Hi, everybody, and a very pleasant good evening to you, wherever you may be...
I am The Mad Macedonian! Writer, Blogger, Poet, Humorist, Cyclist, Walker, Photographer, Cat Lover, Genealogist, and more!
Yesterday was Day 14 of the 2011 Sit Spot Challenge, and I'm getting close to nature in middle of Huntington Beach, right in the heart of Orange County.
If you missed the start of this adventure, then check out this post, and follow the link at the end.
Yesterday I parked my butt on a bench on the trail, between the Amphitheatre, and the lake, and soon the Ducks, some Geese, and other Water Fowl, had reason to hang out at my Sit Spot. ;-D
The Sit Spot e-mail for the day wanted us to report on what the eather was like, and what were the Birds, and people, in the area up to.
It was a clear, warm, day and, since people were sitting at my usual spots I walked along the trail, and stat on a bench.
I watched men, and women, on foot, & on bikes, pass along the trail for a few minutes, & then noticed that severl adult Ducks were supervising the children as they made their way onshore, & energetically explored the grass.
As a man, & woman came up, and joined me in watching the show... the adults quietly made their way to the grass &, keeping an eye on the kids made sure they didn't get too close to us.
Finally the adults decided that was enough, & back out into the Lake the whole group went.
Emboldened by who knows what impulse several Birds came onshore, and allowed me to approach them as a man took a photo for me. ;-D
As I sat on the bench a woman with a bag of bread crumbs approached, and the internal GPS of every Bird on the Lake zeroed in on her position. ;-D
As I watched I could see a line of Birds head right for shore.
They crowed around her on the shore, and in the water, some coming out onto the trail, as she tossed bread crumbs around her immediate area.
Several passerby stop to watch before moving on, and I saw several of the biiger Birds approach, unafraid of the woman.
As I watched they gently ate right out her hand.
She told me that she has been coming here everyday for a year.
When the woman leaves some of the Birds are reluctant to head back out on to the water, and hang out on the grass gazing at me, & the people passing by, in the hope that someone else would take up where she had left off. ;-D
Finally, after I informed them that they were shit out of luck, they sadly, reluctantly, leave the area. ;-D
As I sit, a young couple come by looking at the Birds, & when I told them what they missed, we chatted as I showed them my pictures.
My 20 minutes had ended 10 minutes ago, yet I still sat at my Sit Spot.
My reluctance to leave was soon rewarded when the parents, and kids, returned to shore just as a woman stopped to watch with me.
This time, under the watchful gaze of the adults, the kids decided to explore the pavement, showing no fear as they did so.
On impulse I handed my camera to the woman, & inched ever so close to the chicks, and waited to see what they would do.
They took some steps toward me, then returned to the grass, standing their ground for a moment as a couple, with a pair of Boxers on leashes, walked past on the trail.
Finally, the group returned to the water, and it was time for me to head home as well.
Sit Spot Challenge 2011: Day 15 - Afoot & Afield in an Orange County Park
