A Nice Summer Song/Video

Stay The Night
By James Blunt

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Got my first photos of this bird so I can add it to my list and blog it. If I get more/better photos I'll add them here.
This is the first time I've noticed those patches of white on the wings.

cornell
Note female is brown with yellow patches and white streaking.
The other bird with the male yellow-headed blackbird was a male house sparrow.

North Dakota Crop Circle

North Dakota Crop Circle - Ha

Tiger Lilies

Orange Tiger Lily (Lilium lancifolium)
They photograph better in the shade. In the sun, the colors look too harsh.

Minot - Souris River

I've been tracking Minot's Souris river levels too, yet another record breaker.
The second crest rose so fast and high that they had little time to prepare for it.
The Souris has never been that high since records were kept dating back to 1881.
Other smaller towns along the Souris, like Burlington (above Minot), Sawyer, Velva (below Minot) also had flooding problems.

Charts mine, data here.



North Dakota Rivers - Souris highlighted:

ND Rivers
ND Cities
(Layer the two on top of each other.)

Garrison Dam - Bismarck - Missouri River

Garrison dam has turned into quite the tourist attraction this year with the first ever spillway opening and the high release levels.
I wasn't all that interested in going there because I had already seen photos and videos online.
I was wrong.
Much more impressive to go there in person and have the sensory experience of that water bursting and splashing out.



The down side is that viewing areas are more restricted so everyone sees only a few views and everyone is taking the same photos and the same videos. They have the spillway parking area so blocked up that at first I didn't even think we could get over to the west side where the water is rushing out. But you can. You can still park in a portion of the parking lot and then you walk across the highway over to the west side of the spillway. It is blocked for vehicle traffic, but foot traffic is still allowed.



The spillway has to be photographed facing the sun (South). High contrast situation. It was a challenge photographing/videoing the water and I didn't like my results much. We were there in the morning. I don't know if late afternoon would be any better for photography. The spillway is East/West direction.

There is usually an abundance of birds, including pelicans, to photograph around the dam area when the water isn't booming out. I could see birds in the far distance, so they were still around, just too far away to photograph.

Video
NDNG Aerial View of Garrison Dam



Video2
OmahaUSACE - Corps so better viewing access/different views.
Dated 6 Jun 11 - my notes say maybe about 120,000 cfs.
usace website

Video3
Typical tourist views.
Dated 11 Jun 11 - my notes say about 135,000 cfs.

This is what I have for later scheduled releases:
17 Jun11 - 150,000 cfs (That was the maximum.)
27 Jun 11 - 145,000 cfs
09 Jul 11 - 140,000 cfs
After 09Jul11, the releases will gradually be reduced by 5,000 cfs.
18 Jul 11 - 120,000 cfs
29 Jul 11 - 110,000 cfs
The schedule changes all the time.
Corps says effective 6 Jul 11, releases will be 140,000 cfs, so they must have reduced it sooner than previously scheduled.

I think the river level at Bismarck peaked at 19.25 feet on
01 Jul 11.
(Bismarck/Mandan - twin cities.)
That will probably be the crest reported for the year 2011.
The river hasn't been that high since the Garrison dam was built and in operation (1953).




Charts mine, data here.

North Dakota Rivers - Missouri, Little Missouri highlighted:
(Note flooding in Williston and Medora area also.)

ND Rivers
ND Cities
(Layer the two on top of each other.)

NOTE on cfs:
1 cubic feet per second (cfs) = 7.48 gallons per second
7.48 x 60 = 448.8 gallons per minute
448.8 x 1,440 = 646,272 gallons per day
140,000 cfs x 646,272 = 90,478,080,000 gallons per day

Under The Sumac Tree

We were at the monastery beside/on University of Mary campus South Bismarck with overlook views of the Missouri river.

I was interested in these nifty fernlike trees.
I think they are sumac trees.



ND Tree Handbook
(See section III small trees.)

Family Anacardiaceae (cashew/sumac)

The tree body looked more like the image of
Sumac, Smooth (Rhus glabra)
Similar to Staghorn sumac but shorter.

But I think it's probably the
Sumac, Staghorn (Rhus typhina/Rhus hirta)
wiki
(See "Male flower cluster" image.)

Mine looks similar:


The sumac trees are probably gloriously ablaze with red leaves in autumn.



The monastery has a labyrinth.
(Better image view of the labyrinth pattern here.)
I'd like to walk it sometime. Maybe I'll return in the autumn, so I can also see those pretty sumac tree leaves.




Four Labyrinths in the state.
This one is described as Medieval, 11 circuit, grass pathway, edged with natural stones.

Listening To

Two songs:



Gold In The Air Of Summer
By Kings of Convenience
"an indie folk-pop duo from Bergen, Norway."

The words aren't sad, but the music sure is.
Nostalgic, I guess.

Without giving anything away,
I can say it's by the sea.
It's a house that used to be the home of a friend of mine.
Without giving anything away,
you'll find ships inside of bottles,
and the garden's overgrown,
the house is white but the paint is coming off.
I didn't know if you wanted to,
when I came to pick you up.
You didn't even hesitate,
and now you and me are on our way.
I think I've brought everything we need,
don't look back,
don't think of the other places you should have been
it's a good thing that you came along with me.
Gold in the air of summer,
you'll shine like gold in the air of summer.

Life Is Life
By Noah and the Whale
"an English Indie folk band from Twickenham, London, England"

Wasn't that Noah and the ark, Jonah and the whale? Okay, never mind...

"The name 'Noah and the Whale' is a combination of the title of one of the band's favourite films, The Squid and the Whale, and the name of the film's director , Noah Baumbach."

The scream and running (video) sure fits the topic.

Well he used to be somebody
And now he's someone else
Took apart his old life
Left it on the shelf
Sick of being someone
He did not admire
Took up all his old things
Set em all on fire

He's gonna change
Gonna change his ways
Gonna change
Gonna change his ways

And it feels like his new life can start
And it feels like heaven

Sparrow Headache

Went for a walk in the field and kept getting different sparrow photos.
And I'm like, oh no, yet *another* sparrow. LOL
Sparrows are so difficult to identify.
I think I probably ended up with several ones I already have, Grasshopper, chipping, clay-colored, etc.
I like this one of the clay-colored sparrow (previously):



One sparrow photo really has me stumped, but I didn't like the background on it anyway, so I'm going to see if I can get something better before I blog it. I saw a juvenile robin out there also.

Here's some of the grass photos I like:





No coneflower blossoms yet, but they're coming up.
Too much yellow sweet clover in the field this year. I hope it's not taking over.

Wind And Willow

Daisies, Roses, Dandelions
By Wind And Willow
Mark and Sarah Tillman

Listen at bandcamp.

Photo from facebook.
Edits mine.

Photo Walk

The back of a waxwing showing the red and yellow markings:

(previously).

Listening To...

Holding A Heart
By Girl Named Toby (Toby Lightman)
bandcamp
"Once upon a time a girl named Toby met a boy named Todd. Together they wrote strange and beautiful pop songs, recorded them and now they belong to you..."
released 17 Oct 2010
Toby Lightman: Vocals, Guitar, Strings
Todd Wright: The Other Stuff

Imagery

More Filter/Plugin fun:

Andrew's Filters 56 Circulation


Andrew's Filters 13 Windows Blinds



Filter Factory A Sabers Explosion One, Filter Factory M Faceter


Filter Factory E Flower II


Andrew's Filters 52 Crazy Wave (Seamless)


Andrew's Filters 17 Flame Lines


Previously

Every Teardrop Is A Waterfall

Hey, I like the new Coldplay song, Every Teardrop is a Waterfall.

YouTube
(Dated 2 Jun 11)

Image creation note:
Obviously using the song cover art for inspiration.
VM Instant Art - Colorfield Generator, Texture, VM Distortion - Brightness By Brightness
Bauhaus 93 font with white outline and blurry shadow
Raindrop Tube

Flood

Lots of flood problems in North Dakota this year.
Garrison Dam Aerial Video
They opened the spillway for the first time since the dam was built in 1953.

Aerial Photos ND National Guard

Tutorial I used to make the text animation:
Water Text

I liked the Stream Text animation tut also.

Filter Fun

Just for fun, I take a gradient or pattern or photo of mine and start adding different Effects and Plugins/Filters in Paint Shop Pro to see what I can come up with. Here are some recent favs I made:

Energy Clouds gradient
VM Natural - Instant Art, Strange Life Form 2
Under The Sea:


Graphic pattern and Feedback Effect:


Leafy photo with Alf's Zoom Blur and Channel Spin:


Dots Pattern Fill, Andrews 13 - Wet Day, Wet Saturday Afternoon, Weird Angles


Filter Factory Gallery A - Sabers Explosion One and Triangular Mosaic Filter, Filters Unlimited- Aged Film, Kaleidoscope Effect


Gradient, VM Distortion - Distortion By Brightness, Filter Factory Gallery A - Triangular Mosaic


VM Extravaganza - Biohazard on a graphic pattern:


VM Instant Art - Origami (original image does not matter):


Dots Pattern Fill, Andrews Filter 9 - Mind Explosive, Radial Blur Effect
Planets Spin: