Face to Face with a Buffalo

If you want to get this close to a 1200 pound buffalo, just wave a celery stick in his face.

Tree of nests

We noticed this tree with something like herons nesting in it. It was odd to see something that looks like a water bird with nest in trees so far away from water. It was also interesting to see a whole colony of birds in one tree.

Photo by Andrea

Buster's

These decorations are set on the post above the patio of Buster's, a little bar in Sun City Kansas. We went there years ago to have a hamburger and a shake, back when Kyle was about 3 or 4. They gave the kids a special treat, big bowls of ice cream. Then Kyle got sick and puked. For some reason, this is a fond memory for Steve.

Blue Steel

You never know when a supermodel celebrity will drop in.

Bar 7

The Ranch is called the Bar 7 Ranch, and they have this sign at the entrance. Each year we stop on the way out the gate and pause to take this same picture. You'd think one is enough, but for some reason, we complete this same tradition every year as if it never occurred to us to do anything else.

Silk silk silk silk silk

While we were in Walmart buying kites on the way down to the Ranch, Kyle played a trick on me.

He asked me to say "silk" 5 times fast. I did. He asked me to do it again, and I did. Then he asked, "what do cows drink?" and I said "milk". "No, cows drink water."

OK, that was tricky. I thought, oh, they do drink water, they make milk. But if you think about it, what do them make milk for? For little cows to drink. So who's been tricked now?

It's what's for dinner

They should use this mug shot in the Beef commercials.

That thing in the foreground is what they drag on the dirt roads to keep them smooth. Country ingenuity.

Photo by Andrea

Double Bottle

Sometimes you have to hit the calves with a double bottle blast. This is serious business.

Prairie Moonrise

Here's another shot from my camera mounted on a tripod with a long exposure. The elm trees in the foreground frame the scene across the Cedar Creek valley of the Gyp Hill ridgeline. To the right of the moon are some radio antennas with their stobe lights, and directly above the moon is Jupiter.

Orion the Hunter

This long time night exposure shows Orion the Hunter and his dog Canis Major.

You may want to click on the picture to make it bigger and see the stars better.

Orion is one of the most prominent and easily recognizable constellations, after the Big Dipper. The three stars of the belt are perfectly spaced out, all the same intensity and easily recognizable. This constellation actually looks like what the ancients said it looked like. Some say the hunter is raising a club over his head, others say he has a bow. His legs are easily spotted trailing below his belt. The Dog, his faithful companion, has in his ear the brightest star in the sky, Sirius. He faces Taurus the Bull, whose perfect V forms the horns as he charges Orion. Riding on his back is Pleiades, the seven sisters, daughters of Atlas. They are an open cluster or stars from the same cloud, and form a shape like a tiny and very bright little dipper.

Lisa and her teddy bear

I got a picture last year of Lisa using her teddy bear as a pillow, here's a slight variation to the theme.

Country Geocaching

Tyce enjoyed his introduction to Geocaching. This one totally fooled us because it was supposed to be "up a hill" and instead of all the little hilltops that were around, it was up a roadside bank. It didn't matter, as Tyce was the first one to spot it, and experienced the Easter Egg Hunt-like thrill of the find.

Spring Burning

The prairie grasses of the Great Plains would occasionally burn. The fires were started by lightning strikes, and would sometimes sweep for hundreds of miles, burning off the dead grasses. This pattern developed to the advantage of the grasses in the plains. It kept trees from taking over and overshadowing the grass, it provided fertilizer in the form of the ash from the burnt grass, and it opened the ground up to sun and cleared the way for the new grass to come up. Come back in 3 weeks and these hills would look like a golf course.

Puppy Dog Tails

Just like the nursery rhyme says, little boys and puppy dogs just go together. These guys were not your normal frolicking energetic puppies, they were kind of sleepy. I wonder if they've had all their shots.

Photo by Andrea

Riding the Range

No trip to the Ranch would be complete without a ride on the horses.

Go fly a kite

We finally revived the Easter tradition of flying kites this year.

Before going down, I tried to find some fancy high performance kites. We had several years of buying $1 kites at Walmart, only to find that they were no match for the stiff Kansas breeze. It's not so much the waste of the dollar when you take the kite out, assemble it, and watch it get shredded instantly. It's the complete and utter disappointment of taking all the effort to get ready to have fun and have nature slap you in the face.

So we decided to dare to love again. I found out online that the fancy kites are available by mail order, but you can't find them in a store that you can go into and walk out with one. So we went to Walmart.

We lucked out. The cheap kites weren't that crappy and the wind was not so strong.

When we first went out to fly the kites, there was no wind. Then Renee wanted to try it while we were all busy talking, and we thought she would probably fail to get the kite up. Then we saw the little green owl kite above the trees and realized that a nice gentle breeze was making it ideal kite flying weather. Soon every kite in the Walmart bag was out, assembled and in the air.

When life deals you no breeze

Cade Still wants to fly a kite, but without the standard breeze, it's pretty hard. A little bicycle action can provide the breeze, but the flight is short.

A Van Down by the River

It was like being in our own Saturday Night Live episode. While visiting the Peace Treaty Monument, we found the proverbial Chris Farley character, camping out, writing his next motivational speech.

Peace Treaty Monument

If you've ever heard of the Medicine Lodge Peace Treaty, or if you've ever attended the ceremony every 3 years, you know the story. In 1867, right after the Civil War, the U.S. signed a peace treaty with 5 tribes of the plains on the banks of the Medicine River. The lore talked about the original site of the treaty, and some years back, I heard that there was a monument on the actual site, put there by a 5th grade class some 15 years before.

We decided to go see it a few years back, and after slogging through some seriously thick brush, found the monument. This year we led others back to the site, and the guy that owns the land had cleared out some brush, making it easier to get there.

The monument had hornets in it when we found it 5 years ago. Now it's clean and clear and I finally noticed the buffalo with the Indian in it.

Looking around, imagining the original huge lodge and the enormous camp full of Indians at the junction of the two rivers, you can still sense the history of the place.

Bottle Calf

Every year, we get to see the baby cows that they call the bottle calves. Their whole life is about eating and growing. So, as you can see, they lead with their tongues. No disrespect intended, he's just hungry.

Growth Spurt

There's something about farm living that makes a young boy grow really quickly. When we arrived, Kyle could fit on this little scooter with no problem. By the next day, he was too large for it.

Hearing Protection

When Smith & Wesson calls, Duracell answers "say what?"

Armadillo by morning

We found this guy a little confused and out in the open after being harasssed by the dog. People don't like Armadillos because they love to burrow. They are really aggressive diggers. When we were little, there were no Armadillos in southern Kansas. They have been slowly moving north, like the scorpion.

The nine banded armadillo is originally from South America and none were found north or the Rio Grande before 1850. It is expanding 10 times faster than biologists expect for a mammal. They have no idea just how far they will go.

Hello Lisa

She's like a rock star, we're like the Paparazzi.

A great day fishing...

This is the only thing my Aunt Bobbie caught this day.

It put up one hell of a fight.

Fish like to ham it up

Don't you hate it when some fish insists on sneaking into all your pictures? Bass are particularly aggressive party animals.

Doggie on the Beach

Every once in a while, it's nice to have a dog's eye view of things.

Twin Peaks

Everyone should have a pickup truck with a cool dog in the back to go fishing.

Twin Peaks are in the background, if you notice to the right of the truck. Good times here are not forgotten.

Cattle Pens

I've seen these pens on the Turnpike in Kansas for years, but never stopped until the trip down this last Easter.

I can see stopping to let your dog out to take a walk, but what is the deal with cows? Do they actually unload them into these chutes, or is this a place where cattle were driven from the fields to trucks?

It's not exactly Stonehenge, but it is a mystery to me.

Half Bunny, Half Boy

As Easter nears, you see all sorts of strange things.

Yeti Sighting!

Just when you start to believe all the naysayers that tell you there is no Yeti, you finally sight one! The Easter Bunny was hanging out with him, but ran away before I could get a picture. Mr. Yeti was riding a unicorn, but he's behind the trees.

Blurry Deer

Here's the first time I got out a tripod to take pictures of the deer across the street from work. They saw me setting up the tripod and taking the pictures and were staring at me intently. The one in the foreground was ignoring me and grazing around while I snapped the picture. You can see how he blurs as a result.

Jazz Cow vs. Crocuses

I hope the Jazz Cow doesn't eat the first Crocuses of Spring.

A Mule and his Barn are soon parted

This looks like something from a hundred years ago. You may have to click on the picture to make it larger to see the little girl at the edge of the picture behind the mule.

First Robin of Spring

While out Geocaching, we saw the first robin of spring. This was on 3/12.

Smudgie of Darkness

I can hear the Darth Vader theme music in the background when I look at this picture.

Good Day, Sunshine

Finally, a day with some sun to show off the hawk. I'm not sure if you can tell a female from a male, so I'm going to say this is the female.

Hawk Pair

Here's a picture of the hawks across the street from work. You may have to click on the picture to see the back of the hawk on the left as well as the silhouette of the hawk on the right.

Red Tailed Hawks lay eggs from March to May, and they take 28 days to hatch.

The ultimate outcome of the Hawk Watch would be some pictures in a month or two of baby hawks, so stay tuned!

Squirrely Bandito

This little guy was in the front yard, digging up nuts. By the time I got my camera and took this picture, the squirrel was running off with his booty. Does he, or does he not, look like he needs a little cape?

Mark Trail

Mark Trail has been a staple (some would say the keystone) on the comics pages for decades.

I am his biggest fan.

I'm not sure how this happens, but Mark's trials and tribulations somehow seem stupid or silly when you try to describe them to people. This does nothing to diminish his stature in my mind. The man is a giant. His attributes are a blend of The Lone Ranger, the Crocodile Hunter, and the Hardy Boys. Although one might think that dognapping or guys living in trailers making their money by poaching are rare problems, Mr. Trail shows us the serious underbelly of these issues.

While delivering the action packed yet insightful saga of Mark Trail from Monday through Saturday, my own paper has sadly stopped carrying the CapStone of the Mark Trail experience - the Sunday comic. Not only does the full color boost the Sunday comic into lifelike relief, the Marlin Perkins-esk character of animal kingdom education, along with the superposition of a calm Mark Trail has an impact that cannot be overstated.

While Mr. Trail soldiers on in timeless and ageless fashion, it remains to be seen what will happen with his useless doormat of a wife Candy, his closeted adoptive son, Rusty, his senile veterinarian father-in-law Doc, and his slack jawed goliath of a dog, Andy. Although surrounded by this gaggle of misfits, Mr. Trail's contribution to the world cannot be overlooked. Without his calm guidance in this era of climate change and mass extinctions, we would surely fall prey to worst in our own human natures. Who knows how much worse it would be without the watchful eyes of Mark Trail to guide us forward.

Thank you Mark Trail, and god bless you.

Spring Henge

Today was the first day of Spring.

We live on a curve, and one leg of the curve goes due West away from our house. This means that on the Equinox (the first day of Spring) the sun sets directly down the road.

In mid winter, it sets behind the trees on the left, and by the middle of summer, it sets behind a house to the right.

So for a couple of weeks, it sets right down the road, where we can see it. I always like these Equinox sunsets.

Spring Magic

When I was leaving for work this morning, a little earlier than I normally do, the sun was not yet up. The sky was lightening, though, and there was enough brightness in the sky that the pond (recently filled up by rains) reflected the sky nicely. I stopped and looked at it for a moment to enjoy the pretty sight, and something magical looking happened. There was obviously a deer running along the dam of the pond. You couldn't hear it (they are really silent!) and you couldn't see the deer directly, because the woods were dark. What I could see was the silouette of the deer, running along upside down in the reflection on the pond.

I froze and enjoyed the moment, it was over pretty quickly. I just had time to register what I saw and was forming the description and replay in my mind when it happened again. This time, I could really enjoy it. I'm not sure what spooked them into running, but it made them more noticeable and distinct in the reflection than walking would have.

When I got to work, my wife called me from the road. She was excited because on her drive in, there was a huge owl on a telephone wire right over the road. She said she could see his head swivelling around, looking this way and that. You think of owls as pretty shy. It's a rare treat to see one from the road.

Skunked

This must be the mating season for skunks. OK, wikipedia confirms it.

I've never seen so many hit by cars before. I've seen 3 or 4 every time I drive somewhere in the last week.

They must be horrible at dodging cars.

I know deer get distracted when they are mating and get hit by cars more often, but I've never noticed this same thing happening to deer before.

It's funny. For some reason (perhaps Pepé Le Pew cartoons) we are taught that we are supposed to be afraid of or avoid skunks. The skunk has only one major problem, and that's it's smell. Don't get too close or scare it, and you won't have to deal with that issue. I suppose they also have rabies a lot, which is a major concern, too.

It's too bad, they really are pretty animals. As far as road kill goes, it's some of the nicer looking pelts you'll see. Too bad about the stink, that black & white stripe pattern would make a nice coat. I guess I hate to see any animal killed by a car, it seems like such a waste and so needlessly cruel.

Plus, who enjoys driving through the skunk smell. Not good.

Hawk's Nest

Sharon has been watching a breeding pair of hawks from her desk. She can see the nest they are building across the street.

We've been watching the nest and can sometimes see the hawks working on the nest or sitting in a branch nearby. It's definitely a breeding pair, so maybe we will be able to see the babies.

I'm sure there will be more to follow.

Mango

We have a possum that knows when the outside cats are being fed. He shows up soon afterward. Possums and raccoons are voracious. They eat so much cat food, it's hard to believe.

So when this little guy showed up to eat the other night, I opened up the door to take away his food and was stopped in my tracks when I saw his face and shoulder.

I'm not sure what happened to this guy, but I've got a new name for him now.

Mango.

It's short for mangled. He has something wrong with his left eye, it looks like it might be blind and the hide around it has no fur in it, it's scraped clean as if it was shaved. He has another raw patch on his left shoulder, which for some reason reminds me of a healed burn scar.

I'm guessing he was hit by a car and survived.

I left the food for him. I figured he's been through enough rough stuff to need a few easy meals. This one's on me.

The First Frog of Spring

It got over 70° this weekend. We spent it hiking through the countryside, and ended up Sunday afternoon in a place called Monkey Mountain Park.

While looking for a place to cross a small creek, we spooked up this little guy.

The first frog of spring! Now that is one heck of a sign of spring.

On the way back to the car, we heard a little pond or stream that had several frogs croaking away.

That night it rained hard all night and we woke up to temperatures just above freezing. The next night, it was 15°.

The coming of spring is not a one way street.

Target Practice

I'm glad that the good whiskey swilling, gun toting woodsmen find this to be a threat. One less piece of galvanized metal to to menace us when we are trekking through the woods.

Isn't it ironic?

When the greenest thing in the winter is the coating of moss on a rock?

Notice the sunglass lens on the camera? Soon after this, it fell off, but we didn't notice it was gone until after we finished our hiking in the woods and went home. I backtracked an found it the next morning.

You won't catch moss growing on me.

Whiskey Tango

There is a bar in Grain Valley called Whiskey Tango. This is code for White Trash.

These people drink a lot, dance to loud country music, wear giant belt buckles, drive giant pickup trucks and perform strange mating rituals in the building shown.

You are welcome to join them. You can never have too many Whiskey Tangos.

Thorny Issues

We saw plenty of locust trees when we hiked around this weekend. I believe in tough love. These trees just have an image problem - they are misunderstood. I think they need a hug.