Winged Power Photography

These past weeks have been as much of a mental break as they were a return to Ground Level. To Joy. My old self, Square One. If it weren’t for the limits of technology, who knows how long it might have taken for desire to reawaken within me — to come back to this blog.
Suffice to say, here I am again. Back on the ol’ Witiculture blog. Recharged, running full and cool. Ready to tackle new challenges.
Geez, I sound like I’m giving a stump speech.
I’d seriously begun — well, honestly, I was way past begun — to hate computing at home. And I don’t toss that particular four-letter word around too often. Technology can expand one’s abilities for accomplishment, and I’d certainly been eager, early on, to embrace it. » Read More »»

• The Illusion of Cultural Elitism, from Happy Jihad's House of Pancakes
  How to "derive immense pleasure out of grape juice that microbes have farted in."
• Judge Reinstates Endangered Species Act Protections for Wolves
  A federal judge in the U.S. District Court in Missoula, Montana issued a preliminary injunction today reinstating Endangered Species Act protections for wolves in the Northern Rockies.

• Tell the Bush administration to stop the slaughter of gray wolves!
  Since the Bush administration stripped gray wolves of their endangered species protection in March, more than 100 have been gunned down outside Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks, and hundreds more are being targeted for slaughter. Please tell the
• Response to President Bush's Announcement on Lifting Ban on Off-Shore Drilling
  A press release statement by Jim Presswood, Energy Advocate, at the Natural Resources Defense Council.

UPDATE: Please allow me to preface the following post by stating that prior to my writing it, I was not aware that the lone hiker that I describe below had pulled a hoax on authorities; he was not attacked by a mountain lion. Despite this galling evidence, the following post is still pertinent to hiking in mountain lion country. 
Last Saturday a local hiker was attacked by a mountain lion in Palo Alto’s Foothills Park. The hiker was hiking alone. Yesterday, in response to the incident, a number of area parks and preserves were temporarily shut down and an animal tracker was hired by Palo Alto city officials to hunt the mountain lion down and kill it. I vehemently disagree with this knee-jerk tactic. » Read More »»

• Facts on Farts
  This is a page of fart FAQs, complete with synonyms for flatus and flatulate, and fart folk rhymes. And no, I didn't write it - it's just part of the winehiker's trail experience. 'Nuff said.

Yesterday, after learning about one of my favorite wines garnering a Double Gold from the San Francisco International Wine Competition, I decided to pop a bottle and cook up a delicious dinner to go with it. Ever since dining at Slow Club in San Francisco last Thursday night, I’d been in the mood to see if I could conjure up my own version of braised chicken breast, and I felt that the 2006 Torcido from Twisted Oak Winery, with its ripe, meaty flavors, would pair well. » Read More »»

 
The Flamingo Resort, Santa Rosa, circa 1959: it was the place to stay north of the bay within two years of its opening, a posh retreat for the Hollywood Jet Set. One could find the likes of Jayne Mansfield, dramatic and daring in her then-scandalous two-piece swimsuit, soaking up the sun poolside and presumably posing for the local paparazzo. » Read More »»

When Spring sprang in March, I didn’t figure on it affecting my appliances. But within a period of a few days in late May, three different clocks in my house just decided to stop working - fresh batteries notwithstanding. Could there have been unusual solar activity, causing an indefensible energy spike? Extremely high signal-jamming pulses emanating from the nearby Blue Cube? Could it be that the dust which had settled on my clocks over the winter was simply too much for their sweep second hands?
There’s no telling, but I’ve since managed to fix my clocks, and for now, it would seem, I’ve got more time. » Read More »»

The Woodland Star (Lithophragma glabrum), is a member of the Saxifrage family. There aren’t terribly many of these dainty delights relative to other wildflower species, but perhaps that’s due to their lurking in shady little hideaways where mere mortals choose not to tread. Sometimes, however, they appear before us at trailside, white elfin gowns shimmering as if by the winsome whisperings of a mystic muse. » Read More »»

Bradley Cooper lives in Canada’s Okanagan Valley, an immense winemaking region of British Columbia. It’s where he produces small lots of Cabernet, Merlot, Syrah, and a whole host of white wines for Township 7 Vineyards. Now that he’s finished bottling his latest batch of Rosés, he and his wife, Audralee, are going to visit California for their first real vacation since their honeymoon nine years ago. » Read More »»