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Good Reads for Spring 2021

4/16/2021

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I just finished reading The Salt Path by Raynor Winn and I’m halfway through The Wild Silence which is equally engaging. Raynor and her husband Moth have been whiplashed by circumstances out of their control: betrayed by a friend, they are evicted from their beloved home after a three-year legal comedy of errors--which is catastrophic--but dwarfed by the news that Moth is dying of an incurable degenerative disease.

What to do whilst figuring out what to do? As they are packing up their home they come across Paddy Dillon's guide to The South West Coast Path and they think "why not?" In their youth they were avid hikers and wild campers and the 630-mile Salt Path is calling to them. 
As Raynor recounts their physical and emotional journey along the Salt Path, you are drawn into their encounters with the seabirds and meadow animals, people on the path and in the villages, and the odd and unusual occurrences that she and Moth experience as they navigate their grief and plot their future. 

Bookends: ​two years ago I discovered two books by Cheryl Strayed which came into my life at a critical time--Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail and Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar. Together, these four books have been like good friends supporting me on my own salted path. I am grateful for these women who write of loss, love, betrayal, truth, healing, and the transformative power of nature. "Loss sets you free. In the empty void it leaves anything can happen." R.W.

Note: I listened to the audiobooks which are read by the author(s). I also purchased the books and Raynor Winn's covers are illustrated by Angela Harding. 
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Sirens of Mythology not mermaids but bird women!

12/20/2020

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WHAAAAAAAAT?
According to Ancient Greek mythology winged and clawed bird-women lured sailors to destruction through the power of their song...How and why did these monster bird women get transformed into sexy mermaids?
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"Avian symbolism in the Greek imagination was relatively common. In ancient mythology, birds were used to represent everything from oracles, enchantresses, messengers of deities, and mediators between the human world and the supernatural realm." C. Hastings 2/11/19
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Intrigued? Check out Audubon's Sirens of Greek Mythology were Birds not Mermaids and
this from Vice:  Sirens Are Actually Bird-Bodied Messengers of Death, Not Sexy Mermaids  
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Keep Asking Questions! 
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Sweater Weather/Calendar Art

10/21/2020

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©Dan Wiemer "The Wise One"
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©Geninne Zlatkis 
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Smokey Seattle

9/14/2020

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 A thick plume of smoke is beginning to blanket Puget Sound for the weekend. It is eerily quiet and I have seen no birds. The sun did not come up today, not even the red ball that we could see through the haze yesterday. It is a sickly yellowish and thick looking sky, i.e. something out of a dystopian movie. The levels of pollutants is in entering the very unhealthy-hazardous range. This, on top of everything...and for us it is just smoke, not raging wildfires, in our backyards. 

Another week of this before we get a bit of rain to reboot our atmosphere which means no going for my daily walk or tending my garden---because it's too dangerous to be outside breathing the air! until then...quarantine within the quarantine. Sigh.
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I am knitting to soothe my soul and enjoying catching up on some good reads, including:
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To find out what Annabelle is knitting-click here 
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A Natural History of Fairies

9/1/2020

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Book Review:
I was delighted to have the opportunity to preview A Natural History of Fairies by Emily Hawkins and illustrated by Jessica Roux. A Natural History of Fairies takes these elusive creatures into a truly wondrous realm with scientific information presented in a playful manner--a cross between Cicely Mary Barker’s Flower Fairies and The Magic Schoolbus.

The Natural History of Fairies is presented as the field journal of Aunt Elise, a botanist who traveled the world from 1890s-1920s. Under the guise of learning about fairies, readers are drawn into the very real and varied natural histories of a host of flora and fauna. We are treated to scientific drawings, observational charts, and notes as we are given a peek into the lives of fairies. 

 The Natural History of Fairies reminds us that we need to be aware of how our actions impact the natural world, and it does this without being cloying or pedantic. Instead, it invites fairy-finders to enjoy the beauty and wonder that is hiding in their backyards and neighborhoods. This book will entice you to venture into the magical realm.

The Natural History of Fairies will be published soon, on September 29...so, since I cannot share images, here are two other fairies I have loved: the Blackthorn fairy by Cicely Mary Barker and an update version of the classic midsummer eve by Edward Robert Hughes.
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Satin Bowerbird

8/22/2020

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We do not have Satin Bowerbirds in our neighborhood, but they are distant cousins of our crows and ravens. I am entranced by their bower building and use of color to attract a mate. 
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Satin Bowerbird by Bert Kitchen :: from And So They Build
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The bowerbird especially loves the color blue and will make use of discarded bottle caps and plastic straws, as well as toothbrushes, clothespins, and other garbage. An amazing bird that is able to turn trash into art .

Australian printmaker Rachel Newling has lovely linocuts and engravings; while looking for artistic rendering of bowerbirds, I came across her flying foxes...she has cards available too.
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Lúnasa 2020=Sláinte

8/1/2020

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Today is Lughnasadh, the beginning Gaelic harvest festival which historically was observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. I will be celebrating by tidying up my garden boxes, harvesting the last of my spring kales and Swiss chard, and replanting for the fall season. 

Where did July go? Our mornings included drinking coffee on the patio and enjoying our resident Spotted Towhees, Bewick's wrens, and hummingbirds--(not so much the antics of the voracious and vociferous fledgling crow who continues to create endless ruckus).

Sláinte!
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Photos: August calendar by Linnea, super-tiny cilantro flowers (whose centers turn into amazingly large coriander seeds!), and our manzanita (Arctostaphylos) Towhee playground
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42 North American Butterflies :: Animated!

5/24/2020

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Eleanor Lutz, of Tabletop Whale, created this animated butterfly chart in 2014. I think she is brilliant, and love her application of art and digital technology to science illustration. Be sure to click the link to watch the butterflies in motion!

Then, pop over to Pacific Horticulture to find my inquiry research on "Where Are the Butterflies?" Plus, tips on how to make your garden butterfly-friendly with these Eight Essential Elements.
Enjoy 
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~illustration by Roger La Borde
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Glad Tidings to You

12/4/2019

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this lovely card was created by Artist Gennine D. Zlatkis 
geninnesart.com

*** I may have neglected my blog this year, but not my bird friends! ***
​Project FeedWatch started in November and I have once again purchased a winter's supply of chili pepper suet. If you enjoy feeding the birds, but not the challenge of outsmarting squirrels, you will be delighted to find out that birds have evolved to eat chili pepper seeds and they are a harmless deterrent to suet-loving squirrels. 
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Project FeederWatch
 100 common feeder birds have been cross-referenced on what they like to eat and where they like to eat it;  explore your region to see what you might be able to attract to your feeder this winter:
Common Feeder Birds
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local bugs and birds Thrive in messy backyards

9/18/2019

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These are not exactly the kind of backyard birds that most of us get to see, but I do love the Cape Dorset Inuit Art calendars and notecards. 
It feels like autumn here in Seattle, and even though we most likely will have another round of warmish weather, it is the time of year when people are getting busy raking and tidying up for winter. This year, I would like to invite you to consider taking a less vigorous approach to cutting back your grasses and raking and composting leaves and fallen branches. Check out these tips from Audubon on how to enhance your backyard this fall to encourage more wildlife action.

Backyard birders: be sure to sign up for Project Feederwatch, This year's poster is a limited edition poster of backyard Hawks and Falcons of North America.  

If online learning is one of your passions, I suggest one of these Cornell Lab of Ornithology self-paced courses. Or, for a free quick fix:, check out their videos.

Wishing you lots of daydreaming and playtime in your backyard and neighborhood this fall!
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    Author

    Tracey Byrne~

    I taught K-12 students from north of the Arctic Circle to the Puget Sound Ecoregion, garnering  40 years of experience as a classroom teacher, learning mentor, and private tutor. 

    I spent most of the 1980s and 90s in Alaska flying airplanes, floating wild rivers, winter camping, teaching, parenting, and living off the grid. 

    Here in Seattle, I am an advocate for environmental stewardship, place-based education, and outdoor play. I share my enthusiasm for birds, bugs, and backyards and have been a featured writer and photographer for Pacific Horticulture. 
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    All photographs © T. Byrne unless otherwise noted.

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