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Wednesday, April 23, 2003
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Pileated Woodpecker
Birding With Brent
I went birding for the first time in a long time this weekend. My friend and loyal Pipeline reader Brent came along. It was actually Brent's idea to go, which kind of threw me because I've never really had anyone I know express an interest in it.
So, off we went to a large, marshy lake nestled down by the Mississippi river in St. Paul. It's a fertile area for many types of birds, especially during the heavy migrant season of spring. It was, in most all ways, a perfect day for birding, or just about anything else.
We saw:
Yellow-rumped Warblers, Blue-winged Teals, Mallards, Wood Ducks, Ring-necked Ducks (a first for me, and I presume for Brent), Hairy Woodpeckers, Phoebes, and an American Kestrel. The highlight was probably a large Pileated Woodpecker. Brent had a good eye, and spotted it before I did. The Pileated is the king of Woodpeckers up here, with a huge red crest and a body about as large as a crow's. When it hits a tree with it's beak, you can hear it from a long ways away.
Later that night, as I laid in bed with Linus, I told him a story about a big woodpecker that lives down by the river, and maybe, just maybe, he and I and Mama and Maxine the Dog could go down and look for it this weekend. Linus could even ride his new trike with the huge all-terrain wheels. He thought that was a fantastic idea. He asked what that woodpecker was doing down by the river, and, being a birder, I got quite excited as I told him what woodpeckers eat and how they peck on a tree or pole to find their food, and why they live down by the river. He listens to this, and then when I stop talking, he immediately says:
"Darth Vader is a bad guy."
Yes. Yes he is. There is really no doubt about that. Goodnight, my son. Sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bite.
3:13:13 PM 
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Night Guy Screws Morning Guy Yet Again
You all remember Night Guy, right? This morning is a great example Seinfeld's classic idea about the you that stays out late and has fun being very different from the you that has to wake up early the next morning and deal with the consequences. Night Guy hooked up with Morning Guy nemeses and loyal Pipeline readers Cliff and Mike, and we all settled in for a night of Minnesota sports.
But in this case, Morning Guy doesn't mind one bit. First, the Wolves play what is pretty arguably the biggest game in franchise history, responding to a Game 1 drubbing by beating the Lakers by 28. Now, there is doubt on the other bench. We've responded to them; what will they do to counteract the Wolves' small lineup? A huge win, emotionally satisfying in every way for Wolves fans. Yes, there is a little voice in my head that is telling me this is the classic Wolves setup, to entice me just enough to really care when the hammer comes down. I'm choosing to ignore that voice today. Today, we're going toe-to-toe with the three-time defending champs. We have a series.
And then, during commercials and after the Wolves, we watched the Wild pull off an amazing upset, coming back from a 3-1 games deficit to win a Game 7 on the road. I by no means am a huge hockey fan, but I have to say, playoff hockey is pretty damn compelling. Playoff overtime hockey in a Game 7 is just plain nuts.
It's not often a town can say that two of its teams played the biggest games in franchise history on the same night. I was glad to see the important parts of both games.
And the beauty of it is, there's no reason both franchises can't play the biggest games in their history on the same night next week, too. But Night Guy might have to sit that one out...
9:00:05 AM
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© Copyright 2003 Doug Hennessee.
Last update: 5/1/2003; 10:47:46 AM.
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