The Pesky Swallow

Back in 2002 during the infamous Hayman Fire, one of its effects was to cause the swallow migration to veer further east than usual. At the time, I had a stucco house that was very appealing to the major pest known as the cliff swallow. Now, I love birds, but I despise these delta-winged little bastards. It was like a scene from Alfred Hitchcock's movie, The Birds, as all of a sudden, hundreds of chattering, squealling, crapping swallows descended upon my house, constructing their gourd-shaped mud nests under the eaves. Once there are eggs in these nests, you cannot legally take them down. Apparently, some old migratory bird protection act gives these nasty creatures the right to destroy human homes and property. Let me tell you, there was no shortage of them. It was a constant battle with high pressure water nozzles to keep them from completing their nests. I finally had netting placed under the eaves of the roof to keep them from building. To make matters worse, if they hatch there, they will return the next year as the next generation builds nests. I had recurring nightmares of them and there awful chattering sound.

Now, I don't have stucco, and so far, so good for several years. But the parking garage at my office attracts these horrible creatures, and they love to dive bomb you as you go to your car. In groups, they make a rattling, chittering sound intermittently between their song. However, yesterday I managed to avoid getting dive bombed, got in the car, rolled down the window, and recorded the song of one of these birds. Annoying as it is, at least it isn't the sound I had nightmares about.

CLICK HERE to hear the swallow's song as I recorded it yesterday.

Fat Robins Cooling Off

Here we are, in the midst of record breaking heat. So far in the Denver area, we have broken a record for consecutive days above 90 degrees Fahrenheit that has stood since 1901. Yesterday, we hit 101, and today is projected to reach 104. It is to get above 100 all the way from El Paso, Texas to Billings, Montana. Phoenix is to reach 114 today!

So with heat like that, even the red, red robins need a cooldown splash to get bobbin' along. This morning as I was leaving for work, I noticed a trio of these cute birds enjoying the water in my birdbath. That splashing around doesn't look like a half bad idea!

Popeye

While looking at the program guide this morning, I noticed they were running Popeye cartoons on the Boomerang network. The guide described the program as follows:

Popeye - The sailor courts Olive Oyl and gains strength through spinach.

Doesn't that description apply to every Popeye cartoon ever produced? Guess that covers them all.

Qantas . . . Still a Safe Airline

Yesterday, one of the world's safest airlines, Australia's Qantas, had a major explosive decompression event that tore a gaping hole in the side of the aircraft. Fortunately, the pilots were able to safely land at Manila, and not a single person was injured. I think I would have needed to make a purchase of clean underwear following such a frightening incident! It is a testament to human resiliency that the passengers remained fairly calm, as evidenced by the video below, taken on board the plane as it descended and landed.

Another Old Street Sign

I have posted pictures of various types of street signs found around the city of Houston in the past. Still, there was one type that used to grace the curbs at many intersections that I haven't had the chance to photograph. Then, in a thread on the Houston Architecture Info Forum, I found that a member called "isuredid", placed one he had taken. So, here it is.

I don't know the history of these blue and white mosaic signs, but they must have had standard tile layouts for every letter and digit, as they always were very consistent. I cannot imagine road crews today taking the time for such curbside artistry, but I have always enjoyed these signs as a piece of how things used to be done. They are much more interesting than the standard signs you typically see nowadays.

Next time I get down to Houston, I hope to catch some of these on my own, but in the meantime, thanks to isuredid for this one.

Where Is This?

Map of the Denver area from Google Maps

I remember a game that used to appear in Readers Digest, where you got to see a little bit of a road map, and the object was to figure out where the place on the map was located. So let's play a little version of that right here.

Click on the map above to get a larger version, but notice that I have circled three town names in red. They are Thornton, Denver, and Aurora, three city names in the Denver, Colorado metropolitan area. However, this is not a map of Colorado. There are a couple of good clues to get you started however if you look closely at the map.

Once you think you have it figured out, go the the comments for this post to see the answer. Don't peek until you have given a real effort at figuring it out.

Horehound? Yep, I Got 'Em!

Okay, today I made good on my promise to buy some horehound drops to share with Kristin, Ryan, and my other pals at work (see this post from July 3). I found them for sale at Cost Plus World Market at Southlands. Here is the proof...a nice, fresh bag of horehound drops. I particularly like the subtext on the bag..."Brewed & steeped in copper kettles to enhance the horehound flavor" (emphasis mine).

I actually have not tasted a horehound drop since I was a child. Wouldn't it be funny if it turns out I actually like them now?

So Kristin, if you are reading this...get ready. The horehound drops are on the way. Or as Mister Burns on The Simpsons would say, "Release the hounds!"

Griff's Hamburgers

Today, I decided to try out a long time favorite of people I have talked to around town . . . Griff's Hamburgers on South Broadway in Denver. Griff's apparently was a chain that disappeared many years back, with a few remaining locations still in business on their own. The one in Denver is located on South Broadway, and while the building is typical of an old burger joint, the hamburgers have a wonderful taste that you don't get in your typical burger fare. From the article on Wikipedia linked above, it appears the largest concentration of remaining Griff's are in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.

So to start our Griff's experience today, we loaded up the Santa Fe with me, the lovely spouse, the oldest son and his wife, and the grandchildren and headed over to give Griff's a try. I have meant to do this for years, but for one reason or another, never got around to it.

The LS and I each had the Number 2 Combo (no, not THAT number 2), which was the cheeseburger, fries and Coke. Fast service, and while the burger was nothing special to look at, it definitely was a tasty treat.

I also have heard that there is a Griff's still operating in Arvada, Colorado just to the northwest of Denver, as well as others in various towns. If you want to give them a try, and there is one near you, I suggest you do so. Who knows how long some of them may be around.

Even Sweeter in Sugar Land

The Associated Press is reporting that 5,000 gallons of sticky, sweet molasses spilled from a tanker truck on to Texas Highway 6 at the Southwest Freeway (US 59) in Sugar Land yesterday afternoon. What could be a more perfect place for molasses to spill than a place named for sugar?

This particular intersection is one I have been through countless times. In fact, below is a photo of the intersection that I posted a while back on this very blog. I used to frequent a coffee shop at the corner to make use of their wi-fi connections while visiting my parents in nearby Houston. Sadly, The Coffee Groundz closed this location. I guess they, like many small businesses, just couldn't make a go of it.


Intersection of Texas Highway 6 and US 59 Southwest Freeway in Sugar Land

Oh Bee-have!

The Veronica flowers not only attract the Painted Lady I showed you in the last post, but also bees. I noticed that the butterfly had returned, but was being chased off by the bees collecting nectar from the blossoms.

Yet it isn't only butterflies that the bees chase away. They were also buzzing each other. I noticed two in particular that were continually at odds with one another.

After taking pictures of them, I think I see why. Althought I am not sure, I think they may be members of two varieties of bee. The one in the first photo has the yellow and black stripes we commonly associate with honeybees. Notice the bee in the second photo. It is black, with no yellow. Reminds me of the black suit that took over Spiderman in the last movie. Now I can't say for sure which one is the aggressor, or if both are a bit testy with each other. However, I thought this was an interesting observation.

All too often, I think people are so caught up in the issues of our own lives that we fail to notice some of the drama that nature provides on a smaller scale around us. Sometimes we have to slow down and look at the details, and only then do we get a glimpse into another existence.

Another Butterfly Flies In

Today is another beautiful day along the Colorado Front Range, and I am seeing more benefit from all the flowers we have planted. Butterflies, bees, birds, and other garden creatures continue to visit. Today, the lovely spouse called me out to the back garden to see a beautiful orange and brown butterfly that was enjoying the nectar from the Veronica flowers. These flowers, also known as Speedwell, must be very attractive, as when we bought them at the nursery, a bee was hovering on them, even as we pushed them around on our cart.

This time, I was able to grab the Olympus E-500 with a zoom lens on it, and got a few nice shots of this visitor to the garden. As usual, you can click on any of the pictures for a larger version that will let you see more detail.

This particular butterfly has different markings on the top and bottom of the lower wing set, and it was fluttering its wings occasionally. However, most of the time, it was just holding them together while enjoying the nectar from the Veronica blossoms.

As you can tell by comparing the Tiger Swallowtail photos in the last post, the Olympus does a much better job at capturing fine detail than the little Gateway camera can handle. I had hoped to get a good shot of the open wings on this guy, but when he opened them, it was only for a quick little flutter, and I only managed to get the open with some blurring. The third photo in this post is the best I got of the wing tops.

By doing a little research, I have identified this fellow as a variety of butterfly called a Painted Lady. These are one of the most ubiquitous butterflies in the world.


Above: Another crisp shot of this beautiful Painted Lady Butterfly

Below: View of wing tops on this butterfly

Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly

Tiger Swallowtail Butterfly enjoying some of our flowers

This evening as the lovely spouse and I were in the car, backing out of the driveway, I spotted a butterfly on one of our flower baskets. Quickly stopping the car, grabbing my little Gateway point-and-shoot digicam, I approached this handsome specimen enjoying the blooms. I managed to get these pictures before he got the notion to leave. While I would have preferred the sharpness of my Olympus DSLR for such an occasion, I am still thrilled that I got these shots.

I have seen several of these large beauties flying around the yard, but never the chance to photograph them. At first, we thought it might be a monarch or a viceroy, but upon closer examination, it is clear that this gorgeous guy (or gal) is a tiger swallowtail. In the top picture, you can clearly see its legs and antennae, as one wing was almost edgewise to the camera. The second picture gives a view of both wings.


Our friend, the tiger swallowtail with both wings visible

These stunning creatures only live as adult butterflies for 10-to-14 days, but the joy and beauty that they add to the garden make their short lives very meaningful to those of us who enjoy watching them.