496 (oops, 498 - I just finished reading the other comments and see that I was late to the party). :) Happy birthday and successful mitral valve upgrade to you!
What a pleasure it is to find this in my inbox for reading over tea while listening to birds outside aware of the all-too-early sunrise. Thanks from 496.
497. sometimes i forget to read you and then when i remember to open substack like i did this morning and can smile and be out of my everyday problematic life for a few minutes, i feel rescued. thank you! (80 and you're in good company: Sir Paul, and Brian Wilson. and of course Bob Dylan, but he's 81 now.)
Yes, the blend of nature with high tech can be so enriching! I'm using the free bird ID app developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology to identify an array of birds. I hear a bird calling, whip out my iPhone, open the app, and voilá, it can record the birdsong and tell me what it most likely is. This week I finally identified, by birdsong and eyewitness, a Brown Thrasher-- what a triumph! I've been hearing this bird for twenty years and had no idea. And two days ago, at 7:00 AM, I spied three adolescent raccoons busily rummaging under the bird feeder, feeding on the ample spilled seed. I talked to them through the window, and they ignored me... So I went outside and slowly crept into view. They quickly climbed up the tree a little ways, and peeked at me, but after a minute, they each descended and resumed eating, ignoring my presence only ten feet away. I made a slew of short videos with my phone, and gleefully texted the best ones to my close friends and family. And yes, don't worry, I know about the dangers of rabies carried by raccoons. But twenty-five years ago I had the satisfaction of raising a baby raccoon and returning it to the wild as an adult, and I find raccoons to be delightfully intelligent and personable.
The Cornell Lab also has several "bird nest cams" set up, which my husband, father-in-law, and I all enjoy watching on the big computer monitor that my hubby set up in the kitchen. There's a baby Royal Albatross, a kestrel family, ospreys in Hellsgate, Montana (I LOVE the name of that place, as well as the frequent LONG trains rolling by in the distance behind the nest), hummingbirds in Texas, fruit feeding birds of various sorts in Panama (bonus critters include occasional nighttime raids on the feeder table by the super cute woolly opossum and the super weirdly named "Jesus Christ lizard," aka the "common basilisk," so named because he can run ACROSS water!), and lots more. Unfortunately, something broke on the condor cam, and Cornell haven't been able to fix it yet, but they've posted highlights from when the camera was still functional - baby condors are SO amazingly tiny when compared to their parents!
My fil can't get outdoors much anymore, so my tech-wise hubby has critter cams set up all around the house, along with traditional feeder setups on the deck, so his father can experience some of the joys of the great outdoors closer to home. We were pleased to discover that two groups of baby wild turkeys hatched out last week and were chasing their mothers around the back yard and into the pasture - my fil spent several hours watching them from the windows. The first batch of baby bluebirds (teenagers, actually, at this point, I suppose) are practicing on the ancestral bluebird practice site on our deck, flying from the roof to the railing and back up again over and over, occasionally stopping to pester their poor, beleaguered parents for food. There is a flock of goldfinches swooping and swirling above the pasture in their never ending search for seeds. A pair of phoebes set up housekeeping on a beam above the deck and we are looking forward to meeting their offspring soon. Late spring (now early summer!) in New England is good this year.
TWA has been a mainstay of my morning ritual for decades. Love GK & Friends. PHC was all
the entertainment needed on a Saturday night. Bless you for the giant warmth you send out into the world. Into the 90's sounds just right---and since I'm only 9 years behind you, I'll cherish the company.
Inappropriate, maybe even juvenile, but funny. I have four brothers, so I'm used to inappropriate and juvenile. To be honest, I didn't even get it until I saw your comment (I tend to be slow on the uptake with jokes, especially puns, but I appreciate them once I figure them out - or some kind soul explains them). Maybe you can just ignore whatever bugs you and enjoy the rest...?
"Inappropriate." The word is so laden. He's a humorist, for God's sake, who also just wrote about being cancelled. It was gentle humor in a gentle piece of writing. I'm taking a slow, deep breath right now, and exhaling gently.
It is a wee pun and funny. Garrison is a humorist; and the joke is totally relevant to the context of the article about aging. Some people take everything so seriously. Lighten up Jane.
My father suffered from mitral valve prolapse (misdiagnosed for years as a heart murmur) and had the valve replaced at age 80....lived to be 89 and would have gone on longer had he not fallen and broken his hip! Walk carefully and carry a big stick and you'll be fine.
I loved this piece and reminds me of having lunch or dinner with my grandkids who are also addicted to the mobile device . But it’s ok the future is here and I’m able to enjoy sharing our presence with the grandkids and listen to what’s important to them through their friends in Ireland , London and the other side of this country . Garrison has a way to simply put all that feel in his writing and I appreciate that and often laugh out loud.
495
496 (oops, 498 - I just finished reading the other comments and see that I was late to the party). :) Happy birthday and successful mitral valve upgrade to you!
I enjoy all your columns
You are a lucky man, have a happy future.
What a pleasure it is to find this in my inbox for reading over tea while listening to birds outside aware of the all-too-early sunrise. Thanks from 496.
497. sometimes i forget to read you and then when i remember to open substack like i did this morning and can smile and be out of my everyday problematic life for a few minutes, i feel rescued. thank you! (80 and you're in good company: Sir Paul, and Brian Wilson. and of course Bob Dylan, but he's 81 now.)
Yes, the blend of nature with high tech can be so enriching! I'm using the free bird ID app developed by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology to identify an array of birds. I hear a bird calling, whip out my iPhone, open the app, and voilá, it can record the birdsong and tell me what it most likely is. This week I finally identified, by birdsong and eyewitness, a Brown Thrasher-- what a triumph! I've been hearing this bird for twenty years and had no idea. And two days ago, at 7:00 AM, I spied three adolescent raccoons busily rummaging under the bird feeder, feeding on the ample spilled seed. I talked to them through the window, and they ignored me... So I went outside and slowly crept into view. They quickly climbed up the tree a little ways, and peeked at me, but after a minute, they each descended and resumed eating, ignoring my presence only ten feet away. I made a slew of short videos with my phone, and gleefully texted the best ones to my close friends and family. And yes, don't worry, I know about the dangers of rabies carried by raccoons. But twenty-five years ago I had the satisfaction of raising a baby raccoon and returning it to the wild as an adult, and I find raccoons to be delightfully intelligent and personable.
Just yesterday I watched three baby raccoons peering at me from a few feet away, lined up adorably on our stone wall. Summer!
The Cornell Lab also has several "bird nest cams" set up, which my husband, father-in-law, and I all enjoy watching on the big computer monitor that my hubby set up in the kitchen. There's a baby Royal Albatross, a kestrel family, ospreys in Hellsgate, Montana (I LOVE the name of that place, as well as the frequent LONG trains rolling by in the distance behind the nest), hummingbirds in Texas, fruit feeding birds of various sorts in Panama (bonus critters include occasional nighttime raids on the feeder table by the super cute woolly opossum and the super weirdly named "Jesus Christ lizard," aka the "common basilisk," so named because he can run ACROSS water!), and lots more. Unfortunately, something broke on the condor cam, and Cornell haven't been able to fix it yet, but they've posted highlights from when the camera was still functional - baby condors are SO amazingly tiny when compared to their parents!
My fil can't get outdoors much anymore, so my tech-wise hubby has critter cams set up all around the house, along with traditional feeder setups on the deck, so his father can experience some of the joys of the great outdoors closer to home. We were pleased to discover that two groups of baby wild turkeys hatched out last week and were chasing their mothers around the back yard and into the pasture - my fil spent several hours watching them from the windows. The first batch of baby bluebirds (teenagers, actually, at this point, I suppose) are practicing on the ancestral bluebird practice site on our deck, flying from the roof to the railing and back up again over and over, occasionally stopping to pester their poor, beleaguered parents for food. There is a flock of goldfinches swooping and swirling above the pasture in their never ending search for seeds. A pair of phoebes set up housekeeping on a beam above the deck and we are looking forward to meeting their offspring soon. Late spring (now early summer!) in New England is good this year.
I am a couple months older than you and share many of the same experiences. Good luck on the valve job.
TWA has been a mainstay of my morning ritual for decades. Love GK & Friends. PHC was all
the entertainment needed on a Saturday night. Bless you for the giant warmth you send out into the world. Into the 90's sounds just right---and since I'm only 9 years behind you, I'll cherish the company.
a wonderful way to view the present- and future, and start a beautiful Summer morning. Thank you.JK
The last comment “super sex” is not relevant or appropriate
But he's correct that soup is better...
Yes but the comment was inappropriate
Inappropriate, maybe even juvenile, but funny. I have four brothers, so I'm used to inappropriate and juvenile. To be honest, I didn't even get it until I saw your comment (I tend to be slow on the uptake with jokes, especially puns, but I appreciate them once I figure them out - or some kind soul explains them). Maybe you can just ignore whatever bugs you and enjoy the rest...?
yes!
"Inappropriate." The word is so laden. He's a humorist, for God's sake, who also just wrote about being cancelled. It was gentle humor in a gentle piece of writing. I'm taking a slow, deep breath right now, and exhaling gently.
It is a wee pun and funny. Garrison is a humorist; and the joke is totally relevant to the context of the article about aging. Some people take everything so seriously. Lighten up Jane.
What about it is inappropriate? It triggered your discomfort around public mention of sex?
Me, I'm embarrassed by soup. So to a degree, I can relate.
Thanks for the charming column. You never fail to make me smile.
Drivers of other cars probably think I’m crazy because I laugh so much while driving and listening to your books! You’re the best👍
My father suffered from mitral valve prolapse (misdiagnosed for years as a heart murmur) and had the valve replaced at age 80....lived to be 89 and would have gone on longer had he not fallen and broken his hip! Walk carefully and carry a big stick and you'll be fine.
Sounds like a plan, may God bless you
Have you ever been checked for Marfan's?
People whisper about it behind my back and I ignore them.
Too risky to ignore -- a host of possible complications, some potentially lethal. Leave denial and willful ignorance to politicians.
It's hereditary, so a diagnosis might be useful information for your kids, so they have a heads up.
He probably has been, given all the imaging studies that have defined and planned his mitral valve repair.
I loved this piece and reminds me of having lunch or dinner with my grandkids who are also addicted to the mobile device . But it’s ok the future is here and I’m able to enjoy sharing our presence with the grandkids and listen to what’s important to them through their friends in Ireland , London and the other side of this country . Garrison has a way to simply put all that feel in his writing and I appreciate that and often laugh out loud.