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| A FINE DAY |
Friday, 8:30 AM. 33 degrees F at the ferry dock, 29 on the back porch. Wind WSW, calm with light to moderate gusts. The sky is mostly cloudy, the humidity 77%. The barometer is falling gently, currently at 29.96". The next ten days are predicted to be a typical winter mix, with snow showers and clouds, but with some sunny days. Temperatures will be around thirty degrees, then cooling significantly towards the end of next week.
Yesterday turned out to be a fine day to drive to Duluth for dual appointments for myself and Joan with orthopedic surgeons, hers for a carpel tunnel problem, mine for my injured left shoulder, which has not improved much with therapy. She will have surgery on her right wrist. I was given good news and bad news.
The good news first; nothing wrong with my rotator cuff. The bad news; my upper arm bone, broken just below the ball, isn't healing properly, and I must have a shoulder replacement. So, we scheduled our procedures for right after the holidays to get them out of the way and healed. Looks like January will be a busy bummer, and no Texas visit this winter.
The trip to Duluth was good, the roads dry, the day warm and flooded with sunshine. Eagles are active and we saw a number of them; two swooped low, one after the other, right in front of the truck, an awesome sight. It is the the bald eagle mating season, and we assume it was a mating pair that we saw so close up.
We will be watching for lone eagles resting on the ice of the lower Chequamegon Bay, where we have seen them other years, trying to attract a mate. Eagles mate for life but maintain a solitary existence after mating and nesting, then meet again, same time, same place the following year.
The Wisconsin DNR recorded over 1,500 nesting pairs of bald eagles last year. Their population has increased dramatically from lows in the '60's, when widespread DDT use had caused these birds at the top of the food chain to lay eggs with soft shells, which resulted in the mortality of many incubating chicks.
We will be watching for lone eagles resting on the ice of the lower Chequamegon Bay, where we have seen them other years, trying to attract a mate. Eagles mate for life but maintain a solitary existence after mating and nesting, then meet again, same time, same place the following year.
The Wisconsin DNR recorded over 1,500 nesting pairs of bald eagles last year. Their population has increased dramatically from lows in the '60's, when widespread DDT use had caused these birds at the top of the food chain to lay eggs with soft shells, which resulted in the mortality of many incubating chicks.
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