Strange Bird-Fellows

heidi08 New Species October 8, 2009

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=NVy4suAKhV0]

I promised to tell you a little about the Sandhill Cranes traveling companions. When I looked at the shorter birds in the front I thought I was in the wrong state. They’re Ibis! White-faced ibis to be exact (although their faces aren’t white at the moment). The flock of brown speckled similar birds aren’t the females. They’re long billed curlew.

Any one of these birds would be a fairly amazing sighting, but a couple hundred of all three is a rare treat. They’ve stopped in a cornfield that has been cut down, so there’s lots of little loose kernals lying around for munching. I couldn’t tell which flock lead the way, but on this particular day the cranes had the best feeding ground, and when they moved out the ibis and curlew moved in. Amazingly, when I passed that way the same time the following day I didn’t see a single one. They were just passing through.

I just had to do a video for the event, but worked all day yesterday on a soundtrack that youtube deleted. Sigh. I actually like this better, but it was very frusterating to do it again. Must remember to pick famous songs recorded by unfamous people.

Approved

heidi08 City Reports October 7, 2009

Our presentation to the PPMCC last night was well received and (if I say so myself) well delivered. Beaver friends Lory & Jean were there to while away the long hours and Jill Harcke, executive director of the John Muir Mountain Day Camp was there to look supportive. Jill was very happy with the beaver presentation we did at camp, and we were just thrilled with her gifted artists’ tile contributions. She brought a special “beaver trophy” as a thank you and a print out of all the quotes from John Muir with the word “beaver” in them.

(She does thank you, very well.)

The commission enjoyed the presentation and was appreciative of the sample tile I passed around. They had a brief discussion where they agreed that this was in their purview. Then mentioned a new plan from Main Street Martinez to do an artist tile bridge coming up for review. First I (or most of them) had heard of it. (And to be honest if it existed before I had lunch with some key players to talk about our plan I will eat a bug). But good ideas are always stolen, we’ve established that. I’m don’t mind sharing.

There was some discussion earlier about the connundrum of how could Martinez possibly make good choices on the cultural commission without a cultural plan? One Unfan of ours wanted to delay the project because the said plan didn’t exist, and talked forlornly about how art could not be appreciated without rules. He described an important mural in his office that he “had painted over” because he hadn’t known how significant the muralist was. “And I actually liked the painting! But I covered it up. I didn’t know better because there wasn’t a plan. I would never had done it i I’d known.”

The mind reals. The jaw drops.

(I would have liked that movie if I would have read the review. I would have enjoyed that wine if I had known how much it cost. I would have loved that music if I knew Rolling Stone was going to rate it 5 stars.I would have slept comfortably in that bed if I had known the mattresses were European. I would have appreciated that girlfriend if I knew at the time who she was going to eventually marry.)

Certainly a person couldn’t possibly just use their own SENSES to actually decide what they enjoyed and make such a decision without a plan, could they? Certainly an educated person couldn’t research a work of art and learn about the artist and decide whether to keep it or not? Honestly, I couldn’t imagine the kind of self-awareness you would have to lack to say this out loud in a public forum in defense of already questionable action.

Another Unfan wanted us to get a permit from fish and game because we were working near the creek, (!) and maybe go to the planning commission as well (!!). I greatly appreciated the other members disagreement and Karen Majors clever warning that “We don’t like to send projects into a “Mobius Strip”. (Which, given that the application for a public event in the city of Martinez is 19 pages, can’t be entirely true, but I was so happy to be supported that I tried not to appear doubtful.) (Just for comparision the application for an event in San Francisco is one page.)

A nice man asked if there were issues for our timeline and if going on to city council would delay us inconveniently. Having sat already in the meeting for nearly three hours I smiled and said “Yes, but we’ve waited before. We know how to do it.” A brave voice pointed out that this was children’s artwork and what was the planning commission going to change? There was a motion to approve and send us off to coordinate with staff, which was seconded. The commission voted nine to two (Unfans) to approve, and Karen will contact me to arrange a meeting with staff to work out the particulars. I think I’m supposed to come back in Novemeber for a final final final approval, but at least I don’t need to go to the council.

All in all it was a successful (but longggggggggggg) night. The issue of naming the beaver festival park was delayed for another day, but I was able to mention that I was fairly sure what it should be called. “Some people call it the-park-where-Steve-Weir-got-married, but that only happened once, and we’ve had two festivals now.”

Just saying.

Bridge Over Troubled Waters…

heidi08 Beaver News, City Reports, Creative Solutions October 6, 2009

Beaver Visibility Project: Part I

Tonight’s presentation to the Parks, Recreation, Marina, and Cultural Commission will include a presentation on the proposal for children’s tile art on the Escobar bridge. Alhambra Creek’s “troubled waters” has been the subject of much consternation and joy for the past two years. Let’s build a monument to mark the journey! The tiles were created with the help of artist Frogard Butler at our beaver festival. Others were added under supervision of Jill Harcke at the John Muir Mountain Day Camp. They are waterproof, weatherproof, and weary-proof. They are delightful to look at every time I see them.

The idea is to use the blank wall of concrete along the Escobar bridge as a base and to install three 6 foot long panels framed in cobalt blue. Each panel will have three blocks of nine tiles each, which will allow the images to be broken into visually pleasing palates, like patches on a quilt. The surface will be treated with a graffiti protection, so that any unwanted marks can be easily removed. We have already consulted with a general contractor who outlined the necessary steps and is willing to help with the project for cost.

It is interesting to consider that other than the beavers themselves and some little images on the kiosk, there is no visual reminder of the beavers in the entire city of Martinez. Information come from the media, the website, and the brochures we hand out at the library and train station, but don’t represent the city itself. Martinez, who has picked up the tab for the necessary flow device, (and that unnecessary other thing), has not taken credit in a proud visual way for an accomplishment that is recognized as far away as Tampa and Memphis. The bridge project would acknowledge the hard work done by our city and our residents, and the truly remarkable achievement we have accomplished.

Think about it: Martinez took a very conflictual issue and wove it into a trademark. Not only a trademark–but one that is still continuing to renew our urban creek and generate new interest in our city. How often when you tell people where you are from do they ask, “Oh you mean where the beavers are?”. I can’t remember the last time someone responded by asking me about the refinery blowing up.

The tile project would be a monument to the work we have done to beat our swords into plowshares…(our fears into flow devices?). It would be paid for entirely by Worth A Dam, and could be supervised by the city. And it would be really cute.

Part two of the Beaver Visibility Project would be interpretive signs, but we’ll talk about that later. Come see more at tonight’s presentation, or join us for moral support. The meeting is at 7 pm at city hall. The beavers have may have made “troubled waters” for Martinez, but only a fool would fail to see that they’ve been the bridge as well.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=GYKJuDxYr3I]

Friends at Bay Nature

heidi08 Uncategorized October 5, 2009

Go look at Nicola DeRobertis-Theye new article about just what it means to have a keystone species around an urban habitat. Don’t Cheryl’s photos look lovely on the big screen? More tomorrow, but thanks Nicola! If you’re looking for video on the mink family, check here or click the box at the right.

Sandy visitors

heidi08 New Species October 5, 2009

Yesterday I stopped off highway 12 in between some toll bridges to regard a field of strangely long- necked geese. When I got the camera lens out I was able to see that it was about 300 Sandhill Cranes stopping to feed in one of the delta farm lands on their migration. Grus canadensis (they have the same last name as our beavers!) can be 5 feet tall with a wing span of 80 inches. Despite the whizzing car noises, their strange call was audible, and if you haven’t heard it treat yourself and follow the link to the Cornell Bird Site where you can listen to how other-worldly it sounds.

Sandhill cranes might not mate until they are seven years old. They can live 20 years. They woo their partners with elaborate dances, and continue little moments of dancing year round, (which should inspire us all to try it). They mate for life and stick with their feathered partner through the seasons. They breed and rear young in long summers in northern canada, and then return here for winter, migrating a mere 1000 miles or more with their children to teach them the routes. Sandhill Cranes are almost the only species of Crane that aren’t endangered.

It’s a great time of year to see these amazing birds. There’s a Lodi Crane festival nearby, and crane walks all over the delta. Honestly standing at the edge of that populated field was weirdly like standing near a watering hole in the serengeti. Along with the cranes were 100 birds I had no idea we even had in California, and I’ll tell you about those later. For now, imagine the long line of flapping wings as a football field of sandhill cranes decided to take again to the sky.

[youtube:http://youtube.com/watch?v=AgvwgI51DGU]