california life

Let’s Get Lost!

January 15, 2024 — 2 Comments

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Joshua Tree National Park

Is it safe to swim in the ocean this week?

Sure, the sharks are all busy filming with Discovery.

Interesting Facts: The flatland between these hills is sparsely forested with Joshua trees. Together with the boulder piles and Skull Rock, the trees make the landscape otherworldly. Temperatures are most comfortable in the spring and fall, with an average high/low of 85 and 50 °F (29 and 10 °C), respectively. Winter brings cooler days, around 60 °F (16 °C), and freezing nights. Snows occur occasionally at higher elevations. Summers are hot, over 100 °F (38 °C) during the day and not cooling much below 75 °F (24 °C) until the early hours of the morning. ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Tree_National_Park )

There Are Far Better Things Ahead Than The Ones We Leave Behind.

January 14, 2024 — 8 Comments

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Joshua Tree National Park

How are mountains able to see?

They peak!

Interesting Facts: The higher and cooler Mojave Desert is the special habitat of Yucca brevifolia, the Joshua tree for which the park is named. It occurs in patterns from dense forests to distantly spaced specimens. In addition to Joshua tree forests, the western part of the park includes some of the most interesting geologic displays found in California’s deserts. The dominant geologic features of this landscape are hills of bare rock, usually broken up into loose boulders. These hills are popular among rock climbing and scrambling enthusiasts.  ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joshua_Tree_National_Park )

 

Just Sit And Enjoy The View!

January 25, 2021 — 10 Comments

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Castello di Amorosa, Calistoga, CA 

Where does spaghetti go to dance?

The Meatball.

Interesting Fact: Castello di Amorosa is a castle and a winery located near Calistoga, California. First opening its doors to the public in April 2007, the castle is the project of 4th generation vintner, Dario Sattui, who also owns and operates the V. Sattui Winery named after his great-grandfather, Vittorio Sattui, who originally established a winery in San Francisco in 1885 after emigrating from Italy to California. ( Castello di Amorosa – Wikipedia )

Happy New Year! Here’s To Having A Fresh Start At Binge Eating, Boozing, And Slacking Off!

January 1, 2021 — 10 Comments

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What Does it Mean If You Were Born In September?

That your parents started the new year with a BANG!

Interesting Fact: During the Middle Ages in Western Europe, while the Julian calendar was still in use, authorities moved New Year’s Day, depending upon locale, to one of several other days, including March 1, March 25, Easter, September 1, and December 25. Beginning in 1582, the adoptions of the Gregorian calendar has meant that many national or local dates in the Western World and beyond have changed to using one fixed date for New Year’s Day, January 1. ( New Year – Wikipedia )

Surround Yourself With People Who Get You.

July 31, 2020 — 6 Comments

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Elegant Tern

What did one eyeball say to the other eyeball?

Between you and me something smells.

Interesting Fact: The Elegant Tern was first found nesting in the United States in 1959 in San Diego Bay, California. Since the 1980s, several more colonies have been established in California. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Elegant_Tern/lifehistory )

 

 

 

 

Life Is Like A Cactus, Full Of Pricks, But Also Very Beautiful.

February 27, 2020 — 2 Comments

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Loggerhead Shrike

What is a soldiers least favorite month of the year?

March

Interesting Fact: Loggerhead Shrikes impale noxious prey such as monarch butterflies and eastern narrow-mouthed toads—then wait for up to three days to eat them, which allows time for the poisons to break down. These shrikes also eat the heads and abdomens of toxic lubber grasshoppers, while discarding the insect’s poisonous thorax. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Loggerhead_Shrike )

 

 

I’m So Tired All The Time… I’ve Got Too Many Feeders On My Plate.

January 27, 2020 — 14 Comments

annas-hummingbird

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Anna’s Hummingbird

Why did the computer break up with the internet?

There was no “Connection”.

Interesting Fact:  The dive display of the Anna’s Hummingbird lasts about 12 seconds, and the male may fly to a height of 40 m (131 feet) during the display. He starts by hovering two to four meters (6-13 feet) in front of the display object (hummingbird or person), and then climbs in a wavering fashion straight up. He plummets in a near-vertical dive from the top of the climb and ends with an explosive squeak within half a meter of the display object. He then makes a circular arc back to the point where he began. On sunny days the dives are oriented so that the sun is reflected from the iridescent throat and crown directly at the object of the dive. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Annas_Hummingbird/lifehistory )

I Used To Think I Was Indecisive, But Now I’m Not Too Sure.

January 12, 2020 — 4 Comments

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Loggerhead Shrike

At a local coffee bar, a young woman was expounding on her idea of the perfect mate to some of her friends. “The man I marry must be a shining light amongst company. He must be musical. Tell jokes. Sing. And stay home at night!” An old granny overheard and spoke up, “Honey, if that’s all you want, get a TV!”

Interesting Fact: The upper cutting edge (tomium) of the Loggerhead Shrike’s hooked bill features a pair of built-in pointy projections, aptly named “tomial teeth.” Like a falcon, the shrike tackles vertebrate prey with a precise attack to the nape, probably using these tomial “teeth” to paralyze the animal with a jab to the spinal cord. ( https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Loggerhead_Shrike )