Althouse: At the Shy Owl Café...

November 13, 2011

At the Shy Owl Café...

... surely, you can find something to talk about.

43 comments:

Wince said...: I could give a Hoot.; 11/13/11, 12:56 PM
ndspinelli said...: Good eatin'! Owl burger w/ some Wise potato chips. Then Tandycakes for dessert.

Regarding your accent you mentioned yesterday. I had a roomate in college from Wilmington, De. His name was Richie Vintigni but everyone knew him as "Deleware." If I were to project your muted accent back 30 years, you sound like him.; 11/13/11, 1:00 PM
Joe Schmoe said...: Shy? Isn't he mooning you!?; 11/13/11, 1:02 PM
Synova said...: My husband bought a telescope with a 10 inch mirror from a guy at work.

We haven't seen the sky since we brought it home. Only solid cloud cover.; 11/13/11, 1:03 PM
ndspinelli said...: Synova, You need to move to the desert.; 11/13/11, 1:12 PM
rhhardin said...: Rush caller Mar 25, 2009

"That's the straw that broke the camel's heart."

(My computer chooses a random day to play old radio programs for, on weekends.); 11/13/11, 1:12 PM
Synova said...: "Synova, You need to move to the desert."

I know!

Moving to a higher elevation would help, too, thinner air.; 11/13/11, 1:49 PM
Big Mike said...: Where's he hiding in the second picture? I blew the photo up but still can't see the owl. Is he even there?; 11/13/11, 1:55 PM
Revenant said...: There is an owl that lives in one of my palm trees but I've never been able to get a look at it.; 11/13/11, 2:02 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: Fake. You PUT that owl there.

I made a couple cocktails involving a liter of Coke. A friend saw me squeeze the air out by smashing the bottle before closing it and he goes, "DON'T DO THAT!" I go, "Why not?" And he goes, "Because that'll make it flat."; 11/13/11, 2:10 PM
madAsHell said...: For years I heard hooting in Mom's backyard. I assumed it was an owl. Nope, mourning doves.; 11/13/11, 2:15 PM
Anonymous said...: fabulous picture. What a treat to see on a walk.

On a recent walk I took outside of my city I was disconcerted to see bear warnings posted. Our singing and clapping scared away the wildlife we do want to see.; 11/13/11, 2:15 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: ndspinelli: Synova, You need to move to the desert.

No, she needs to move across from an apartment complex.; 11/13/11, 2:31 PM
Tyrone Slothrop said...: Nothing worse than a forward owl.; 11/13/11, 2:32 PM
edutcher said...: He's just waiting for nightfall, so he can ask, "Hoo?", when you come around.

ndspinelli said...

Good eatin'! Owl burger w/ some Wise potato chips. Then Tandycakes for dessert.

You can keep the owl burger, but Wise potato chips and Tastykakes (of which Tandykakes were a subdivision into which I rarely delved) were 2 of the basic food groups in my wild and misspent youth.

WV "holatio" What a man does in gratitude.; 11/13/11, 2:44 PM
ndspinelli said...: edutcher, like yourself, I'm a huge fan of the all Tastykake confections. Tandy's were good because they had peanut butter..got to get some protein when you're training for the decathalon[hitting 10 bars in 5 hours].

I grew up on Drakes in New England[loved Devil Dogs], but got introduced to Tasty when I went to school in Pa.; 11/13/11, 3:07 PM
Ann Althouse said...: "fabulous picture. What a treat to see on a walk."

What I saw was a woman with binoculars and a man with a big camera on a tripod. I stopped to talk with them and they pointed out the owl. It took me a long, long time to see it, even with lots of help.

As for the second picture... did I ever say it was the same tree? Never assume!; 11/13/11, 3:17 PM
edutcher said...: ndspinelli said...

edutcher, like yourself, I'm a huge fan of the all Tastykake confections. Tandy's were good because they had peanut butter..got to get some protein when you're training for the decathalon[hitting 10 bars in 5 hours].

I grew up on Drakes in New England[loved Devil Dogs], but got introduced to Tasty when I went to school in Pa.

Drake's were good, too, but the PB in things like TandyKakes gets stale or something and I just couldn't do it.

If you're old enough, you might have also gotten your hands on some of the Old London chips and stuff, which were right up there with Wise.

PS Looks like the showdown at the Portland Occupation ended with not with a bang, but with a whimper.

PPS Where in PA?; 11/13/11, 3:22 PM
ndspinelli said...: edutcher, Coal mining town..Wilkes-Barre/ King's College. Never ate Old London chips. I grew up on Wise or State Line chips which were almost strictly Ct./Ma. distribution.; 11/13/11, 3:30 PM
edutcher said...: I know where that is, although I've never been there. Given it's proximity to North Jersey and Gotham, I would have been sure you had gloried in Old London.

I had their stuff at home (outside Philadelphia) and at my aunt's (Jersey, right by NYC).

PS Wise were much better. They've really spoiled me for any other potato chips.

WV "beges" Family singing group that's aging horribly.; 11/13/11, 3:36 PM
Quaestor said...: Looks like a juvenile saw-whet owl to me.

Synova:
Is that a 10" Schmidt-Cassegrain or a Newtonian? With an instrument like that you really need to get deep into the countryside to get away from light pollution, especially a Newtonian which typically have effective apertures higher than f32.; 11/13/11, 4:17 PM
Synova said...: Zhumell Dobsonian? Um... Newtonian it looks like. I was looking for a model number but don't see it handy.

The funny thing, other than the stupid clouds now that we've got it home, is that I live on a mountain in New Mexico. Albuquerque is close but on the other side of the mountain so there is very little in the way of light issues. The neighbors don't tend to leave lights on at night either. The feeling seems to be, if that's what a person wanted they should just live in town.

I remember living in the Bay Area and hardly being able to see the big dipper. Hale-Bopp was a sad, almost invisible, disappointment.; 11/13/11, 4:38 PM
pm317 said...: The woods in our backyard are all pumpkin yellow and chocolate brown, yummy! Fall is late around here this year.; 11/13/11, 4:38 PM
rhhardin said...: Marge Piercy

Oaks don’t drop their leaves
as elms and lindens do.
They evolved no corky layer,
no special tricks.
They shut off the water.
Leaves hang on withering
tougher than leather.
Wind tears them loose....; 11/13/11, 5:03 PM
Cedarford said...: Nice shot Althouse. Compliments to the bird watchers that pointed you in the right direction.; 11/13/11, 5:03 PM
mesquito said...: I just got back from Big Bend. The moon was so bright I didn't need a lantern.; 11/13/11, 5:04 PM
Ignorance is Bliss said...: As for the second picture... did I ever say it was the same tree? Never assume!

Great. I just wasted ten minutes playing Where's Owldo; 11/13/11, 5:11 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: If you like art museums, you must come to Northwest Arkansas.

Crystal Bridges is now open. We went today. Impressive.; 11/13/11, 5:14 PM
Deborah M. said...: I had a lovely day visiting my alma mater with my older daughter. We were there to see a play but just having her company was far more enjoyable. We had lunch and walked around campus. The leaves must be at their peak, or just beyond, but they are still beautiful. As we left, a wedding was about to begin at the church on campus, and the happy couple was having their picture taken. A slightly melancholy, but beautiful day.; 11/13/11, 5:25 PM
pm317 said...: Anybody watching the 'Next Iron Chef'? I am rooting Chuck, the cute guy from Montreal..His other show 'Chuck's day off' is also pretty addicting.; 11/13/11, 5:37 PM
edutcher said...: Synova said...

The funny thing, other than the stupid clouds now that we've got it home, is that I live on a mountain in New Mexico. Albuquerque is close but on the other side of the mountain so there is very little in the way of light issues.

The Blonde was thinking of moving us out to Albuquerque at one point, but we drove there from Flagstaff and she was put off by the way the highway is above the town and how we had to get down off it to look around the place (personally, I kind of liked the town).

If it's not too personal, in what direction are you in relation to the town and what do you like/dislike about living there? And how's the weather?

We drove down the Rio Grande valley as far as Socorro (in January) and thought it was very pretty.; 11/13/11, 6:08 PM
Carol_Herman said...: It's like looking for Waldo.

Where's the owl in the tree, in picture #2?; 11/13/11, 6:31 PM
Synova said...: We live in the East Mountains, which is what people call being on the East side of Sandia Crest. Albuquerque is on the West side, down in that rift valley. We don't have the cliffs that are so pretty. It's far greener over here, but it's still high desert and not green. Spring comes three weeks later here than in Albuquerque. The area along the rio grande is all pretty cottonwoods.

Do I like it?

I like Albuquerque as well as any town. It's actually really good for culture and especially food. I'd say it compares well to the Bay Area or Seattle for eating. It's also rather rough, or at least that's the feeling. I've met someone who wouldn't go into town unarmed. Granted, I figured he was being awfully silly about that. Not that I'd walk around after dark south of Central, myself.

If I didn't have the dogs and chickens I think that I'd like to live in town instead of out here, because we get snowed in a couple of times a year and the commute is 30 minutes. I'd go for the North East part, probably in one of the older neighborhoods of small houses. People tend to keep their yards tidy and there are a lot of houses for sale lately. Everyone I've met is wonderfully friendly.

I've tried to imagine where in the World I'd live if I could simply decide for myself where I wanted to go. It probably wouldn't be Albuquerque, but it's not something I've ever had to seriously decide. I think it's an impossible question.; 11/13/11, 6:33 PM
pm317 said...: Who wants to see SNL mock Perry?; 11/13/11, 6:52 PM
mesquito said...: Livestream of growing confrontation at Occupy Portland.

http://www.kgw.com/live-stream; 11/13/11, 6:56 PM
Carnifex said...: One time on vacation, the wife and I stopped at an overlook of the Missouri River. It had a path leading out to a point, so we went down it. I grabbed her arm,"Watch out! There's a rattlesnake!" I exclaimed. "No it's not." she pooh poohed. Then it coiled up and started rattling.

I've been lucky enough to walk up and actually pet whitetail deer in the wild (twice). I watched my mother do the same thing once, maybe family pheromones. Hers as an eight pointer, which was pretty impressive in my eyes.

My Dad and Uncle (who weighs 350+ easy) were deer hunting once. Their stands were near each other. A mountain lion known to be in the area started roaring nearby. My Dad gets out of his stand and walks over to my uncle. "Do you have your pistol?" my uncle asks, my Dad almost always packs, more so than not. This one time he wasn't. Learning this, my uncle tosses his bow out of his stand, and then himself. Grabbing his bow, he starts running/jogging towards their truck. "Wait up Ronnie!" my Dad shouts! Uncle Ronnie looks over his shoulder and shouts "Eff you Miller!"-true story. Gotta love family.; 11/13/11, 7:11 PM
George M. Spencer said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 11/13/11, 7:19 PM
Karl said...: Puerto Limon, Costa Rica
Street Kid Eco - Tour

Mrs Karl was getting some detailing done at the port bazaar, so I had some me time.

Against advice, I left the physically safe confines of the port and walked about town.

Within two blocks I was approached by a couple of kids who insisted on showing me the wildlife in the nearby park.

"Meester, meester - look - look. Owe!"
I didn't see anything.
Then they picked up rocks and threw them up into the trees. That's when I saw the owl fly off to a safer perch.
They didn't seem too happy about the gratuity I gave them.; 11/13/11, 8:05 PM
Rialby said...: Instapundit links to a blog which calls for a Tea Party "revival" i.e. marches. I sense we're going to see blood in the streets if that happens 'cause one side is not happy seeing the other side have private meetings. See: Denver; 11/13/11, 8:28 PM
edutcher said...: Thanks, Synova. The snow would close it for her, but I'm glad I could get some more info.

We've also looked at Phoenix - she has family there, Tucson - a little cooler than PHX and more like Albuquerque.

If we can ever afford to leave NE OH, it's good to know what people who live there think of the places we consider.; 11/13/11, 8:53 PM
Synova said...: We get a couple of good snowstorms a year, but we only get snowed in because we're in the mountains and there aren't enough snowplows. I'm told there used to be a time when the snow was deep in the fall, in the mountains, and stayed until spring, but in the 8 years we've been here the snow mostly melts off in a few days.

People grow crape myrtle in town, which seems like a warm climate shrub to me. I can't grow them. The elevation difference means three extra weeks at both ends of the growing season as well.; 11/13/11, 11:48 PM
Ralph L said...: Shy? Isn't he mooning you!?
No, he's giving her the bird.

Crepe myrtles will grow in Zone 7, which includes Albuquercue, but ours once died down to the ground when it hit near zero in NoVa, as did the fig bush. In NM, you won't have our powdery mildew problems.; 11/14/11, 4:01 AM
Issob Morocco said...: Hoo?; 11/14/11, 5:40 AM