Got this shot several days ago in my courtyard. I've counted as many as 11 doves feeding in my yard at one time, but never been able to get a decent shot of more than two or three together at once.

here in NC. Had never seen them before. They do "sting", so don't handle them.

https://www.insectidentification.org/insect-description.php?identification=White-Marked-Tussock-Moth

from the train station. I enjoyed hearing the train whistles at night.

The six years that I lived in St Joseph, MO our house was a couple of miles from the tracks that ran through town, following the Missouri River. Lots of freight trains ran through town, mostly BNSF. My young sons loved to go down to see the river and watch trains going by.

I grew up in northern NJ, not far outside NYC. We almost always took the train into the city. My dad didn't like to fly, so when we went to visit relatives in California, we took trains: 20th Century Limited from NYC to Chicago and then the Super Chief to Los Angeles. This was in the '50's and early '60's. I grew up loving train travel.

In the last 10 years, I've ridden the Coast Starlight from LA to Seattle; the Canadian Rail from Toronto to Vancouver; Amtrak from NC to DC to NY and back several times; and Amtrak round trip from NC to Charleston, SC a couple of times. I still love train travel and I wish we had more options for more routes and faster trains.

in the late afternoon sun on the weeping cherry tree in bloom

From a bouquet on sale for $5. at the grocery store that I brought home Thursday



In the garden this morning, daffodils that were planted last fall



The first blooms from my bleeding heart



And one of a pair of geese this morning that have been hanging out at the pond behind my house (B&W)

which can be found at this link: https://outreach.senate.gov/iqextranet/EsurveyForm.aspx?__cid=TTillis&__sid=100033&__crop=18348.156191219.22416553.7598391

It provided an opportunity to support President Biden, so I answered it.

It has loaded, leading questions. But it also provides space to comment on issues of importance that should be tackled by The White House and Congress. I did: restore women's right to make their own health care decisions; restore the Voting Rights Act; and codify the Fairness Doctrine to require broadcasters to present more than one side of issues.

I would encourage other North Carolinians to at least bombard Tillis with positive statements of support for Joe Biden.

or prideful (willful) ignorance. I think FDR was right about fear being the motivating factor behind many people's behavior, especially fear of "others". And we all know the "others" against which the right wing are railing: women, people of color, immigrants, LGBTQ.

I don't think it's stupidity holding straight white males back from wanting to share power with these "others", but fear that if they do, they will end up being treated the way they've been treating the "others" for centuries.

Wordle 621 5/6

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I discovered that when I had no alcohol in the evening --or at dinner--that I would sleep better. I have also found a breathing technique in bed, lights out, that puts me to sleep within minutes 99% of the time.

Where I used to have trouble getting to sleep and staying asleep, I now get to sleep for 4-6 hours, get up to the bathroom, and am able to go back to sleep for at least an hour or two. Most days I also nap mid afternoon for at least an hour, sometimes longer.

It all adds up to usually 7-8 hours of sleep in a 24 hour period. I'll be 72 next month, and my sleep pattern is much different than before and after I had children.

Within the last few years I went through a period of serious difficulty getting to and staying asleep. Often I would lay awake in bed, unable to get to sleep. I would wake up after two hours and have to walk around the house or read for an hour or more, or move to the sofa to get back to sleep. Then I discovered the relationship to alcohol. Cut that out and it helped sleeping longer and going back to sleep more quickly. I also eliminated watching news at night. Then I discovered the breathing technique for getting to sleep.

On edit: I record Rachel's Monday night show and watch it with coffee the next morning. Sometimes I watch Nicolle Wallace in the afternoon, but I have given up watching news at night, with exception of Election night. It makes me too angry, anxious, sad and generally disgusted with the state of things, which is not a good way to feel right before trying to sleep.

Am I just slow to know what's going on in the world?

There is a second round of episodes to update the story from the original documentary.

I binged the entire series in the last few days. Found myself screaming at the TV because of the incompetent, unethical, white male privileged good 'ole boys running the law enforcement/ court systems in Wisconsin, from the county up to the entire state.

Do not, under any circumstances, ever talk to police investigating a crime without an attorney present. Ever. Never, even if you're a white male. Because even then, the public defender might be in cahoots with the cops looking to advance his own career.

What a f*ing story. And still ongoing. A motion was filed last month by the attorney representing Stephen Avery, who is now 60 and has spent more than 30 years in prison for two crimes he did not commit.

For those who might have followed the story

https://www.nbc15.com/2023/01/26/response-expected-thursday-steven-averys-fight-new-trial/