Lilac Festival

We have been wanting Sandy to come to Rochester for the Lilac Festival for some time. This year, we got our wish. Sandy took time out of her busy retirement schedule to come and visit us for the weekend. We set out to the Lilac Festival early to beat the crowds, but on a cold day, the crowds were small. We loved looking at all the flowers with Sandy, and had fun planning our own gardens. We had a bit of fun letterboxing too! We had to be real sneaky finding the boxes that spelled out LILAC, as they were hidden in crafty places along the paths. The lilacs were gorgeous, but the smell was magnificent! Thanks Sandy, for coming out and making this our most memorable Lilac Festival yet!

Wine and Herbs

Laura and I have made this an annual event, the Wine and Herb Fest on the shores of Cayuga Lake in the Finger Lakes. This year, we had Eric and Julie along, and we had a blast! We got to all 16 wineries in a day! Yeah, I didn't drink very much, so I could drive, just a sip here and there. But not only to you get the wine, but you get an herb at every winery, and get to tastes foods made with the herbs. Oh yeah, and you get the recipe for the food. How can you beat this! You can't, that's why we have gone for the last four years! It was a little drizzly, but we had a lot of fun, and congrats to Eric and Julie, who are engaged to be married! Way to go guys!

Fun with Friends

In April we had a lot of fun with our good friends Lauren and Sarah at the Rochester Museum and Science Center! We checked out a ton of exhibits, including the new Mastodon above. This is a great museum, and I got to see parts I hadn't seen before (and I work there sometimes!) We had a great time, and we loved spending time with Sarah and Lauren, they are such smart girls. Well, I can't really think of a better way to spend an afternoon. Till next time!

Easter Tradition

Laura and I have this Easter tradition. It doesn't involve eggs, or funny hats, or a big ham on the table. It's about renewal. Its taking the time to go out into one of our favorite destinations, the outdoors. Spring is beginning, and the plants and animals are responding. Its a time of beginnings. So we take the chance to find a new place to explore, a new place to hike. We feel that new sense of wonderment, as we witness nature's rebirth.

This year we went to Ganondagan, a historic place near Victor, NY. The Seneca people lived here, in a village known as the "White Village", or the "Town of Peace". We explored the trails through the woods, and read the many interpretive signs here telling about the people and the plants that live here. We searched for skunk cabbage and bloodroot. We listened to the songs of the birds, and we watched the cascading water in the brook. It is easy to see why the Seneca settled this place, it was very magical.


After our hike we stopped for some ice cream, then off to Durand Eastman Park on Lake Ontario. We had been here before, but we had several letterboxes to find here that we had never got around to finding. We had a lot of fun finding these, though we did make a few wrong turns along the way. But the park was full of people, and we enjoyed the warm weather, and the dramatic topography. We had a full day, and slept well that night, dreaming of the next time we could take this time and forget about our daily grinds and enjoy our other home.

Here Comes Peter Cottontail...

Look who visited Laura this Easter, it was Peter Cottaintail, Mr. Easter Bunny! OK, so I hate to break it to everyone, the Easter Bunny doesn't exist. Oh, how that devastated me when I was a kid, even worse then realizing there was no Santa. I remember the day my mother told me. I was pretty amazed. I was always kind of clueless. Well, maybe to ease my childhood pain, or maybe to just live out my mascot fantasies, I volunteered to be the Big Rabbit this year at the Univerity's alumni breakfast. Yup, did the whole thing, high fived the kids, let them sit on my lap, posed for pictures, clowned around. I think I did o.k. for my first time as a furry rabbit. I think I must have had training as duckweed. Anyway, it was a fun time, and got a free lunch and some baseball tickets out of it, but I think the photos are the real payoff.

Beard Deconstruction

I grow a full beard in the winter, and shave it all off in the sping. Here's what happens in between.

First we have the full chop and full goatee look.




Next we have the fu-man-choo!







Don't forget that french waiter goatee!








And last, but not least, the flavor savor!

Migration Sensation

Migration Sensation is an event held in Shreve, Ohio during the end of March to celebrate and educate the return of many migrating birds. Sandy and Dick have been inviting me for a few years to come, and it never worked out. I was very happy that this year it did! We got up early (for some) and went to the Shreve Elementary School to register and collect a map to the various locations for birding in the area. We started at Wright Marsh, a complex of man made berms that create wetland areas for various bird species. We saw a wide variety of red winged blackbirds, sparrows, and a few geese. After that, we went to Shreve Lake and were very excited to see a Common Loon. Well, this isn't so "common" in Ohio, and it one of the first I've seen outside of the Adirondacks. We then moved on to see the Eagles. This is always a treat to see, and very exciting to see them on the nest. We also got a great view of a Belted Kingfisher. We then headed back into Shreve for a great lunch at Des Essenhaus. After lunch we went back to the elementary school and checked out the vendors area, and watched two great lectures on Ohio's Woodpeckers, and on the Barn Owl.
I was very amazed all day long to see a large Amish population into birding. These young boys would walk by me with thousand dollar scopes and tripods! It was very cool to see. We also visited with a old member of the Laura's band down in the swamp, as she led children in scooping for aquatic life. Then we picked up Brian, and headed back out to see the Eagles, and its a good thing we did. We not only got to see the two eagles we had seen in the morning, but also saw an immature eagle circling about as well. The whole day was a treat, and though I didn't add any birds to my life list, it was a very educational day, and we got to see some very special birds! I recommend this event, and hope I can make it again next year. Remember to bundle up though!

A2 Brute?

What a fun visit to see all our old friends in Ann Arbor. Laura and I lived in Ann Arbor for five years or so, and we made the greatest friends. Luckily, many are still there so we can see so many with a quick weekend visit.

We began the weekend with Tawny and Mike, staying at their condo, and visiting there two cats, and dog Karma. I started the weekend off right, and let the cats out of the house accidentally, and I can tell you that herding cats is just as hard as it sounds. We had dinner at our favorite Thai restaurant with Amanda, Dave, Mike, Tawny, Dana, Florian, and Lilly. Mmmmm, tofu.

On Saturday we visited Darien and Kim. We had a nice lunch, and then went on an afternoon letterboxing excursion around Ann Arbor, finding places I never knew were there. That night, we had a big party at the Naure House with all the old Leslie Science Center crowd...Amanda, Cheryl, Rita, Amiee, and friends. We got to see Allison too, and had a great time chatting and playing games. Mmmm Cottage Inn Pizza.

Did I mention we tried to see the annual spring salamander mating extravaganza. Yeah, "tried" is the key word here, it was warm enough, but not wet enough in my opinion. Maybe next year! Thanks to everyone for taking time to see us, we really enjoyed catching up with everyone, and hope you can come and visit us sometime, we always have room.

Do You Copy?

Ice on the Bay

It was an ice fishing day on Braddock Bay! Brian, Tony, and I arrived at 7:30, when Dom told us to get there. Dom arrived at 8:30. He said he had to get some coffee. Well, we got started anyway, except Dom had the bait. This is a normal morning of ice fishing for us. Well, got a few hits on the tip ups early in the day, but as the day wore on, we had very few flags. That is with fish on the end of them.

The wind was constant, with gusts in the 25 mph range, it kept setting off alot of flags. The sun was bright, and the skies were clear, but the wind was biting. The bay was filled with other guys, most who bugged out a little after noon, probably due to the light bite and the hard wind. We stuck it out until five. All in all we kept the fish pictured, not winning any trophies here. However, the day was a ton of fun giving Brian and Tony their first taste of ice fishing, and joking around as only good friends do.