Only Schroedinger Knows

Day 139: What happens when you come to the end of infinity? Does it loop back on itself as the name suggests, to devour its own tail like the Worm Ouroboros? Does it go 'round an unseen dimensional bend to emerge in an alternate universe? Cats know, and I suspect that's why Schroedinger put one in a box. He hated cats because they knew something his poorly developed human mind couldn't grasp. He put the cat in the box and left us to wonder whether it was dead or alive, or perhaps both simultaneously, but regardless of its condition, the cat knew something Schroedinger didn't know, and it had known it all along. That's why Schroedinger put it in the box. Schroedinger hated cats. He hated cats because they understood dimensional physics better than he could ever hope to do. Every time Schroedinger saw a cat staring off into infinity, he felt threatened and diminished in his hypothetical human superiority. He knew that cat was seeing something he couldn't see, a new dimension. Perhaps it was too large for him to perceive, or perhaps too small. In either case, Schroedinger's eye failed him and so did his mind. That's why Schroedinger hated cats. That's why he put one in a box and tormented us with its unanswerable question.

Glass Forest

Day 138: When improvements were made to the Administration Building at Longmire (Mount Rainier National Park), one of the features added was a thick glass door mounted approximately six feet inside the heavy timber rear entry. I believe it functions largely for weatherization, providing a certain degree of insulation against the cold drafts which always used to sneak through every available chink in the log-cabin construction. In any event, it is a work of art, the glass etched with a forest scene, a small section of which is shown here, backlit by the overhead lights in the narrow hallway. In my fancy, a flock of crows flies above the foreground trees.

Pine Siskin, Carduelis Pinus

Day 137 (bonus edition): Sometimes in wildlife and/or bird photography, you get lucky. So it was today as I was standing on the back porch taking pictures of the Pine Siskins who returned a few days ago with the Evening Grosbeaks.

Until last summer, these small birds had been absent from my feeders for a number of years. Articles in birding magazines and National Wildlife indicated that the species was in decline overall. When they reappeared here, they came in droves and when their season ended, I wondered if I'd ever see them again. I need not have worried. Perhaps encouraged by memories of an endless supply of nyger seed, they're back in force.

As for that lucky shot I spoke of earlier, I kept hoping the bird in the foreground would turn to face me without shifting position so that the patterning on her wings would be evident. The feeder was swinging slightly, knocked about by other birds landing or leaving. I didn't think I'd get a good, crisp capture, not with so many factors at work. My little Siskin friend seemed to realize I wanted her to pose and turned her head to meet the lens' big round eye. Click! Extra nyger for you, sweetie!

Field Abstract

Day 137: The light was long and the shadows deep where they filled small hollows in the snow-covered pasture. The stubble, left from a weed-control mowing performed last autumn, was rimed with ice crystals. The scene was entrancing, with the sun's rays shattering as they illuminated the frozen shafts from behind. I brought several images back to the computer, pleased with the effects of texture and light, and then I thought, "I wonder what this would look like as a negative?" In the next moment, I discovered an alien world with a complex geography of towers and hills with trees growing upon their summits, an alternate reality paralleling that of a stubblefield in the snow.

Handsome In Yellow

Day 136: A male Evening Grosbeak (Coccothraustes vespertinus) could be said to look like an American Goldfinch male on steroids. Measuring in at approximately seven inches from beak to tail, these showy birds are about the size of a Starling. Their bold white wing patches and brilliant yellow "eyebrows" are distinctive even at a distance. In both males and females, the beak turns chartreuse green in mating season. Their appetites are legendary. Although their natural diet is one of evergreen seeds, they are passionate about black-oil sunflower seed when it is placed in feeders, and they have my yard staked out as a consistent source.

Bald Is Beautiful

Day 135: Bald Eagles are far from uncommon in western Washington, but we seem to be experiencing a strong influx of them here these last few weeks. They appear fairly consistently along the Mashell River in Eatonville where this photo was taken, but I have been hearing them reported in downtown Graham and South Hill as well as other relatively urban locations. Today there were two along the Mashell, roosting together in the same tree, too far apart to capture in the same shot. They were playing peek-a-boo with me between branches as the wind blew and light snow spit down. It was a chilly but rewarding day for watching Baldies.

Puyallup River Gold

Day 134: I believe this lichen is a member of the family of Xanthoria. The Latin name derives from a word meaning "yellow" and it's obvious why it applies here. Looking sulphurous and perhaps fancifully radioactive, it is arguably one of the most distinctive colors you'll find in Pacific Northwest forests. Shown here along the Puyallup River trail, the wood on which it is growing was brought down by flood waters only a few years ago. With the canopy open and light admitted, the lichen is burgeoning.