Raptor: genus falco

 

It's a good thing this guy is too small to pose a threat to our 2 or 3 backyard hobo cats. Rena caught him sitting on the back fence looking for a meal. I don't think that there are too many mice around our yard. I'm willing to bet that Willow caught and ate any she could find. It was quite a disgusting display to watch her eat. I never did see her eat a mouse, but I watched her catch and eat quite a few lizards. It was also quite primal and made me feel inadequate in a way. She would carefully stalk them and then when the time was right, *WHAM*, she would strike! Occasionally she would miss on the first pounce but she never gave up. She would quickly pounce again and come up with a lizard hanging out of her mouth. She still comes around once in a while, but I think she prefers hunting to eating the dry food we put out there.

Jezebel

 

The Oar House is located at the southern point of Pace Road/Blvd on Bayou Chico in Pensacola. Apparantly they have their own mascot. She can be found on the front of the menu and even has her own statue. I'm pretty sure her name is Jezebel, but I had 3 beers in me, so I can't be certain.
They have a great atmosphere, great food and really good prices. I heard they had a fire recently, but since I had never been there, I couldn't tell you what it looked like before. The seating area is a great big wooden deck (most of it covered.) They also had pretty big Tiki bar that I'm sure we'll revisit at another time.

Pelican #21? Mermaids in Paradise

 

 

We went to the airport today to see one miltons expatriots head for home. While there, we found another pelican. Actually, we found it before we found the one at the Oarhouse and before we decided to find and photograph them all. If I'd known we were going to try and find them all when I took these pictures I probably would have tried to get a better angle and I probably would have temporarily moved those stupid seatbelt things that they use to form lanes for lines and whatnot... Hmm, I wonder if I need permission from TSA to move them. This is not a political blog and I won't use it for personal rants (hopefully), so I'll only ask the question and not give my opinion.
I also would have taken a picture of its descriptive plaque. If I remember to take my camera I'll take another couple of photographs next time I'm at the airport.

Another blog entry tommorrow. can you guess what it is? hint: I've mentioned the Oarhouse in my last 2 posts.

Pelican #32: Blues Pelican

 
 

There are 41 reinforced fiberglass statues of pelicans scattered around downtown pensacola. It seems odd, but the Pensacola News Journal organized the whole thing in 2004. You can read all about it here: http://www.pensapedia.com/wiki/Pelicans_in_Paradise
I didn't know that there were that many of these things. I have seen a few of them, but never really thought about trying to find them all. Rena and I found this one at The Oarhouse restaurant. we were talking about it tonight, and we've decided to try and find them all in 2009. I'll post a picture of every one we find here along with its current location.

Sorry that I haven't blogged in a while. I promise to be more diligent about it. If you are a regular reader, 1st: I admit I am shocked. 2nd: If you notice that I am slacking off, please shoot me an email, IM or a post here.

Cheers everybody!

Under Repair

 

They are finally moving forward with plans to rebuild the fishing pier. yay! supposedly its going to be higher and longer which is why it took so long to get the project moving. I'm a terrible fisherman (I always get skunked), but I plan to go, throw my line in the water and drink ice cold beer once it is rebuilt.

As usual, click the image for a bigger version.


From Wear 3 (http://www.weartv.com): (03-Dec-08)
Since Hurricane Ivan destroyed it in 2004...Officials have been trying to rebuild the Navarre Beach Pier.
Now..the project is moving forward.
Yesterday, Santa Rosa County Commissioners received a "Permit To Construct" from the Corp Of Engineers.
They plan to take the project to bid in January and award it in March.
Construction plans include demolishing the old pier and building a new one.


From Wear 3 TV (http://www.weartv.com): (28-Aug-07)

FEMA has agreed to help pay to replace the Navarre Pier destroyed during hurricane Ivan.
The estimated cost of construction is about 4 point 5 million dollars, with FEMA footing 90 percent of the bill, and another 5 percent each, from the county and the state.
FEMA has agreed to replace the 12 hundred foot pier, but many fishermen say they'd like to see another 3 hundred feet added.
Any extra length on the pier would have to be funded separately.
The construction would take about a year, with work starting in July of 2008.

Sandia Peak Tramway

 

Here's another one from the archives that I thought I'd share. This is the Sandia Peak Tramway. I can't remember if it's going up or coming down though. I took this when we were in Albuquerque in January. It was either cold or I was feeling cheap that day since we didn't go to the top. We actually got married just a few steps from where I took this picture.

The following blurb has been copied from http://www.sandiapeak.com/
"A trip on the world’s longest aerial tramway transports you above deep canyons and breathtaking terrain a distance of 2.7 miles. See some of nature’s more dramatic beauty unfold before you. At sunset the desert skies produce a spectacular array of color, and your vantage point from the observation deck atop 10,378 foot Sandia Peak in the Cibola National Forest affords an 11,000 square-mile panoramic view of the Rio Grande Valley and the Land of Enchantment. Located on the eastern edge of Albuquerque in the Sandia Foothills at the end of Tramway Road."

Oregon

 

 

test

These are a bit old, but I've been slacking on taking new photos and I didn't want to let the whole week go by without posting something. I took these when we visited Rena's dad the summer before last. Both shots are from Silver Falls National Park. It's a beautiful place! http://www.oregon.com/hiking/silver_falls.cfm