I’m guilty of sentimentality when it comes to wildlife—a syndrome Russell Baker has amusingly described. In the case of the domestic ducks that hang out at North Pond, my enthusiasm is pragmatic: I appreciate how photogenic they are, how well they stand out against the surrounding scene. It helps that they are just a single…
Juvenile heron
The bird’s spotted and streaked plumage are signs that it’s young. Eventually its plumage will darken and it will become a bulkier bird. It’s a black-crowned night-heron, which can often be spotted at North Pond. Here’s an adult photographed in a previous year, maybe even a parent of this baby.
North Pond neighbors
The North Pond is peaceful after a rain.
Materials for April
Winter-weary Earth.
Building museum
I could not gain admission, but it looked to be crammed with lots of neat stuff.
He survived
In the wake of the Boston bombings, renewed appreciation for all that that means.
In a nutshell
My subject and me.
Perhaps a Black Duck
Toward the end of my walk the other day, I noticed a duck I didn’t recognize. It was about the size of a Mallard, perhaps a little bulkier, with a mottled beak and a white patch under its chin. It was solitary and silent and sat on the same snag at the edge of the…
Natural violence
As if nature knew our woes, violent weather gripped our shores this week. An ordinary bus-ride home became an unfamiliar odyssey, with a menacing lake, and a strange, unaccountable light coming from the east. The normally calm lake was frightfully stirred. Violent waves pounded against our shores. Thunder and lightning broke up our memories of…
Living with the Trump
Living with the Trump is easy: it’s one of my favorite buildings. [Note this was written before Trump ran for president, or put his name in gigantic letters on the side of the building.] A new skyscraper goes up and sometimes only indifference follows. Another modern glass building with a gazillion stories? To design something…
Another piece of the bridge
A replacement section of the Wells Street Bridge rests on a barge in front of the Merchandise Mart. The bridge repairs that started several weeks ago are about to enter their second phase, and the bridge, from which I took this picture (and this one and this one), will again be closed.
Quaker meditation
Taped up on one of our kitchen cabinets is a postcard I once received from the Friends organization, acknowledging a memorial contribution I had made. I look at it because it quells my contentious spirit. Like everyone else, I sometimes find it difficult to let go of my point of view. But it’s good to…
