New Year's Day

Happy New Year to all the far-flung, extended family.

It's a bitterly cold day outside my igloo, so the quest for a Snowy Owl is on hold for a bit longer.   This year's New Year's Day bird count is solely for the insane and the cryo-impervious.   I have been told of a place nearby where a Snowy has been seen for the past three nights, so I will head up there later, in the warmth of my car, to check that out.

When I let the dogs out for a very brief time earlier, I decided to try taking pictures of the ice that's still coating the trees through a #14 welder's glass (the kind recommended for solar viewing, if you are a complete geek and not only know these things, but have gone out and bought the goggles and the correct glass insert).  The result is pretty neat.  Here's a the same tree photographed without and with the welder's glass held in front of the lens.