Sun, sports, and, of course, more about the geese

Gorgeous day after yesterday's dreary rain. 2 people and 2 dogs today, since our daughter is moving, and we took Chewie with us in an effort to exhaust him while the moving is going on. Some success. People in the Nethermead were actually standing in the sun, not the shade so happy to have some sun!

On of the cygnets is in the Lullwater, separated from the other two and quite near a couple of fishermen. We watched for a while from the bridge above them. The fishermen seemed careful and responsible.......I certainly hope so, couldn't stay forever!

Beautiful walk, breakfast from the Snack Bar in the Parade Grounds. It was a delicious breakfast, by the way, such a surprise for a park snack bar! Bacon/eggs/cheese on a roll, good coffee. We sat in the shade watching the sports action. On one side, youth football - kids that looked from about 7 to 17. amazing how some were very fit, others huffing and puffing. Nice to see them all out there. On the other side, the Cosmos had some kind of soccer game going, and we watched for a while. Better quality than the usual weekday morning crowds, but they almost never score!

The geese: The rumor is that they were "accidentally" locked up behind the Lakeside fence, and someone cut the fence to release them. However, I saw zero (0) geese today. And then there's the Ditmas Park Blog story.

Ditmas Park Blog is our local neighborhood blog. I like it a lot, as it reports all kind of things in the neighborhood. FULL DISCLOSURE: They list this blog on the side in a side column, and had a little article about me, but I liked them long before they did those things. Link: (http://ditmasparkblog.com/news/saving-the-geese) Anyway, they list items and people comment. Most items get from 0 to 5 comments. Hot neighborhood issues (e.g. will the new Dunkin Donuts destroy the neighborhood by driving the Gourmet coffee places away?) get maybe 20 comments. SO, they had a little article about the geese. 248 comments, and then they stopped taking new comments. Not 248 people, but rather a few people on each side, pro and con the geese. Some who claims to be a law student (I think he actually works for Bloomberg) who HATES the geese, and a lot of people who love them. Makes fascinating reading, at least for a while. I think people comment like they're having a conversation. But conversations end. People get tired, or bored, or have to go to the bathroom, or even fight, ;but at some point the conversation stops. Not on the Internet. I think we all have to eventually adopt the position: I made my point. In several different ways. this idiot can't see it. I cannot convince him/her. Let it go. Of course, that's NOT what makes the Internet interesting, or so people say. Oh well.

Nice to see clean up crews out in the park, on what will sure be a picnic-filled weekend.

Swans: the stars of Prospect Park

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More geese, more unspeakables

So I decided to check on the gosling today, but there was no sign. there was a flock of 24 geese in the middle of the South shore of the lake, then a smaller flock of 8 a little further on. As said, no sign of the gosling, but we didn't go all the way around the lake. On the weekdays, I don't like going around the Lakeside fences - you are in the road with hundreds of cars speeding to get to work. Weekends are fine, just the usual cyclists, runners, rollerbladers, scooter people, walkers, etc.

The park is looking beautiful, very lush and summery, but it's a lie. Every single on of the interesting, dense bushes along the south shore turns out to be a toilet - lots of toilet paper and heaven knows what else - I didn't look closely, but the smells were very bad, truly horrible. At first, since we watch a lot of Law and Order re-runs, we thought there might be a body, but we didn't want to look too closely. Then we thought that it might be winter stuff all decomposing at the same time, though it's a little late. Then we noticed all the bathroom sites. DON'T LET YOUR CHILD GO PLAY IN THE INTERESTING, FORT-LIKE SHRUBS!! And it's senseless, like the authorities are completely ignoring the presence of the homeless in the park. Do they think that if you ignore them they will go away? The problem is that THERE ARE NO BATHROOMS!! There are port-a-johns at the SE and SW corners, but nothing along the c. 1 mile in between. This is the piece that parallels Parkside Ave.

I tried to get a clear picture of the interesting white bird in the lake. Perhaps I need a tripod. any ideas as to species?

Other than that, nice summery day. Dogs and owners have moved to the shady spots, and they are busy fixing street signs on church Avenue.

Am explanation: Some people I met who read this say it is confusing about "where the Haitians hang out" vs. "Drummers Circle. Shall try to clearly explicate. Drummers Circle is on the E side of the park, near the SE corner, between Ocean Ave and E. Lake Drive, across from where the Parking Lot used to be before they tore it all up. For the geographically challenged: the SE corner of the Park is near the Parkside Q stop, the SW corner is at Park Circle, near the TD bank. The "place where the Haitians hang" is along the South side of the Park, next to the Rustic shelter and the fencing around Lakeside. There was once a beautifully carved old tree trunk there - a lion's head. Totally artistic and fabulous. Alas, it got burnt and destroyed over the years. Now there's a painted rock, not as fabulous as the lion but not bad. Benches are in a circle around it, and I have been told that Haitians use it for communal activities. I think I'll call it the Haitian Circle from now on. Hope this clears everything up.

Our love and best wishes to Tony, who is having some medical work done today.

Weekend review

Another beautiful day. Loads of bugs (Thank you, wet spring), but they seem to be keeping to themselves. Well, I say that, but they seem to go after my daughter a lot. Diet? Genes? Who knows? I certainly eat my share of sweets, and more, but I also eat a lot of whole grains, which supposedly contain all those great B vitamins that make you less attractive to insects. Nice to know I'm doing something right with my menu.

All of the geese seem to be at the Western end of the lake. Didn't notice gosling, but I didn't look too closely either. Busy picking up trash from the weekend, as was everyone else. Two day weekends are not QUITE as bad as 3 day weekends, but the day after is still pretty bad. There was a nice looking family group at BBQ Plaza yesterday, which might explain why the trash was prettily neatly packed. THANK YOU!!

Turtles out already - at 7:30! Lets you know what a nice day it is.

Dear Anonymous: You asked if the gosling + family could have walked from Doggie Beach area to the Lake. Probably not, but they could have swum. The waterways in the park are so wonderful, that most people forget that it is a totally fake system, and one system only, starting from the general area near Doggie Beach. The geese could have easily swum, walking around the various waterfalls. For a more detailed explanation, go to: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prospect_Park_%28Brooklyn%29 This is part of Wikipedia, which I normally HATE, HATE, HATE, because of its frequent subjectivity and slants, but this article seems pretty clear and objective.

1 gosling, about 25 geese

So we had a lovely walk around the lake today, looking for geese and other assorted birds. N and her husband and the dog (Chewie) decided to have a nice Sunday morning lie-in instead of 7 AM off to the park. What could they be thinking (:) ? Anyway, since JJ is not so nearly as playful as Chewie, we all enjoyed the walk.

Anyway, there was a flock of about 12 geese in the Southwestern part of the Lake, near what I call the beach. Another small flock, about 11, was by the Southern shore of the lake, just past the three islands. And there, just before the little communal space that the Haitians use, was the nice young goose couple with their one gosling that daughter and hubby saw the other day. No idea if the gosling is in good health. at first, it was just sitting on the grass, but then it got up and walked around and ate. And that was it. No other geese that we could see.

There were also 4 strange looking birds in the trees of the three islands. They looked larger than cormorants, maybe vultures. We are not good at bird identifying. Anyone know what they are?

Swan family was happily swimming in the Lullwater, eating lots and lots of weeds.

Very interesting that the geese were all in their flocks at 7:30-ish when we arrived, but had separated by the time we were leaving at a little after 9.

We also had a great time later in the day at a Petanque (aka Boule) tournament in the Parade grounds. Wonderful throwing techniques, friendly people. There's a photo of me with the President of the Petanque Club!

Beautiful, beautiful day

Well, we've been going to the park on and off, but just haven't felt the blogging urge in a little bit. Today. when I didn't have my camera, I was, of course, inspired to write. Where to start? A couple of days ago, we went up the hill and found 17 crack bags, mostly near the base of the hill. Had the rain washed them down? Was this because we hadn't been in a few days (the rain)? Was there a party? Was this one last smoke-in just before the new antismoking rules went into effect? We speculated endlessly and, I think, entertainingly. Today we got our answer: none of the above. Fourteen crack bags today. Spring is here. It's a beautiful, beautiful day.

Actually, it feels more like summer. Beautiful quiet spots all over, with thick overhangings of trees. Lots and lots of dogs and owners, all enjoying this gorgeous day. We saw two groups of geese, one group of 19 and one group of 7, all adults. These were all at the SE part of the lake. Wer have no idea if there are more at the other end or in other parts of the park, but it was nice to see the 26. Three cygnets, looking big and beautiful.

Rumor and hearsay: The "park dog," as he is called because of the belief that he actually lives here, may not. There have been reports of a man in the park every morning, feeding him. And he does look well cared for. Current rumor is that someone leaves him in the Park all day as a day care site.

Wildlife count

Today's wildlife count: 14 geese, 5 crack bags, 3 cygnets, and a beautiful big white snowy egret. No pictures - I used up my camera's battery. Very annoying. I knew the battery was getting low, and left it next to the camera. However, in the mental haze of getting to the park early, I completely forgot it. I used to be kind of spontaneous and free-spirited and remember all kinds of things. Now, sad to say, I have to organize myself in order to remember things. So I leave the things I'll need to take to the park on top of the hall bookcase the night before - glasses, camera, watch. Now it seems like that doesn't work - it takes days to develop a new habit. Something to do with getting older. Oh well, it's better than the alternative.

Amazing that they did the Sunday trash pickup, since every can was overflowing again today. I picked up a lot more than just crack bags on Lookout Hill today. There was a huge beverage tray - the kind that the delivery trucks use. And limes, so I presume that it was a full party's worth of beer. Did not see the beer cans! Guess I wasn't the only one who wanted to stay all day in the park in the beautiful weather yesterday. And it makes up for the cooler, grayer weather that we'll have all week.

Back from Baltimore

Back from a terrific 3-day mini-vacation in Baltimore, where there were leaves on the trees, warmth in the air, and Spring had definitely arrived. Three days of visionary art, crabcakes, and water taxi rides across the bay. There were some Canada geese in the harbor. I tried to persuade a pair to come back to Brooklyn with me, but they said absolutely not - seems that word of the Killing Fields of Brooklyn has made it as far south as Baltimore.

I do feel as if I brought spring back with me, since we now have leaves and flowers on the trees, turtles sunning themselves on every possible rock and twig, and tons of trash all about. Come on people, pick up after yourself!! Although Candleman's corner has no candles or any trash at all now. even my little sign has been cleared away.

Only about a dozen geese in the lake these days. Interesting, since there are many news reports about how they're going to oil the eggs and see what happens to keep the population down. Down to what? I don't think 12 are nearly enough. Okay, maybe 300-400 was too many, but it's a big lake. I think we can accommodate about 100 geese in all. that's the number we should be making plans for, instead of making plans to kill and destroy and reduce the population. Parks Dept: Write 1,000 times NATURE IS GOOD, NATURE IS GOOD, NATURE IS GOOD.

I'm sure I'm getting very repetitive and boring, going on and on about how important wildlife is in city parks, but B'berg went on the other day about making the city greener. How can he order the mass killing of wildlife and want a "green" city. The man has no clue. "Green" means more than energy efficient lightbulbs. He says he wants more parks - smaller ones - that no wildlife would find inviting. His ideal park is a concrete square with two trees. Such a far cry from the beautiful vision of Olmstead and Vaux, who gave us the gems that are PP and CP!

We have our own visionary art in PP - see the beautiful silver angel in the pine tree! The haze is smoke from someone starting up a fire in BBQ Plaza.

Some gray musings on a gray day

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One of my facebook friends put this up, and it perfectly describes exactly how I feel this morning. Thought I'd share it, since I know I'm not the only one. Gray day, gray thoughts. We are seeing so few animals in Prospect Park these days, and I really miss them. There were so many last year!!It felt like it was their park as well, and I really appreciated their sharing their lives with us. Now they seem to be all gone.

The entire population of geese was, of course, eradicated. And for no good reason. And all the different excuses/reasons given sounded remarkably like the rationale for every genocide every committed. They don't belong. They're dirty. They're dangerous. And now, since these were resident geese, there are no more. A few migratory ones come in, stay only for a while, and leave. Goslings return to the place where they were born. And since all the little baby goslings were also killed, there are none to come back.

Then there is the lack of turtles. Apparently they've been sunning themselves in Central park for weeks, but none here so far. It could be that there haven't been that many warm sunny days, and the rocks in Central Park are a little more open and amenable to warming in what sun there has been. I certainly hope so.

PP itself seems to be getting much less natural and wild. Herbicides to kill off the "bad plants." The Lakeside Project concreting over large areas, with tame, manicured little gardens replacing large portions of fields and grass areas. Everything planned, predictable, safe, boring. The magic of nature and wildlife - gone, gone, gone!

So, on the one hand, I feel very lucky to have experienced the magic of wildlife in PP last year. I feel a little flicker of joy whenever I think about it. The geese flying overhead. The swans puffing up and trying to intimidate each other. The turtles - slipping into the water at the merest hint of sound. The rabbit we used to see. The many species of ducks. Even when the animals fought, which was only very occasionally, it was wonderful. Genuine wildlife!! Maybe not peace and love all the time, but at least when there is a fight it is fair and for a reason. Gee, I wish humans would learn from them instead of wiping them out.

Misty Morning in Prospect Park

So quiet and peaceful! Just a beautiful misty day, before the fog all burns off and the weather goes up to near the 80's. And some of the animals we saw, just doing their thing, minding their own business.

Animal behavior

The many, many geese that were hanging out in the Parade Grounds fields that wtill have real grass (not many) were all gone yesterday, and only a very few were there today. I wonder what's going on. Have they migrated back north? Have they moved on to Gateway? They couldn't have been killed, since they are not moulting and can't be gathered up. (They only get murdered when they are moulting, can't fly, and thus defenseless against the round-ups. SO not fair!) I don't think they moved to the park, because there aren't a whole lot of geese in the lake these days. Very curious.

JJ is 9 now and seems to be getting more and more cranky and set in her ways. She is part Border Collie, and is very protective and likes to keep her "herd" together. We once met an actual Border Collie breeder when camping upstate with JJ, who told us that if we don't give her a job, she'll pick her own. Which she did. Protecting us. I have mentioned how we use this to get her to run across any meadow we are at by splitting up and walking around. She goes back and forth, back and forth, trying to get her herd together. We never could sit down. Then she gets really protective and barks at anyone who comes near.

Problem is, now she acts like that when we are just standing around. She reminds me of some people who will never retire because they'd have no idea of what to do with themselves without work.. which got me thinking about work. Dogs don't go to "work." There is no distinction between what we see as their work and their lives. People used to be like that. When did the idea of "going to work" evolve? Was it the Industrial Revolution? Or the Agricultural Revolution, when surpluses allowed the creation of specialists (tool-makers, brewers, artists, etc.) Just some thoughts.

There seems to be no activity whatsoever at the alleged site of the Boardwalk empire filming. Disappointing. Well, the Ditmas Park Blog says they have several other areas in the nabe where they're filming. maybe I'll walk in the other direction later today.

4 cormorants 4

Actually, I didn't see them today (geese and ducks took over the log today), but I have been informed by my readers that they are in fact cormorants, not egrets. Thank you. I feel really bad about not recognizing them, since we saw many when we were vacationing on the Gaspe Peninsula last summer. Even went and used the free Internet in the Visitor's Center to learn more about them. Starting to worry about my memory. Oh well, I haven't put my keys in the freezer yet. Anyway, I do appreciate the corrections although, after this and the Lincoln/Poe incident, I probably should rename this blog the "Find the factual error" blog. Maybe offer a prize? Really, the satisfaction of knowing you have spread knowledge and enlightenment in the world is about the best I can offer.

I also made a semi-joking comment about hoping Bloomberg won't have them (the egrets/cormorants) gassed too. Sadly, it is no joke (thanks, Bonnie). Did some research. Apparently, cormorants have been considered a pest for years, especially in the midwest area of this continent. And why? BECAUSE THEY COMPETE FOR FISH WITH THE FISHERMAN!!!!!!! In 1999, American guides were actually arrested for killing over 2,000 cormorants near the American shore of Lake Ontario. And now I find that Canada has been "culling" (their word for killing) thousands of them for several years now, in spite of protests from their citizens and an organization called Cormorant Defenders International http://www.zoocheck.com/cormorant/?id=14. I found this absolutely shocking. Canada? Land of Nice? I have always considered America the embodiment of what I call the 'John Wayne School of Diplomacy" (Step 1: Shoot and kill). Sadly, it's not just us. Not to go off on too much of a tangent, there's a Canadian guy named Al who keeps sponsoring illegal coyote killing contests, and the authorities don't seem to do anything about it. Of course the prize Al gives away is a gun. Sigh.

On the more local subject of our geese...yes, I do think there were too many of them last summer. In my entries last summer, I kept referring to them as Nazis, partly because they had taken over the lake and driven the swans and ducks away to the Audubon boat house, partly to their habit of, well, goosestepping when they walked. These were supposed to be migrating birds who stopped migrating and moved in. There were about 5 flocks of them, and it really was too much. I didn't want them killed, but I did think we needed to limit the growth of the population in a humane way. Which is why I pretty much like the recent recommendations about the egg-oiling, plantings, no feeding, and occasional use of dogs

Today in the park

I actually haven't been in a few days. Two reasons. One: hubby had to go in for minor surgery, which ended up in a two day stay in the hospital. Two: weather was not conducive. Even JJ didn't want to go. Yesterday, I needed spring so badly I went to Macy's for the flower show which, by the way, was pretty nice and cheerful. Back on track today.

Sure signs of Spring: Clumps of daffodils everywhere. Big bike race. Also, the FIDO Coffee Bark, which has been moved slightly downhill to the Long Meadow, was very well attended. We walked all the way there and back, and even stopped at the Grand Army Greenmarket for some of Rick's Pick's low sodium pickles. On the way back, we saw a group of Girl Scouts gathering at the Asian Pagoda for a day of tree planting and gardening in the Park. Good for them! Also a group of young runners training to be Marines. So vigorous and proud! Couldn't tell if they were actual Marines or some kind of Junior ROTC, but they were doing great on this very beautiful day in the park.

Filming alert: Boardwalk Empire will be filming Monday, 6 AM to 8 PM, around the house with the big wraparound porch on the SE corner of the Argyle/Albemarle intersection. Cameras already in place.

Oh Spring, what a tease! Part II

Back to snow again, but this time it's a perfect snow. Big, soft moist flakes falling quietly, perfect for making snowballs, and it probably won't last more than a day or two. The Park was almost unbearably beautiful -felt like I was walking in a living Ansel Adams calendar. (Note to self: Check out the Barnes & Noble calendar sales racks for an Ansel Adams calendar. Although there are rarely any beautiful ones left by this time. Lots of sports, TV shows, dogs wearing clothes, nothing I might actually want to look at for a month at a time. An I guess no one else does either, which is why they're there.) Anyway, the delicacy of snow on trees, the cheeriness of dogs bounding in the snow, just wonderful.

The geese were out for a stroll on the snow-covered ice-covered lake. And some came flying in. Dead geese walking, what with the current plans to kill them all in July. So twisted. We saw one of the tagged geese, hanging out with a crowd of mostly ducks. Maybe he's heard and is trying to blend in with the permissible life forms.

No Frisbee players today. Maybe Extreme Frisbee would be playing on snow and ice? A little more dangerous than grass, but not as deadly as razor sharp Frisbees. (cf. previous post.)

Anne tells us she's seen a rare Cooper's Hawk in the Park the last 3 days. One Michael Castellano took the great picture she sent me, which I'm posting.

And we saw a very sad looking blue dog on the way home. Not liking the snow at all, that one.