Bird #422 — Purple Sandpiper

Posted on January 8, 2007 by Roger

calidris (from kalidris, a speckled water bird) maritima (of the sea)

Monday, January 8, 2007 — 10:15 am

Waukegan, Illinois — Waukegan Harbour — Lake Michigan

Purple Sandpipers are reported from the Waukegan area about every other winter. They’re usually seen for a day or so, then disappear. I’ve long been aware that I needed to make the effort to see one, but I can’t remember that I ever had. But the bird I saw today has been hanging around since before Christmas. For the first week or so, it was usually seen on the breakwaters north of the harbor, but a few days ago it moved to the south side.

The last IBET report said it was seen yesterday on a clump of seaweed, visible through a fence, just south of the southernmost breakwater. I parked near the main channel and walked the half mile to the fence. (I could have driven a lot closer, but I didn’t know that. And beside, I wanted some exercise.) Just south of the fence (which is on the breakwater) there’s 300 yards of beach.

The first thing I saw when I arrived was a guy crouching on the beach pointing a huge camera lens back toward my direction. I looked down and saw the clump of seaweed below where I stood, perhaps 30 feet away. And then I saw a sandpiper. Could it really be this easy?

It was. I set up my scope and verified that I was seeing a Purple Sandpiper. I was looking through the fence, so after a minute or so, I walked further out on the breakwater and looked back. Because the other guy was there, the bird was staying close to the fence, so much of the time my view was less-than-ideal. I took some shots through my scope and watched it forage.

It seemed to be most interested in a patch of small rocks or shells that were between the seaweed and the water. The patch was exposed about half the time. When a larger-than-normal wave would come in, the bird would either scramble up on the seaweed, or just let the water shove it up against the edge. It definitely looked to me like it was floating a couple of the times this happened. And that’s about it. For the 20 minutes I watched, it just walked back and forth along the shore, either on the seaweed looking for a chance to clamber down, or down on the sand and patch of shells.

After perhaps 10 minutes, the guy left and the bird began walking further south along the shore, but never leaving the seaweed patch (which was probably 40 feet long). I walked back toward the shore and took some more looks and more photos (this time with just the camera) when it got down far enough so the fence wasn’t blocking my view. One time, it sorta ruffled the feathers on its back, but that’s the only behavior I saw other than what I’ve described above.

Posted in Wildlife | Comments Off on Bird #422 — Purple Sandpiper

Dog n Suds

Posted on December 15, 2006 by Roger

According to this web site, there are 15 Dog n Suds restaurants currently in existence. (Since I began this quest, a few new ones have opened and a few have closed for good — that’s why there aren’t always 15 on the list.) I’m not going to bankrupt myself over this, but I think it would be fun to visit them all.

Posted in Miscellaneous | Comments Off on Dog n Suds

Just Two More and Then I’ll Stop

Posted on December 13, 2006 by Roger

Luke 2:20b — Then after the shepherds, there cometh a flock of penguins which gathereth around the manger.

Uhh, Mary … You gonna eat that last donut?

Posted in Humor | 3 Comments

Christmas in Chicago

Posted on November 30, 2006 by Roger

The family went to the Goodman Theater in Chicago to see A Christmas Carol. We got to the city with about a mile to walk and an hour to spare. We wandered through Daley Center Plaza to look at the giant Christmas tree and other decorations. We still had half an hour, so we walked to Macy’s to see the window displays. It’s Mary Poppins this year. Every other time I’ve done State Street, the crowds were huge, but not this year — we had some of the windows to ourselves.

We got to the Goodman Theater with about 15 minutes to spare. We were on the budget plan — we got the cheapest tickets possible. We were just four rows from the back in the balcony, and only two people sat behind us. But that was close enough to enjoy the play.

I don’t attend a lot of plays, so I don’t have much credibility as a critic. I thought the sets were pretty good, but not as good as the last time we saw A Christmas Carol at the Goodman, about 12 years ago. Back then, they had a rotating house that turned as Scrooge walked up and down the stairs.

None of us liked the guy who played Marley’s ghost like a weird stalker in tights, but the rest of the actors were good. The story didn’t change much. A mighty good time was had by all.

When we walked out of the theater, it was sleeting. If you’ve never walked a mile with driving ice particles bouncing off your bald head, you’ve never lived. We were halfway to the Metra station when we fell in step with a man carrying an umbrella. He held it up and offered to let us walk under it with him. Perhaps one of us would have fit, but certainly not all four. I declined, and he walked on ahead. A block from the station, he made a turn. But before he did, he offered to give me the umbrella. He said, “Take it for the kids.” I thanked him, but declined again. I told him we’d already walked a mile and had just a block to go. He walked off.

The train was crowded. The sleet turned to snow. We got home at 12:05 am in an entirely different month from the one in which we began our adventure.

Posted in Concerts/Performances | Comments Off on Christmas in Chicago

Arf and Barf

Posted on November 25, 2006 by Roger

There was a Dog n Suds drive-in near my house while I was growing up. Many times I walked down for supper. My normal meal was two corn dogs, two tacos, an order of onion rings, an order of French fried mushrooms, and a pint of their special creamy root beer. Occasionally I’d get a Texas burger instead of the tacos. That location has since gone out of business — probably because I moved away.

There are only 13 or so Dog n Suds still in existence, down from about 1,000 in the franchise’s heyday. Last summer my wife and I drove past the one in Richmond, Illinois and saw that it was open. We stopped for lunch, and I got to talking with the manager. He collects Dog n Suds stuff and had several glasses and bags on display. I asked if he had anything with the name on it that I could have, and he gave me a paper hat (below). The restaurant is basically just his hobby. His young niece and nephew were helping out, and I left them a huge tip.

The experience brought back a lot of good memories, and I toyed with the idea of collecting Dog n Suds memorabilia and visiting the remaining restaurants.

It went nowhere — until today. I noticed a Dog n Suds in Cherokee Pass, Missouri on the way south and determined to stop on the way back up. We arrived about 11:45 and pulled in. The place was jammed, and we had to park near the back. I got out and took some pictures.

I moderated — I only ordered two corn dogs, onion rings, and a medium root beer. My wife had a hamburger, fries, and a root beer float. My daughter had a hot dog, onion rings, and a float. The food was excellent — every bit as good as I remembered. This was our view as we ate. We bought a liter of root beer to go, and I started my collection — two cups, a liter bottle, and three bags.

Posted in Missouri | Comments Off on Arf and Barf