Yesterday's butterfly, fix it in post

 In the early 2000s I was a moderator for an online forum called 2-pop. 2-pop.com was a pioneering web forum focused on desktop video editing, specifically supporting early adopters of Final Cut Pro and small-budget filmmakers. Since I was selling hardware and software into that market it seemed like a good place to be. A 2-pop refers to a 1 kHz tone that is one frame long and placed 2 seconds before the start of a program. It is a simple and effective method of ensuring synchronization between sound and picture in a video or film. 

Fix it in post was often offered as a joke for fixing the impossible. It refers to the ironic, often painful, and humorous reality that many on-set problems deemed fixable later are, in fact, impossible or extremely expensive to fix. It is a common, sardonic mantra in the film industry that serves as a polite way to abandon a failing shot and offload the impossible work onto the editor. 

When I first saw this Papilio rutulus, the western tiger swallowtail yesterday, I was sitting where I'm sitting right now, at my computer, in my office. I haven't seen a western tiger swallowtail in quite awhile. I usually see more eastern giant swallowtail (Papilio cresphontes) butterflies. Anyway, it appeared to be a perfect specimen when I first started to take photos and then I saw its battle scars. While the line, fix it post popped into my head, the butterfly was still beautiful and I wasn't planning to do so.*

 * But then I wondered... How much of a challenge would it be...

 Here's the same shot before I fudged with it. I think the butterfly shows character.

 
For the most part, I like to present photos I've taken the way I see them. Which should not be confused with the way the camera sees subjects. Digital cameras see differently than human eyes by prioritizing raw light data over interpreted perception, often resulting in higher sensitivity in low light, different depth perception, and a narrower dynamic range that requires software to manage. Cameras capture a linear, technical record of photons, whereas the brain dynamically processes, color-corrects, and adjusts brightness to create a stable view. If your camera is adding "scene presets" or "scene modes," that might be a quick way to achieve specific looks or handle tricky lighting without manual adjustments, but these presets often fail by producing unnatural colors and poor exposures. They can also make fixing them in post more difficult. 

Anyway, pretty butterfly. I saw two more today but I wasn't available to take pictures. I felt last year was kind of low on butterfly activity. Hopefully with more rain already this season (.25" here today!), we'll be seeing more butterflies.

Taken, taken so easily
To pass into glass reality
Transform, to transfer, to energy

Happy 1st Birthday to Junimoon!

 They grow up so fast! 

Junimoon (AKA, Juni) is very probably one year old today. She was born feral. Her mother, Kalika showed up on the patio on rare occasions, usually at night. Feral male cat, Vit, was protector to both Kalika and Juni. Seven weeks and four days, after Juni was likely born she showed up together with Kalika on my patio. I'm going to cheat a little here because I'm way behind on getting this post together and moving on to some daily chores, etc... 

According to Google AI, "feral kittens are born to wild, unsocialized cats and require quick intervention for domestication. The ideal window to tame them is 2 to 7 weeks of age. They often require slow socialization, confinement in safe spaces, and food motivation to build trust. Without intervention, over 75% of these kittens may not survive their first six months."

It was only about two weeks or so after Juni was introduced to the patio by her mother that I saw Kalika becoming a little aggressive with her offspring, letting her know in no uncertain terms that she was now on her own. They still had some hang time together but Juni was getting fed separately. That first arrival was June 1st, 2025 at approximately 6:30 PM. 

The first time Juni (she had different names early on) came into my lap she was enticed using a feather toy on a fishing line.  There was a little pain involved on my part. There's more about my first interactions here, here and here. This picture is from July 17th, 2025. I didn't prepare for a history lesson on this and quite honestly, I would need to go back, read those linked posts again myself and look at some more photo inventory to get all of the dates straight but I'm pretty sure this was one of the first captured climbs up my leg. She's about 14 weeks here.

 This image is from video, shot on July 20th.

 and by July 25th, she was becoming a lap kitty. This image was also extracted from video off my phone. Juni was adopted inside to stay on July 31st at 6:44 PM.

 And here's Juni, once again in my lap as I prepare this post. She likes to come up under the arm of my dilapidated desk chair which requires a significant butt boost from me,

Here she's watching videos of her kitten self while I was looking for frame grabs. 

 Finally, I had to break out another feather toy to get a full body shot. Happy birthday Junimoon, you are an absolute sweetheart of a kitty! Time for some birthday treats.

 Some specifics might change in this post later when I have time to look back and scratch my head. Lucy, Juni and I may do a little retrospective photo, video and blog post viewing from the bedroom TV tonight. Watching Juni watch herself on video this morning was a crack up. 

I've seen all good kitties turn their heads each day so satisfied I'm on my way 
Take a straight and stronger course to the corner of your life...

 

Happy 20th Birthday to Lucy!

 It's almost hard to believe that she's 20 years old today but then again, Lucy and I have been through a lot together. Some re-hashing on her arrival date via texts with my son last night regarding Lucy's formal adoption into my apartment in Los Angeles puts that date around mid-June, 2006. Yes, she was just a kitten. On her first full day in the apartment, after my then 16 year old son and I went on a shopping spree at a Petco in L.A., Lucy shot like a bullet out the sliding glass door and high tailed about 20' up a tree. That's when I first realized she was going to be a handful. There's more on Lucy throughout this blog (hint: search "Lucy") and more details about her acquisition can be found in this post from her 19th birthday.

Happy Birthday, Lucy, love of my life, companion and wonderful friend.

Lucy cloaked in her favorite hoodie.
 

In her corner of the bed. Lucy has stairs down to the floor and doesn't leave the bedroom much these days. She eats here on the bed while her water dish and litter box are just a few feet away near the bedroom windows. Lucy maintains a healthy appetite, lately she averages about 230 calories a day. Yes, I count her calories. This image was taken three days ago.

Also taken on April 3rd.

 And despite my struggling a little with low light this morning, here's one from today.

 Special thanks to Junimoon whose first birthday is coming up in just a few days. She insisted on being in my lap to help out with this morning's photo selection process. It only took me 4 times as long to type. 

You say it's your birthday,
It's my birthday too, yeah;
They say it's your birthday,
We're gonna have a good time;
I'm glad it's your birthday,
Happy birthday to you.

 

Wind in the Trees

 This would be a "yesterday's walk report”. Yesterday being, April, 4th. Here are some pictures taken along the way...

Solandra maxima is a flowering plant in the family Solanaceae. It is also known as cup of gold vine, golden chalice vine and Copa de Oro. I have taken pictures of this plant before (of course I have) but I believe this is best image I've taken showing the contrasting colors. All parts of the Solandra maxima plant are extremely toxic. The principal toxins in the Solandra species are the tropane alkaloids scopolamine and hyoscyamine (atropine). So, despite common names, it's not a good idea to take a drink from it.

 A common raven, nothing special about the image. However, I found its behavior circling a small perimeter of sky unusual. It was circling much in the manner of a turkey vulture. The only reference I could find of ravens circling in such fashion was from European folklore, stating that, ravens circling battlefields became omens of death but also protectors of sacred thresholds. Another historical bad rap for Ravens.  

 There is a line of pomegranate trees about 120 yards long only separated by a 40' road. 1,000s of pomegranate flowers right now.

 Wind in the Trees.

It's was pretty breezy for a couple of days. That and what I see as an inherent problem with palo verde trees, they flower heavily and the branches can't support the added weight. I was considering adding a couple of palo verde trees (those and jacaranda) to the then treeless front of my property back in 2012. I had decided that I could live with the fallen flowers but after observing these trees in the local botanical garden snapping off huge portions of tree I'd say annually, I changed my mind. This panorama from March 22nd is of the same tree seen below.

 
But wait! There's more on the other side!

It wasn't the first time I've seen huge breaks in that tree either.

I didn't get great shots of any monarchs yesterday but I wanted to point out that I saw a lot of them. at least compared to what I find being normal. There's also been a substantial amount of native milkweed added on the campus.

 No ID on this bottlebrush.

 It got quite warm during the walk and I only managed 1.87 miles. I'm not too inclined to push myself once the temperature approaches 80º these days. The high for Saturday was 89.4º.

 Wind in the Trees

 

Today's walk report: No news is good news

I recently had a vivid memory of when I first learned the phrase, “no news is good news.” I learned it from my sister. I can’t pinpoint the exact year, but the event is quite clear in my mind. I was about eight years old, and she was about ten. We were sitting at the kitchen table together, alone in our house. It was getting dark, and we were wondering where our mother was. She was late, and there were no cell phones back then. A lot of our concern stemmed from the tragic auto accident that had claimed the life of our father just a few years earlier. We had “go-to” people in our neighborhood, but for some reason, we decided to stick it out together. When our mother finally got home, I think we heard something along the lines of, “Sorry, I lost track of time.”

I would like to dedicate this post to my sister, Kris, because I love her and because I'm tremendously proud of her. 

Despite alternating nags from my left side tensor fasciae latae muscle and my left side quadratus lumborum, it was a pleasant walk, albeit short (1.65 miles). The music was wonderful, and since the kitties wouldn't let me sleep, I had plenty of time to get ready and leave the house ahead of schedule. I’m usually awake by 4:00 AM anyway, but I’m just not generally inclined to shower, dress, eat, and hydrate on top of the usual morning kitty duties. Temperatures for the walk ranged from 63° to 71°F. Here are some pictures from today.

Saturday, March 28.

Hong Kong Orchid Tree (Bauhinia × blakeana).  

 Turk's Cap (Malvaviscus arboreus) a common understory shrub where it occurs in Texas and is an important food source for female and juvenile ruby-throated hummingbirds (Archilochus colubri) and black-chinned hummingbirds (A. alexandri). Each individual flower lasts two days but contains more nectar on the first day. I see black-chinned hummingbirds here but they're not especially common. I'm well out of range for ruby-throated hummingbirds. I had never seen this plant before. The flower is about the size of my pinky fingernail.

Pelargonium sidoides, commonly known as the African geranium or South African geranium. Both images are from the same plant but show drastically different colors.

 Penstemon heterophyllus, 'Margarita BOP'. The BOP stands for "Bottom of the Porch," where the original seedling was found by the nursery that discovered the cultivar.

 Monarch butterflly on Clytostoma callistegioides, or lavender trumpet vine.

 Monarch butterflies on  Verbena bonariensis, commonly known as purpletop vervain, tall verbena, or clustered-top vervain. 

 Globe artichokes (Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus). The tallest of which was about 7 feet. I had no idea that artichokes grew that tall.

 All of the above images were taken at or near the campus arboretum. From there I walked to the botanical garden but I didn't get any pictures I care to show. For the most part I sat on a bench and went Zen. I did see male Allen's hummingbird, Laukki. In fact he flew right at me and hovered about 6 feet above my head as I sat. Two thoughts crossed my mind, is he greeting me, or am I about to get peed upon?

For the second time in as many weeks, in precisely the same spot in the garden, The Moody Blues, The Story in Your Eyes came up on my phone's shuffle play. I was introduced to The Moody Blues by my sister. She had the album, Days of Future Passed and I remember listening to it with her in this very room, probably just a few months shy of my 12th birthday. 

 

Today's walk report: Is there gas in the car?

 Yes, there's gas in the car.*

Today was a drive to and walk from walk. The drive is only to a spot 1/2 mile from home, but it allows me to take off from a spot closer to where I'd rather walk and take pictures. I only managed a 1.56-mile walk this morning, but as late as bedtime last night, I wouldn't have thought that possible. On Friday afternoon, I had jammed my bare left foot into a bedroom door frame and experienced an accelerating level of pain where one might think they're going to pass out. Fortunately, the bed was right there. It was an anniversary event of sorts. In March of 2025, I did something similar in the kitchen. That time, I went full stride with my naked left foot into a firmly planted kitchen chair leg, pushing that chair leg solidly between my fourth and fifth toes. That event surely involved a fracture; recovery took a good eight weeks. I've concluded that Friday's incident would most likely be diagnosed as a grade 2 sprain, a partially torn ligament, noticeable swelling, and significant bruising. I have my toes “buddy-taped." Yesterday, I walked 1.06 miles, and that was a mistake. Today was modestly manageable. 

Here are a few pictures taken on today's walk. 

Sunday, March 22nd.

Parkinsonia florida, the blue palo verde. This is the first thing you will notice walking into the local botanical garden. Absolutely stunning.

 Not knowing how well I would do with the walk and considering the issues I had on Saturday, I had skipped going through most of the arboretum, which is near the entrance of the campus. It was just a slight detour for me to get off the beaten path and head directly to the garden. Since spring has officially sprung, even though it has felt a lot more like summer for the past week, I wanted to see if there was an up-tick in hummingbird activity. Hummingbird central is the one and only Eremophila 'Fairy Floss' (racemosa x maculata) bush inside the garden. I counted five hummingbirds vying for that territory. I was most interested in spotting my friend, Laukki, a male Allen's hummingbird (Selasphorus sasin). Laukki spends most of his time chasing away other hummingbirds.

Here's Laukki perched on twigs from the eucalyptus tree that overlooks the Eremophila.

 This female Anna's hummingbird is the only other bird I saw getting away with some nectar from the Fairy Floss. The "floss" clings to all the beaks.

 Berberis bealei, also known as leatherleaf mahonia, Beale's barberry, is a species of evergreen shrub native to mainland China.

 
That was on my way out of the garden. There was a brief moment where I needed to decide on a right or left-hand turn. Turn left and the walk would have been just over two miles. I turned right. I didn't think pushing my luck with the bum baby toe would be a wise decision. I'm glad I got out; the music on my head was wonderful. By engaging in physical movement and experiencing nature, I moved from a place of mental, linear chaos back to a calm, centered state of being. Kitties welcoming me home kept the mood upbeat. My thanks to Lucy and Junimoon.

To Vit too... A quick update on feral friend Vit the cat. Vit was seriously injured sometime between February 9th and the 10th. A head injury, right side causing significant swelling. He ultimately got 17, 100-130mg, 1x daily doses of amoxicillin, and he was doing much, much better. There has been a large scab on top of deep tissue damage, and it was taking forever to fall. On Thursday, the 19th, he had apparently tried to kick off the remaining portion near the base of his right ear. The situation was non-negotiable; he needed to go back on amoxicillin ASAP. I got some mixed and was able to get it into the last of his Friskies before he finished, but he decided to leave. Since Thursday, he's had three daily doses of amoxicillin. Just as a reminder or if you have no idea what I'm talking about. Here's Vit with Juni as a kitten before she was fully adopted and on board indoors. I'm about 98% sure Vit is Juni's dad. 

 
That's all I have.  

*Kid Charlemagne