sweet rain

     i guess it's true what they say about the retired life -- that it's busier than the worker bee life......actually i'm just semi-retired, and man i stay way busier than in the nature station days...........looking back, the nature station was like an idyllic respite..................................anyway, it's all good.............wonderful projects, wonderful people, wonderful times; despite the ominous signs of ecological collapse or at the very least, massive reformation.

     today is the first weekday that i've had totally to myself in the past 100+................and it's raining. yay! looking back at daily rain records, last night's half-incher was only the 3rd episode of a half-inch or better since mid-march.........and the other two were only 0.50 and 0.60".................

     here at 9:30am or so a steady, gentle drizzle has moved in, so i've turned everything off and just let the sound of the rain sink in.........and refresh......and restore.....and renew.

     earlier i stepped outside to listen to nature & all.............a favorite past-time for sure............heard a male chickadee still singing his "see-see see-saw" breeding song. like the other year round resident birds (think red-bellied woodpecker, downy woodpecker, mockingbird, brown thrasher......), these species breed and nest early -- most often in march -- and by mid-april they're fledging young from the nest......which is precisely when our neotropical migrant species (think prothonotary warbler, northern parula, red-eyed vireo, summer tanager, painted bunting........) are arriving...........so it's a time-share sort of arrangement: the year round locals take care of their reproduction before the neotrops arrive, thus maximizing breeding space/niche availability for both the locals & the neotrops....... in ecospeak, this is known as 'resource partitioning' and is evident amongst most plant and animal species......... somewhat rare, however, amongst Homo sapiens .................(sigh)................and i guess that's why they call it 'the blues'..........................

                                       
                                         (in the above photo -- taken thru our back porch rail --
                                          a carolina chickadee has swooped in for to snatch a
                                         tuft of recently-groomed dog-fur, for to utilize in its nest)
     ANYWAY...........................................it was cool to hear the chickadee singing...........he's obviously still got the raging hormones; so he's either just letting it all hang out, or he and his mate are double-clutching -- that is, bringing off a second brood; which many plants and animals do when ecological conditions dictate. those ecological conditions usually translate to abundant food, shelter, and water resources during any given period.....................if/when that happens during breeding season, then additonal young are duly produced...................................plants & animals don't miss a lick, ya'll..................they're always ready for what comes..............they are intimately connected to God on a moment-by-moment basis.............something few humans recognize, much less strive for....................................now, THAT'S inspirational.............

     i remember when don van vliet(sic) -- the poet of the mojave desert (aka 'captain beefheart') -- interview in which he was asked to comment on what inspired his songwriting.............."inspiration?!?" he barked, "now you take a gander-goose, neck outstretched, head only a coupla inches above the ground, marching proudly...........now THAT'S inspiration........"............. meaning, hey, the whole animal/plant kingdom is indeed inspired; but humans? we're so out of touch that we've got to manufacture our own versions of inspiration............................................