Tag Archives: nature

The Snow Run

Posted on January 20, 2016 by AnnieRie

Ok, admit it. Aren’t you also one of those people who runs out before a storm to make sure you have enough of those “essentials”?

For days like this.

Of course, that was 2010. This storm, now that we have taken to naming them, might be just as bad as those 2010 storms were.

This morning I did run up to Harris Teeter to stock up on staples, in case we have a power outage. All those root veggies from my CSA need to be cooked, besides the carrots and the watermelon radishes.

I looked at yesterday’s first delivery from my CSA and thought, hmmm. I can eat those watermelon radishes raw. And slice up those carrots, even though they really are cooking carrots. I decided I really needed to get the beans and onions that my Tuscan tuna recipe specifies.

I have good Italian olive oil packed tuna. I needed white beans and white onions. Mix it all together, with a few more glugs of olive oil, salt and pepper it, and boom, one really satisfying meal. Particularly since we have bread and cheese from the CSA.

A big loaf of sourdough and three cheeses from my cheese share. I could live on that bread and cheese, and that tuna, and of course, what goes best with bread and cheese? Wine!

Besides all this thinking about food, we are doing all those other snow prep things. Positioning the snow thrower. Filling water containers in case of power outages. Finding batteries and flashlights.

Remembering that I need a little shovel to free the grill in case that’s where we will cook.

Last but not least, tomorrow I will fill up the cars with gasoline, and also make sure the phone is fully charged. Turn up the heat to get it warm inside, and turn down the temperatures for the refrigerator and freezer. Just to be prepared, because that’s usually when nothing happens. It’s when we aren’t ready that we usually get slammed.

And I still don’t get why people buy toilet paper? I get the bread and milk, sort of. But, TP? Really.

Hunkering down and hoping for a foot or less. Still, we are ready for that possibility of two feet of snow.

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Posted in Food, Howard County, Nature, Weather and tagged blizzard, Food, Howard County, nature, weather. Bookmark the permalink.

The Soul of the Night

Posted on January 17, 2016 by AnnieRie

OWLS!

What could be a better greeting to an evening about owls than a visit by Ranger, the resident barred owl at Mt. Pleasant (Howard County Conservancy)?

Maybe it’s the presence of Belle, the resident owl from the Belmont site. Or maybe, it’s the treat of hearing Scott Weidensaul, author of the Peterson Reference Guide to Owls, as he leads a program Thursday night beginning at 7 PM. It’s the first of many incredibly interesting programs planned for 2016.

You can pre-register here for Thursday’s event. The various nature events at the Conservancy have become extremely popular, and you don’t want to miss a rare appearance in this area by Scott.

While you’re at it, you may also want to download the 2016 bookmark to keep track of what is happening the rest of the year.

For me, being a member of this planning staff, and working behind the scenes to get these programs planned, and then to be there to see how successful they are, well, it’s definitely a “labor of love”. Volunteering in such a beautiful setting, and being around people who love doing what they do, does it get any better?

See you Thursday maybe?

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Posted in Birds, Community, Nature, Volunteering and tagged birds, community, howard county conservancy, nature, volunteering. Bookmark the permalink.

Fishing Lessons

Posted on January 7, 2016 by AnnieRie

We have the talon method.

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And we have the beak method.

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Which do you prefer? The parents out there seem to be teaching their juveniles how to fish.

This is in downtown Columbia MD. Wilde Lake. It seems the Triadelphia Eagles have relocated to become the Wilde Lake Eagles. I have heard there were as many as 20 out there. Today, we found 4 or 5.

The juveniles …

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… haven’t developed that white head and white tail.

As for mom or dad …

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… rather obvious, aren’t they?

I took my pictures today with my puny little D90 and a 200 mm lens. There were quite a few avid bird photographers out there.

If I win Powerball, maybe I will get one of those $2000 lenses, to do the up close shots. Still, all in all, it was just amazing to watch the eagles fish.

We hear that they are on Wilde Lake because of work being done out at Triadelphia, where they normally hang out. Eagles aren’t thrilled by all the photographers, walkers and bikers that ring the lake. While they are trying to get a meal.

If you get a chance, pop down. Morning or afternoon. They do like sunny days, though. When they can see the fish more easily.

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Posted in Adventures, Birds, Hobbies, Howard County, Nature and tagged birds, eagles, nature, photography. Bookmark the permalink.

Wildflowers in Winter?

Posted on January 6, 2016 by AnnieRie

It may be cold outside but inside this Saturday you can be transported. To visions of the flowers that bloom naturally, here where we live.

Are you like me, who just waits for that first carpet of blooms, telling us spring is coming?

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Besides buttercups, and dandelions, what do you know about those perennial flowers (and weeds) that mark the changing seasons here in Maryland?

Do you know what these are?

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Would you like to hear more about the flowers you see in your travels, on your hikes, or your commute?

Come to the Howard County Conservancy Mt. Pleasant this Saturday morning at 10 am for one of their free events. A second Saturday “Wonder Walk”, except that in the cold dreary winter, the walks turn into talks.

Jo and Bob Solem, known to many who are active Howard County birders, are also avid recorders of the wildflowers that grace our area. They are presenting some of their finest pictures and talking about the lure of these flowers.

It may be cold and rainy outside Saturday morning but in the Nature Center, you can think about spring.

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Posted in Community, Howard County, Nature and tagged native plants, nature, photography, wildflowers. Bookmark the permalink.

Tidbit Tuesday

Posted on November 17, 2015 by AnnieRie

Here we are heading full speed into the holiday season and there is quite a bit happening.

Like this weekend, the holiday Colonial Celebration over at Belmont. I hear there aren’t many tickets left. Absolutely beautifully decorated, and with good food and libations, it is the only fund raiser that the Howard County Conservancy holds at Belmont to raise funds to support the educational programs held there.

Meanwhile, tonight at Mt. Pleasant, another of the meteor shower events. The Leonids. I will be there setting up and we are crossing our fingers that it isn’t too cloudy. The event is from 10pm-1am.

Here on the home front, I am trying to get ready for Thanksgiving, as one by one, appliances in my kitchen keep having problems. First, the dishwasher only intermittently drains. Even taking it apart and cleaning it out hasn’t solved the problem. Guess it’s time to find a new one.

Add to that, my microwave knob no longer functions. The microwave works, but you can only use the express button and push it enough times to get the number of minutes you need. Since I only use it for potatoes, pop corn and reheating coffee, it’s not a big issue for Thanksgiving, but it is just another place where we see quality is lacking.

Last week our CSA had pop corn in it. I like to pop it in a paper bag for three minutes in the microwave. No need for butter or oil or clean up.

As for the “last straw”, so to speak, our oven door shattered. This is the second one. The top oven did it a few years back. The lower one, late last month when I put it into cleaning mode.

Thankfully, it was fully contained in between the outer shields. I suppose I could still use it for a while as it shattered at the beginning of a two hour cleaning cycle, and I didn’t know it until it finished and unlocked. I had heard a “pop” and couldn’t figure out where it originated, until I opened the door.

So much for having a fancier oven. It seems bad glass is bad glass so matter who the manufacturer is. I guess this means I get to hand clean the ovens from now on. Or, I keep having to replace the glass. Annoying. Particularly as we get into my busy baking season.

Cookie baking time is fast approaching.

Tomorrow, if I get a chance to sit down, I will be writing about Thanksgiving plans, including getting the turkey and the wine.

Get outside tonight, and look for meteors.

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Posted in Adventures, Community, Day Trips, Food, Hobbies, Howard County and tagged community, day trips, Food, holidays, Howard County, howard county conservancy, nature, weather. Bookmark the permalink.

Standing Room Only

Posted on November 14, 2015 by AnnieRie

I love it when the free programs out at the Conservancy far exceed our expectations. Like today.

Fifty two people. Ten of them little ones. For Frank Marsden’s talk and walk about finding wildlife in winter.

Frank told us everything we always wanted to know about scat, but were afraid to ask. Like determining the diet from the color, texture and “ingredients” found. Like how grey fox and red fox are different. How we never see grey fox as they sleep in trees.

We went out for a ninety minute hike, looking for signs of wildlife. We did find deer tracks.

We also found out that our former ground hog habitat, a large number of interconnected holes up in the meadow, have been abandoned by the ground hogs, and are now inhabited by fox. How do we know that? The smell of fox urine, a sure sign that fox have moved in and are marking their territory.

We had a lovely day out there, even if it was a bit windy.

The meadows are lovely this time of year, and by taking a leisurely hike, you can find many signs of the wildlife living here. Take a hike some day. There are four miles of marked trails, and with no leaves on the trees, you can see far across the ridges to neighboring towns.

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Posted in Day Trips, Nature, Volunteering and tagged day trips, fall foliage, howard county conservancy, nature, photography, volunteering. Bookmark the permalink.

Nighttime Hiking

Posted on October 27, 2015 by AnnieRie

What are you doing this Friday night? How about hiking under an almost full moon, with flashlights?

Out at my favorite volunteer location, where I spend way too much time having fun (yes, tomorrow I get to chase first graders all over the property on a field trip about owls), this Friday at 7 PM, they are having a flashlight night hike for anyone interested in what is out there in the dark. As an aside, how is that for an epic run on sentence?

What can we see in the dark? What can we hear? If you really want to have a great beginning to your Halloween weekend, go to the web site and guarantee a place. Howard County Conservancy. Mt. Pleasant. Woodstock. If you haven’t been there, you are really missing something. Worth the time to check it out. Your family will love you for it.

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Posted in Howard County, Nature, Volunteering, Weather, West HoCo and tagged Howard County, howard county conservancy, local businesses, nature, West HoCo. Bookmark the permalink.

Fall Fest is On!

Posted on October 3, 2015 by AnnieRie

Tired of being indoors from the rain? Want to get out and have a fun Sunday at the Howard County Conservancy? The festival tomorrow the 4th of October is still going to take place. Minus a few things, like the hay rides. Slippery, wet trails where they usually ride will make it impossible to hold the rides without creating ruts, which encourage erosion.

Besides that change, the rest will still take place. Pumpkin painting. Crafts and storytelling.

You can visit the animals, including the alpacas from Pearl Moon.

The square dancers will be inside the Gudelsky Center. The historic farmhouse will be open for tours.

The blacksmiths will be operating. So will the chair caners, the woodturners, the basketweavers, and more.

The cost. Just $10 a car. Bring neighbors, relatives and friends. The more the merrier. Time is 11am-3pm. Food trucks will be there with waffles, BBQ, and other goodies.

See you there?

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Posted in Community, Day Trips, Farms, Howard County, Nature, West HoCo and tagged community, farms, howard county conservancy, nature, weather. Bookmark the permalink.

Batten Down the Hatches

Posted on October 1, 2015 by AnnieRie

Do we or don’t we? The forecast from the hurricane center is typical at this time. No one knows how fast or what path the storm will take. Will it bypass us or will we get really bad weather?

This scenario has happened quite a few times in the past few years. It seems to be more the norm the past five years, than in the previous decades we have lived here.

We also get bombarded with social media. Data here. Data there. Data everywhere. Sometimes much more than we really need or want.

Already events have been canceled. The Highland Days. Rescheduled to Halloween. Football games changing times. We are victims of TMI. Not all of it based on facts. Just on speculation.

Let’s face it. Mother Nature can’t be tamed. We can’t predict what will happen. We can take precautions. Get ready. Download the new MD Emergency Management APP. Sign up for local alerts.

Whatever we do, it won’t change the weather. But being prepared is a good thing. Even when the predictions aren’t correct. At least we weren’t caught unaware.

Here’s hoping we don’t have floods. Or power outages. Or wind damages.

Maybe if we keep having these warnings, people will learn how to be prepared. And they will have what it takes to stay safe.

Me, I’ll just keep listening. And getting those basic supplies in place. Like water. Batteries. And non perishables.

I still haven’t figured out why people run out and buy toilet paper. Maybe because there aren’t any more Sears catalogs to use in an emergency?

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Posted in Commentary, Weather and tagged commentary, Howard County, hurricane, nature, weather. Bookmark the permalink.

Twilight Hiking for the Family

Posted on September 23, 2015 by AnnieRie

Out on the Howard County Conservancy trails at Mt. Pleasant. Friday night, 5-7 pm.

This is the description from the web site.

“Walk through the meadow and along the stream to the woodland campfire ring. Listen to the birds singing at dusk. Gather around the crackling fire and hear legend-stories about the Equinox, sing old-time songs, roast marshmallows, and enjoy s’mores. Hike back in time to watch the sun set over horizon –exactly due west – and hear other interesting astronomical facts about the Fall Equinox.”

You can look for milkweed.