Cassin's

Thursday at noon (a very cold noon, I add) I headed to my car and drove to DFW Airport. I flew to LAX, had an unduly long wait in line at Avis rent-a-car, and then struggled down the 105 Freeway to Orange County. I remember when the 105 Freeway was brand new, and rarely used. The 105 Freeway is heavily used now.

I had a 10th story hotel room. This morning it was fun to watch house finches and kingbirds atop the palm trees. I could not get a good picture of them, though--it was a bit far.

I finished my business around 2:30 p.m today. My flight was at 5:30 p.m. I stopped by Fairview Park in Costa Mesa, which is a wonderful place for seeing birds. I watched this kingbird:



Here in Texas I would call this a "western kingbird", but in California, as here in Texas, they are not Winter birds, so I suspect instead that this is "Cassin's kingbird". I am not sure. I am sure it was fun to see all the birds--kestrels, a northern harrier, a huge-looking white-crowned sparrow, and some curious ducks. I also met a nice young woman and her dog Kona, who was one of those husky-like brown breeds. Kona was a curious but shy puppy--very cute. The young woman was taking pictures of a phoebe (I think eastern, but it may be black--it looked more like chocolate brown) when I walked up. I think she liked when I explained how it got its name Phoebe. Kona the dog seemed like a good dog.

I flew home tonight on an uncrowded plane. I listened to music by Entertainment for the Braindead, Cagey House, and Josh Woodward. On the drive from the airport, I listened to a podcast about hardware. When I arrived home, my wife and Beatrice bid me welcome. It's good to be home.

Watters and wattage

I continued with my continuing legal education today. I listened to the rest of one seminar about not abusing substances (apparently, lawyers need an extra reminder) and part of another about respecting people of diverse cultures.

I worked on a lot of family-related paperwork, getting a fair bit done, but wanting to do a fair bit more.
I did get some nice compact fluorescent bulbs overhead, which is a not only a greener choice, but also will solve the common problem of incandescent burn-out. Unlike Mr. Neil Young, I do not believe that it is better for bulbs to burn out than to fade away.

I took a 90 minute walk on the Watters Trail. I can leave my house, walk a few blocks in my neighborhood, cross a main thoroughfare, walk into another neighborhood, and find a neat creek-side sidewalk trail.
I saw lots of yellow-rumped warblers, two downy woodpeckers (above), two red-bellied woodpeckers, a couple of mockingbirds, a turkey vulture, two blue jays and something hip and black and white that I could not identify.

We ate Thai tonight at Silver Thai. I really enjoyed my seafood soup. I am focused on enjoying my weekend while getting lots of practical chores done.