Mallards Doing the Otis Redding Thing (Tuesday's Truths WK 116)

In yesterday's post here on Blogger, all but one of the bird types included were ones I'd seen when in Central Park this past Sunday.

The birds in the photograph atop this posting (mostly Mallards) are ones I saw the Saturday prior to that when I was walking along the portion of The Greenway (on the UWS) which is parallel to the Hudson River.

Édith Piaf + "La Vie En Rose" Insights (Wednesday's Wisdom)

One hundred and three years ago on this day in 1915, Édith Piaf was born. Followers of this blog may recall that her singing was a a favorite of my dearly departed friend, Donna De Solis, and that Piaf's rendition of La Vie En Rose, which  she is singing in the video atop this entry is one that I used in a memorial DVD which I created in honor of Donna's memory at the request of her son.

I've just learned via a comment (by Joshua F) on this You Tube video that "La vie en rose literally means life in pink. It's a French expression roughly equal to 'rose-colored glasses', but without the negative connotation of the English expression. It's about seeing the world in a brighter and more idealistic way- directly in the context of the song, this is because of a lover, but because it was released in 1945, it served to soothe and inspire a France still recovering from the horror of Nazi occupation."

Prior to my reading the comment I had read in a Google search "La vie en rose literally translates to Life in pink and it would be better translated to life through rosy (pink) glasses. The idea is to depict a state where everything appears rosy and cheerful to you. It's about a state of bliss when everything around you is a source of joy..." 

And in that search I also read, "Ah, la vie en rose! The quintessential French phrase for non-French speakers, popularized by Édith Piaf's love song. It comes from a very common and popular expression ''voir la vie en rose' which literally means ''seeing life in pink.' In English, it's often translated as ''wearing rose-colored glasses..."

ATTENTION MUST BE PAID, Bible Readers: Scripture needs to say "AS a sparrow..." (Wednesday's Wisdom)

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOKS

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOKS

SPARROWS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOKS

The other week I saw a male house sparrow bathing in a puddle that was on the part of a greenway that runs along the Hudson River.

Upon my seeing the little creature I instantly thought of Henry David Thoreau's quote which was in response to how he felt when this bird type was visiting his property.

He is known to have said “I once had a sparrow alight upon my shoulder for a moment, while I was hoeing in a village garden, and I felt that I was more distinguished by that circumstance than I should have been by any epaulet I could have worn.”

Thursday's Tandem Tales For 2018: Ride Two

This past Tuesday in honor of the beginning of the month of May for 2018, I posted an entry here on Blogger, reminding readers that this month is Gifts from the Garden Month. 

However the month of May is associated with many holidays and observations, not just gardening, and one of the things recognized in May is that it is National Bike Month. 

On evening of the first of May, but not necessarily in honor of this fact, my bike captain and I took our second tandem ride for 2018. The temperatures were much warmer than when we took our first ride for the year of 2018 (which I wrote about in a prior entry here on Blogger).

In any event, this past Tuesday, we did one of our "standard" rides which is cycling up the westside greenway (it  runs parallel to the Hudson River) to the lighthouse AKA The Little Red Lighthouse).

A partial view of it (with a partial view of The George Washington Bridge) can be seen in the photo atop this entry. I have published many entries here on Blogger that feature a more complete view of these structures and if you'd like to see these particular posts, please click here as well as here.

Usually when we cycle to The Little Red Lighthouse, we have a picnic on the grounds and enjoy the sunset. However, it was rather crowded with boisterous people and there wasn't an available picnic table.

Aside from the loud conditions that were occurring at our usual picnic spot, ZW (my captain) made the smart executive decision to have our picnic in an area known as Hudson River Park.

Earth Day Eve: I met my ninth new bird!

It is now the eve of Earth Day for 2018 and as I write this post, it's at a much later hour than is my standard in terms of entries published here on Blogger. This is because I spent most of the day taking advantage of the one of the first full spring like day that we've had here in NYC.

I started with a walk along the Greenway that runs parallel to the Hudson River where I encountered many beautiful sites related to flora and fauna, which I hope to discuss in tomorrow's post in honor of Earth Day.

As for today and my walk along the greenway, I exited it at 104th street in order to head east so I could also walk in Central Park.

Monday's Memo: "GOURD-JUS" Gourds! Creating Awesome Thanksgiving Decor

The photograph atop-this entry features a carton of awesome looking gourds that I procured from Pamela Torres of Prospect Hill Orchards a few weeks ago (November 2, 2017). She delivered them to the building where I live (transporting them on a dolly) from the greenmarket at Tucker Square (located on the UWS in NYC), where her farm has a stand on Thursdays and Saturdays.

September evening still can make me feel this way! (Sixth Cycling Trip for 2017)

It is very rare that I let anyone take my picture, let alone pose for one. But this past Thursday, when I was at my foot doctor's (Dr Q) office, I asked his admin person to take a photo (which can be seen atop this entry) of me wearing my boot cast, as it's my fifth week of having to do this. 

Thursday's Testimony: Ghost Bikes are a part of National Bike month.

The month of May is full of a number of observations, including raising awareness regarding the medical condition known as Neurofibromatosis (NF) which I discussed in yesterday's blog post, as the day of May 17th is World NF Awareness Day.

May is also known as National Bike Month, which I mentioned in an entry that I published in the beginning of the month, prior to my first opportunity to tandem cycle since my accident (not related to cycling) in 2016. And according to The League Of American Cyclists, the third week of May, which we are currently in, is designated as bike to work week. Biking to work is not an option for me because I don't have a bicycle and I work from home. Moreover, I only have vision in one eye, hence my cycling is limited to being a stoker on a tandem bike. I'm thrilled that I get to do this and grateful to have a competent captain (ZW). ZW is the one who pointed out the bike featured in the image atop this entry. She noticed it as we were cycling north on the portion of the greenway which runs along the Hudson River.