FIVE SECOND STORIES

In The Neighborhood:

1/14-The day began in the 40's with some sun but the temps began to drop:

Lake effect snow began. The Diner was busy as I had refilled the feeder and put seed on the ground. The patrons, realizing that major cold was coming, spent the afternoon fueling up:

One of the young Nutkins was storing seed, running back and forth between hiding places:
 

The Sparrow raucous caucus were in full attendance as were the Juncos, big Woody, and M/M Cardinal:

 

1/16-Snow squall 

 

1/19-With temps only in the teens, only the chickadees and juncos were at the Diner:

Late in the afternoon, the nearly buried woodland gnomes received some wane sunlight:

 

 

1/23: snow squall

1/24: -15° this morning. Mama doe and her triplets visited the Diner:

We haven't seen cold like this since January 2019 when we experienced 3 nights of -14°.

1/27-very cold days, only in the teens with single digits at night. Periodic snow squalls depending on how strong the lake effect winds were-we got another couple of inches. In the late afternoon, the sun came out. The birds were busy at the Diner-Lil' Woody:

M/M Redbird, Senor Junco and a Sparrow:

Long blue shadows:

With the icy temps, the snow is sparkly even at night-click on photo for better viewing:

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Fun stuff: 

 A chihuahua wearing an anti-hawk vest:

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Japanese Raccoon Dog:

Miroslav Hlavko

Also known as Tanuki, it is endemic to Japan and considered a subspecies to those canids found on the Asian continent. Genetically, they are closely related to foxes. In Japan, raccoon dogs have had a significant role in Japanese folklore since ancient times. They are reputedly mischievous and jolly, masters of disguise and shapeshifting, but somewhat gullible and absent-minded. 

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Wild burros hang out under a tree in a Moreno Valley, CA neighborhood SE of Riverside during the 2022 drought.

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In 2015, wildlife photographer Christophe Courteau found himself face-to-face with a 6ft 6, 400 lbs silverback gorilla and took photographs just moments before it punched him in the face. 

Actually, Mr. Gorilla had spotted a rival behind the photographer and brushed him aside, rushing to confront the offender.

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If animals posted memes on FB:

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Pareidolia: cricket with lion's head wearing sunglasses on its belly:

 Ya mon!

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Petrified Opal tree trunk - 225 million-year-old fossilized tree trunk from the Triassic Period in The Petrified Forest National Park, Arizona.

Formation Process: The trees were buried by volcanic ash and, over millions of years, the organic material was replaced by silica, resulting in fossilized wood (sometimes called "wood opal").

Appearance: These trunks often show vibrant colors, including red, yellow, green, and blue,, depending on the mineral impurities present.

Structure Retention: The crystallization process is so precise that it preserves the original cellular structure, including growth rings and bark.  

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Interesting POV of a building with a thunderstorm bearing down on it:

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South Kensington Townhouse in London with wisteria:

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Larry, chief mouser at 10 Downing Street celebrates his 18th or 19th birthday this month. Well done, old son!  

 

#cutebuddypix: 

Buddy loves the space heaters and also loves to drape himself over edges. I swear, it's some kind of game/challenge to see how far he can push it.

He's been grumpy about the weather-you know how cats dislike changes to their routines-and we're having the worst Winter since he came to live with us 3 years ago. His patrol activities are severely truncated and he hasn't killed anything in quite awhile. I think he will be a terror come warmer weather.

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Fun vids: 

From 2023, Impossible Maladies short

 AI short: I Leave My Worries With the Hive:

 Space Reggae-Sand and Sway:

 

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Crazy marketing: The recent Liberty Mutual insurance scheme featuring Lemu the Emu and Doug:

Doug-sporting his Ted Lasso mustache and '70's/80's aviator glasses, generally clueless in his relentless pursuit of hawking (pun intended) the value of his insurance company. 

Screaming child in market:

I thought the father had more than a passing resemblance to the actor Gary Horton from the Thirtysomething series: 

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Fun TV series:

We've been enjoying Freaks and Geeks from 1999, a sweet/funny/sad look at the 1980-81 school year for a group of freshman and seniors at a mythical high school located in the western suburbs of Detroit, MI.  Produced and created by Paul Geig and Judd Apatow, the show launched the careers of James Franco, Seth Rogan and Jason Segal who worked in other Apatow series/films. The show only aired one season and was cancelled due to erratic scheduling, poor time slots and continuing conflict between the creators and the network. It later became a cult classic. 

Nice escapism and for us, bringing back memories of such times-school, parents, first dabblings with the opposite sex and cannabis. It takes place at the intersection of the cusp of Reaganism, Disco/Punk music and lingering effects of Hippie ethos and 60's rebellion especially against societal/parental expectations. We thought the writing was decent and enjoyed the creative use of music and lyrics in particular scenes.

Highly recommended. Watch on Prime. 

FUBARland: 

From 1956-The Bad Seed 

Could sweet, blonde-haired 8 year old Rhoda be a psychopath? 

Curious film especially since it was made in 1956-one part PSA for parents of the exploding Boomer generation. The kids born at the end of WW2 are growing up and with such a large cohort, doctors are beginning to see some disturbing behavioral anomalies. A huge discussion in the medical community: how a child turns out is due to environment or genes or a bit of both? Now, the double helix structure of DNA had only been discovered a few years earlier so at the time, environment was the generally accepted cause. This story goes after this concept as this child came from a wealthy, loving family. How could she become evil under such circumstances? Well, one explanation goes biblical: the offspring of Seth's line marrying Cain's line, creating wicked descendants (Nephilim)-hence The Bad Seed. 

This was a hugely successful film, no doubt creating a lot of discussion amongst parents, teachers and doctors. They already were dealing with rebellious young adults aka juvenile delinquents as shown in films like The Wild One (1953) with Marlon Brando and biker gangs and The Blackboard Jungle (1955) intercity school chaos. And, gasp, rock and roll music!

The Bad Seed provides a fun drinking game in reference to modern times: when the 8 year old's narcissistic behavior reminds one of the Roach-take a shot! 

Paula Poundstone is back.  

Gavin Newsom at Davos compared the Roach to T Rex:

"Either you mate with him or he devours you."

1/24: Another Minneapolis martyr: Alex Pretti, 37, American citizen and ICU RN was shot multiple times by ICE.

We are displaying a LED candle in the window each night, in memory of Mr. Pretti and in solidarity with Minneapolis residents. The candle will remain until ICE leaves the city.

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It's time for impeachment, not just Roach but his entire cabinet of clowns and incompetents. They are a clear and present danger not only to us, but the entire planet,

Congress, get a spine. Otherwise, this is the beginning of what's to come. You only have to see what happened recently in Iran where the regime slaughtered thousands of protesters to grasp how this can go. This has to be nipped in the bud NOW before it's too late. 

 
 

FIVE SECOND STORIES

In the neighborhood:

Michigan's wild weather continues-after a frigid New Year, we had another thaw culminating in a couple of days 1/8,1/9 in the 50's with a high of 59 on the 9th. The snow has disappeared again. As we did last year, we put Mr. Tree out near the Diner as a waiting area and potential buffet for treats.

We've had some sun on and off. Mr. Finch having a bite:

One evening as we were closing up for the night, I witnessed an unusual event. We still had 4-5" of snow on the ground and the independent twin came down the berm to the Diner. Mr. Big Bun was there at the buffet minding his own business. The young doe approached and seeing the rabbit, stopped and stamped her left hoof twice. I'm not acquainted with deer/rabbit relations but I cannot believe the doe felt threatened by the rab. No, this looked like bullying in order to have the joint to herself. Mr. Bun conceded that he was at a severe disadvantage in both size and weight and hopped away. Like everything else on this planet-it's all about a struggle for resources.

1/11-Another cold front swings in with high winds. It began to snow mid-afternoon.

The winds died down and the snow was a light dusting-so delicate that any obstruction would block it leaving green areas under shrubs and trees.

1/11: morning

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Square waves: 

 

These wave patterns are known as square waves or a cross sea when two wave systems coming from different directions intersect at nearly right angles. While the crisscross pattern may look mesmerizing, it signals dangerous conditions below the surface. The collision of these swells creates powerful and unpredictable rip currents that can easily pull swimmers and even small boats out to sea. 

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Interesting films:

An interview of filmmaker John Waters turned up in my YT feed concerning the 1956 film The Girl Can't Help It starring Jayne Mansfield and featuring several seminal rock n' roll stars such as Little Richard, Eddie Cochran, Gene Vincent, Fats Domino and The Platters. The film influenced Waters' 1988 production Hairspray as well as the Beatles. Read more:

 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Girl_Can%27t_Help_It#

Scottish director Bill Forsyth, who brought us Local Hero (1983) and Gregory's girl (1981), wrote and directed the 1987 film Housekeeping. Two sisters in 1950's Idaho, abandoned by their mother and elderly relatives is looked after by an eccentric and unconventional aunt. A very curious film about an oppressive and judgemental society where conformity is demanded.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housekeeping_(film) 

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John Simkins (b. 1951 Napa, CA) artwork:

Pavane in Gold 1989

The Guardian c. 2010

 

Deer Edward 2012

Sri Yantra c. 2012

Polarization 2015

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Somewhere, I came across this: 

The twin scoop cone. I vaguely remember this from my childhood and haven't seen one since. I was unable to find the origin/history of this particular cone.

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Fun vids:

A people person bulldog gets a special portal in a fence next to the sidewalk so she can greet passersbys:

Crazy English adult soapbox derby in London:

The commentary is a hoot. At 15.20-a driver dressed as a carrot atop a sausage in his veganmobile crashes and the announcer says "...he tripped over his sausage." 

English humor at its best.

Liminal Spaces

Nature pics

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 Cat support group meeting:

FUBARland:

Martyr in Minneapolis-Renee Nicole Good, 37 years old, US citizen, award-winning poet, widow, mother of three. 

She was shot 3 times in the face and murdered by ICE agent Jonathan Ross.

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Meanwhile, the Roach in an interview with the NYT concerning Venezuela and continued threats to Greenland, has insisted he doesn’t need to abide by international law and the only constraint keeping his power in check is his own morality: 

He announced a surge (Iraq war speak), sending an additional 2,000 federal agents to Minneapolis. I think this is what has been planned all along (Stephen Miller)-an excuse to send in more troops and hope for a major conflict which gives Roach the chance to declare martial law. The escalates across the country and we teeter towards civil war. 

But then yesterday, he states that he will bomb Iran if they escalate their killings of protesters who are demonstrating for regime change.

Mind blowing hypocrisy which shows how the regime has no foot in reality, existing only in the demented twilight zone of dear leader's head.

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Many younguns observed that many who attended the No Kings rallies were older folks. That's because we already lived through shit like this with Nixon and we recognize it. Today feels like a tipping point, like in 1970 after this happened:

How many more, indeed? 

 

 

WOLF MOON

First full moon of 2026-Wolf Moon

Jupiter appears in the final image, center lower left.

In the neighborhood: 

Late afternoon 1/2:

1/3: Mom and twins make the rounds of the Diners. Curiously, one of the girls seems to be exhibiting that universal teenage behavior: independence. She was over at Johnny's by herself:
 

She was looking back towards the berm. This shot was taken via the garage-side door so I pivoted to look out the picture windows. Sho'nuff:

They moseyed over to John's Diner across the street. I don't know where Ms. Independent went to.

I spotted the other twin noshing on Johnny's cedar which has berries. DHS was keeping an eye on her. I did not see her join her family.

Fun vid: Atomic Chicken. C. Montgomery Burns tried to have this banned. 

 

FUBARland: Venezula. Well, they wanted a war. They wanted the oil. Nevermind how 28 million Venezuelans feel about it. Hegseth must be walking around with a permanent chubby these days. One commentator noted: this action gives a permission structure for China to invade Taiwan; for Russia to continue its war and atrocities in Ukraine; for Israel to continue its atrocities in Gaza. As well as any other thug regime to abuse its citizenry and neighbors. 

One wonders if Venezuela will become the regime's dumping ground for deportees. I can hear them now: Hell, over 8 million people have fled since 2014-there's plenty of room! Plus, it makes things more efficient rather than scatter-shooting all over the globe! Direct one-way flights! And Double-bonus: they speak Spanish down there! 

I would imagine Denmark is readying what scant forces they have to deploy in Greenland.