Spring is coming very slowly, we had sleet, snow and rain so far, frosty nights, which are unusual for this corner of the world. There's not much of the obvious happening in the garden, even the daffodils are taking their time. Every morning, R looks out and wonders whether today is the day to put down the potatoes and then it rains and he postpones.
Instead, he has started tentative relationships with the jays, magpies and parakeets, hiding peanuts in various places to see how clever they are in finding them. And oh are they clever. I swear, the magpies just look at him thinking, that fool.
Jane Goodall observed members of a chimpanzee society in Tanzania approaching a rushing waterfall in a forest clearing. The apes fell into a swaying dance, threw rocks and swung across the waterfall’s spray on lianas. Afterward, some would sit on a boulder to watch the rushing water, seemingly in a state of deep contemplation.
(found here)
I have exactly 129 working days left after deducting public holidays and my holiday entitlement. I swear I will not count them. Just thought I will mention it once and for all.
Two more things I would like to share:
We are contemplating a visit to Amsterdam to see the Vermeer exhibition but ticket sales are tight and I am not in a place for a schedule right now, so this is sufficient for now, click here and enjoy.
Many years ago, this guy started a blog called Letters of Note. which has grown into books and very enjoyable public readings. Now he has started a new project, Diaries of Note, which is simply a wonderful idea.
Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU for that video. In any church of mine, Jane Goodall would be a saint. A saint of observation, knowledge, and understanding. I always say that reading her books taught me more about how to be a good mother than any thing else as she described how chimpanzee mothers raise their babies.
ReplyDeleteI hope the rain stops long enough soon for your husband to get the potatoes in the ground.
Jane Goodall had an instant impact on my life after I saw her doc on water. It was years and years ago, and I never again brushed my teeth with the water running, or washed dishes under running water. She alerted me permanently to the preciousness of water and the terrible labor of women in other countries in daily searching and carrying it. Great role model in many ways.
ReplyDeleteI used routinely to plant potatoes, peas and onions on st Patrick's day, but for years now it's been too cold and wet, even snowy.
of course other forms of life are intelligent. how else could life survive if it didn't observe and understand its environment. your birds know what a peanut is and what it looks like and they see the big lumbering beast put one in a crevice. and why would awe and appreciation be beyond its existence. it is human arrogance (and religion) that tells us we are special. because we cannot communicate with other forms we assume that they are ignorant or that it is only instinct, something that drives them to do what they do without understanding or know the outcome of action.
ReplyDeleteJane Goodall is the very role model for how to be a good thoughtful human on our planet earth. I so love her. I also love seeing the birds there and that R has been feeding them. Yes!
ReplyDeleteSo much here to celebrate. Wonderful birds visiting your home and finding the peanuts R hides for them, especially that jaunty parakeet. There are several waterfalls within walking distance of my home. Now I will imagine chimpanzees swaying and contemplating along with the human beings of various ages who stop to witness the falling water. Thank you for the links at the end of the post. They led me to astonishing places.
ReplyDeleteThinking of you today, Sabine. Just now I heard Canada Geese on the roof of our condo complex and then two pairs flew to the east. One pair flew to the cattail pond that my porch looks out on and the other pair flew a little farther to the part of Lake Whatcom that turns into Whatcom Creek. Canada Geese choose each other for life. I am fond of them. Sending love to you and R.
ReplyDeleteBirds can enhance things for housebound humans staring out through the window at an inhospitable landscape. A feeder dangles from a branch of a prunus I planted a decade ago to celebrate VR's birthday and I have a load of seed indoors to fill it. But birds can be picky. When the weather brightens it seem they prefer their original sources and I am denied their noisy, even bad-tempered, squabbles.
ReplyDeleteYour comment about my health was most welcome. I have answered at some of length and thought I'd mention this since the post you responded to is not my most recent.
As my husband and i are retired for a while, we never yet tired of watching the birds.
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