Critter Pix

A few days ago I spotted a lizard on the bricks of the patio. I grabbed the camera and sneaked outside, but couldn't spot it. Suddenly the lizard, an anole, dashed out of hiding and snatched a small roach as it ambled in the shade of the bush I was looking at. I had trouble getting the camera to focus on what *I* wanted, rather than whatever it chose, but I did get a decent action shot.



The greater tail grackle is one of the most common birds spotted here year-round. It's breeding season, so they are quite action right now. Boots has enjoyed chasing them out of our yard, repeatedly. She doesn't stand a chance of actually catching them and it makes her feel empowered, so I allow it. This male grackle was doing a bit of prancing atop our wall. I hope to get some better pictures of these guys later. In the right light, the black has green and blue overtones.


Today the woodpecker almost cooperated with me. We have several in our neighborhood (at least one mated pair), but I never manage to get pictures. Today this one was on the tree just outside the sliding glass door to the patio, but I didn't have a camera handy. I did get a picture of him on the other tree in the yard though, before he decided he didn't want an audience for his prospecting.

Too bad I didn't make the reunion...
...'cause I had ammunition!

No, I would not have gone psycho at my 20th HS reunion, had I been able to attend last October. And, yes, that does date me.

While going through boxes of stuff that were packed and shipped here that I never unpacked, I found a manila envelope containing the Senior Prophecy. In the spring of 1987 the senior class at Buffalo Gap High School was asked to fill out a short survey. Based upon that survey, personal interviews in some cases, and our general knowledge of our huge (@ 125 graduated, I think) class, Sean Neff and I composed a skit and performed it for the seniors. In this skit I played myself (a very complicated role, let me assure you) and Sean played a gypsy fortune teller. He wasn't a very well-to-do fortune teller; he couldn't even afford a crystal ball. Instead, he had a crystal bowl, complete with gold fish. Whenever he wanted more money he would complain that the future was cloudy, at which time I'd bribe him. He would then sprinkle in some food for the fish and things would clear right up. What can I say, we were operating on the cheap.

When I pulled out the slightly-yellowed notebook paper from the envelope, I immediately recognized Sean's handwriting. The first lines at the top of the page caught my attention, so I flipped the page and here was Sean's line:

"I see... I see... I see space, the final frontier. I see a ship boldly going where no man has gone before. I see Curt in the captain's chair.... Oh, he's just an actor. This is the set of Star Trek XIII: The Last Voyage."

I thought: how appropriate. All through college and beyond, Curt Sawyer has religiously maintained the roster of his ship, the USS Excalibur. Maybe the prophecy wasn't too far off after all.

Not only do I have the skit, I have our original notes, the surveys that people turned in, and other assorted bits. As I said... ammunition. Coulda been fun. Guess I'll save them for the next one. Let's see, I'll be home from Albania in mid-2011, so if we have a 25th, I might manage to make that... or I might already be at our next post. Only the Shadow knows.