This is my second attempt at writing this blog entry. The first attempt, written on my normal iPad app, BlogPress, was swallowed up to be never seen again. BlogPress froze up as well and wouldn’t relaunch, I had to delete the app and start from square one. Another recommended app, Blogsy, doesn’t seem to be compatible with iOS 5 (which I’m running on my iPad for development purposes). The WordPress app is crap all the way around, so here we are. I knew this would happen when Steve Jobs resigned as CEO.
I am sitting on our back patio. The air has a feeling of “calm before the storm” about it, there is no breeze. Birds are not where they usually are at this time of night and there is just a marked feeling of stillness in the air. When I was writing the aforementioned first version of this blog entry, it was also very quiet, but since my shenanigans with the blogging apps began, a number of planes have started landing at the local decommissioned Air Force Base. I’m thinking that some of the planes are being moved out of the New York area and being brought up here to weather the storm easier. It’s rare for air traffic to come in and out of this airport on a weekend, proclamations of “Griffiss International Airport” notwithstanding.
As I look around the lawn I notice that hints of impending autumn are also present. The maple trees are starting to make their change to fall colors first. One tree in particular is changing before the others, she does that every year. I guess she’s a precocious tree or something. Funny how I think of this tree as a she, but nevertheless I do.
With the stillness of the air and the lack of bird feeding activity going on, I’ll take the opportunity to show off the new birdfeeder that Scott installed this past month. He has had an ongoing battle with the squirrels, so he built this particular bird feeder to be bird free. The underside of the runway is covered in sheet metal so the squirrels theoretically have nothing to grab on to. So far his design has proven to work in his favor.
I posted a video on my Facebook page showing a Weather Channel reporter decked out in goggles and some fairly hefty foul weather gear standing in a seemingly dangerous area, as guys in bathing suits (and one streaker) danced behind him. They were accompanied by folks driving by, other people dancing around him and other unfazed pedestrians that he criticized for not taking Hurricane Irene seriously. I like to think that they were keeping it real and not doing the Chicken Little dance that so many folks would like us to do. Bravo to them, even the streaker.
Tonight the wind and rain is suppose to start in these parts. We are expecting 30 MPH winds with 40 MPH gusts, according to the National Weather Service, as well as 2 to 4 inches of rain. For those unfamiliar with the Empire State, we are located about 200 or so miles northwest of the City of New York. Many assume that because we have “, N.Y.” in our mailing address that we can see skyscrapers. The closest skyscraper is at the local casino and it sticks out like a sore thumb in the middle of corn fields and cow pastures. Nevertheless, that’s where we’ll be getting married.
I plan on getting up in the middle of the night to see the predicted foul weather move in. I have my rain coat ready and have secured a few of the loose items around the back of the house (old fence, etc), because every house in these parts has loose items hidden from the street view.
In the meantime, I’m enjoying the calm and the arrival of autumn colors. The ragweed isn’t making me sneeze this year. Let’s hope that trend continues.
And the birds apparently stocked up from the feeder the prefer over it’s neighbor.
Oh, and for the more nature inclined, does anyone know what kind of berries these are?
Keep it safe and keep it real this weekend.
– Posted using BlogPress from my iPad
