Category: Uncategorized
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Killdeer | Sunland, WA | February 2020 Resting Birds #1 |The list of birds I know on sight stretches to about, um, nine. Crows, robins, pigeons, hawks, eagles, geese, pelicans, flamingoes, ostriches, and we’re done. I’m always incredulous when dedicated birdwatchers tell me they traveled to Arizona and spotted 143 different species. Since nobody can…
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Forest | Republic, WA | August 2019 One indicator of a quality life is being surrounded by trees too numerous to count. A great sweep of forest soothes like an ocean view but with more warp and woof — a textured weave of wonder. One recent evening on Sherman Pass (our state’s highest), I overheard…
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Pelican | West Richland, WA | June 2019 Strangers often rouse suspicion. Where do they come from? What do they want? A fisherman near Horn Rapids on the Yakima River spit chew and jutted his chin at the flock of white pelicans perched midstream. “What the hell are they doing here?” he asked. “They eat…
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3 Trees | Twisp, WA | 2018 Summer 2018 will be remembered in North Central Washington as a season lost in smoke. An arc of lightning-caused wildfires shrouded many areas — including Twisp, Mazama, Omak, Wenatchee and other towns — under a smothering blanket of … >cough< … airborne particulates. Many residents sought a more
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At the Rodeo | Omak. WA | 2017 Although not a diehard bull-and-bronc fan, I attended five rodeos in the last 14 months and, I must say, rode them out (safely in the grandstands) like a pro. I even began to recognize some of the cowboys — Cody, Dusty, Shane, Jake, Chase, Dakota — who…
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Night Shed | Wenatchee, WA | 2014 Night casts familiar objects in new light. I often see the true shape of a tree, building or mountain only after darkness falls and shadows rise. Likewise, night can
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Explorers | Chelan , WA | 2013 They were there when I arrived at the library and, an hour later, had hardly moved. In rugged coats and beat-up boots, they sat in winter light sifting through what looked like books and maps — two stationary explorers (I imagined) prepping for an upcoming adventure. A reasonable…
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Wedge of Wheat | Stratford, WA |2013 Even with the truck running, I could hear the wheat field’s whispered warning: Storm coming. First winds of a dark front, pushing in from Canada, caressed the wheat heads in a rolling wave. Stalk scraping against stalk sounded like one long continual “shush” — the crop itself telling…
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Structure | Waterville, WA | 2012 Central Washington’s high plateau is mostly defined by horizon — below the line is earth, above the line is sky — so the region’s few vertical structures are welcome geometric relief. My favorites are grain elevators, which rise to wedge their angles between clouds and seemingly anchor them in…
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Apple | East Wenatchee, WA | 2012 A grocery produce section never does the apple justice. Heaped in bins and poorly lighted, the fruit’s fullness never emerges. A few years ago at an agricultural trade show, one prime example of a new variety — showcased under spotlights — mesmerized me with its rich depth of…
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