friends.
Production of the dinner was an amazing phenomenon. The in-charge waiter took our orders: filet (cooked to order), chicken, fish (nothing had had to be ordered ahead of time) and before long it was all produced like magic, everything hot and perfectly done. No one could figure out how they managed it.
Sharesa and James had gotten gifts for everyone, a surprise to all, and these were all distributed after dinner.
Our trip back to the hotel, a Hilton Garden Inn, which was very nice, took a different route and didn't take as long as our trip there.
BTW: (By the time we left Tyler, I swore that the Villa Felicita moved from place to place just to confuse us.)
The following day, the wedding day, we were free until 5:00 PM, when pictures would be taken. The bride and others were busy with hair and makeup duties, so Bob and I headed to one of the birding destinations, Lake Tawakoni, that we'd found in the book that friend Bert had loaned us. It was quite a distance away, but the drive through cattle country was very pleasant. As it turned out, things have changed at that lake since the book was published. Access to the dam is restricted, as are paths close to it. So we walked along a little trail, and did see a few birds.
As planned, we met Biz and Tom for lunch at The Purple Pig, one of the many barbecue places in Tyler. We all ordered barbecue sandwiches and shared a plate of fried pickles. Biz bought a Purple Pig t-shirt for Sam.
When we got back to the Garden Inn Bob and I took a walk along the trail behind the hotel. We found some nice birds: Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Carolina Chickadees, many Yellow-rumped Warblers, House Wren. It's a very nice, well-used paved trail.
We went back to the hotel around 3:00 so I could wash my hair. Bob headed for the exercise room while I fussed around getting ready.
We left for Villa Felicita around 4:30. By then it was raining. We all realized that rain is traditional for Henderson/Cohen weddings. It rained at West and Dani's wedding so it couldn't be held in the park as planned; it poured at Biz's wedding so we all got soaked going from the reception to our house; it rained at Bob's and my wedding so we all had to squeeze into our house instead of being out in the yard which we had manicured for the occasion; and now it was raining, with generous amounts of thunder and lightning, at James and Sharesa's wedding. Everybody's still married, so I guess rain is good luck.
A professional photographer took lots and lots of pictures. He was a little mixed up at first. All of the bride's and groom's parents had been divorced and remarried, and he a a little trouble sorting everyone out. "Can't tell the players without a program!" It was funny. We were beginning to understand why Sharesa had insisted on everyone in the wedding party being dressed in a particular way -- the significant men in tuxes (all gotten from the same place) and all of the bridesmaids and other women in black. The effect was quite spectacular. I'm looking forward to seeing his pictures.
My jobs, during the ceremony (which was performed by Sharesa's step-father, who wore a cowboy hat) were to light a candle (I had to be reminded) and to read a poem (which was actually a prose piece about marriage by Madeleine L'Engle, which everyone seemed to like).
After the wedding, there was a buffet and music. The flower arrangements on the tables were beautiful. Then dancing and fun. Rafe amazed everyone by "getting down" and dancing with Cliff and Biz. There were a few toasts while cake was being cut and served. Actually there were three cakes, including a "groom cake", all delicious.
When it was all over, we helped James and Sharesa dismantle their decorations in the place where the wedding had been held. James loaded boxes of the stuff into his truck. (Not a glamorous way for them to end the day -- honeymoon will come later on.)
The following morning we had breakfast at the Inn with Rafe, Ilze, Lee, Mary, Faye, Sheri and Joe. The breakfast and the service were pretty bad, but we had a good time with everybody. Everybody but us was getting ready to leave for home shortly thereafter.
After a short walk along the trail, we came back to the Inn and ran into James and Sharesa who were heading down for breakfast. (She was embarrassed because she hadn't had time to clean up before breakfast was over). We had a nice chat with them.
We said our goodbyes, and headed for Frankston, via the Purple Pig and a t-shirt for young Tom which hadn't been available the day before, and a visit with Dixie's mom ("Big Dixie"). We got a nice little tour of her house, and a tour of Frankston, which Dixie had promised us. It's a cute little town. Seems like everyone in it is related to Big Dixie. We picked up Mary Cox, Big Dixie's daughter-in-law, and drove south to Athens. We had a fried catfish lunch at the Athens Marina. It was excellent, as advertised.
We parted company after that. Bob and I stopped at the Athens Arboretum and walked the two miles of trails. It's a nice place, but is mostly a bird-free zone. We did see a few yellow-rumps.
We left there around 3:00 and headed for Dallas and the Hyatt where we had reservations. The drive on Route 175 was no problem, but we followed Fred's (our GPS's) instructions and wound up at the wrong Hyatt. :-( We got our first clue when they said we didn't have a reservation. It turned out that there's another Hyatt right at Terminal D at DFW.
We got directions from the hotel clerk and got back in the car. We called the correct Hyatt to ask about returning the car. They recommended doing it before checking in rather than waiting until the next morning since we'll be taking such an early flight.
So that's what we did. After a few moments' worry that we were on the wrong road, we found the Alamo place, left the car, and took the shuttle back to the Hyatt. It's a nice place, actually attached to Terminal D. Bob was furious that a WIFI connection cost $19.00 (we declined to do it) and there was no coffee maker in the room (we called and got one delivered).
We had supper at the bar -- we split a hamburger and each had a Shiner Bock (Texas beer). Just the right thing after all that lunch. We went to bed early for a 4:00 AM awakening.
We were back at home before noon. A wonderful, memorable weekend.
After a false start, we headed for Villa Felicita where the wedding rehearsal would be held the next day. It's a very pretty place, inside and out, and is a popular venue for weddings. Our only meeting with the bride had been via Skype, so we were very happy to finally meet the real person. We connected up with friends and family, and then joined the others in helping to decorate the villa according to Sharesa and James's wishes.
After the rehearsal, where we all got to take our positions and practice our lines, we headed for the rehearsal dinner at Villa Montez. We'd been told it was quite close by. It was then that we learned about Texas distances. The bottom line: things are much farther away from one another than one might think. We went back and forth, and round and round on the loop road around Tyler many times that weekend.
About 50 people showed up for the rehearsal dinner, which was held in a wine cellar type of environment. Bob and I, and Lee (my ex) and Mary sponsored the dinner, which turned out to be a very nice affair indeed. We all milled around for a while, enjoying the wine, beer and snacks that were offered, and met members of Sharesa's family and some of her friends.
Production of the dinner was an amazing phenomenon. The in-charge waiter took our orders: filet (cooked to order), chicken, fish (nothing had had to be ordered ahead of time) and before long it was all produced like magic, everything hot and perfectly done. No one could figure out how they managed it.
Sharesa and James had gotten gifts for everyone, a surprise to all, and these were all distributed after dinner.
Our trip back to the hotel, a Hilton Garden Inn, which was very nice, took a different route and didn't take as long as our trip there.
BTW: (By the time we left Tyler, I swore that the Villa Felicita moved from place to place just to confuse us.)
The following day, the wedding day, we were free until 5:00 PM, when pictures would be taken. The bride and others were busy with hair and makeup duties, so Bob and I headed to one of the birding destinations, Lake Tawakoni, that we'd found in the book that friend Bert had loaned us. It was quite a distance away, but the drive through cattle country was very pleasant. As it turned out, things have changed at that lake since the book was published. Access to the dam is restricted, as are paths close to it. So we walked along a little trail, and did see a few birds.
As planned, we met Biz and Tom for lunch at The Purple Pig, one of the many barbecue places in Tyler. We all ordered barbecue sandwiches and shared a plate of fried pickles. Biz bought a Purple Pig t-shirt for Sam.
When we got back to the Garden Inn Bob and I took a walk along the trail behind the hotel. We found some nice birds: Yellow-bellied Sapsucker, Carolina Chickadees, many Yellow-rumped Warblers, House Wren. It's a very nice, well-used paved trail.
We went back to the hotel around 3:00 so I could wash my hair. Bob headed for the exercise room while I fussed around getting ready.
We left for Villa Felicita around 4:30. By then it was raining. We all realized that rain is traditional for Henderson/Cohen weddings. It rained at West and Dani's wedding so it couldn't be held in the park as planned; it poured at Biz's wedding so we all got soaked going from the reception to our house; it rained at Bob's and my wedding so we all had to squeeze into our house instead of being out in the yard which we had manicured for the occasion; and now it was raining, with generous amounts of thunder and lightning, at James and Sharesa's wedding. Everybody's still married, so I guess rain is good luck.
A professional photographer took lots and lots of pictures. He was a little mixed up at first. All of the bride's and groom's parents had been divorced and remarried, and he a a little trouble sorting everyone out. "Can't tell the players without a program!" It was funny. We were beginning to understand why Sharesa had insisted on everyone in the wedding party being dressed in a particular way -- the significant men in tuxes (all gotten from the same place) and all of the bridesmaids and other women in black. The effect was quite spectacular. I'm looking forward to seeing his pictures.
My jobs, during the ceremony (which was performed by Sharesa's step-father, who wore a cowboy hat) were to light a candle (I had to be reminded) and to read a poem (which was actually a prose piece about marriage by Madeleine L'Engle, which everyone seemed to like).
After the wedding, there was a buffet and music. The flower arrangements on the tables were beautiful. Then dancing and fun. Rafe amazed everyone by "getting down" and dancing with Cliff and Biz. There were a few toasts while cake was being cut and served. Actually there were three cakes, including a "groom cake", all delicious.
When it was all over, we helped James and Sharesa dismantle their decorations in the place where the wedding had been held. James loaded boxes of the stuff into his truck. (Not a glamorous way for them to end the day -- honeymoon will come later on.)
The following morning we had breakfast at the Inn with Rafe, Ilze, Lee, Mary, Faye, Sheri and Joe. The breakfast and the service were pretty bad, but we had a good time with everybody. Everybody but us was getting ready to leave for home shortly thereafter.
After a short walk along the trail, we came back to the Inn and ran into James and Sharesa who were heading down for breakfast. (She was embarrassed because she hadn't had time to clean up before breakfast was over). We had a nice chat with them.
We said our goodbyes, and headed for Frankston, via the Purple Pig and a t-shirt for young Tom which hadn't been available the day before, and a visit with Dixie's mom ("Big Dixie"). We got a nice little tour of her house, and a tour of Frankston, which Dixie had promised us. It's a cute little town. Seems like everyone in it is related to Big Dixie. We picked up Mary Cox, Big Dixie's daughter-in-law, and drove south to Athens. We had a fried catfish lunch at the Athens Marina. It was excellent, as advertised.
We parted company after that. Bob and I stopped at the Athens Arboretum and walked the two miles of trails. It's a nice place, but is mostly a bird-free zone. We did see a few yellow-rumps.
We left there around 3:00 and headed for Dallas and the Hyatt where we had reservations. The drive on Route 175 was no problem, but we followed Fred's (our GPS's) instructions and wound up at the wrong Hyatt. :-( We got our first clue when they said we didn't have a reservation. It turned out that there's another Hyatt right at Terminal D at DFW.
We got directions from the hotel clerk and got back in the car. We called the correct Hyatt to ask about returning the car. They recommended doing it before checking in rather than waiting until the next morning since we'll be taking such an early flight.
So that's what we did. After a few moments' worry that we were on the wrong road, we found the Alamo place, left the car, and took the shuttle back to the Hyatt. It's a nice place, actually attached to Terminal D. Bob was furious that a WIFI connection cost $19.00 (we declined to do it) and there was no coffee maker in the room (we called and got one delivered).
We had supper at the bar -- we split a hamburger and each had a Shiner Bock (Texas beer). Just the right thing after all that lunch. We went to bed early for a 4:00 AM awakening.
We were back at home before noon. A wonderful, memorable weekend.
A Dear Friend's Death Changes Our Plans
We were all set to leave for Texas and a lunch with friends and relatives who'd planned to gather at the Villa Montez in Tyler, TX where the rehearsal dinner for James and Sharesa's wedding would be held the following night. We had our plane and hotel reservations, and were mostly packed when we got the news that our dear friend, Bill Goldstein had passed away, and that the funeral service would be on the day of our planned departure. Oh, my.
So it was time to look into changing our plans. There was no way we would want to miss the funeral and the chance to share our memories about Bill with others who shared our grief.
The first thing I did was call American Airlines, with whom we had our reservations, back and forth, to DFW. As it turned out, changing our itinerary involved only giving up some more frequent flyer miles. We'd used up 50,000 miles for the original tickets, and would have to give up 25,000 more to make the change. So that's what we did without giving it a second thought. How better to use those miles? Now all we had to do was change our hotel reservations and we'd be all set to leave a day later than planned.
A bit about Bill Goldstein, 84 years old when he passed away. Bill and Bob had had connections way, way back. Bill's and Bob's families were close when Bob was growing up. As a young man, Bill established a music school, The Livingston School of Music, named after the street on which he lived. Bill recruited Bob, who was a college student at the time, to teach piano lessons for him. (At the funeral we met a man who had taught tuba for Bill). When our kids were learning to play the piano, Bob went to Bill for beginners' piano music for them.
Several years ago, when Bob and I went to Bill's house to pick up some piano music, Bill asked Bob, "Do you still play tennis?" At that time, the answer was, "No. Not recently." Bill told Bob about the group he was playing with, and Bob soon joined the group for tennis a couple of times a week. This led to lots more tennis for Bob, with other groups. But as time went on, and Bill's dexterity began to go downhill, Bob and Bill rarely played in the same groups. But they still stayed in touch.
When I learned, through Bob, that Bill was an opera buff, I asked him if he ever learned of unused tickets being offered for sale. That began my own connection with Bill. He told me about Joan Cohen's Opera Salon which he had been attending for years. On his suggestion I enrolled in the class, which met throughout the year to learn about operas through lectures, videos and, later on, DVDs. Bill always saved a seat for me near the front of the class. He needed to sit in the front because his hearing was beginning to go.
I'd always enjoyed opera, and had subscribed to the Met back in the 1980's, and attended Philly opera productions off and on since then. So I was very enthusiastic about the class -- and still am. Joan's most recent series features "Donizetti's Three Queens" -- "Anna Bolena", "Maria Stuarda" and "Roberto Devereux". These are seldom performed operas which I would not have known about if it were not for her class.
With the advent of the Met's HDTV productions, Joan has offered classes to prepare students for the operas that would be presented. One of the recent ones was "Boris Godunov".
The first hint that something had gone wrong with Bill's health was his absence one day from opera class. At first I thought perhaps he'd begun attending the Tuesday sessions instead of the Thursday ones where we'd always met. But then I realized that he certainly would have told me of the change. On further investigation, we learned that he'd passed out, and had been admitted to Elkins Park Hospital, and would be heading for rehab soon. When we went to visit him at rehab, we learned that he'd been sent back to the hospital. He never left the hospital. A couple of weeks later his condition had worsened, and he ultimately passed away there.
Bill's funeral was attended by the many members of his family, including several grandchildren. Many of our friends and acquaintances from both opera and tennis worlds were present as well. All remembered Bill's grandson Josh, who had suffered with Duchenne's Disease, a form of muscular dystrophy. Josh, who was mostly paralyzed the last time we saw him, had given lectures and had written a book, designed to inspire others who suffered with handicaps. Josh had passed away a couple of years before, after a long fight with the disease. Bill's son, in his remarks to the assembled congregation at the synagogue, expressed the hope that Bill and Josh would now be together, looking after one another.
We did get to Tyler and the rehearsal dinner the next day. We were even able to help decorate the chapel where the wedding ceremony would be held on Friday night. So it all worked out for the best.
Recollections of James and Sharesa's wedding and of the reconnections with friends and family will appear in the next post. Life goes on.
So it was time to look into changing our plans. There was no way we would want to miss the funeral and the chance to share our memories about Bill with others who shared our grief.
The first thing I did was call American Airlines, with whom we had our reservations, back and forth, to DFW. As it turned out, changing our itinerary involved only giving up some more frequent flyer miles. We'd used up 50,000 miles for the original tickets, and would have to give up 25,000 more to make the change. So that's what we did without giving it a second thought. How better to use those miles? Now all we had to do was change our hotel reservations and we'd be all set to leave a day later than planned.
A bit about Bill Goldstein, 84 years old when he passed away. Bill and Bob had had connections way, way back. Bill's and Bob's families were close when Bob was growing up. As a young man, Bill established a music school, The Livingston School of Music, named after the street on which he lived. Bill recruited Bob, who was a college student at the time, to teach piano lessons for him. (At the funeral we met a man who had taught tuba for Bill). When our kids were learning to play the piano, Bob went to Bill for beginners' piano music for them.
Several years ago, when Bob and I went to Bill's house to pick up some piano music, Bill asked Bob, "Do you still play tennis?" At that time, the answer was, "No. Not recently." Bill told Bob about the group he was playing with, and Bob soon joined the group for tennis a couple of times a week. This led to lots more tennis for Bob, with other groups. But as time went on, and Bill's dexterity began to go downhill, Bob and Bill rarely played in the same groups. But they still stayed in touch.
When I learned, through Bob, that Bill was an opera buff, I asked him if he ever learned of unused tickets being offered for sale. That began my own connection with Bill. He told me about Joan Cohen's Opera Salon which he had been attending for years. On his suggestion I enrolled in the class, which met throughout the year to learn about operas through lectures, videos and, later on, DVDs. Bill always saved a seat for me near the front of the class. He needed to sit in the front because his hearing was beginning to go.
I'd always enjoyed opera, and had subscribed to the Met back in the 1980's, and attended Philly opera productions off and on since then. So I was very enthusiastic about the class -- and still am. Joan's most recent series features "Donizetti's Three Queens" -- "Anna Bolena", "Maria Stuarda" and "Roberto Devereux". These are seldom performed operas which I would not have known about if it were not for her class.
With the advent of the Met's HDTV productions, Joan has offered classes to prepare students for the operas that would be presented. One of the recent ones was "Boris Godunov".
The first hint that something had gone wrong with Bill's health was his absence one day from opera class. At first I thought perhaps he'd begun attending the Tuesday sessions instead of the Thursday ones where we'd always met. But then I realized that he certainly would have told me of the change. On further investigation, we learned that he'd passed out, and had been admitted to Elkins Park Hospital, and would be heading for rehab soon. When we went to visit him at rehab, we learned that he'd been sent back to the hospital. He never left the hospital. A couple of weeks later his condition had worsened, and he ultimately passed away there.
Bill's funeral was attended by the many members of his family, including several grandchildren. Many of our friends and acquaintances from both opera and tennis worlds were present as well. All remembered Bill's grandson Josh, who had suffered with Duchenne's Disease, a form of muscular dystrophy. Josh, who was mostly paralyzed the last time we saw him, had given lectures and had written a book, designed to inspire others who suffered with handicaps. Josh had passed away a couple of years before, after a long fight with the disease. Bill's son, in his remarks to the assembled congregation at the synagogue, expressed the hope that Bill and Josh would now be together, looking after one another.
We did get to Tyler and the rehearsal dinner the next day. We were even able to help decorate the chapel where the wedding ceremony would be held on Friday night. So it all worked out for the best.
Recollections of James and Sharesa's wedding and of the reconnections with friends and family will appear in the next post. Life goes on.
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Rosalie Edge, Hawk of Mercy
I’ve just finished reading a rather remarkable book: "Rosalie Edge, Hawk of Mercy" by Dyana Z. Furmansky. I was introduced to Ms. Furmansky when she delivered a lecture at DVOC, Delaware Valley Ornithological Club, in the spring. She had her book available for sale at that event.
Most of us from this general Delaware Valley area are familiar with the name “Rosalie Edge” from visits to Hawk Mountain. We know that she helped to stop the slaughter of migrating hawks at that site, and to ultimately purchase the mountaintop and establish the sanctuary which thousands visit in the autumn.
But how many of us know that she, married to a wealthy businessman, began her activism as a suffragette in the late 1920s? And that, as founder of ECC, she took on “Big Conservation”, including the National Audubon Society, and forced it to stop cozying up to commercial logging and firearms interests and get to work protecting America’s natural environment, wilderness and wildlife.
For many years it was an uphill battle, but Edge was equal to the task and was successful not only at Hawk Mountain, but also successful in safeguarding old growth pines and sequoias at King’s Canyon and Olympic Peninsula in the American West, both of which, through her tireless efforts, became national parks.
A success story.
But, as David Rains Wallace wrote on the dust jacket of Rosalie Edge, “Today, after two decades of reckless economic growth during which “Big Environment” has often seemed more interested in promoting squishy abstractions like ‘smart growth’ and ‘sustainability’ than in fighting for new national parks, wildlife refuges and wilderness areas, it sure sounds familiar to me. Rosalie Edge, come back!”
DVOC elected to name its annual Conservation Award for Rosalie Edge - an excellent reminder of the work she did, and of the work that is yet to be done.
Most of us from this general Delaware Valley area are familiar with the name “Rosalie Edge” from visits to Hawk Mountain. We know that she helped to stop the slaughter of migrating hawks at that site, and to ultimately purchase the mountaintop and establish the sanctuary which thousands visit in the autumn.
But how many of us know that she, married to a wealthy businessman, began her activism as a suffragette in the late 1920s? And that, as founder of ECC, she took on “Big Conservation”, including the National Audubon Society, and forced it to stop cozying up to commercial logging and firearms interests and get to work protecting America’s natural environment, wilderness and wildlife.
For many years it was an uphill battle, but Edge was equal to the task and was successful not only at Hawk Mountain, but also successful in safeguarding old growth pines and sequoias at King’s Canyon and Olympic Peninsula in the American West, both of which, through her tireless efforts, became national parks.
A success story.
But, as David Rains Wallace wrote on the dust jacket of Rosalie Edge, “Today, after two decades of reckless economic growth during which “Big Environment” has often seemed more interested in promoting squishy abstractions like ‘smart growth’ and ‘sustainability’ than in fighting for new national parks, wildlife refuges and wilderness areas, it sure sounds familiar to me. Rosalie Edge, come back!”
DVOC elected to name its annual Conservation Award for Rosalie Edge - an excellent reminder of the work she did, and of the work that is yet to be done.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Monday, June 28, 2010
Oregon Trip June 2010
A Birding Trip to Oregon
Six of us flew to Oregon in early June. We landed in Portland, and made our way west towards the coast, stopping at lakes and other good birding spots along the way. It was rainy and cold on the coast – we had trouble holding our scopes steady. We saw Common Murres by the thousands, as well as Harlequin Ducks, Tufted Puffins and Glaucous-winged Gulls.
Heading east we stopped near Sisters and visited totally different habitats. Sapsuckers, both Red-naped and Red-breasted were among the stars.
We spent a whole day at Malheur NWR, part of it in fixing a flat tire. We ended our day with four Short-eared Owls, a real treat.
La Grande was our last destination, for some higher-altitude birding. We found Great Gray Owl nest platforms, but, alas, the chicks had fledged and gone.
We covered nearly 2000 miles in the SUV, stayed in seven different hotels, and tallied 207 species for the trip.
I’ve posted a few pictures here, and more at www.pbase/janebob/oregon_2010
Six of us flew to Oregon in early June. We landed in Portland, and made our way west towards the coast, stopping at lakes and other good birding spots along the way. It was rainy and cold on the coast – we had trouble holding our scopes steady. We saw Common Murres by the thousands, as well as Harlequin Ducks, Tufted Puffins and Glaucous-winged Gulls.
Heading east we stopped near Sisters and visited totally different habitats. Sapsuckers, both Red-naped and Red-breasted were among the stars.
We spent a whole day at Malheur NWR, part of it in fixing a flat tire. We ended our day with four Short-eared Owls, a real treat.
La Grande was our last destination, for some higher-altitude birding. We found Great Gray Owl nest platforms, but, alas, the chicks had fledged and gone.
We covered nearly 2000 miles in the SUV, stayed in seven different hotels, and tallied 207 species for the trip.
I’ve posted a few pictures here, and more at www.pbase/janebob/oregon_2010
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