Monday, October 21, 2019

Lucky us ....

While sights like this are not common, neither are they rare in many places such as Minnesota. They happen in the autumn -- at least that is when I have seen them -- and involve thousands of "winged things" such as starlings or black birds and probably other species, as well .... and truly are marvelous to watch. The event is called a murmuration and can involve hundreds of thousands of birds. Should you see one, remember it. Who knows how much longer birds will be here to do it?
"If You've Got the Money I've Got the Time"
Those words form the title and are among the lyrics of a song written by James Beck and William "Lefty" Frizzell and recorded by Frizzell in 1950.
Neither money nor time are in short supply for me at the moment, but glancing through the arts section of a Saint Paul newspaper made me appreciate that fact that probably no one has enough of either to keep pace with entertainment opportunities in and around the Twin Cities of Minnesota.
Upcoming at the Guthrie Theatre in coming weeks, for instance, are these:
The Glass Menagerie
Steel Magnolias
A Christmas Carol
The Minnesota Opera will be presenting The Barber of Seville.
Both the Dublin-based dance group, TeacDamsa, and the Russian Ballet Theatre will be offering Swan Lake beginning Thursday.
There are innumerable authors making presentations and offering readings and holding autograph sessions during the days ahead -- some of them famous and others, well, sort of local.
Being a devotee of classic rock, I simply will say everyone ranging from "newbies" to senior citizens who have been around since the 1960s and 1970s has the Twin Cities on their itineraries. Not to worry, all genres of music will be similarly represented.
Some might argue "sports" are another form of art (not I), so add to this there are six professional sports teams in the Twin Cities representing football, baseball, hockey, soccer and two basketball.
Less exciting, but more relevant, I think, was an article which stated the United States and Canada have lost an estimated three billion birds -- nearly 30 percent -- since 1970. Most of the losses have been among birds which occupy grasslands from Texas north into the Canadian prairies. Suspects are the usual: Habitat loss and more intensive agriculture, and greater use of pesticides that kill the insects birds eat.
So, while we who have enough time and money to seek out our favorite forms of entertainment, we can prepare ourselves for fewer sights and songs from Nature, it would seem.
Lucky us ….








6 comments:

Anita said...

Nice post Fram!
I see you have alot of good things too watch in Minnesota I thought the glass The Glass Menagerie was written bbyHerman Hesse but my surprise it was William T.


A Christmas Carol

The Barber of Seville.
Both I should like to hear and see It must be fun for all bird lovers to watch that clip about the different birds.I have heard and seen some of them and the most facinating for me is the Hawk!It would be a dream tour to see and hear it
The starlings..ohh boy I would not come in their way since I know they do eat everything there is..Wow wow

Ok thanks for nice reply at my place and have a good weekend

Germán Ibarra Zorrilla said...

Todo un espectáculo las nubes de estorninos, puro arte de la naturaleza. Saludos desde España.

Fram Actual said...

To borrow (steal / pirate / confiscate) a line of lyrics from Led Zeppelin's, "Stairway to Heaven" (see? I remembered) .... "'Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings" .... the list of things to do in the Twin Cities mostly was meant as satire and is secondary to the post.

We have the time and the money to enjoy those things, but the price tag is the killing of our environment, most specifically, in this instance, our bird population. I am as guilty of it as everyone else.

By-in-large, humankind is too greedy / selfish / blind to see beyond the end of our collective noses, and we probably will kill the planet and, by doing so, kill ourselves. Such is “the way of the world,” to use the title of a play by the English playwright William Congreve.

I have been watching an old film, "Our Town," a three-act play written by Thornton Wilder in 1938. This version of the motion picture was made in 1940. I would love to see it on stage again -- somewhere, sometime. It is a true gem, a real masterpiece, a bit of writing that makes an individual think.

Thank you, Anita, for coming here and for commenting. It is not impossible that somewhere, sometime, we shall go on a hawk tour. There are many of them here (at least for now), mostly red-tailed and beautiful to see in flight. Being close to three rivers, I often see bald eagles flying over, too, looking for a meal.

See you around, Anita .... kyss og klem ....

Fram Actual said...

Yes, Germán, it is the "pure art of nature."

I believe there is much art to be found in nature for those who have the eyes and the mindset to see it. The art works of nature often are more appealing than those of humankind, from my point of view, and it is a pity so much of the art of nature is destroyed in the name of progress.

Thank you, Germán, for coming and for commenting ....

Anita said...

Ja ja jeg vet ord kan ha dobbel mening..Da du nevnte Bohemian Rapsody av Freddy (Queen)som din yndlingssang skjønte jeg hvorfor når jeg leste teksten til låta.
Beklager jeg ikke konsentrerte meg om hva ditt egentlige innlegg gikk ut på og svarte på det..Men du vet Fram.Det er alltid så mye å snakke om sammen med deg.
Jeg skal gjøre mitt beste neste gang.
Kansje jeg får se Hauken engang.Hvem vet.Inntil da.So long.
Kyss og Klem

Fram Actual said...

Here are the closing lines to, "Bohemian Rhapsody:"

"Anyone can see nothing really matters
Nothing really matters to me
Anyway the wind blows"

When I was a college boy, another young man who was a close friend, a roommate and a fellow-college judo team member said words to the effect he had figured out why I was the way I am. His final appraisal: "You move through life not caring about anyone or anything, including yourself."

His judgment set me back, and my reply came as words to the effect, "No, it is just the opposite. I care about everyone and everything. It is frustrating me and keeps me off balance because I do not know how to handle it."

I never have been quite certain which of us had delivered an accurate verdict. Illogical as it might be, I think both he and I were correct to a degree. I do know I have two distinct personas, one being the Marine Corps guy and the other being the "seeker of knowledge/teacher" guy. Neither one is dominant, which makes life more complicated.

Anita writes: "There is always so much to talk about with you."

Fram responds: You betcha = yep, yes, for sure, no doubt about it, as the first part of this reply to your comment demonstrates. Beyond that, Fram is a confusing, oblique, windy, hop .. skip .. and a jump individual who all too often writes symbolically between the lines.

In all seriousness, Anita, I apologize if my reply to your comment made you feel badly. I value your presence here more than I can say in any words in any language.

So, Anita, take care / be safe and well and happy .... Kyss og Klem

Something special ....