Marmot | East Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
Urban Nature Series | Marmots are maddening critters. Just ask our poodle, who is tortured by their warning chirps from rocky ridges. “Over here! No! Over here!” I watch our dog dash frantically back and forth, chirp to chitter, and know that could be me — with marmots replaced by (more…)
Robin’s Egg | East Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
Urban Nature Series | Promise comes in small packages. Tiny beings, big ideas, expansive feelings (acceptance, forgiveness) can drop from the sky. As always, I have (more…)
Osprey | East Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
Urban Nature Series | Our local raptors scout prey from atop power poles and fence posts. They’ve found perfect perches in a tree-deficient landscape. Plus, they hunt with nary a peep about civilization’s encroachment or ruined habitat. I wish I could adapt so well. My gym rearranged its (more…)
Grills | Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
A grill master in Spain has received worldwide acclaim for his barbecued baby eels served on a bed of smoked seaweed. Me? I like hot dogs. Either way, food cooked over an open fire seems more gift than gastronomy. The recipe is in the cooking itself, straight from the chef’s (more…)
Window Dressing | Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
Manikins began to marry soon after the Great Emancipation of 2026. We’d place them side-by-side in a display window and, sure enough, in a day or two they’d be holding hands. Li’l Betty, our dummy for kids’ fashions, was asked to be ring bearer at the wedding of two manikins from the local hardware store. They normally dressed in coveralls and wore tool belts, so we thought they were rough-and-tumble guys. But, as you can see in the photo, they both chose lovely gowns for the ceremony to show off their feminine sides. As we’ve learned, it’s hard to tell (more…)
Chimney | Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
Our closest encounter with a spirit-like form is likely the phenomenon of smoke. Ephemeral, intangible, airborne, smoke is evidence of transformation, a wispy connection between the solid and the vaporous. It certainly affects us — cough, cough — but can we affect it? A friend in my youth seriously claimed he had mental control of the mists. I witnessed him once make (more…)
Stream | East Wenatchee, WA | May 2019
A mental exercise to reduce stress asks us to imagine a perfect place, our sanctuary, in vivid detail. We’re directed to conjure a refuge of comforting sensations — such as touch (light breeze), sound (gurgling creek), smell (forest loam) — and then step into the scene to let Nature soothe. Trouble is, I always feel the tug to (more…)
IrwinFoto 