sparrows

July 8, 2026

Bird of the Day: chipping sparrow, 99.5% certainty.

Where: Eakin Park at Tobin Road

When: 6:52 pm

Bird Species: house sparrow, house finch, eastern bluebird, northern cardinal, chipping sparrow

Things I Thought About:

I had 11 meetings in an 8.5 hour work day today. I am not thinking about anything.
Well, I'm thinking about buying a new personal laptop. At my former job, I did a lot of personal stuff on my work laptop, and it was fine, but my new work laptop is 1) a Thinkpad, which sucks, and 2) integrated with everything, so I'd be worried about doing Zoom trivia on it.

*Look, a beautiful bluebird. She is a soft-eyed lady and mom who is done running errands but is hanging out on the fence because she does not want to go into the house yet.*

Then again, since I've started doing things on my personal laptop again, I am forced to remember that it moved to Virginia with me in 2017, has zero space on the hard drive, and is likely to explode any minute. (Note: it did in fact explode and die during Zoom trivia, and I did in fact use my work laptop for the game. At a certain point it occurred to me that I don't care if I get reprimanded for it. I'll buy a laptop this weekend.)
They have recently redone all the signage along this section of the Cross County Trail. I really like what they've done, they do a good job around here.

*A lot of new signage with interactive items like this. It sounds mostly like a stick being rubbed on a plastic frog, but it's still a really nice addition to my favorite turtle pond.*

It extremely buggy out here, and although it isn't hot, it is unbearably sweaty. Nevertheless, it feels good to walk around after, and I hate to belabor the point, eleven meetings in 8.5 hours.

BOTD: Chipping sparrow. This isn't an especially exciting bird, and he was not posted up picturesquely, but he is still my bird of the day, simply because he is neither a house sparrow nor a song sparrow, and I knew it the second I saw him. A chipping sparrow is Unlikely in my area today, but I really think I have it right!

The rusty red cap is a giveaway. House sparrows will have red on their heads, but the cap is always gray.

In February I talked about how tricky sparrows were for me. I am so much better at them now! What a difference 100 more bird walks makes.

I like being reminded that while I suspect my photos are getting worse, my ID skills are getting better. I like being reminded that this isn't a chore, it's something that makes me feel good, and also that I'm getting good at it. I've never had a hobby or interest with so many opportunities for little wins.

Which I could use today, because did I mention the meetings.

July 25, 2026

Where: Huntley Meadows Park When: 9:30 am Bird Species: northern cardinal, mourning dove, tufted titmouse, eastern wood pewee, white-breasted nuthatch, Canada goose, great egret, barn swallow, downy woodpecker, eastern bluebird, common yellowthroat, red-winged blackbird Things I Thought About: * In a concerted effort to get out of my

July 24, 2026

Where: Braddock Elementary School parking lot, mostly When: 6:30 pm Bird Species: house sparrow, house finch, gray catbird, northern cardinal, mourning dove, northern mockingbird, European starling, song sparrow Things I Thought About: * It is incredibly nice out. I can't believe I spent all day working for a

July 23, 2026

Where: the neighborhood When: 8:08 am Bird Species: house sparrow, northern cardinal, American crow, American robin, northern mockingbird, European starling, mourning dove Things I Thought About: * Over two years ago, now, I think, I had a gum surgery and the place where he tied off the stitches produced a

July 22, 2026

Where: the neighborhood When: 7:40 am Bird Species: house sparrow, gray catbird, European starling, northern cardinal, mourning dove, Canada goose (flyover) Things I Thought About: * I do not remember what I was thinking about this morning, and I didn't make any text notes. If I had to

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July 25, 2026

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July 23, 2026

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