Birds of Arizona: Glendale Recharge Ponds – Pt. 1

We had heard about the Glendale Recharge Ponds and the variety of birds they attract. As hikers and explorers, we decided we would head out that way to see what birds we could find. We started our jaunt early to have the best chance at seeing the most birds and while we thought it might be a bit tricky to find, the directions were actually quite good (see Part 2 for directions).

Right away we saw the discharge for which the ponds were named.


water being reclaimed

The facility is located west of and in a direct line with the University of Phoenix Stadium, home of the Arizona Cardinals football team.


University of Phoenix Stadium

Along the access road leading to the ponds and along the sides of the waterways, there was a variety of farms and stables.


Small farms and ranches abut the ponds


Very quickly we noticed something very, very annoying – – flies. Loads and loads of flies. Perhaps gnats would be more accurate! This might be very good for the birds, but not so pleasant for us.


Gnats were abundant and annoying

Can you see all those light brown specs in the picture above? Those are some of the flies that were flitting around as soon as we left the confines of our car. Let me circle (in red) a couple for you.


Gnats circled for reference
Only five were circled, but there were hundreds upon hundreds!

We traveled for about an hour to get to our destination so we were not be deterred. A move perhaps we would later regret.

Only a few short steps along the pathways we saw what I identified as a Cattle Egret. If you look closely on the neck you can see flies on the bird. Other gnats are also clearly visible on the bird.


Gnats on the Egret

We hadn’t planned on most of the wildlife to be so far away. As we walked, the waterbirds swam to the far side of the large pond to seek safety and therefore escape our gaze. While I had three cameras with me, the only camera that was useful was the Canon SX50 HS with a large zoom lens.


As we walked, most birds fled
Those specks in the distance are numerous waterbirds

A more intrepid pair of birds, Black-necked Stilts, weren’t as quick to run away. They were busy searching the shallow depths for food. These are very interesting birds not only because of their somewhat whimsical black and white coloration…


Black-necked Stilts looking for food

but because of their long legs! Now we know how they got their name!


Long legs of the Black-necked Stilts

Lurking farther down the path and around the bend was an alert and somewhat wary Great Blue Heron.


A wary Great Blue Heron keeping an eye on us

In several locations there were warnings about no fishing! I have since learned that people do fish there even with the signs posted.


No Fishing sign

There were many, many Coots in the ponds, but also in the group were several other water birds. The male Northern Shoveler Duck was quite handsome.


Northern Shoveler Duck among the Coots

A Killdeer looked on with interest probably wondering what we were doing out-and-about with all these bugs in the air.


Watchfull Killdeer

To read the other JBRish posts about our Killdeer visitors:

Birds of Arizona – Killdeer ( Charadrius vociferus )

Killdeer Eggs in Our Yard; Oh My!

Killdeer’s Empty Nest in our Front Yard

For more information about the Killdeer’s rearing process, you can read The Precocious Killdeer.

Unfortunately, wherever people go, there are bound to be traces that they were there. Whether intentional or not, we found a floating flip-flop and this football.


Floating lost football left behind at the ponds

Overall, however, there wasn’t too much debris. We continued to walk a while longer to complete the circuit around the one large pond nearest our car. We were becoming a bit uncomfortable trying to “chase down” the birds with all the bugs buzzing around.

Read Birds of Arizona: Glendale Recharge Ponds – Pt. 2

See previous JBRish posts about birds HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018


STATUS QUOtes — 20180331

Today’s STATUS QUOtes

 

“Nobody kicks on being interrupted if it’s by applause.” — Frank ‘Kin’ Hubbard

“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.” — Rainer Maria Rilke

“A machine has value only as it produces more than it consumes — so check your value to the community.” — Martin H. Fischer

“Family Planning: Having all your children while their grandparents are still young enough to be babysitters.” — Unknown

 
See previous STATUS QUOtes HERE

Thousands and thousands of quotes delivered since 2011!

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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 — JBRish.com


– – – #quote #quotes

Vide-Ohs: Driving Home No Texting While Driving

While the beginning of this video may seem funny in a Chaplanesque way, the message is anything but humorous. This is part of the “It Can Wait” promotion to encourage people not to text when it can be harmful to themselves or others. This public service announcement was created by the Western Cape Government, South Africa.

It is short, to the point and powerful!

Texting and walking is difficult enough just watch the video!

 

More Vide – Ohs

To See additional Interesting Videos, click HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 – JBRish.com



STATUS QUOtes — 20180330

Today’s STATUS QUOtes

 

“Married couples tell each other a thousand things without speech.” — Chinese Proverb

“I don’t know what the future may hold, but I know who holds the future.” — Ralph Abernathy

“When you find no solution to a problem, it’s probably not a problem to be solved, but a truth to be accepted.” — Unknown

“According to obituary notices, a mean and useless citizen never dies.” — Clarence Darrow

 
See previous STATUS QUOtes HERE

Thousands and thousands of quotes delivered since 2011!

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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 — JBRish.com


STATUS QUOtes — 20180329

Today’s STATUS QUOtes

 

“You must lose a fly to catch a trout.” — George Herbert

“Although a skillful flatterer is a most delightful companion if you have him all to yourself, his taste becomes very doubtful when he takes to complimenting other people.” — Charles Dickens

“Big shots are only little shots who kept on shooting.” — Dale Carnegie

“The human race is faced with a cruel choice: work or daytime television.” — Unknown

 
See previous STATUS QUOtes HERE

Thousands and thousands of quotes delivered since 2011!

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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 — JBRish.com


Photography: Why Use Post Processing Software?

Although I had been interested in photography as far back as my teenage years, after my thirties and a number of life changes, photography took a back seat to my other interests and obligations of life.

I had used professional gear in my twenties and early thirties, but for many years after, I used a point-and-shoot digital camera with between 5 and 8 megapixels. (As a frame of reference, today’s standards would probably call for a minimum of 16 or 24 megapixels for professional use.) My Canon AS590 IS provided a no muss, no fuss regimen for me and I was comfortable just capturing ptographs as a matter of record.

Of course as time passed, post processing software improved and I became interested in revisiting some of my older photographs and trying to “process” them to bring out the colors and beauty that encouraged me to take the photographs in the first place.

When pondering the question, “Why use post processing software,” let me offer the following.

My wife and I enjoy hiking and exploring as readers of JBRish.com know. In 2012, we visited Monument Valley, UT. Sure enough, I had my Canon PowerShot AS590 with 8 megapixels. It took very nice jpeg photographs. Unfortunately, however, the settings and ability of the small sensor was limiting.

Look at this picture for example:


Original picture of the Yei Bi Chei Spires and the Totem Pole
Original picture of the Yei Bi Chei Spires and the Totem Pole

The above is a composition in which I was very interested, but the bright sky and haze did not enable the camera to represent the scene as I envisioned it. The camera did the best it could capturing the scene, but the equipment didn’t render the red rocks and sand as I saw it. The green and yellow grasses played well against the red rocks, but you wouldn’t know it by looking at the photo above.

This shot remained dormant on my hard drive for years and then I began to learn about Adobe Lightroom. Once I understood the basics, I realized I could recapture some of the colors and nuances of the shot that inspired me to take the photograph in the first place.

Once processed, the scene is rendered more as I saw it that afternoon.


Processed picture of the Yei Bi Chei Spires and the Totem Pole
Processed picture of the Yei Bi Chei Spires and the Totem Pole

Keep in mind that this camera has a very small sensor and by today’s standard is probably equivalent to a smartphone or perhaps less than that. When looking at the picture, understand that the camera did capture information such as which areas are brown, red, green, blue, light, dark, etc. It took the software to help me bring out the colors and contrast nearer to as I recalled them when I stopped to press the shutter. Some of the detail is lost in the transition and the picture is more painterly than I would prefer, but it is certainly closer to my recollection than the original the camera recorded.

This is why post processing software and learning how to use it properly is so popular!

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Metadata

File Name: 8871_yei_bi_chei_spires_totempole.JPG
Capture time: Sept. 10, 2012
Exposure: 1/400 sec @ f/4.5
Focal Length: 16mm
ISO: 80
Camera: Canon PowerShot AS590 IS
Lens: 4.3-215mm

Edited in Lightroom

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See more JBRish.com photography posts HERE and visit Jeff’s Instagram site HERE


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 – JBRish.com



STATUS QUOtes — 20180328

Today’s STATUS QUOtes

 

“I bear the wounds of all the battles I avoided.” — Fernando Pessoa

“Do not be fooled into believing that because a man is rich he is necessarily smart. There is ample proof to the contrary.” — Julius Rosenwald

“You live but once; you might as well be amusing.” — Coco Chanel

“By the time you’re eighty years old, you’ve learned everything. You only have to remember it.” — George Burns

 
See previous STATUS QUOtes HERE

Thousands and thousands of quotes delivered since 2011!

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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 — JBRish.com


PL8ATUDES – March 27, 2018



Plate-A-Tude

We continue our series of personalized (vanity) license plates in Arizona. To maintain individual privacy, we try to show as little information about particular cars as possible as long as we can reveal the license plate.

NOTE – License plate photos may have been archived for quite some time. The years indicated on the registration stickers DO NOT necessarily reflect the current status of any given plate!

We hope you enjoy these PL8ATUDES!

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It’s

GR8LIVN

When you do your best, but don’t have to be

PERFCT

!

 

JBRish.com originally published this post
See previous PL8ATUDES HERE

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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018


STATUS QUOtes — 20180327

Today’s STATUS QUOtes

 

“Time ripens all things. No man’s born wise.” — Miguel de Cervantes

“Note to salary setters: Pay your people the least possible and you’ll get from them the same.” — Malcolm Forbes

“Those who are too smart to engage in politics are punished by being governed by those who are dumber.” — Plato

“Wrinkles are hereditary. Parents get them from their children.” — Doris Day

 
See previous STATUS QUOtes HERE

Thousands and thousands of quotes delivered since 2011!

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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 — JBRish.com


Pickleball Advice: 30 Seconds to a Better Doubles Game

Have you ever attended a pickleball tournament? I always find the tournament atmosphere invogorating. There is a positive hustle and bustle surrounding pickleball tournaments and it inspires me to play more and and to strive to improve. I believe we can all use a bit more inspiration every now and then.

One thing that was impressed upon me when I attended my first tournament as a spectator was that the top doubles teams call each and every ball. They say “mine.” “yours,” “bounce it,” etc. They constantly communicate in advance of the ball reaching either of them.

One other thing…if my partner calls a ball, I back off even if I think that I have the better shot at it. We can discuss this after the point, but two players going after the same ball is a fast track for an errant shot!

There is one corollary to this rule – If the ball is toward the center of an area we can both cover and my partner calls it, I will try to backup my partner. What that means is, I stay back a bit and let my partner have the ball they “called,” but I keep my eye on the ball and if they miss, I will try to return it instead. This doesn’t always work, but it has saved some points every now-and-then and a point is a point! How many games would you have won if you had one extra point? I know it would have helped me a good number of times.

When I play, I also like to discuss with my partners who is going to cover lobs. I generally like my partner to cover lobs over my head on my side of the court when I am at the net. I find that the diagonal line is easier and provides more opportunity for a successful return. I then cover lobs over their head when they are at the net. I do communicate with my partner(s), but I need to do more of it so that every shot is assigned to my partner or me well before it reaches us.

Don’t forget, if your partner moves to your side of the court, you need to move over to their side to avoid leaving half the court wide open!

I recently played in a round robin tournament at our community center and there were some players I had never seen before. Sarah Ansboury has in interesting article about playing with a new partner and when we play in pickup games, it is as if we are playing with a new partner many times. As anticipated, she also highlights partner-communication and somewhat humorously, compares this to “pickleball speed dating.” Seriously though, she offers some great advice beyond partner-communication which I think can benefit all serious pickleballers. Be sure to check out the other links in her article for even more details!

You can read the article by clicking on the picture or title below!

https://www.sarahansboury.com/pickleball-speed-dating-fun/

More Pickleball Videos and Information

To See additional Pickleball Videos & Information Click Here (primarily for beginners and less experienced players)

Check out Additional Pickleball Information and Videos! (for all players including average to more experienced players)


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All original content on this blog is copyrighted by Jeffrey B. Ross with ALL Rights Reserved. While reference links back to JBRish.com are appreciated and encouraged, please acquire approval for any reproduction of original content from this website.

©Jeffrey B. Ross – 2018 – JBRish.com



pickleball, communication, lobs,