Good Weather for Frogs!

It feels as if it's been raining for a week or maybe forever.

The increased humidity is probably good for the frogs. I decided to try again tonight and photograph them. They seemed less shy than earlier in the week.

I spent part of yesterday and today volunteering at a Scholastic Book Fair at the Brooklyn Historical Society--lots of fun people contact and a chance to talk about books and kids. The bonus--$10 credit to spend for every hour I put in! I got some great books (just what I need the week before BEA, but...) I'm excited about reading Tracy Chevalier's book about Mary Anning.

I also went to a fantastic concert last night at the Hispanic Society of America at 155th and Broadway. The Sylvan Wind Quintet, led by Svetlana Kabalin, played a program of wonderful Spanish music for an audience that included the Spanish Ambassador. I helped give out programs and collected email names for their mailing list. The room was spectacular--surrounding us with vivid murals of Spanish scenes by Joaquin Sorolla:

It felt as if we were in the painting while listening to the music --amazing!

I was completely awed by the light in so many of the paintings, especially one I can't find an image of...adobe homes on a high hill lit by the setting or rising sun. Beautiful!

It's Hard to Photograph Frogs!

WHAT IS IT? A JAW I FOUND IN BERMUDA NEEDS IDENTIFICATION...

I found some very interesting specimens in Bermuda two summers ago, and I'm hoping for help in identifying the jaw in these photos:

Hurray, we all survived Friday the 13th!

A few updates before I head off to sleep at 2 am Friday into Saturday...

The birds built their nest...and vanished. No sign of them for more than a week. I will leave the nest where it is...I wonder if another pair of birds would consider using it.

Went to a great meeting of the New York Chapter of the Society for Children's Writers and Illustrators...heard a good talk on how covers are designed at Abrams...Chad's blog tells all:

Attended the Learning Leaders luncheon on Wednesday with my former tutor Laurie Harris. Some very smart people talked about parent engagement but the one principal on the panel made it clear that while she encourages lots of parent involvement, she needs money to provide the services her families need. She has a full medical clinic in her school! Amazing...

Walked the Rockaways with Phil yesterday (Thursday) and found absolutely nothing for myself--no shells, no bones, no interesting rocks or fossils. But I did find a great ladybug for Phil, who is a world class expert on beetles. He liked the one I found because its spots were unusual.

Tonight, a great Open Studio reception downtown, where I met my artistic "twin"--Janelle Iglesias makes astonishing found object sculptures and even collects some of her materials on Barren Island.

THE NEST REMAINS EMPTY...VERY WEIRD...

I haven't seen the pair of mourning doves in more than 5 days, yet the nest is beautifully made--what happened??? I'm trying to have faith that they will return, but so far no sign of them. Something could have happened to one of them...but otherwise I have no idea what occurred.

I DON'T KNOW WHEN THEY DID ALL THIS WORK...

I really don't know when they did all this work--I guess it was when I was sleeping! But here it is, just about ready for mom and eggs to be deposited very soon. This is one of nature's real miracles--just as gorillas make their sleeping nests anew each night, birds are amazing architects, using what they find to build really sturdy and intricate homes. It's exciting to be a witness to all this.

I had a wonderful time visiting the Washington Market School this morning. I spent some time in one of the classrooms, where the children were making guacamole in honor of Cinco de Mayo. I had some great conversations with several of the children, and two of the boys were especially interested in my watch! It has such a great feeling about it, and I can imagine that it would be an inspiring and joyful place to work.

i was reminded again of the endless pleasure of walking through city neighborhoods. I had lunch in Chinatown and spent part of my Groupon at the Chinatown Ice Cream Factory. Now--what else to do on this really beautiful day? Stay tuned.

THE NEST!

Just a quick P.S. to show what these remarkable birds have accomplished overnight...I looked at the nest yesterday, and there were only a few pieces of branch and twigs. Today, midday, there is a NEST.

SURROUNDING MYSELF WITH LIFE!

Jonathan and Rose, the two frogs (probably green Frogs but not sure) appear to be thriving in my kitchen. I think they like where they are now better than the classroom, which was dim in their corner. Now, joining them and bringing new life to my home are a pair of mourning doves who have chosen my bathroom window sill to raise their young!

This is not the first time this has happened. In fact, my Stuy Town apartment on the 4th floor appears to be featured in some recommended list of short-term residences for local birds. I've had them on my kitchen windowsill, on my living room windowsill, and twice before here in the bathroom. The bathroom is the trickiest, because the shower is inches away and very noisy. What I've done in the past and will probably do here is hang a towel over the window when I shower. I don't want to cover them completely because watching this process is wonderful!

It begins with a flutter of wings, and some coo-coo-ing. Then they fly off, but each time they visit, a few twigs and branches remain...and somehow, remarkably, in a few days there is a nest, intricately woven and perched on the metal bar that holds my window open. It's not a big space, and I know it will be cramped during the few times that the male and female birds are both present. Somehow they manage to squeeze in, though it typically causes some damage to the screen over time.

Today, the female bird is sitting calmly, but it seems too soon for eggs, since the nest as of last night was barely begun. So she may just be hanging out, getting a feel for the place.

Stay tuned!

Also, I wanted to share that on a recent trip to the Rockaways with Phil and two other science guys (Richie, great botanist and beetle collector) and Charles (pres of the NY Shell Club), I picked up a very interesting specimen. It's a piece of driftwood that is bored full of holes...and it turns out that the creature who did the boring is still in place, though hard to photograph. It's a TEREDO, a Naval Shipworm, and I'm attaching a Google photo that shows what it looks like and what it does. It's not actually a worm but a small mollusk, and has a shell over the head part only.

Here is my photo of the actual specimen, though I wish I could get closer and sharper. 

You can see what looks like a white shell in the centermost hole.

This is a great example to remind me that you need to LOOK CLOSELY at everything you pick up!