October 29, 2026 · 23:10

NOT A Post About Cats & Pigeons

The pigeons sit up on the roof where there is no food, looking down at the ground where there IS food, scared to go down due to the feral cat cleaning itself on the back porch.

Pigeons are a not the intellectual giants of the animal kingdom. If they were, they could realize that there are dozens and dozens of them, and only one cat. There’s probably a way for a whole flock to descend on the cat, pick it up, drop it over the back wall into the empty lot there, and let the coyotes deal with him.

Then they could have a much more free, better fed, richer life, free from the threat of the evil, but ultimately outnumbered, cat.

As the title says, this is not about cats and it’s not about pigeons.

There are elections next Tuesday and most, if not all, locations have some form of early voting. Get off your ass and VOTE!

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Filed under Birds, Cats, Critters, Photography, Politics

October 28, 2026 · 23:18

The Other Backyard Predator

Again this morning, after 09:00, over two hours after sunrise, and still not a single bird to be seen. What’s wrong?

Take a peek out through the plantation shutters. A-HA!

Again the “cat distribution system” has malfunctioned! We don’t have a cat, and the one we used to see a few months ago was all black, so this is new! Again, no collar, no tags, no ID, seems (from a distance) to be a feral stray.

I figure that I can tell when the cat’s gone away to snooze and lick its leg in someone else’s backyard – the birds come back! And they did. But even if it’s not an actual resident at our place, his trespassing ass still has him higher on the food chain than any of the birds at our feeders. So when the cat is there, the birds will wait their turn.

Now that hawk on the other hand… That might be more of a fair fight if they want to discuss territorial trespassing rights to our porch!

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Filed under Cats, Forever Home, Photography

October 27, 2026 · 23:03

Pigeon Perch

It was odd that there were no birds at all at any of the feeders this morning, even though it was well past sunrise. I went out to look around, thinking that maybe the hawk was up on the roof or somewhere on the porch. I’ve seen it sitting on the telescope out there, as well as on the “porch fridge”.

No sign of any raptors, but the flock of pigeons was staging for the attack on the neighbors’ roof.

It wasn’t wet or damp, and it wasn’t that cold (upper 40’s) but nonetheless some of these pigeons were looking like they had been ridden hard and put away wet.

The variation in coloration is always fascinating! I know they’re known as “sky rats” to some, but they’re fun to have around.

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Filed under Birds, Forever Home, Photography

October 26, 2026 · 23:39

Final Monday Municipal Mile Of The Fall

We’ll just have to wander around the park and exercise on our own until Spring!

It’s a quarter mile around the edge of the park, four mostly flat laps, trees, flowers, fresh air, neighbors, puppies, little kids.

Last week at the Long Suffering Wife’s suggestion I did my four laps the opposite direction, causing a bit of good chaos. It was a surprisingly refreshing experience.

I know what I used to be able to do when I was training and running marathons – this isn’t it. That can be frustrating. But I have gotten better week after week and I can now knock out the 1.08 mile total in 21:35, a 19:49 pace. (I was aiming for less than 20:00.)

Now, we turn back the clocks this weekend, winter (and the El Nino rains) are coming, and I’ll have to make a point of getting to the gym. But in the spring, I’ll be ready again for Mondays at 17:00 in our small town, High Desert park at City Hall!

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Filed under Forever Home, Health, Photography

October 25, 2026 · 23:06

Harvest Full Moon 2026

The big, bright full Moon rising along with the pink clouds was fine enough, especially with that huge, curved wisp of clouds over on the right.

Enough clouds out there to make everything pink with the setting Sun, but not enough clouds to block my view of the Moon.

If you’re patient and want to screw around with the iPhone’s camera settings, you can get a decent picture.

And if you zoom all the way in, you need something to steady your image or it will jump all over. The top of that cinder block wall works well.

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Filed under Astronomy, Photography, Sunsets

October 24, 2026 · 22:32

High Desert Saturday Night Out On

We’re old, we’ve never been “party animals” to begin with, so Saturday nights are far more likely to be at home watching sports or a movie or Ted Lasso than out at a bar or club.

However, when The Long Suffering Wife makes an aquaintance who happens to be a singer in a small, local band and they’re performing at a local brewery…

Across town, up near Apple Valley, I actually got 90% of the way there in the dark without needing the GPS! That is not an inconsequential milestone.

The airshow two weeks ago, the work event last weekend, this tonight, a Halloween event at the local astronomy club next week, another work event… If we’re not careful we’re going to lose our “Fuddy Duddy” accredidation cards and just be “Fuddies!”

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Filed under ALS Network, Forever Home, Photography, Ronnie

October 23, 2026 · 23:28

Surprise! More Clouds!

Keep looking up, they said. I took them literally.

Probably 60% of the time up here in the High Desert it’s clear and a gazillion, not a cloud to be seen from horizon to horizon. Maybe 10% of the time it’s totally grey and cloudy. But that other 30% of the time, the contrasts between the deep blue sky, the bright sunshine, and the billowing, bright white clouds.

Fifteen months, it hasn’t gotten boring yet!

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Filed under Photography, Weather

October 22, 2026 · 23:36

Proof Of Life – October 22nd

Overnight we got some pretty good rain amounts, but no lightning or thunder here.

By this evening, the Moon was rising into a mostly clear (and cold, down into the 40’s) sky, with layers of black, ugly clouds over the mountains to the east. It was quite the contrast.

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Filed under Astronomy, Photography, Weather

October 21, 2026 · 22:27

Tasks To Check Off The List

It was one of those mornings when it felt like I was jogging in quicksand and not getting anywhere or getting anything done, so at lunch we dashed out to take care of some tasks that were nagging loose ends.

We had filled out our ballots a couple of nights ago. One simple rule made the choice on about 2/3 of the choices – “Never, EVER vote for a Republican candidate again. No exceptions. From President to assistant dog catcher trainee. ***EVER***” For most of the rest we had Propositions, with the advertising being heavily funded by billionaires, well over $1M per day. We voted against the billionaires under the assumption that they were subhuman sacks of shit who were a waste of perfectly good oxygen.

Today we ran by City Hall where the local vote collecting box is located. Dropped in our ballots and we’re done!

If only our “smart” television was smart enough to know that we have voted and could stop showing us bullshit election ads. Especially the ones for Ohio and Texas and other states.

Then it was off to the local Kaiser MOB (Medical Office Building) where they have the daily flu and COVID shot walk-in clinic.

One of each, por favor, with the olde phart extra juicy doses where possible! Nine hours later, zero side effects, easy peasy!

The nurse who was running the clinic and double checking our online records pointed out that this was our twelfth COVID shot, presumably the original two shots and then ten boosters over the next six and a half years. We’re apparently doing a truly shitty job of being anti-vaxxers, and I couldn’t be happier with that decision. I would also note that, to the best of our knowledge, neither of us has ever had a bout of COVID, at all, so it looks like we made the right decision. That shit can kill you!

Tonight we’re just riding out the stormy weather that’s rolled in. It’s been raining fairly steadily since about 18:00, with occasional downpours and gully washers for ten minutes or so. Our drainage seems to be holding up well so far. It looks like my simple, common sense prep paid off!

Stay dry, stay healthy, all y’all!

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Filed under Health, Photography, Politics, Weather

October 20, 2026 · 23:02

Reaching For 15,000′

The next front is moving in, the air coming down from the Pacific NorthWest is cold, the waters off of SoCal are at record high warmth, and it’s starting to mix.

They’re talking about rain, thunderstorms, possible hail, possible tornados. In SoCal!

 

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Filed under Photography, Sunsets, Weather