I originally named this portrait “Standing Room Only.” I’d never seen a Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) creep chest-high into a pool — then just stand there forever like a Japanese snow monkey. This pose made me laugh as I watched the heron soak up the swirls of his own private day spa. One of my…
Rafts of Dreaming Birds
I stepped out of a mist and I knew I am. I am what I am. And then I thought, ‘But what have I been before?’ And then I found that I had been in a mist, not knowing to differentiate myself from things; I was just one thing among many things.” ~ Carl Jung,…
So Long, Lake Merritt
Lake Merritt was the first place I touched soil — or rather, marine sediment –after returning to the Bay Area from Los Angeles. We were perched above Oakland in a hotel room with just a sliver of a view, looking at the lake through what amounted to a castle loophole.
The Saucy Sailor Boy
I have a weakness for bad lyrics, and 18th century sea chanties like The Saucy Sailor Boy probably take the prize. If you live here in San Francisco, you can take the kids (or just your own self) to Hyde Pier for monthly (and free) Sea Chanty Sing-a-Longs. You’ll get hot cider if you bring…
A Jumper
This Red-Backed Jumping Spider was in “I’m outta here” mode before my lens even moved in.
Shorebird Nation Rises Again
Ever since I picked up a telephoto lens and aimed it at my first non-human earthling, my seasons have morphed into migration schedules. Winter = Ducks. Spring= Babies. Fall (best time of all) = Shorebirds. I used to be an urban-girl-night-person — before I knew what I was. Autumn was: early darkness, early cocktails. Schlepping…
