Tuesday, April 27, 2021

Supermoon APR 2021 Over Okinawa

 Some Call It a Pink Moon



It wasn't exactly pink but, we're glad it made an appearance.








To catch the moon rising over the ocean, we spent a few hours on the east coast of the island.

Heavy clouds interfered with that plan but gave the rising moon some decorative colors.

It was 7:22 PM when this scene was captured.

More dense weather rolled in and the decision was made to leave the wind and beach behind.



Back Home the Moon Made Another Appearance








On the roof of my house, this scene was composed at 8:54 PM.

Too tired to process the day's photos, this old man went to bed.

The plan was to wake up early and hike to somewhere the moon could be seen setting.




The Morning After









By the time I reached the destination where the moon could be captured setting I groaned.


A thick wall of clouds, off to the west, made it impossible to see the setting moon.


All of a sudden I looked towards the Kin powerplant and there it was.


No longer a Full Moon but, a smokestack covered the part that was missing!



End of story.





Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Strange Birds Spotted in Kin Town

Helmeted Guineafowl



These birds are natives of Africa but, some are domesticated in locations around the globe.

How and when these characters arrived in Kin Town, Okinawa is a mystery.






For about a week, I've been tracking them down and observing their behavior.

Early morning and late afternoons they may be seen in different parts of town.




 
On a morning walk with the dog and no big camera handy, we first saw the birds.

Thanks to iPhone 7 and a curious dog this scene was quickly composed.

The mutt is normally afraid of his own shadow but, wanted to see what all the racket was about.

The birds, when they saw him coming, squawked, gobbled, honked, and squealed.

They ran around like a couple of lunatics and as the dog got close, flew a short distance away.

When he approached again, they escaped into the forest nearby.



Getting an Identification



Luckily, a young man was leaving his house and saw me taking shots with the cellphone.

He grabbed his phone and began zooming in on the dog and birds, too.

Asking him if he knew what the birds were, he didn't know. First time for both of us.

He walked back to his front door and showed the photos to somebody.

When he returned he said, they were Horohoro tori.

At home, I did some internet research and found out the birds were Helmeted Guineafowl.



It Was Time for a Real Camera and Big Lens




It didn't take long to figure out, Mr. Canine couldn't be with me as I was photographing birds.

As long as they would squawk and run away, he'd chase them, just for fun.

A little kitten, could raise its back, and be ready to scratch, and the dog would get scared.

But, something runs, and he'll chase!

Hunting without the dog and carrying the Pentax, tripod, and 560 MM lens, worked.





A few things learned about these birds leads me to belive they are alright.

A local, described the meat as tasty. And some on Facebook claim the taste as, gamy.

"Horohoro" in Japanese means, a gurgling bird sound.

The critters eat just about anything, including ticks!

To learn more about Helmeted Guineafowl visit eBird and, you can listen to their sounds.







The only way these birds could have arrived in Kin Town, is somebody brought them here.

The closest zoos are miles away so, I don't think they are escapees.

There is a place in Japan raising Helmeted Guineafowl on Yoron Island.

That's more than a few miles away so, it's unlikely the birds flew here. Maybe, they were pets.

Somebody got tired of them and didn't want to eat them, and turned them loose.




They Also Do Crazy Stuff





On another non-camera walk with the dog, I was in an area the birds aren't normally seen.

On a sidestreet overlooking the ocean, not far from a restaurant, the Guineafowl appeared.

The restaurant's chef was ready to chase the birds away with a broom.

My unleashed canine spotted the birds and ran towards them, chasiing them away.






The chef had noticed a bird, looking at its reflection on the side of a black car.

The creature saw another male bird, looking back at him, and began scratching the car door!

This photo was taken with the iPhone, zoomed and in a rush to shoot before the dog ran it off.

Are there any birds like this in your neck of the woods?



 



Wednesday, April 7, 2021

A Few Words for This Wednesday - Sorta A Gripe

 This Cure Doesn't Work for Everybody


A while ago I could publish hundreds or thousands of words with no difficulty.

Articles, stories, reviews, and travel adventures just rolled onto paper with no effort.

Call it laziness, craziness, or whatever you like. Writing just doesn't get me excited anymore.

New Year's Day I  bought some notebooks to see any writing motivation would come along.

Two spiral-springy book things sat resting on a shelf next to the computer.

Some research was done (for a few months) and, finally, I decided to kick the writer's block.




There must be 100 methods writers can use to get their inspiration for writing fired up.

This one sounded like something which might work for me.

Every morning (for the month of March) I forced myself to write 500 words a day.

Most of the time, it was after looking at the news and social networks, early in the morning.

The house is quiet at 4 AM and I can sip my coffee without any distractions.

About halfway through my 500 milliliters of iced coffee, I'd get inspired and write.

"500 words," It really doesn't take lots of effort to write that piece.  In a few seconds, I was done.

If you have trouble writing, you might want to try this guy's method. It's not for me.

So, I'm thinking of giving myself another month of rest. Maybe, try something new in March!







Thursday, April 1, 2021

Meet the Marmalade Bush Hanging in My Garden

 A Rare Sort of Plant



Most festivals and cultural events have been canceled over the past year due to Coronavirus.

Up in Higashi for the Azalea Festival, we were screened fairly thoroughly before entering.

Temperature checks, tell if you've been out of the country, your name address, and phone number.

The blossoms were sorta so so this year but something caught my attention on the way in.





It was in a hanging planter and the tag on the plant read, "マーマレード, Marmalade."

Not knowing much about flowers, I asked if it was edible. The gal said, 'No."

Because of the bright colors, it's called Marmalade.






At home, the plant got hung in a spot without too much sun or shade.


Researching the brilliant blossoms, I learned plenty.

They say fresh seeds for this specimen are rare - hard to find.

Cuttings would be the way to go if, you want to propagate more plants.


Scientific Name: Streptosolen jamesonii

Another Common Name: Fire Bush

Native Territory: South America




More Stuff Was Learned




The Marmalade Bush needs sun but, can tolerate some shade.


It's a tough character - Bug Resistant.


The flowers may bloom most of the year in warm, humid, tropical environments. Yay!


The plant (growing in the ground) could reach 5 feet tall by 8 feet wide!


Its mild fragrance attracts birds and butterflies.


Some gardeners let the streams of bright flowers trail down walls.


The plants are used in Ecuador and Peru as folk medicine.


However, in California USA the plant may constitute a health risk if, too much is consumed!





We'll probably just keep our Marmalade Bush hanging somewhere in the garden.



REFERENCES