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Post by inger on Jun 1, 2024 15:04:16 GMT -5
Hey Max, I'm just catching up here after being away for almost two weeks, but the grayish bird with the bright yellow breast could be a Yellow-Breasted Chat. They are just a bit smaller than a robin and are pretty common, although you hear them much more often than you see them. I think you mentioned the Great Crested Flycatcher. They have somewhat similar coloring but have a very long tail that would be quite noticeable. I was amazed at some of the birds I saw in NYC that I never would have expected. On several occasions I saw flocks of Long-Eared Owls in Central Park. I saw a Scarlet Tanager in there once as well. There was a nesting pair of Red-Tailed Hawks living in a building on the Upper East Side, and they became locally legendary. The well-heeled people living in the building, however, were less enamored of the rodent remains and scat naturally left by the birds, and to the chagrin of many birders they quietly had the nest destroyed. I used to see escaped feral parakeets on City Island. There is a great (free) bird identification app called Merlin. Just put it on record and you will be amazed at the birds all around you that you never expected. Plus it has a lot better hearing than I do. You can also take pictures and it will identify the bird. Highly recommended. Pips, thank you. Much appreciated. There are also Monk Parakeets in certain areas of Brooklyn. Well, now you know a better birder than me. I wish I knew them better, but I’m learning a bit. It is fascinating how many more birds we see now than we did last summer since we put the feeders up. And we’re also seeing ground squirrels now, too! … |
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Post by Max on Jun 2, 2024 10:08:56 GMT -5
Pips, thank you. Much appreciated. There are also Monk Parakeets in certain areas of Brooklyn. Well, now you know a better birder than me. The bird pun almost flew over my head, your puns are always funny and eggsighting. |
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Post by inger on Jun 2, 2024 20:24:23 GMT -5
Well, now you know a better birder than me. The bird pun almost flew over my head, your puns are always funny and eggsighting. Sometimes they get a bit scrambled. No sense bacon over it… |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 3, 2024 4:31:15 GMT -5
The bird pun almost flew over my head, your puns are always funny and eggsighting. Sometimes they get a bit scrambled. No sense bacon over it… This reminds me of an old "My Weekly Reader" story about a duck who went shopping for groceries. When he got to the checkout line, the cashier asked if he would be paying cash or credit. The duck said "just put it on my bill." Not my joke, no approval implied, just passing it on. |
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Post by pippsheadache on Jun 3, 2024 9:36:32 GMT -5
I don't know if any of you have been to Nashville lately, but holy cow that place is wild. It makes Vegas look like The Villages. I hadn't been there in maybe 25-30 years when it was rather tame, although I was well aware of its reputation because my brothers spent a fair amount of time there. But it far exceeded anything I was expecting -- granted it was over Memorial Day weekend -- it was hard to walk down Broadway, the street where all the action is, even in the early afternoon. Long lines to get into the endless string of bars where the music starts in mid-morning and keeps going until the wee small hours. As you would expect there is an enormous amount of top-notch musical talent playing -- no cover charges. I saw more drunk young women on those open-air party buses in our first hour than I did in four years of college (and there was no shortage then, believe me.) They call it "the bachelorette capital of the world" and I don't dispute it.
More seriously, it's still great to visit Ryman Auditorium and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Studio B, which claims to have recorded more number one songs than any studio in the world. Most of Elvis's hits were recorded there, and the same with Dolly Parton, just for starters. All of those places have outstanding exhibits on the history of country music. You wouldn't have to be a big fan of country music to appreciate any of it. The Country Music HOF does a far better job than its Rock and Roll counterpart in Cleveland. And Elvis's gold Cadillac is still the most photographed item in there, as it was when we first visited around 1980.
Wonderful hiking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. You have to get there early to beat the crowds for the most popular trails, but once you are out there the people are no problem at all because everyone is so dispersed, plus a lot of them give up early on when they realize these aren't like strolls through the botanical garden. We had a great time and made the wise decision to rent a cabin in Townsend, far from the crowds in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. So we didn't get Dollywood or the Hatfield-McCoy Rivalry Dinner Theater or the recreation of the Titanic, but we did get a mother bear with three cubs about 50 feet away from our cabin.
Have any of you been to Knoxville lately? We stopped in there and were very impressed with the beautifully restored downtown. We liked it so much we started looking at prices on some of the lofts, but unfortunately they were discovered awhile back and have become quite expensive. What I like is that the downtown is physically well-separated from the University so you don't get so much student overflow. We did stop over by UT to see both Neyland Stadium and Peyton Manning's "Saloon 16" which unfortunately wasn't open while we were there. Eastern Tennessee is just beautiful once you learn how to navigate the crowded parts.
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Post by azbob643 on Jun 3, 2024 9:40:51 GMT -5
I don't know if any of you have been to Nashville lately, but holy cow that place is wild. It makes Vegas look like The Villages. I hadn't been there in maybe 25-30 years when it was rather tame, although I was well aware of its reputation because my brothers spent a fair amount of time there. But it far exceeded anything I was expecting -- granted it was over Memorial Day weekend -- it was hard to walk down Broadway, the street where all the action is, even in the early afternoon. Long lines to get into the endless string of bars where the music starts in mid-morning and keeps going until the wee small hours. As you would expect there is an enormous amount of top-notch musical talent playing -- no cover charges. I saw more drunk young women on those open-air party buses in our first hour than I did in four years of college (and there was no shortage then, believe me.) They call it "the bachelorette capital of the world" and I don't dispute it. My granddaughter went there for her 21st birthday...with the rest of the immediate family. The reviews were the same as yours. |
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Post by inger on Jun 3, 2024 13:29:56 GMT -5
Sometimes they get a bit scrambled. No sense bacon over it… This reminds me of an old "My Weekly Reader" story about a duck who went shopping for groceries. When he got to the checkout line, the cashier asked if he would be paying cash or credit. The duck said "just put it on my bill." Not my joke, no approval implied, just passing it on. I heard a dirtier version of that that involved Daisy and Donald Duck… |
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Post by inger on Jun 3, 2024 13:33:49 GMT -5
I don't know if any of you have been to Nashville lately, but holy cow that place is wild. It makes Vegas look like The Villages. I hadn't been there in maybe 25-30 years when it was rather tame, although I was well aware of its reputation because my brothers spent a fair amount of time there. But it far exceeded anything I was expecting -- granted it was over Memorial Day weekend -- it was hard to walk down Broadway, the street where all the action is, even in the early afternoon. Long lines to get into the endless string of bars where the music starts in mid-morning and keeps going until the wee small hours. As you would expect there is an enormous amount of top-notch musical talent playing -- no cover charges. I saw more drunk young women on those open-air party buses in our first hour than I did in four years of college (and there was no shortage then, believe me.) They call it "the bachelorette capital of the world" and I don't dispute it. More seriously, it's still great to visit Ryman Auditorium and the Country Music Hall of Fame and Studio B, which claims to have recorded more number one songs than any studio in the world. Most of Elvis's hits were recorded there, and the same with Dolly Parton, just for starters. All of those places have outstanding exhibits on the history of country music. You wouldn't have to be a big fan of country music to appreciate any of it. The Country Music HOF does a far better job than its Rock and Roll counterpart in Cleveland. And Elvis's gold Cadillac is still the most photographed item in there, as it was when we first visited around 1980. Wonderful hiking in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. You have to get there early to beat the crowds for the most popular trails, but once you are out there the people are no problem at all because everyone is so dispersed, plus a lot of them give up early on when they realize these aren't like strolls through the botanical garden. We had a great time and made the wise decision to rent a cabin in Townsend, far from the crowds in Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge. So we didn't get Dollywood or the Hatfield-McCoy Rivalry Dinner Theater or the recreation of the Titanic, but we did get a mother bear with three cubs about 50 feet away from our cabin. Have any of you been to Knoxville lately? We stopped in there and were very impressed with the beautifully restored downtown. We liked it so much we started looking at prices on some of the lofts, but unfortunately they were discovered awhile back and have become quite expensive. What I like is that the downtown is physically well-separated from the University so you don't get so much student overflow. We did stop over by UT to see both Neyland Stadium and Peyton Manning's "Saloon 16" which unfortunately wasn't open while we were there. Eastern Tennessee is just beautiful once you learn how to navigate the crowded parts. Easter Tennessee is one of the go tos for people that want to leave Colorado now… |
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Post by inger on Jun 5, 2024 9:01:26 GMT -5
Summer has arrived in the valley. Next three days at 88-89-88. It’ll be 98 where we moved away from almost 2 years ago, though. Yikes! Bigger difference at night though as we drop to 49 tonight. About 60 in Pueblo West. I love those cool evenings on the patio! …
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Post by noetsi on Jun 5, 2024 9:06:52 GMT -5
I lived there for several years but mainly focused on not starving. Thankfully I missed the wildness. So windy
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Post by 1955nyyfan on Jun 5, 2024 9:08:07 GMT -5
Summer has arrived in the valley. Next three days at 88-89-88. It’ll be 98 where we moved away from almost 2 years ago, though. Yikes! Bigger difference at night though as we drop to 49 tonight. About 60 in Pueblo West. I love those cool evenings on the patio! … Played golf yesterday and it was 95. Probably drunk 6 or more bottles of water and still felt dehydrated when I got home. Going to be 95 again today. |
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Post by azbob643 on Jun 5, 2024 9:12:09 GMT -5
Summer has arrived in the valley. Next three days at 88-89-88. It’ll be 98 where we moved away from almost 2 years ago, though. Yikes! Bigger difference at night though as we drop to 49 tonight. About 60 in Pueblo West. I love those cool evenings on the patio! … Played golf yesterday and it was 95. Probably drunk 6 or more bottles of water and still felt dehydrated when I got home. Going to be 95 again today. Pfft...excessive heat warning up to 114 today. But it's a dry heat...  |
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Post by inger on Jun 5, 2024 9:48:25 GMT -5
Played golf yesterday and it was 95. Probably drunk 6 or more bottles of water and still felt dehydrated when I got home. Going to be 95 again today. Pfft...excessive heat warning up to 114 today. But it's a dry heat... Stick your head in the oven. Set oven to 100 to cool off… 😂 |
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Post by inger on Jun 5, 2024 9:49:37 GMT -5
I lived there for several years but mainly focused on not starving. Thankfully I missed the wildness. So windy Lived where? … |
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Post by bomberhojoe on Jun 5, 2024 11:42:22 GMT -5
Summer has arrived in the valley. Next three days at 88-89-88. It’ll be 98 where we moved away from almost 2 years ago, though. Yikes! Bigger difference at night though as we drop to 49 tonight. About 60 in Pueblo West. I love those cool evenings on the patio! … Played golf yesterday and it was 95. Probably drunk 6 or more bottles of water and still felt dehydrated when I got home. Going to be 95 again today. I played golf yesterday as well, and it was "ONLY" 85, but felt like 100. |
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