November 2008

A tall spindle-legged blue heron stops by the pond about every other day, hoping to snag a goldfish for an early morning breakfast.

I watch his stealthy, hunter’s progress. He moves in minute jerks and starts, like a skipping CD or a frame by frame stuttering movie. Go-stop-go, go-stop-tilt head-stop-lift neck high-tilt head- and stand frozen in this posture to scan the depths of the pond, all the while hoping a fish will appear.

He’s out of luck. The fish are hunkered down under the water pump where it’s warm and they aren’t about to swim out into the colder water.

After about a half hour of this, the posturing heron gives up and takes flight. It always fascinates me how such a long legged creature can launch itself into the air. For a moment just after the bird is aloft its form truly mirrors something ancient-something close to its pterodactyl ancestor.

I am in the midst of moving bookcases and their contents from one room to another. To house my collection of mostly research books, I use the commercial shelving called Gorilla racks. These shelves allow for stacking books two or three deep and the metal framework will take heavy loads. I buy one extra set to use the frames and boards for extra shelves. To make the bookcase look cool I buy strips of wainscoting, cut and glue it, to the front and sides. This makes the whole framework look like an elegant custom made bookcase.

For the record, whenever I swear I don’t need to buy another research book, I find myself acting just like the blue heron . . . hunting for another tasty morsel. Bon appetite and happy reading!