A Mish Mash

April 26, 2024April 26, 2024 Timothy Price15 Comments

Dawn

Puddle Ducks

Bottoms up!

I believe this is a Swainson’s Hawk. As shot on the left, cropped, and processed on the right.

Cropped but not processed on the left. Processed on the right.

Willa was laid back tonight. Walter kept his head down with the hawk overhead.

We did not hear or see anything of Nora and Osric tonight. They were either still hunting, or they decided to go out on a TGIF owl date.

Shaved Alpacas

Lady Banks

Lady Banks

Sunset

The Ends

April 25, 2024April 25, 2024 Timothy Price33 Comments

Another Snake, Linda! Proceed With Caution

April 24, 2024April 26, 2024 Timothy Price46 Comments

Dawn

WARNING! Snake Photos at the end of this post!

Hey! Paparazzo! Looki. See? We need more juggin’ water! ¿Sí?

Silver: “You’re fast, Loki! I’m outta here!”

Our guard Hummingbird. He sits at the top of the Chitalpa, and if any suspicious-looking characters come around, he attacks them.

Owl Newz

Nora on the left. Hungry Willa and Walter in the middle. Osric on the right

Nora was on her branch giving sweet, higher pitched hoots to Osric, who was about 100 feet from her at the top of a tree. We figured she was giving him a grocery list.

Osric gave Nora a gopher. Hmmm! Could be a song!

When Osric brought Nora the critters, it was after dusk, so I only got a few halfway clear shots that I lightened up in post processing so we can see what the owls were up to.

Osric flew off and came back with a packrat.

My what big claws you have, Nora!

After Nora flew over to the nest, Osric flew in, dropped off the packrat in the nest and flew off. Apparently, Nora’s grocery list was for gopher and packrat.

Progression of the sunset tonight.

WARNING! WARNING! Snake photos below!

Me with Blue Boa

Many of you thought that bullsnake was huge. Now Blue is what I would call a huge snake.

I don’t believe I have ever posted a photo of myself with Blue Boa. I don’t handle her much because of my compromised immune system. The results of a recent blood test showed my white counts and absolute nuetrofils are low again. Reptiles carry salmonella, so people with compromised immune systems s should not handle them much.

Laurie took the photos. Blue Boa was squirming around a lot.

Spunk thinks he much better looking than that stinking snake.

The Great Migration

April 23, 2024April 23, 2024 Timothy Price42 Comments

No roses under the Pink Moon for me today. I wasn’t going to post today, but I decided to simply complain.

I have almost finished migrating 14 new Silicon Mac Minis with M2 processors from 14 three-year-old Silicone Mac Minis with M1 processors. Apple’s Migration Assistant is flawless, so as far as users who think they won’t get fooled again are concerned, the new Mac Mini the same as the old Mac Mini, just a whole lot faster. One staff member was surprised to learn she had a new computer almost a week after I changed out her computers.

Of course, when you migrate to a new computer, you have to log back into all the applications that require authentication. I had no problem with Adobe apps. I had to upgrade to AutoCAD 2025 because AutoCAD 2024 isn’t compatible with the M2 processor. But then there’s Microsoft Office 365…

Microsft taunting me with a Windows reflecting on the wall.

I have Microsoft Office 365 Business for the office. When I set up the M1 Mac Minis three years ago, with the help of a Microsoft tech, I turned off the requirement to use the Microsoft Authenticator app in my Office 365 dashboard because Authenticator app didn’t work. It’s useless. Three years later, I discovered they snuck it back in. When I tried to log into Office 365, it required me to scan a QR code that took me to a scam page on the QR reader that wanted a credit card number. Grrrr! I had no option to choose “Text me a code!” for example. I was livid, to say the least. I found where some of the Authenticator settings had been turned back on in the Office 365 dashboard, probably by updates. But I still didn’t have it turned off.

I had a Microsft tech call me. When I answered, he asked how I was doing. I told him I was really pissed, frustrated, super cranky, fed up with dealing with stupid Microsoft products, and never wanted to be asked to authenticate anything with Microsoft Authenticator ever again! He got me straight to the hidden pages that allowed me to delete MS Authenticator and use “Text me a code.” for authentication instead.

Enough complaining. Now for some owl news:

Walter and Willa watching for Nora Owl, waiting to be fed.

Osric Owl was hooting up a storm nearby. We went to investigate. It was a distraction tactic…

Osric’s tatic worked. While we were looking for him, Nora brought Walter and Willa dinner. It was dark and hard to focus, so we never saw what she brought them.

In the first two photos she tearing up dinner for the owlets. In the third photo she is giving us a stren look. She was probably thinking about how Osric’s tactic was no longer working, since he had moved to the top of the tree north of us, and was still hooting up a storm, but there we were gawking at her.