At the Cabin

Moth on Red Lamp

2012-01-28T15:24:00.002-06:00

It's looking at me.

Moth on Pink Scarf

2012-01-28T15:22:00.000-06:00

Tiny Pies

2012-01-22T14:16:00.001-06:00

Paper-clay pies, made with a tiny rolling pin, for a (late) Christmas present. Really fun working with the clay—it's very like working with real dough.

No, I didn't really roll them out with flour; that's just for staging. But I did really use the tiny rolling pin.

Bizarre Clouds, Part II

2012-01-07T16:47:00.006-06:00

Catching up from a month or two ago. The sky and clouds have been very interesting in recent months. I don't remember if these were taken the same day as The Day of Bizarre clouds.

Happy New Year!

2012-01-02T18:35:00.000-06:00

Welcome, 2012. I look forward to you. In celebration, here is my favorite tree in all her winter glory.

Seated Double Kitty

2011-11-17T21:54:00.001-06:00

Hard-Boiled Eggs

2011-11-13T23:37:00.000-06:00

November Blooms

2011-11-12T16:12:00.001-06:00

The Day of Bizarre Clouds

2011-11-11T12:11:00.001-06:00

The thing is, we do not live In a valley ringed by mountains whose immense heights are shrouded in clouds, except today we do.

Evening Sky from the Office

2011-11-07T17:51:00.001-06:00

Ruby & Porcupine, Part III

2011-11-05T12:19:00.001-05:00

Ruby & Porcupine, Part II

2011-11-05T12:13:00.001-05:00

Ruby Meets a Porcupine

2011-11-05T12:12:00.001-05:00

Ephemera

2011-11-04T15:59:00.000-05:00

Sunday's Finds, Part IV-B

2011-11-02T11:28:00.000-05:00

Sunday's Finds, Part IV-A

2011-11-01T11:58:00.000-05:00

Sunday's Finds, Part III-B

2011-10-31T08:05:00.000-05:00

Sunday's Finds, Part III-A

2011-10-31T08:04:00.001-05:00

Today's Finds, Part II

2011-10-30T22:00:00.001-05:00

Today's Finds, Part I

2011-10-30T17:54:00.000-05:00

Western Rufous-sided Towhee?

2011-10-24T10:23:00.000-05:00

I'm unsure that my identification is correct. This bird has been visiting for a week or two. He gets under the little oak tree at the edge of the patio and scratches, scratches, scratches among the leaves to find the acorns. It's rather charming.

Feathers

2011-10-23T13:00:00.006-05:00

I gathered these buzzard feathers after the evening of carnage several years ago:
http://atthecabin.blogspot.com/2008/04/carnage-on-hill.html

I found the next day that the feathers led to the area of the fox den that's in the woods at the base of the hill (if you can call the collection of cedars "woods", that is). There is little doubt who was responsible!

Cat for scale

Scrub Jay

2011-10-23T10:21:00.003-05:00

The New Guy

2011-10-16T11:11:00.010-05:00

This rather beefy black spider had been hanging around in the bathroom lately; last night he was in this empty flowerpot there (its diameter is about .5 inches / 1.27 cm). I just went to measure the hole in the pot and found the spider now dead.

It's most like a trapdoor spider, Ummidia sp., (looking in my Texas Spiders book), but that's an uncertain identification.

The Elusive Tarantula Hawk Pollinates

2011-10-09T14:56:00.002-05:00

This guy is huge—about two inches long, if not longer. And so beautiful!

Home

2011-10-08T19:28:00.001-05:00

Remember When It Snowed Back in February? Part VI: Bird Tracks

2011-10-04T12:50:00.000-05:00

Remember When It Snowed Back in February? Part V: Outlook

2011-10-03T12:49:00.001-05:00

Remember When It Snowed Back in February? Part IV: Animal Tracks

2011-10-02T12:16:00.008-05:00

Skunk (I think)

On the left are the skunk tracks; I don't know what the other, longer tracks on the right are. I thought perhaps rabbit, but it's something walking, not hopping. Maybe fox?

On the patio: DOG

Remember When It Snowed Back in February? Part III

2011-10-01T13:44:00.001-05:00

The Drop & Roll

Remember When It Snowed Back in February? Part II

2011-09-28T17:15:00.000-05:00

Sunset: Saturday July 30

2011-09-27T17:12:00.005-05:00

So many older photos on my desktop waiting for posting! These are two.

SO LITTLE TIME . . . SO MUCH TO DO.

Moon, September 11

2011-09-24T09:58:00.000-05:00

Winged Insect, Other Views

2011-09-18T13:18:00.003-05:00

Winged Insect

2011-09-14T19:42:00.003-05:00

Invasion of the Little Moths: Part II

2011-09-12T11:58:00.001-05:00

Invasion of the Little Moths: Part I

2011-09-11T17:07:00.001-05:00

Pedernales 1 Fire: Update from the Pedernales Fire Department

2011-09-11T16:59:00.002-05:00

The Pedernales Fire Department posted this about 3 hours ago on their Facebook page:

PFD Firefighters and Fire Departments from Burnett County are working the fire area today. We continue to have flare-ups and small fires, especially in more remote areas. Getting to some of these fires is difficult and our wildland fire equipment, including our brush trucks are taking a real beating. We are accepting donations for replacing and repairing our wildland fire equipment. Send donations to PFD Auxiliary 801 Bee Creek Road, Briarcliff, Texas 78669 All donations are tax deductible. Thank you for your support ... !!!

Black-Crested Titmouse

2011-09-11T09:15:00.001-05:00

This enterprising junior black-crested titmouse is enjoying the oriole & hummingbird feeders, too.

Oriole Evacuee?

2011-09-10T16:09:00.004-05:00

We have so many orioles right now, including this orange Baltimore oriole, who is distinct from our more usual yellow Scott's orioles. I suspect that some of them are evacuees from the recent Pedernales One fire area. There are so many that they're emptying the feeder every couple of days.

Remember When It Snowed Back in February?

2011-09-07T21:28:00.003-05:00

I never posted these then . . . it's time now.

Today's Update on the Pedernales 1 Fire

2011-09-07T09:35:00.003-05:00

The Ped 1 fire has been dropped from today's headlines on YNN; the last update there is from 11 p.m. Monday 9/5, noting that it was back up to 80% containment. No obvious smoke on our horizon this morning, but it's very hazy, so not entirely a reliable indicator.

Yesterday from my front porch I continued to see smoke to the north & north-north-west from 1-3 fires all afternoon into the evening. No orange glows after sundown, though (two thumbs up).

That's all I know for now. Nothing new on the neighborhood group list, either.

Photos of Monday's Ped 1 Fire at/near Reimers Ranch

2011-09-06T14:28:00.005-05:00

Taken around 5pm from Stagecoach Ranch Road, looking north

Pedernales 1 Fire: Further Update

2011-09-06T09:49:00.003-05:00

The Pedernales 1 (One?) fire is still burning, per the news and the Texas fire map.

Yesterday evening/night, it had spread to at or near Reimers Ranch (news coverage is scant!). The fire originally started on the other side of the river, but it hopped right over it at some point; apparently it is so low and the wind so high that it wasn't a barrier. It seems that it was on Reimers Ranch or next door at Peacock (the giant ranch that abuts both Reimers and our land) that they were finally able to subdue it. Around 5 or so I ran down to Stagecoach Ranch Road (just past Hamilton Pool) to have a look from the high point there; on my way back, the first fire trucks were turning into Reimers.

Part of why the fires have gotten so bad is because there haven't been resources enough to fight all the many, many fires in the state. In many areas they've simply been evacuating people to get them safe. Hence, we're amazed that suddenly so many trucks & people showed up yesterday evening and managed to tame the one at/near Reimers. We're incredibly lucky.

We can still see smoke this morning, but it's further away than yesterday. Right now the fire map shows a flame near West Cypress Bend and another quite close to Hamilton Pool, in addition to the many still around Spicewood and Pace Bend.

So—we were not evacuated, though are cars are still packed with all of our worldly goods, and we're safe at home with an eye to the horizon . . .

Dead Visitor

2011-09-05T21:16:00.001-05:00

I found this little guy on the front porch on Sunday afternoon; I wonder if the high winds blew him to his death against the windows or door.

I've never seen a bird like this before; is it perhaps a Black-and-White warbler?

Latest on the Pedernales 1 Fire

2011-09-05T20:00:00.002-05:00

8 p.m. and we're still not evacuated, though neighbors all around are. And it's looking not so bad—touch wood!—for us, at least. We have heard some reports that the fire is on this side of Reimers Ranch—that is, on the Peacock Ranch side of Reimers—and we see less smoke now, though still plenty of it, and it seems to be moving to the west. Again, good for the Cabin, but we worry about our neighbors to the west. More later, if there's anything to report.

Fire at Paleface Park

2011-09-05T10:25:00.001-05:00

Update as of 10:25 a.m. Monday 9/5:

YNN is the best news source I've found so far:
http://austin.ynn.com/
You can also "like" "YNN Austin" on Facebook. Great, steady updates last night.

We didn't get evacuated, but it was a scary night. There's still smoke from the Pedernales 1 fire, as they're calling it, visible from our porch, but much less so than yesterday, as seen below. We had the cats, dogs & valuables packed in the truck & car, ready to go. Hugh & I spent our time hacking down limbs that were touching the house. I finally went to sleep at 3.

My original Sunday post:

Looking due north from our front porch

Paleface is 5 or 6 miles away as the crow flies, though it's about 18 miles by road. Hugh is reading tweets from a guy near the scene who says that though the fire is on the other side of the Pedernales, the river is so low that it's not a barrier to the fire. Winds are HIGH today, and blowing from the north (right toward us, that is). The sky is full of smoke and is alternately weirdly glowing and darker than it should be.

We are irrigating, and we also cleared a bunch of dead plants from the back area earlier, something I've been meaning to do for weeks. Feels good to have it done. Maybe I'll go out front now and sweep up all the dead needles that have fallen from the poor dehydrated giant pine tree that's by our patio. There is so much to do all the time; it's hard to keep up with everything, and we don't! Even if I had no job and did nothing but work outside here all day, every day, I'd never get it all done.

To the west (and up)

Shot from the back of the drive, behind the house; you can see our roof among the foliage on the left

I also dislocated my left big toe earlier and I'm having asthma from the smoke.
What a creepy and effed-up day.

BZZZZ: What I Did Last Saturday

2011-09-04T13:07:00.003-05:00

Photograph compliments of Jackie, who attended with me & Vic. You can read more about the beekeeping class at Surviving the Modern World!

Rocks

2011-09-04T12:53:00.001-05:00

Sunset & Shovel Mountain, July 29

2011-09-03T16:50:00.002-05:00

What I'm Drinking Tonight

2011-08-25T20:27:00.002-05:00

Hello, England. This can't possibly be as expensive there as it is here . . . but it's very good.

The Largest Wolf Spider I Have EVER SEEN

2011-08-21T22:37:00.004-05:00

What a beauty! He was hanging out on the front porch tonight, above the recycling, on the office window screen. He is giant, absolutely GIANT. Every bit as large as a small to medium tarantula.

My finger for scale

Hamilton in the Tub: Part the Last

2011-08-18T18:38:00.001-05:00

Hamilton in the Tub: Part VI

2011-08-16T18:59:00.002-05:00

Hamilton in the Tub: Part V

2011-08-14T22:15:00.003-05:00

Fritz also feels the love . . . or does he?

Hamilton in the Tub: Part IV

2011-08-13T20:01:00.000-05:00

Hamilton in the Tub: Part III

2011-08-12T21:45:00.004-05:00

Hamilton in the Tub: Part II

2011-08-11T14:01:00.001-05:00

Hamilton in the Tub: Part the First

2011-08-10T21:50:00.004-05:00

Prickly But Tender

2011-08-09T18:13:00.001-05:00

Junior Scrub Jay Siblings

2011-08-08T13:10:00.002-05:00

They're hot and hungry.

Accidental Dog

2011-08-05T20:02:00.006-05:00

Black Beetle

2011-08-04T18:41:00.000-05:00

Water Jewels II

2011-08-03T08:37:00.001-05:00

Finch Through Glass

2011-08-02T17:19:00.001-05:00

It's Not Broken

2011-08-01T18:43:00.002-05:00

It was topped out over 120 degrees when I got home, but also directly facing the blazing sun. Here it is 15 minutes later. Scant improvement.

In Case You Need More than One, But Are on a Budget

2011-08-01T11:59:00.002-05:00

Water Jewels I

2011-08-01T08:35:00.001-05:00

Really?

2011-07-31T11:58:00.002-05:00

Because, Seton, I could be dead by then.

Red Wasp on Wisteria

2011-07-30T20:34:00.002-05:00

The Fire at Night

2011-07-30T10:14:00.004-05:00

Wednesday night, as seen over a hill or two to the east from our front patio. Possibly the scariest thing I've ever seen, but as of Thursday morning it was contained, and now it's out. About 400 acres burned. Approximately 60 homes (80 -100 persons) were evacuated and assisted by the Red Cross, who also provided meal and rehab services to the responders. A total of 30 structures were at one time threatened by the fire, but none were lost. The fire went to 4 alarms, involving 17 different agencies. The fuels involved included light brush and light through heavy timber. Fire activity included some “torching” into the tree canopies. The preliminary cause is believed to be sparks from welding or steel cutting activity. There were three injuries on the fire; 2 firefighters (back and ankle) and 1 civilian (first degree burns).

Here is the amazing list of responding agencies:

Travis Co. ESD – 6 Lake Travis Fire Rescue
North Hays Co. FD
Austin Fire Department
City of Austin (Mobile Command Units CV-1 & RMC-1)
Austin Travis Co. EMS
Star Flight
Travis Co. Sheriff’s Office
Travis Co. Fire Marshal’s Office
Texas Dept, of Public Safety
Travis Co. Parks
US Fish & Wildlife
Texas Forest Service
Travis Co. ESD 8
Travis Co. ESD 3
CE-BAR FD
American Red Cross

July Sunset, a Week or Two Ago

2011-07-29T19:03:00.001-05:00

Stealth Bunny

2011-07-28T19:21:00.001-05:00

Fire Over the Hill

2011-07-27T17:38:00.003-05:00

Photo by Hugh. This place is about four miles from us by road, but judging by this photo from the patio, much closer as the crow flies.

The Enormity of Hamilton

2011-07-27T00:12:00.000-05:00

The Boys Redux

2011-07-24T22:23:00.000-05:00

The Boy Cats

2011-07-24T22:22:00.000-05:00

Hamilton Chases His Tail

2011-07-22T22:49:00.000-05:00

Spider on the Bedroom Overhead Lamp, Just Wishing I Would Go Away

2011-07-20T22:04:00.003-05:00

Deers Eat Birdseed Too

2011-07-18T12:11:00.001-05:00

Bobwhite Trio

2011-07-17T12:05:00.006-05:00

There is a lot of activity around the birdfeeders lately; it is so dry that everyone's on the lookout for more food sources.

Robby Meets the Big Dogs and Goes for a Swim

2011-07-16T15:47:00.003-05:00

Today Robby was invited to the Big House to meet his elders and take a dip.

Jackson, Robby, Madison, and our lovely neighbor Patty

The Visitor

2011-07-15T14:24:00.001-05:00

Little puppy Robby is staying with us for a few days. He is adorable but I decidedly DO NOT WANT a puppy of my own . . .

Jessie the Dog

2011-07-10T14:14:00.006-05:00

Suddenly, on Tuesday, Jessie the dog was unable to walk. The diagnosis is that she had a stroke! Though nothing to sneeze at, apparently strokes in dogs are milder than those typical in humans, and our vet thinks that she will recover just fine. She's a little cockeyed and crooked in the walk, but definitely on the mend. She is the sweetest and gentlest of dogs and we're happy that it's not her time to go yet.

Scorpion #3 2011, in Absentia

2011-07-07T11:58:00.003-05:00

No photo of #3; just this note to record the event for all posterity. In bed last night, with a cold pack on my hot feet, I felt something whispery on my ankle and somehow I knew, in the way that one knows such things, that I wanted to get up very quickly. I did, and there was a rather large scorpion running away from where my ankle had been.

Did he fall from the loft above, or had he been inside the dish towel I'd taken from the drawer to wrap around the cold pack? Only the Scorpion knows . . .

I do feel this supports my argument that they don't sting just for the hell of it, just because one's ankle or whatever is there. It was just using my ankle to walk on, and the ankle was not threatening it, so no sting.

Hamilton, Sleeping

2011-07-03T22:50:00.003-05:00

Note that his head is actually larger than my kneecap (and I am not a small woman) . . .

EGGS: Snake? Lizard? Gecko?

2011-06-27T17:39:00.001-05:00

I'm still working on cleaning out the shed. On Saturday I lifted up an empty birdseed bag to find this batch of tiny eggshells half on it, half beneath it. So exciting! They're so tiny and delicate. I thought they must be snake eggs, until I googled . . . now I think perhaps they are gecko or lizard eggs instead. Only the layer of the eggs knows for sure....

The photo above shows the membrane within the shell. In the photo below is what I thought was a wee snakeskin, or is it more inner-egg material? I know not.

Woodie: A New Guy

2011-06-26T17:33:00.005-05:00

I did something in Photoshop called "equalizing" to turn a couple of crap photos into these interesting, yet sort of still crap, specimens. This bird is one of this year's golden-fronted woodpecker babies on his way to the hummingbird & oriole feeders that hang from our porch.

Rain!

2011-06-22T22:14:00.002-05:00

I should complain, or at least be depressed, more often . . . it rained last night! I felt as though I were on a different planet, it's been so long. Then the irrigation system mysteriously turned itself on in the middle of the night, in the rain. It does that a lot. I think this house is built on the site of an ancient burial site . . .

Hot, Dry & Depressing

2011-06-21T21:48:00.003-05:00

We're in the middle of a terrible drought and just walking outside is so sad. Everything is brown, brown, brown. Much fewer bird babies than usual this year (though there are some!). Our meadow is completely dried out, except for the prickly pear. We are irrigating every day just to keep things wet near the house. Most of the trees are still green, but the area out back is covered with a two- or three-month-old layer of brown, dry, cedar needles. There have been two fires in our neighborhood, within a mile or two of our house, in the last two weeks, so it's frightening in addition to depressing. Sigh. I ought to be taking pictures anyway, to document this crap year, but I just can't get inspired.

Hamilton and His Mouth

2011-06-20T17:22:00.002-05:00

I'm working on a little movie composed of the series of shots that culminated in this pose.

I also hope that I'm not repeating this image . . . it's a month or two old and I can't remember.

Moth on Lamp

2011-06-12T11:03:00.007-05:00

This moth is the same as the Moth with Brilliant Underwings recently seen in my bathroom.

Paradise in the Rear View Mirror

2011-06-08T23:15:00.001-05:00

I Heart Spiders

2011-06-06T19:14:00.004-05:00

My Head is in the Clouds

2011-06-04T15:27:00.000-05:00

Dog-Washing

2011-06-02T19:55:00.004-05:00

Hugh washed the dogs yesterday. This photo is from a dog-washing back inMarch , but I thought it fitting to post it now, since I didn't then.

Scorpion #1, 2011 (and #2 in Absentia)

2011-05-31T17:16:00.002-05:00

From May 2 in the bathroom. A few days later another showed up in the same place; one of its pincer arms was dragging behind it, poor thing. I took it out outside without making it suffer through a photo shoot.

The Elusive Tarantula Hawk Continues to Elude Me, Sort Of

2011-05-30T17:01:00.005-05:00

A rare ground sighting on a recent morning of a tarantula hawk; it was foraging among the leaves under cedar trees behind the outdoor shower. These photos do not convey the giant purpley golden-orangeness that this insect has in flight, its gangly legs all hanging down and its wings spread wide, as it desultorily yet mysteriously lazes its way through the air!

Lesser Goldfinches

2011-05-28T16:05:00.002-05:00

Moth with Brilliant Underwings

2011-05-27T16:13:00.001-05:00