Standing Into Danger

Friday, May 15, 2026

Open Your Eyes!

Our spring snowstorm arrived on schedule, and I am so grateful that I'm retired.

I hated commuting on snowy, icy roads.

Terry and I were warm and cozy even though the power went out for a bit.

Spring Snow ~ Can you spot the deer hunkered down in the center?

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 6, 2025

One week later it was 80ºF at lunchtime.

Such is springtime in on the high plains of Colorado.

Cottonwoods Leafing

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 9, 2026

This month, I've been out and about enjoying all the springtime sights ~

like the water skippers I first saw as a small child on a calm pond.

They delight me every time I spot them.

Water Skipper ~ Gerridae

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 9, 2026

Baby black-tailed prairie dogs are so cute, and I look for them every spring.

These five raced for their burrow, the moment they saw me inching closer.

Baby Black-tailed Prairie Dogs Running for Cover

Red-tailed Hawk Park

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 11, 2026

Old Man Cottonwood is still surviving, many years after he toppled over.

I'm always wary when I walk around massive cottonwoods.

They are under stress from our severe drought in recent years,

and so many huge limbs and trees have come crashing down.

Old Man Cottonwood

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 2, 2026

Peek-a-Boo! I see you!

Over the years, I've gotten very good at spying mule deer in secluded spots.

Their adorable, exceptionally large ears give them away.

Muley Deer

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 9, 2026

Sometimes the mule deer are easy to see.

They like to lie down on the lawns around houses adjoining the park.

I came upon three bucks and a doe behind a fence on such a lawn.

I tried to get closer, for better photos, but the biggest male began to make

distressing, growling sounds I've never heard from a muley before.

I beat a hasty retreat. 😂

Two Bucks and One Doe

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 9, 2026

The Growling Buck

Along Piney Creek

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 9, 2026

While we were in Hawai'i, I missed part of a nearby project on Sampson Gulch.

The existing basin has been enlarged, and flood control channels have been added.

It's so frustrating that I haven't been able to learn more about this project,

because it's really interesting to see the work that's happening.

Samson Gulch Catchment Basin

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 11, 2026

Samson Gulch Catchment Basin

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 11, 2026

Installing More Flood Controls Features Farther Down Sampson Gulch

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 11, 2026

From the massive to the tiny, we live in such a fascinating world.

A Bee Pollinating Chokecherry Flowers

Along Sampson Gulch

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 11, 2026

Sometimes you don't have to move beyond your doorstep to see something amazing ~

Like this mourning dove sitting patiently on her nest above our garage door

while I sweep our front porch. She didn't move a feather!

Little Mama Mourning Dove

Our Home

Aurora, Colorado, ⁨USA

May 11, 2026

As Anthony Doerr wrote in All then Light We Cannot See,

“Open your eyes and see what you can with them before they close forever,”

look at the wonders all around you. It's a magnificent world!

Like thisI'm linking to Gillena's Lunch Break, Nicole's Friday Face Off, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Debra's She Who Seeks.

Have a great weekend!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be IWSG Day

Wednesday, May 22nd. 🤞

On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

IWSG Day: Wednesday, May 5, 2026 ~. The Most Inspiring Feedback!

It's the first Wednesday of the month,
the day that members of the
Insecure Writer's Support Group
share their writing struggles
and writing successes
and offer their encouragement
and support to fellow writers.

To visit the IWSG website, click here.

To become a member of the IWSG, click here.

Our wonderful co-hosts who are volunteering today,
along with IWSG Founder Alex J. Cavanaugh are

Jenni Enzor, Jemima Pett, Jamie of Uniquely Maladjusted but Fun, and Kim Lajevardi!

Stop by their posts and thank them for hosting.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every month the IWSG announces a question that members can answer
with advice, insight, a personal experience, or a story in their IWSG posts.

Or, the question can inspire members
if they aren't sure what to write about on IWSG Day.

Remember the question is optional.

This month's optional question is:

What was the most inspiring feedback you received from readers, including agents, editors, and beta readers?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Happy May, Everyone!

I hope that you have had a happy, healthy, and fulfilling April!

I'm sitting here on a raw May day anticipating the biggest snowstorm of the season.

The snow is expected to start falling in a few hours. Burrrr!

This is not unusual in Colorado. We can get snow in any month.

I don't consider us "safe" from snow until after Father's Day in June.

I hope you are warm and comfortable wherever you are!

Late May Snowstorm

Aurora, Colorado, USA

May 21, 2022

This month's question asks what is the most inspiriting feedback I ever received

from readers, including agents, editors, and beta readers?

Easy peasy!

It was a letter from George Sanderson, the editor of The Antigonish Review,

informing me that my short story "Ugly Little Bastards"

would be published in their Winter 1982 issue.

The letter opened with "We like your story."

I will never forget the thrill of opening that letter, my soul literally soaring.

A Special Letter

Aurora, Colorado, USA

May 5, 2026

The Antigonish Review is one of the oldest continuing literary magazines in Canada

and the third longest in the Maritimes.

I was published in the same issue as Annie Dillard.

I wonder if she read my story. 😂

Every time I think of that letter, I still feel that soul-soaring lift.

My writing dreams didn't progress the way I imagined,

because the need to support myself and two demanding careers changed them.

But just the fact that I was published in a literary magazine that has featured many famous

Canadian writers like Marshall McLuhan, Margaret Atwood, Alistair MacLeod,

Irving Layton, and Carol Shields has given me a sense of validation as a writer.

Since I retired, my life has been filled with all kinds of writing,

and included another soul-soaring experience when I held copies of

the IWSG anthology

Voyagers The Third Ghost containing my short story "Dare, Double Dare."

There's nothing like hearing from an editor and a writer that you're going to be published!

(Thanks Diane and Alex!)

I am filled with writing plans!

Stay tuned!

Woo Hoo!

Aurora, Colorado, USA

April 24, 2020

If you are also a member of our Facebook Group,

I invite you to visit and to provide a link to your IWSG post.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/IWSG13

Facebook members are invited to answer our May question too.

Oh boy, here comes the snow: big, fat, wet flakes!

Oh well, the Colorado River Basin desperately needs the precipitation.

Here It Comes!!!

Aurora, Colorado, USA

May 5, 2026

Take care!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be Friday, May 15th. 🤞

Just so you know, I monitor my comments before publishing them. This means your comment won't appear immediately. I will not publish mean spirited or commercial comments.

Friday, May 1, 2026

The Koko Crater and Koko Head Area: Part One

Every time I've climbed Diamond Head, I've stopped at the Kahala Lookout
just before the tunnel that takes you inside Diamond Head Crater.

Stretched out before me is a sight I never tire of seeing,

beautiful Maunalua Bay and the prominent peaks of Koko Crater and Koko Head.

Maunalua Bay, Koko Crater (left), and Koko Head (right)

Honolulu⁩, ⁨Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨USA

March 19, 2025

This year, thanks to our friends Kathy and Bruce, Terry and I finally visited

the scenic coastline wrapping around these striking volcanic features.

From downtown Honolulu it's a drive of about 13 miles and takes 25-30 minutes,

depending on traffic, via the H-1 Freeway East (Kalanianaole Highway)

and continuing onto HI-72 South toward Hawaii Kai.

Terry, Kathy, and Bruce

‎⁨Koko Head District Park⁩, ⁨Honolulu⁩, ⁨Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨USA

March 16, 2026

Koko Crater (Kohelepelepe) reaches1,208 feet (368 meters) in height,

almost twice the height of Koko Head (Kuamo‘okāne) at 642 feet (196 meters).

These landmarks are part of a series of volcanic vents that erupted

through the seaward edge of the older, dormant Koʻolau Volcano.

Famous Volcanic Vents Along Southeastern Oʻahu⁩

Wikipedia

The Koko Crater and Koko Head Area

Google Maps

We stopped first in Portlock at Koko Kai Mini Beach Park, otherwise known as China Walls.

Koko Kai Mini Beach Park

Portlock, ⁨Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨USA

March 16, 2026

What a spectacular spot!

At long last I was standing near the base of Koko Head,

the place I had gazed at many times from Diamond Head.

I walked to the end of the stone path, and there stood Diamond Head

4.5 to 5 miles (7.2–8 km) directly across Maunalua Bay.

Diamond Head from China Walls on Koko Head

Koko Kai Mini Beach Park, ⁨Honolulu⁩, ⁨Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨USA

March 16, 2026

I did not scramble down to the flat-topped lava benches that form China Walls.

One look told me that it was a dangerous spot.

An unexpected wave could sweep people into the ocean with no easy exit,

or smash them into jagged rocks beneath the water.

It reminded me of the dangerous rocks in my beloved Peggy's Cove in Nova Scotia.

People die every year at these places, because they don't understand the danger.

Lava Benches at China Walls

Koko Kai Mini Beach Park, ⁨Honolulu⁩, ⁨Oʻahu⁩, ⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨USA

March 16, 2026

A Warning to Pay Attention at China Walls

Source

But, of course, this geologist was interested in the rocks!

You may know that the island of O'ahu⁩ was formed by two volcanoes over a hotspot in the Pacific Ocean. As the Pacific Plate, the largest tectonic plate on Earth, moved over this stationary hotspot in the Pacific Ocean, a plume of magma from the mantle rose to the surface forming a series of shield volcanoes one after another. It took around 70 million years for this process to create the Hawaiian Islands, and today the islands continue to move northwestward about 4 inches (7 to 10 centimeters) a year.

The Hawaii hotspot and the inferred underlying mantle plume in cross-section

Wikipedia

Oʻahu⁩ was created by the merging of two of these shield volcanoes,

massive, gently sloping volcanoes built from very fluid basaltic lava flows:

the Waiʻanae Range to the west and the Koʻolau Range to the east.

Waiʻanae is the older of the two, emerging from the ocean 3.9 to-2.8 million-years ago.

Koʻolau volcano emerged prior to 2.9 million years ago.

You can see the remains of these volcanoes in the Waiʻanae and Koʻolau ranges.

Koʻolau Range

‎⁨Kualoa Ranch⁩, Kaneohe⁩, ⁨Oʻahu⁩, ⁨⁨Hawaiʻi⁩, ⁨United States⁩

March 14, 2025

The Koko Head area is much younger geologically,

forming about 30,000–35,000 years ago, long after Koʻolau Volcano went dormant.

When magma found new routes to the surface of Koʻolau Volcano,

a rejuvenation stage of volcanism occurred.

These secondary, explosive eruptions of the Koʻolau Range

created the Koko Head area volcanic tuff cones and craters,

some of the last volcanic activity on Oʻahu⁩.

The flat-topped lava benches at China Walls formed from

basaltic lava flows during the rejuvenated volcanism.

Next time, I'll share a little more about the places and geology of this storied coastline.

This mural celebrates China Walls and is a collaboration

between Kamea Hadar, Melón James, Jeff Gress, and Gavin Murai,

a local nonprofit Huli, and Kaiser High School students.

China walls was historically known as Kawaihoa.

I'm linking to Gillena's Lunch Break, Nicole's Friday Face Off, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Debra's She Who Seeks.

Have a great weekend!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be IWSG Day

Wednesday, May 6th. 🤞

Friday, April 24, 2026

Friday Face Off Portrait Challenge

Today artists are sharing their portraits in Nicole's Friday Face Off Portrait Challenge.

The face or faces people share must have one of these expressions:

Happy, Sad, Tired, Surprised and or Anger.

I'm guessing that most people drew a human face or faces, but I really wanted to draw

Hula Dog, a favorite face of mine, who visits about with his Hula Auntie

when she decorates local statutes of Hawaiian icons with strands of leis.

Hula Dog sleeps while Hula Auntie drapes a statue of Prince Kuhio

with leis and Hula Buddy stands by.

Waikiki, Hawaii, USA

February 6, 2026

I love Hula Dog, and I've been delighted to see him over the past several years.

When I first saw him, he was already grizzled.

Now he is definitely an old dog and he rests whenever he can,

ignoring his newest companion Hula Buddy.

I felt this day that Hula Dog was especially tired, so I drew his tired face.

Tired, but definitely adorable and much loved by me.

I worked from this photo:

Sweet, Tired Hula Dog

Waikiki, Hawaii, USA

February 6, 2026

I had to play around with the image and park it in a holding area

where I store random things,

so I could outfox my printer which was giving me grief.

So a shout out to Debra at She Who Seeks for her Oilers Prayer that I snagged.

Zoomed in Hula Dog

Aurora, Colorado, USA

April 23, 2026

He was just too complicated for very amateur artist me that

I decided to map him like a geological formation and draft him on a larger grid.

I had to pull Hula Dog up on my computer too, because I realized after I was into it,

that there was a whole lot of black in this photo.

It took me about two hours to draw the grids and Hula Dog.

Then the fun began: trying to bring Hula Dog alive by coloring him with colored pencils.

I forgot the black thing behind Hula Dog's head was Prince Kuhio's shoe,

but going back to the original photo and checking would be too not ADHD. 😂

It took me two hours of coloring and experimenting, but I finally finished it,

after doing some outlining with a very fine black sharpie.

Then I showed it to Terry, who smiled quirkily and said,

"I could never doing anything like that!"

All and all, I'm quite pleased with Hula Dog.

If I weren't doing a Dry January (a little late), I'd have a margarita to celebrate.

(I don't have any mai tais. 😵‍💫)

I'm only on Day 29. So Sunday I'll celebrate Hula Dog!

I'm linking to Gillena's Lunch Break, Nicole's Friday Face Off, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Debra's She Who Seeks.

I think Terry and I are finally on the upswing, not 100%, but maybe 60%!

Oh, and just for fun, here's Bones as Jesus. Thanks, Debra!

Have a great weekend!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be

Friday, May 1st! 🤞

Books Read in 2025

'A City on Mars" by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith
"6:40 to Montreal" by Eva Jurczyk
"A Fall in Denver" by Sarah Andrews
"A Gambling Man" by David Baldacci
"American Wolf" by Nate Blakeslee
"Cane River" by Lalita Tademy
"Determination: A Mother of Five Conquers College" by Victoria Marie Lees
"Football for Dummies" by Howie Long with John Czarnecki
"Imagine Hatt Season 1" by Patrick Hatt
"Just One Look" by Harlan Coben
"Little Fires Everywhere" by Celeste Ng
"Meditations for Mortals" by Oliver Burkeman
"Mother Nature" by Sarah Andrews
"Never Too Late" by Danielle Steel
"Nothing to Fear: Demystifying Death to Live More Fully" by Julie McFadden, RN
"Philosophy Now: Digital Philosophy" Issue 168
"Philosophy Now: The Politics of Freedom" Issue 163
"Philosophy Now: The Thoughts on Thought Issue" Issue 164
"Project Hail Mary" by Andy Weir
"Shadow of the the Wind" by Carlo Ruiz Zafón
"Tensleep" by Sarah Andrews
"The Cove" by Patrick Hatt
"The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science: A Scientist's Warning" by Peter J. Hotez, MD, PhD
"The In-Between: Unforgettable Encounters During Life's Final Moments" by Hadley Vlahos, RN
"The Light Eaters" by Zoë Schlanger
"The Power of Touch: A Story of Redeeming Love" by Pat Garcia
"The Secret History" by Donna Tartt
"The Warlord" by Gena Showalter
"Think Twice" by Harlan Coben
"Unless" by Carol Shields
"We Who Wrestle with God" by Jordan B. Peterson
"What Matters Most: Lessons the Dying Teach Us About Living" by Diane Button
Imagine Hatt: Season One" by Patrick Hatt

Standing Into Danger

Pages

Friday, May 15, 2026

Open Your Eyes!

Wednesday, May 6, 2026

IWSG Day: Wednesday, May 5, 2026 ~. The Most Inspiring Feedback!

Friday, May 1, 2026

The Koko Crater and Koko Head Area: Part One

Friday, April 24, 2026

Friday Face Off Portrait Challenge

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