Friday Follow Up: Miracle on the Hudson

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN WIOB

The photo atop this entry features a pair of Canadian geese walking on a sheet of ice that is covering a lake in Central Park. I was surprised to see this happening as this bird type can often be seen trying to keep their feet warm. A way that they do this is to stand on one foot and tuck the other one under their breast, as evidenced in the following pictures.

Doing this action to keep warm was impossible for Kaitlin, a goose who lost most of her right leg to fishing line while swimming in Central Park's Boat Lake. Apparently this accident occurred a years ago and her mate, a faithful gander, remains at her side as he attempts to protecting her from harm, as seen in the next photograph.

If you'd like to learn more about this avian couple's compelling story, it can be found in my article, The One Legged Goose and Her Faithful Partner, which was published by ilovetheupperwestide.com

Not only are Canadian geese loyal partners, they both take part in the parenting of their goslings as you migh surmise upon seeing the following image.

This image along with others of a Canadian geese family is featured in volume two of my book series, Words In Our Beak (AKA WIOB).

MY BOOK SERIES

In any event, this bird type is on my mind today because this last Friday, January 15th,  (which also happpened to be Martin Luther King's birthday), marked the eleventh anniversary of The Miracle on the Hudson, when Chesley Burnett "Sully" Sullenberger III had to make the difficult decision to land US Airways Flight 1549 in the Hudson River off Manhattan after both engines were disabled by a bird strike by Canadian geese. All 155 people aboard survived. 

As stated in many articles about the event, including one published in The Guardian, the outcome wasn't so good for the geese.

Monday's Musings Father's Day 2020

Yesterday was Father's Day and the photographs atop this entry are ones from various moments of childhood and they feature me with my dad on various occasions.

He moved out of our house the year the latter picture (where I have a cast on a broken wrist) was taken; so Father's Day can be such a bittersweet holiday for me.

Sometimes bitter because he left when I was so young and I subsequently spent most of my life trying to garner his attention and approval to very little avail.

Moreover, he passed away in 1995 and that adds to my sadness on Father's Day.

But Father's Day can also be sweet because no matter what, a father is still a father, and mine had a quick wit, which is a trait I have when I don't take myself so seriously.

Mother's Day 2020

PIGEONS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOK SERIES

Mother's Day is for the birds, as evidenced by these pigeons in my garden featured in the image directly atop this entry.

Saturday in the PARKS

IMAGE CREDIT

On a number of occasions when I've spent part of my Saturday in the park, be it Central Park or Riverside Park, the song, Saturday in the Park, by the band, Chicago comes to my mind, and I referenced this fact in prior posts here on Blogger.

Today, October 19, 2019, I will be spending part of my morning in Brooklyn's Prospect Park and part of my afternoon in Manhattan's Central Park; hence my title for this entry, Saturday in the PARKS.

My plan is to publish an entry re any findings in both places within the coming days, most likely on this coming Friday, October 25th.

Meanwhile in terms of reading material that might peak your interest, dear reader, please allow me  leave for today with a referral (see info directly below) to two of my articles that have recently been published by author and editor, Mike Miskin, for his on-line newsletter/magazine, IlovetheUpperWestside.com

MY ARTICE (PUBLISHED OCTOBER 18 2019)

MY ARTICLE (PUBLISHED OCOBER 11 2019)

Parents Day is for the birds!

IMAGE CREDIT

This is the fourth Sunday for the month of July 2019 which means it is Parents Day. A number of web-sources (including National Day AKA ND) ) concur, "National Parents’ Day honors all parents on the fourth Sunday in July. No matter where our parents may be, this day serves to celebrate their important role in our lives. 

ND (and other web-pages) also claim "President Bill Clinton established National Parents’ Day in 1994 when he signed Congressional Resolution (36 U.S.C. § 135) into law. The recognized the '…uplifting, and supporting the role of parents in the rearing of children.' Republican Senator Trent Lott introduced the bill. "

I am honoring the holiday by posting a copy (atop this entry) of a Peanuts Comic Strip which was published long before (8-1-1978) Clinton created a holiday for parents. The strip paints a picture of how a relationship between a parent and child can be.

But Parents Day is also for the birds, for when it comes to the avian community, both parents play a significant role in rearing their young.

Yet another Saturday in the Park

Two weeks ago when I was on what has become my weekly Saturday walk in Central Park with CF, a friend, we came upon some wonderful nature sightings; a mama raccoon rescuing her young'un and  a baby robin taking in his/her view from a nest, as well as a baby blue jay learning to fly and gosling triplets with their parents.

Today when I walked with my friend, she spotted a number of fish in Turtle Pond and and a few in Wagner Cove, such as the one seen in the image atop this entry. I've never seen such large fish in any spot within the park but I've often seen people fishing. Seeing today's big fish, prompted me to come home and fish around via google for information on fishing in Central Park. Here is a link that leads to info re the Catch and Release Fishing Policy in Central Park. And here are some more pictures of the fish I saw at Wagner Cove.

As I have mentioned a number of times here on Blogger any time it is a Saturday and I'm in either Riverside Park or Central Park, I find myself thinking of the hit song Saturday in the Park by the band Chicago, and today was no exception: "What a day in the park, everyday's The Fourth Of July..."

Sunday's Sequel to Yesterday's Post

OTHER ROBINS ARE FEATURED IN VOLUME THREE

Yesterday here on Blogger, my post included a very young American robin who can be seen in the picture atop this entry which was included in that posting. This little creature was not the only young bird enjoying the first day of June in Central Park.

National Siblings Day 2019

It's National Siblings Day, a holiday which I've referenced here on Blogger an in one of my entries re the event, I pointed out how Holiday Insights defines this occasion. They state, "National Sibling Day is a day to appreciate and cherish your brothers and sisters. Siblings are truly a special blessing that we probably all too often take for granted..."

Interesting Facts re The "Keep Calm" Poster (Wednesday's Wisdom)

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL  2

On a few occasions when I've observed waterfowl who are in The Pond in Central Park or in the Hudson River, they look as if they are conducting music, as evidenced by my photographs that are directly above this narrative. These pictures feature a Canadian goose and a female Mallard respectively.

An Encounter with Central Park Visitors

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

Kaitlin, the one limbed Canadian goose featured in the image atop today's post is a bird I met her last Saturday when I was in Central Park and discussed her particulars in last Sunday's blog entry. I saw her again yesterday when I was walking through the park on my way to the Eastside.

Her survival skills of coping with a missing limb are to be applauded and I'm thankful she is still around to enjoy the lawn near Turtle Pond which is the same place that I saw her last week.

Saturday (Yesterday) In The Park

"Another day in the park... Everyday is the Fourth of July," are lyric lines from the song "Saturday in the Park," by the rock band, Chicago. I have quoted the song in prior posts here on Blogger when I've published an entry re my spending a Saturday in the Park, which is something I did yesterday.

I went to Central Park to see if turtles were coming out of hibernation on the third day after the official onset of spring in our hemisphere. There were only a couple of turtles swimming (such as the one seen in the image posted above) in Turtle Pond, which means many of them are still hibernating under the water; for usually that pond is oversubscribed with this type of creature.

Saturday's Sequel

STORIES IN MY BOOKS ARE SET IN MY GARDEN

It snowed again last night but the accumulation did not amount to much in my garden as you can see in the photo directly above and compare it to the one I included in yesterday's blog post, hence I'm considering this to be Saturday's sequel.

In the aforementioned  post, I also mentioned that March is National Peanut Month and I featured a quite a number of birds, including Northern cardinals, Blue Jays and Common Grackles, enjoying peanuts from various bird feeders in my garden.

"take a gander" (Wednesday's Wisdom)

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

The photographs atop this entry feature a Canadian goose, a Canadian gander and their goslings enjoying time together as a family while in Central Park.

These birds are featured in volume two of my book series, Words In Our Beak...

MY BOOK SERIES

... and is evidenced in the picture below of Chris Deatherage's selfie where he is holding a part of the book that includes these avian creatures.

SOME PAGES FROM VOLUME TWO

Chris, as you may know, is the designer of my web-site, patriciayoungquist.com and the editor as well as the formatter of this book series.

My appreciation for them is no secret given the number of blog posts which discuss these birds. In any event, the other day I stumbled upon information related to an idiom ("take a gander') which is associated with the male goose.

Wednesday's Wisdom is from Geese

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

The three pictures atop this entry as well as the three that are directly below...

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

CANADIAN GEESE ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

.... are ones I took of a Canadian goose who I happened upon while walking in Central Park a few weeks ago. I was intrigued by how he/she seemed to be engaging with his/her reflection in The Pond and had hoped to find out (via Internet research) if Canadian geese recognize their own reflection.

A Fear of Ducks Phobia = Anatidaephobia (Tuesday's Truths WK 109)

I recently came across some information re Anatidaephobia that I found interesting so I'm drawing your attention to it in this 109th episode of my Tuesday's Truths series.

Evidently (according to many sources including the web-page quoted here), "a person suffering from this condition feels that somewhere in the world, a duck or a goose is watching him/her (not attacking or touching, simply watching the individual)."

This page explains with apparent empathy that "There are many kinds of seemingly irrational fears and phobias prevalent in the world. What might be laughing matter to people, is not so to a phobic."

As you can see, dear reader, the photograph atop this posting is of a female and male Mallard. I took it when I was in Central Park a few weeks ago. Anyone coming upon this pair of ducks would notice that the male is preening, but if the person who happened to come upon these ducks was suffering from Anatidaephobia, he/she might have cause for alarm; for it does seem as if the male is watching as he preens.

By the way, the aforementioned page explains that the word "Anatidaephobia is derived from a Greek word ‘Anatidae’ which means ducks, geese or other water fowls, and phobos is Greek for dread/fear."

Feast of the Epiphany and Related Matters

Today is the Feast of the Epiphany, (also known as Three Kings Day), a celebration that I've blogged about in bygone years. I don't have anything to add to my musings re that subject, so please click here to read my former entries and have yourself a blessed Epiphany!

Meanwhile, because there were three kings it's a good time to once again DISPEL (I first attempted to do this here on Blogger in 2011) the adage, "bad things happen in three."

The Sixth Day of Christmas 2018

IMAGE CREDIT

It's The Sixth Day of Christmas, the day (according to a song) when someones's true love gave to them six geese a laying, five golden rings, four calling birds, three French hens, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree. In honor of Christmas's Sixth Day, I've posted an illustration of geese a laying atop this entry.

Re the reference to these birds in the song, a web-page (12 Birds of Christmas) has this to say: "The important element is the "a-laying" part. The Egg represents the birth, creation and new life. And what about the number Six? Because of the shape of the number, which is a continuous, spiraling curve without angle, it too represents the cycle of life. Geese, when they aren't a-laying, are birds of the Air, an element that includes the sky and the heavens."

As you can see, geese a laying are certainly the theme of the illustration that I've included here; as for me, over the many times that I've seen geese (the Canadian variety) in Central Park, they certainly haven't been a laying.

The Third Day of Christmas 2018

It's The Third Day of Christmas; a day when someone's true love gave to them three French hens, two turtle doves and a partridge in a pear tree.

Many web sources concur that "French Hens were very expensive during the 16th century, and thus are symbolic of the three costly gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh given by the wise men (Matt. 2:10-11). An alternate significance is symbolism depicting the value of three virtues, faith, hope, and charity (sacrificial love) (1 Cor. 13:13). Other forms of the song use the French Hens to symbolize the three persons of the trinity."

I don't have three French hens, so, today in honor of them being given as a gift, I'm offering three views of French Canadian geese enjoying Central Park with their three goslings.

GEESE AND GOSLINGS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

GEESE AND GOSLINGS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

GEESE AND GOSLINGS ARE FEATURED IN VOL 2

By the way, Canadian geese and their goslings are included in the second volume of my book series, Words In Our Beak.

Last Thursday's Walk in The Park

SHOP FOR MY MANDARIN DUCK RELATED ITEMS ON FAA

This past Thursday (12-20), I had an early afternoon appointment with my GP re a recent medical complication; but beforehand, in the late morning I took a walk with MLT in Central Park, to show her the now famous (at least in NYC) Mandarin duck who can be seen in the image above, swimming in The Pond near Fifth Avenue.

I recently met a new (to me) bird type: Hooded Mergansers! (Tuesday's Truths WK 102)

This past Sunday when I was looking in the waters of Turtle Pond, I observed a never before seen by me bird type, a pair of Hooded Mergansers. This was my sixteenth new encounter (in this Year of the Bird) with avian creatures whom I've never seen before.

According to a number of sources, including Wikipedia, where a page states, "The hooded merganser (Lophodytes cucullatus) is a species of small duck. It is the only extant species in the genus Lophodytes. The genus name derives from the Greek language: lophos meaning 'crest', and dutes meaning diver... both sexes have crests that they can raise or lower, and the breeding plumage of the male is handsomely patterned and colored. The hooded merganser has a sawbill but is not classified as a typical merganser. Hooded mergansers are the second smallest species of merganser, with only the smew of Europe and Asia being smaller, and it also is the only merganser whose native habitat is restricted to North America."

I have a long lens on my camera, but not long enough to get great pictures of the male (black on head) + female (brown on head)! Still I did enjoy seeing them swimming in Turtle Pond and you can see them in the picture atop this post.