Yumi “undressed” the tree nearly two weeks ago, but we were loath to let it go. It still looked and smelled wonderful, but today we finally wrapped it in a canvas drop sheet, and took it down into the garage.
Choco the cat finds the garage spooky, but she sat by the door and cried, so I let her out. She went directly to the tree, sniffed around, meowked a couple of times, and then trotted back to me.
I guess in her own way, she needed a minute.
The City of Burnaby’s new design standards for streets in its four town centres look interesting. Lots of green including rain gardens. Hope this progresses quickly, as we need all the rainwater infiltration that we can get to keep our urban streams as healthy as possible. Infiltration naturally filters pollution and reduces peak flows.
You can’t make this stuff up.
Business in Vancouver reported in an article today:
The staff at the NEB’s new regional office will focus on communications work, community engagement and assist with operations, according to a press release.
The NEB did not respond to multiple requests for interviews.
Boy, that’s a great start for an operation tasked with communication and community engagement!
Was on Skytrain today coming home from a meeting, and at one station a little girl and her mom were dashing for the doors when a mini-tragedy struck. The girl made it onto the train, and mom didn’t.
The giggling girl turned around, saw mom beyond the closed doors, and burst into tears as the train pulled away.
A grandfatherly looking gentleman immediately stood up, went to the girl and said “It’s OK, I’ll get off at the next station with you, and your mom will catch up.”
I had two thoughts: admiration at the quick response, followed, unfortunately, by “even grandfatherly types….”
So I unobtrusively got off with them. I don’t think the gentleman even noticed that I was following. There was a Skytrain security guy nearby, and “grandad” walked the girl over, and jumped back on the train.
The next train mom arrived, and I left. Thank you “grandad” and Skytrain guy!
I’ve been asked to take part in two presentations at the SEP 2015 British Columbia stewardship community workshop in May.
One will be on event and documentary photography, with an emphasis on using photos for effective communication and engagement, be it in paper publications or online. The other is a panel on engaging youth in stewardship activities. Should be fun!
SEP 2015 will take place in Port Alberni, BC, May 15-17, 2015.
More information about the workshop will be posted to this website as details firm up.
For awhile this morning it looked like the sun would break through in SE Burnaby, BC. Yet by mid-afternoon, the fog reigns.
The sun breaking through Byrne woods behind our townhouse complex mid-morning.
Mid-afternoon in Ron McLean Park near our place.
Yet starting from just a few blocks north, it’s sunny with blue skies.
I spent a couple of hours down in White Rock, BC, this afternoon shooting photos and rambling along the beach and pier. Lovely afternoon!
Here’s a Flickr collection of some of today’s shooting:
We took an overnighter down to Washington State last weekend. While it was foggy and drizzly, we still enjoyed some ocean expanses and fresh air at Deception Pass State Park.
Yumi on the beach
Deception Pass bridge
West beach looking north-ish
West beach looking south-ish
North beach
North beach bluff
Thanks to the Richmond Review for running one of my heron photos in its Jan. 2, 2015, edition. You can see it in the Richmond Review eEditions online. Click the Jan. 2 issue, and go to page 3.
I spent nearly four hours “shooting” birds and scenic views in Fraser Foreshore Park in Burnaby, BC, this afternoon. I got thoroughly chilled but the shots were worth it. Here are a couple to get this post going.
In my experience, herons usually appear completely disinterested in people. I did not call attention to myself in any way to get this shot. Walking around the tree a couple of times attempting to get an unobstructed view likely piqued its interest.
There were several Stellar’s Jays feeding from stumps where people had left seeds. These shy birds can be hard to photograph, but as I stood silently for over an hour in the same spot, they gradually became more comfortable with my presence.
What I just wrote brought me up short. “These shy birds…” Huh?
I have also experienced them being very aggressive in seeking food, when camping in the BC interior, so I’m not sure why the Jekyll and Hyde personality shifts.