PEACHFRONT SPEAKS

Recent entries july 4, 2018 - 2018-07-04 the triangle continues of courtney, boobear, & nyota - 2018-07-03 Cookie so cute telling, "Hello" to sparrows - 2018-07-01 lovebirb in love - 2018-06-30 wren with fluffffff - 2018-06-24 Read my new book, The 10 Best Things You Can Do For Your Bird at Amazon or at many other fine distributors like Barnes & Noble, iTunes, Kobo, and more. By public demand, and after a delay of an embarrassing number of years, I've finally put my notorious essay, Ender and Hitler: Sympathy for the Superman, free on the fabulous internets. A bibliography of my published books and stories. Here's a simple card-counting FAQ to get you up to speed on the basics. Here's the true story of the notorious DD' blackjack team, told for the first time on the fabulous internets. No other team went from a starting investor's bankroll of zero to winning millions of dollars. A Sadean take on Asimov's classic Three Laws of Robotics can be found in Roger Williams' NOW REVIEWED ON SLASHDOT!!! The Metamorphosis of Prime Intellect. Adult readers only please -- explicit sex and violence. For updates on the "Dead Tree Project" and other topics, you may visit the official fan site, Passages in the Void.. My Bird Lists -- My Louisiana State Life List, My Yard List and, tah dah, My World Life List. HEY! What happened to the Peachfront Conure Files? The world's only OFFICIAL Peachfront Conure site now features free peachfront conure coverage, including a magazine length Intro to Conures previously published in American Cage-Bird Magazine, now free on the web. I offer the best free Peachfront Conure information on the internet. If you have great Peachfront Conure info, stories, or photos to share, contact me so I can publicize your pet, your breeding success, your great photograph, etc. on my site. Thanks.

grapevine hills or why you should always read the writing on your T-shirt before you wear it 2007-10-19 - 4:43 p.m. all photos � 2007 by elaine radford "hoodoo" at grapevine hills trail Yesterday K. and C. again had us to dinner, and we were delighted by the high quality local steaks that needed no seasoning other than salt, pepper, and a little olive oil. She also prepared a wonderful avocado and tomato salad with insanely sweet tomatoes straight from the garden. After dinner, later in the evening, a couple of skunks stopped by to steal cat food. Big, fat skunks. I think they're Striped Skunk, but when I asked in the park today, the ranger told me that there were four species of skunks active in Marathon that had been trapped around or even inside (!) people's houses, so I couldn't narrow things down much by saying, "Skunks seen in Marathon." Poor DH is really not feeling well at all. I feel bad for him, but I still took off for my hike of the day. I decided that I wanted to try Grapevine Hills, because it sounded like the huge rocks there were really atmospheric. I wasn't to be disappointed either. I just hope that my pictures will capture a little of the spirit of the place, with these huge boulders flung out every which way. along the flat part of Grapevine Hills trail, where you walk inside of a huge field of boulders On the drive into Big Bend, a coyote crossed my path. Not close, but rather some distance ahead of me, but it was still a nice sighting. The "auto trail" was more of a challenge than the hike, to be honest. It took 40 minutes to drive 7 miles. It was better than last year's road to the Hot Springs because, even though it was much longer, it was also much wider. I can't believe I wrote this last year: The drive to this area was on a dusty dirt road. Not Costa Rica bad and certainly not Masai Mara bad. More Lakeview after Katrina bad. A little scary in a Toyota, but I really didn't have much trouble. I really didn't have much trouble? Then how come I remember wondering if I would fall off the side of the road? The Grapevine Hills road, while somewhat pot-holey and well supplied with an abundance of large rocks, was wide enough -- and isolated enough -- that I could sort of drive around the potholes. I only met two vehicles along the way, an SUV with canoes coming out, and a sedan smaller than mine with two older ladies driving in. At no time did I seriously think about turning around, although on the Hot Springs road I was thinking about turning around the entire time I drove down it. I simply didn't have enough room to make the maneuver. "balance rock" at the peak of the grapevine hills trail The hiking trail, while at 2.2 miles round-trip not a long one, was certainly dramatic. I scared up a large flock of Scaled Quail, listened to the rather persistent song of the Bewick's Wrens, and encountered several of the strikingly patterned Black-Throated Sparrows. What a fine sight to see on a sunny afternoon! There was also a Bewick's Sparrow near the very top. I photographed the stones from a number of angles and then scrambled up the last quarter mile to the "Balance Rock." The rock balanced atop two large boulders actually creates a cool, dark window to let the breezes blow through while you inspect the spectacular view. Well worth the trip. view through the "balance rock," which is actually cool because of the way the wind is channeled through the window I didn't pass a human soul anywhere on the path, coming, going, or at the peak. A little spooky, but the trail was well-marked, and I carried plenty of water. A dust devil crossed the gravel road in front of me as I slowly drove back. And yes, I did time the drive, I'm not exaggerating up there when I say how long it took me to drive it. I took precisely 39 minutes. To go 7 miles. Going out seemed easier than going in, maybe because it was easier, or maybe just because I was confident that I wouldn't have to back up and turn around before I reached my goal. I'd thought about doing another hike, but since I'd spent so much time in direct sunlight, I decided I'd better call it a day a little early. No use getting overheated. There's a Border Patrol stop just before you get to Marathon. Well, today, instead of just checking to see that I had an American accent, they got my ID and searched my car while asking tons of snoopy questions. They especially seemed to want to know if I had crossed the border into Mexico. They even phoned in my driver's license and car license plate to someone. (I could hear them.) I was baffled at what I might have done to rate this treatment, but when I got back to Eve's Garden and changed into my swimsuit, I noticed the T-shirt I was wearing. Oh crap. Yes, it was the "River of Raptors" T-shirt from Veracruz 1998, which was very clearly a souvenir of a Mexican vacation. Oops. how about that easter island vibe along the grapevine hills trail? back - next All Rights Reserved, Copyright 2002-2017 by Elaine Radford