Aplomado Entry 13
August 28th
Yesterday was a lot of fun. Albuquerue is a large town with lots to do. I didn’t get there until about 1230 but I was there until after 8. For the first hour or so, I went around a shopping area called “Old Town.” It was an open air set of stores which resemble most cultural areas in Iowa. After the pointless shopping there, I went over to the Natural History Museum as I had heard they have a great dinosaur exhibit. I was pleasantly surprised to find lots of castings of complete skeletons and details about the different epochs of earth’s history. I was only disappointed to find little to none on the era of insect superiority. It would have been a bit cooler to include it but I doubt there are many fossils in NM which was the central idea throughout the museum. They also had an exhibit dedicated to computers (evidently Microsoft is originally from Albuquerue) but many of the computers and information I had seen or heard before. Towards the end of the exhibit, I saw the ever faithful Apple 2e. Some of you might remember those as the block shaped computers which required the big diskettes.
As I was leaving the museum, I saw a small nature room which I couldn’t resist wondering through. It was full of local wildlife, in particular reptiles such as snakes and turtles. They did not have any rattlesnakes as it was a hands-on exhibit. The ladies in the room were great to talk to and they took me to meet the director of the program. He was delighted with the information I was able to share about this project and Aplomado falcons in general. He seemed interested in having a speaker come in to the museum so I sent him to Angel.
My shopping became productive after the museum. I went looking for another mall, finding a couple of cool little shops on the way. Eventually, I did find a mall and went inside. I found all three of my favorite mall stores (Hot Topic, Sunglass Hut, and Spenser’s Gifts) and explored each. Only Hot Topic had anything I was willing to buy and that was a Dark Knight record (No, I haven’t seen the damn movie yet) and a re-release of an old Nightwish album. I look forward to listening to the record when I find a turn-table. At the end of the night, I found an Apple store and finally bought a couple of needed accessories for my ipod. I now have a good case for it and a radio transmitter/ charger for the car. It worked well the whole way back. I also ate supper at California Pizza Kitchen and it was very good.
Lately, we have seen a decrease in number of falcons showing up in the morning. This leads us to decide to reduce the number of quail placed up in the mornings but keep the evening constant. As the project is approaching conclusion, this is a good thing as the falcons should be finding more of their own food and relying on us less.
August 31st
Midday yesterday, the weather took a turn towards the worst. Last night, it rained heavily on us while we were trying to watch falcons. We hid in the truck so we were not exposed to the water but it was difficult to see through the rainfall. Today, the rain continued but not as strongly. I stayed dry in the blind but my partner was in the truck. Very few of our falcons came in but we identified all of them which we saw.
Since I came to this site, I have had access to a library card so I have been reading the Dresden Files. They are a good book series if a bit simplistic. The reading level is about the same as Laurell K. Hamilton’s series. I would strongly recommend them despite their differences from the TV show. The characters are well developed and the plots are complex enough to make them interesting.
This next week, I plan on communicating with several groups about potential jobs. Hopefully one of this will be successful so I will not have to return to Fareway. The job isn’t bad but the high stress caused by disgruntled customers and product care. Just about any job would be better but I hope to find something which uses my degree. Wish me luck!
September 3rd
Tonight was a large improvement over the last two nights out at the site as it only rained on the way back instead of while we were there. Evidently, a large storm front has moved into the local area and we are getting drenched. The last two nights have both offered strong rainfalls during the hours we remained at the site. We have not been able to identify bands as easily and it is getting dark earlier. Although we do return to the bunkhouse sooner, it means we might miss a falcon coming in (although it is doubtful this late in the season.) All the water has made the drive more treacherous but we have not yet had a problem with the truck. Knock on wood.
Along with the increase in precipitation, the number of falcons coming in to feed has dropped even more. In the morning, we are usually seeing only four of the birds. Several Oryx hunters have given us reports of seeing our falcons dispersing in the local area. It seems the site has done its job and the falcons are establishing in the area. Hopefully, they will return in future years and breed, making the population stable.
As the week draws to a close, both of my partners will be leaving for their home states or at least their new destination. One of them has gotten a job in Washington state and will be moving out there from Vermont. I suspect I will see him again on his way through Iowa since he asked about crashing for a night. That would be very cool as we have had some great discussions since I got here. He may be an economist but we find a lot of areas of natural studies we agree upon. My other partner is returning to school for his last semester. In some ways I envy him as his school is really neat and he gets to see all of his friends for a while longer.
Tomorrow, our boss is coming to the site to tear down the towers and begin the process of closing. I plan to talk to him about the last week and make sure my plans will coincide with the final project plans. Its been great working with him and I hope to maintain him as a reference for future employment opportunities.
Yesterday was a lot of fun. Albuquerue is a large town with lots to do. I didn’t get there until about 1230 but I was there until after 8. For the first hour or so, I went around a shopping area called “Old Town.” It was an open air set of stores which resemble most cultural areas in Iowa. After the pointless shopping there, I went over to the Natural History Museum as I had heard they have a great dinosaur exhibit. I was pleasantly surprised to find lots of castings of complete skeletons and details about the different epochs of earth’s history. I was only disappointed to find little to none on the era of insect superiority. It would have been a bit cooler to include it but I doubt there are many fossils in NM which was the central idea throughout the museum. They also had an exhibit dedicated to computers (evidently Microsoft is originally from Albuquerue) but many of the computers and information I had seen or heard before. Towards the end of the exhibit, I saw the ever faithful Apple 2e. Some of you might remember those as the block shaped computers which required the big diskettes.
As I was leaving the museum, I saw a small nature room which I couldn’t resist wondering through. It was full of local wildlife, in particular reptiles such as snakes and turtles. They did not have any rattlesnakes as it was a hands-on exhibit. The ladies in the room were great to talk to and they took me to meet the director of the program. He was delighted with the information I was able to share about this project and Aplomado falcons in general. He seemed interested in having a speaker come in to the museum so I sent him to Angel.
My shopping became productive after the museum. I went looking for another mall, finding a couple of cool little shops on the way. Eventually, I did find a mall and went inside. I found all three of my favorite mall stores (Hot Topic, Sunglass Hut, and Spenser’s Gifts) and explored each. Only Hot Topic had anything I was willing to buy and that was a Dark Knight record (No, I haven’t seen the damn movie yet) and a re-release of an old Nightwish album. I look forward to listening to the record when I find a turn-table. At the end of the night, I found an Apple store and finally bought a couple of needed accessories for my ipod. I now have a good case for it and a radio transmitter/ charger for the car. It worked well the whole way back. I also ate supper at California Pizza Kitchen and it was very good.
Lately, we have seen a decrease in number of falcons showing up in the morning. This leads us to decide to reduce the number of quail placed up in the mornings but keep the evening constant. As the project is approaching conclusion, this is a good thing as the falcons should be finding more of their own food and relying on us less.
August 31st
Midday yesterday, the weather took a turn towards the worst. Last night, it rained heavily on us while we were trying to watch falcons. We hid in the truck so we were not exposed to the water but it was difficult to see through the rainfall. Today, the rain continued but not as strongly. I stayed dry in the blind but my partner was in the truck. Very few of our falcons came in but we identified all of them which we saw.
Since I came to this site, I have had access to a library card so I have been reading the Dresden Files. They are a good book series if a bit simplistic. The reading level is about the same as Laurell K. Hamilton’s series. I would strongly recommend them despite their differences from the TV show. The characters are well developed and the plots are complex enough to make them interesting.
This next week, I plan on communicating with several groups about potential jobs. Hopefully one of this will be successful so I will not have to return to Fareway. The job isn’t bad but the high stress caused by disgruntled customers and product care. Just about any job would be better but I hope to find something which uses my degree. Wish me luck!
September 3rd
Tonight was a large improvement over the last two nights out at the site as it only rained on the way back instead of while we were there. Evidently, a large storm front has moved into the local area and we are getting drenched. The last two nights have both offered strong rainfalls during the hours we remained at the site. We have not been able to identify bands as easily and it is getting dark earlier. Although we do return to the bunkhouse sooner, it means we might miss a falcon coming in (although it is doubtful this late in the season.) All the water has made the drive more treacherous but we have not yet had a problem with the truck. Knock on wood.
Along with the increase in precipitation, the number of falcons coming in to feed has dropped even more. In the morning, we are usually seeing only four of the birds. Several Oryx hunters have given us reports of seeing our falcons dispersing in the local area. It seems the site has done its job and the falcons are establishing in the area. Hopefully, they will return in future years and breed, making the population stable.
As the week draws to a close, both of my partners will be leaving for their home states or at least their new destination. One of them has gotten a job in Washington state and will be moving out there from Vermont. I suspect I will see him again on his way through Iowa since he asked about crashing for a night. That would be very cool as we have had some great discussions since I got here. He may be an economist but we find a lot of areas of natural studies we agree upon. My other partner is returning to school for his last semester. In some ways I envy him as his school is really neat and he gets to see all of his friends for a while longer.
Tomorrow, our boss is coming to the site to tear down the towers and begin the process of closing. I plan to talk to him about the last week and make sure my plans will coincide with the final project plans. Its been great working with him and I hope to maintain him as a reference for future employment opportunities.