Reacquainting with Jewel, the Muscovy duck

JEWEL, THE MUSCOVY DUCK IS FEATURE IN V 3

Anyone who follows my cyber-venues (including Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter as well as my FB Pages (personal and business), in addition to here on Blogger) is likely to recognize Jewel, the Muscovy duck seen in the first picture, where she is standing on some mossy rocks that are in the Hudson River.

This photo was taken a couple of years ago during one of my first encounters with her when I was walking along the river. She is a year round "resident" in this area and I subsequently included her in volume three of my book series, Words In Our Beak.

MY BOOK SERIES

In any event, I have not been to "her area" of the river since late 2019 because of my accident and then the shutdowns imposed during the height of the coronavirus pandemic in NYC.

I've been so curious about her well being, so finally after all these months, I took a walk (after my physical therapy session) in hopes of seeing that Jewel was still with us; and I'm thrilled to report that she was hanging out with other avian creatures including a Mallard duck....

JEWEL, THE MUSCOVY DUCK (LEFT) IS FEATURE IN V 3

.... and pigeons.

JEWEL, THE MUSCOVY DUCK (LEFT) IS FEATURE IN V 3

JEWEL, THE MUSCOVY DUCK (LEFT) IS FEATURE IN V 3

As you can see these avian creatures were adhering to signs on the pier re "social distancing," which have become household words ever since the relentless spread of COVID-19 (coronavirus).

Maybe these birds can teach people a thing or two about social distancing.

Valentine's Day 2020

A SIMILAR IMAGE IS FEATURED IN MY HT  ARTICLE

My visiting Cupid figurine featured in the image atop this entry (where he is standing amongst succulents that grow within my indoor garden) joins me in saying Happy Valentine's Day from my place to your place.

He has been coming to my place annually for a number of years now, therefore, you may recognize his face from prior entries here on Blogger or from an on line HT article that I wrote for in bygone years.

Throwback Thursday 2-6-2020

In honor of #ThrowbackThursday, I've posted some photographs of sculptures within this blog post that I took in Riverside Park South during bygone years.

Monday's Memo: Read my new Article!

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ MY ARTICLE ABOUT RIVERSIDE DRIVE

Last evening Mike Miskin published another one of my articles (A New York State of Mind on Riverside Drive) in his on-line newsletter which focuses mainly on the UWS, and rightly so, after all, his daily publication is titled iLovetheUpperWestside. You may also click here to read my piece. Thanks!

ADDENDUM (November 6th 2019): Received an email from Mike Mishkin, the publisher of iLovetheUppperWestside.com, saying, "check this out ... :)"

He's referring to the fact that Riverside Park Conservatory tweeted praise for my recent article about Riverside Drive. Here's the link to their tweet (seen in the screenshot below):

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)

It's 2019's first day of fall in NYC.

In honor of the onset of Autumn in New York, I'm sharing some comic strips by Patrick McDonnell whose strips (Mutts) almost always warm my heart.

On this first day of fall in NYC, we don't have much fall color and won't for a few weeks, so, on this first day of fall, I'll leave you a poem (Song for Autumn) by Mary Oliver, and with photos of what the leaves on the trees in Riverside Park will look like in the coming months, that as if they repeat what they've done in by gone years.

Song for Autumn
(By Mary Oliver)

In the deep fall

don’t you imagine the leaves think how

comfortable it will be to touch

the earth instead of the

nothingness of air and the endless

freshets of wind? And don’t you think

the trees themselves, especially those with mossy,

warm caves, begin to think

of the birds that will come — six, a dozen — to sleep

inside their bodies? And don’t you hear

the goldenrod whispering goodbye,

the everlasting being crowned with the first

tuffets of snow? The pond

vanishes, and the white field over which

the fox runs so quickly brings out

its blue shadows. And the wind pumps its

bellows. And at evening especially,

the piled firewood shifts a little,

longing to be on its way.

National Pink Day 2019

Today is an unofficial holiday known as National Pink Day!

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..."

Another Saturday in the Park

As I have mentioned a number of times here on Blogger (including this past Saturday's posting) any time it is a Saturday and I'm in 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.

I took an early morning walk with a friend (CF) and when we were on a grassy area which was near the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis Reservoir, we witnessed a dramatic rescue. Part of what we saw was a mother raccoon coming to her young one's aid which is what is going on in the video atop this entry.

Someone had been walking their large dog off leash (which against the law) and the dog suddenly bolted after a very young raccoon. This little creature was so frightened that he/she raced up high  — very high  — into the tree tops and sat their trembling as he/she was unable to get back down.

His/her mother swiftly climbed up the trunk and into the tree tops to help her little one. She held him in her mouth as she ever so carefully made her way down the trunk from different angles as you can see in the mini video I created.

How special it was to have so many people gathered round to witness this rescue.

Remembering Eleanor Roosevelt & Other Females (including birds) Today and Beyond

ELEANOR ROOSEVELT IS FEATURED IN VOL  1

The following tweet is a reminder to me that as of today, March the thirty-first, Women's History Month is coming to an end for 2019.

"As #WomensHistoryMonth comes to a close, take a stroll to 72&Riverside to pay your respects to Eleanor Roosevelt, a truly inspiring, influential public figure. She greatly expanded the role of the First Lady, and advocated for advancements in #humanrights & #economicequality."

It was posted on Twitter by The Riverside Park Conservancy and as you can see they recommend that one "take a stroll to 72&Riverside to pay (their) respects to Eleanor Roosevelt..." 

ER's statue (pictured atop this entry) stands at that location and I have passed it on countless occasions. Moreover, one of Eleanor Roosevelt's quotations, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent," is included in volume one of my book series, Words In Our Beak where the stories are told in the voice of Cam, a female cardinal who is quite the spokes-bird for both genders of the avian community.

So, even though Women's History Month may be ending today, the legacy of many women as well as of female animals continues. In the case of cardinals it is through this book series.

2019 ADDENDUM: 

Hardcover versions of all three volumes can now be found wherever books are sold.

THE WORDS IN OUR BEAK BOOK SERIES

Additionally,  I have rendered some images from these books into other formats and they are available via Fine Art America (FAA). Some of my other photographs (Black & White Collection, Kaleidoscopic Images and the famous Mandarin duck who visited NYC) can also be found on my FAA pages.

The Feast of The Annunciation (Monday's Meditation)

NORTHERN MOCKINGBIRDS HAVE A STORY IN VOL 3

I'm in the process of preparing a submission for an exciting project, so I've been going through hundreds of my photographs featuring birds who visit my garden as well as my images of avian creatures who visit nearby parks (Central plus Riverside) and who spend their time on the shoreline of the Atlantic Ocean.

BUT I have a confession to make, trusting my choices of pictures and words to include in my proposal is mind boggling. Unfortunately, I've been turning to many people for their opinions because  I have somehow convinced myself that the thoughts of others are more worthy than mine. In this sense, I've been like a mockingbird,* the bird type seen in the picture atop this entry with his/her beak open ever so slightly.

Saturday in the Park (S)

Usually anytime that I'm in a park on a Saturday, I find myself thinking of the golden oldie ("Saturday In The Park") performed by the band, Chicago. This past Saturday was no exception, except it wasn't a "Saturday in the park," rather it was a Saturday in the parks. The first one being Riverside Park, where I was moved by a "scene" I observed soon after I arrived: Two young boys were just leaving the site of a snowman that they had been creating.

One turned back to give their "sculpture" a final goodbye...

... then their creation was left to himself and/or for passers-by to enjoy...

... before the snowman would inevitably melt away and be gone forever!

Later that afternoon I came upon a coquettish looking snow-woman...

... in another park (Central Park ) with no evidence of her creators in sight; but there she stood, waiting to meet her inevitable fate once the sun came out in full force.

Squirrel Appreciation Day was 1/21/2019 (Throwback Thursday)

It is has been one month since the official date for 2019's Squirrel Appreciation Day occurred but it's not necessary to wait for such a holiday or for it to be Squirrel Awareness Month, which occurs in October) to appreciate this animal! These creatures are fascinating to observe at any time of the year.

Saturday's Sequel re The Death of Mary Oliver

It has been eight days since I published an entry re the death of Mary Oliver, the poet I've written about here on Blogger and in social media venues. She is on my mind today as I go through my photos of squirrels, three of which can be seen at the top of this entry.

Here's a powerful poem of hers where this creature is referenced.

Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but

still nothing is as shining as it should be

for you. Under the sink, for example, is an

uproar of mice it is the season of their

many children. What shall I do? And under the eaves

and through the walls the squirrels

have gnawed their ragged entrances but it is the season

when they need shelter, so what shall I do? And

the raccoon limps into the kitchen and opens the cupboard

while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;

what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling

in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly

up the path, to the door. And still I believe you will

come, Lord: you will, when I speak to the fox,

the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering sea-goose, know

that really I am speaking to you whenever I say,

as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in, Come in.

None of my pictures were taken when a squirrel gnawed his or her way "through ragged building entrances," they were taken in NYC's Central and Riverside parks; but I like to think that I have Oliver's mindset re communicating with creatures and communicating with the Lord.

I'm not the best at formal prayers — using words written by others — as they feel false but I do find myself hoping that my care and appreciation for nature and the creatures who dwell in it are my prayer.

So far, it has been a very cold and bleak winter. With no snow to brighten up my surroundings, it looks a bit grim in my garden. But the many reason my garden seems grim is very few birds have been visiting it because there is a Red-tailed hawk in the vicinity.

Monday's Second Memo is JUST A REMINDER: FAA's 25% Discount Expires at Midnight EST

Earlier today on Blogger, I mentioned that Fine Art America (FAA) is offering a 25% discount on all wall art which includes my kaleidoscopic pics of Turtle Pond and of a sunset in Riverside Park; the latter image is one that was discussed on a NYC based radio station (1010 WINS).

As I've stated, FAA can print my image on an array of surfaces (acrylic, canvas, metal, poster-paper, standard-print paper as well as wood and rendered into a variety of sizes).

More info @  https://bit.ly/2PZzVnO

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.”

Monday's Second Memo re Observing Squirrels (It's from Bill Whitehead)

Twenty six days ago,  here on Blogger, I announced that October is Squirrel Awareness Month and ten days later on October 13th, I discussed the fact that a Squirrel Census was taking place in NYC's CentralPark. The census has now come and gone, but when I saw Bill Whitehead's 10-27-2018 cartoon (a copy of it is posted atop this entry), I thought about those involved in the squirrel counting event.

For Eleanor Roosevelt (Born 10-11-1884)

ELEANOR ROOSEVELT IS REFERNCED IN VOL 1

Eleanor Roosevelt or ER (whose statue which is seen in the photograph directly  above and is located at the West Seventy-Second entrance to Riverside Park), was born one hundred and thirty-four years ago on this day of October 11th in 1884.