A bird’s eye view of shacking up

Spring is in the air and each day more birds are showing up, singing their hearts out and partying on. But there’s a problem. By all reports, everyone’s doing fine in the making babies, erm, eggs department but hatching and caring for the demanding little rascals has become more of a challenge due to an…

On the hunt for cherry blossoms

Any day now the miracle of cherry blossoms will begin. Not here in Fernie, of course. We’re still encased in snow and ice. But in Tokyo, beloved cherry blossoms are predicted to appear around March 26 and peak April 2. Meanwhile, in Vancouver, B.C., cherry trees have already started to bloom, evidently, depending on where…

Calla my world

Spring is almost here. I know it’s not far off because our grocery stores are displaying pots of those classic white trumpet-shaped lilies right up next to the check-out counters. I guess they’re hoping you’ll succumb to their beauty and intoxicating fragrance and grab one on your way to the cashier even though you only…

Worm moon, Blood moon

I read somewhere that this coming full moon (March 14) has quite the interesting name. Or actually, two names. It got the moniker Worm Moon from indigenous peoples in southern North America who noticed that this time of the year is when you start to see the first signs of life (well, insects and invertebrates)…

Little, big (and wild) sunflowers

It’s getting to the point when the briefest glimpse of blue sky is cause for wonder. I’m talking a quick break in the clouds. Nothing else. Sunlight–as in warm, golden rays streaming earthwards that create actual shadows–is a distant memory. This may be the reason why I’ve been obsessively scrolling last summer’s photos most of…