Another long hiatus, but it's been good news since my last post. I'm still in Lakeview, and my seasonal position with the BLM ended this last weekend. I'm proud to say I've crossed over the line from mammals to birds and now have sage grouse spot-lighting, netting, and processing experience. I've fitted birds with radio collars, have a better understanding of plumage and avian-related terms, and feel fairly comfortable handling them. There's a very good chance of me being hired to help out in February, when the sage-grouse trapping and tracking will become more intense, so I'm planning to stay here another year.
I broke up with Tony. I have the feeling that it's really going to hurt when someone actually breaks up with me, since I've been the breaker-upper three times now. Things are still civil between us though, so I couldn't ask for anything more. I've also found someone that I really connect with emotionally, which is a first. So he (Brian) and I have done a lot together - we went to Crater Lake for a one-night camping trip, and took a magnificent hike that provided us with great views of the crater. We also went to San Francisco to visit Becky, which was my first foray into California (beyond Alturas and Cedarville) since the high school trip to Disneyland. It was grand. I like that city.
Lakeview and surrounding areas have proved very productive in terms of shed antler finding (both intentional and accidental). I've found a spike, two three-points, four four-points, and two skulls (a two x three and a three x three). I've seen lots of bighorn sheep, pronghorn, and mule deer; two bears, a spotted skunk, and a mink. No bobcats or gray foxes this field season though. I've grown fairly comfortable driving both a diesel and a gasoline manual, and generally feel more confident in my field skills. The sage grouse crew has experienced some conflict personalities and tensions regarding different opinions on how things should be done, but overall the project is going well. We have over 35 birds on the air now. I think I'm going to volunteer some to keep improving my skills and stay familiar with how the project is going.
Also, I have a foster dog! He's a shetland sheepdog mix, although he looks purebred, just bigger (about 40 lbs.). It's going to be hard not to keep him. He crates well (8 hours at night), knows "sit" and "down", stays in the back of my jeep when riding in the car...plus he's just adorable. His tail is so gorgeous too; it's like a big bobbed plume with heavy feathering.
Those are the highlights; perhaps I'll make it a point to update more regularly now that I actually have time to be a person (after two weeks solid of 11 hour days).
I broke up with Tony. I have the feeling that it's really going to hurt when someone actually breaks up with me, since I've been the breaker-upper three times now. Things are still civil between us though, so I couldn't ask for anything more. I've also found someone that I really connect with emotionally, which is a first. So he (Brian) and I have done a lot together - we went to Crater Lake for a one-night camping trip, and took a magnificent hike that provided us with great views of the crater. We also went to San Francisco to visit Becky, which was my first foray into California (beyond Alturas and Cedarville) since the high school trip to Disneyland. It was grand. I like that city.
Lakeview and surrounding areas have proved very productive in terms of shed antler finding (both intentional and accidental). I've found a spike, two three-points, four four-points, and two skulls (a two x three and a three x three). I've seen lots of bighorn sheep, pronghorn, and mule deer; two bears, a spotted skunk, and a mink. No bobcats or gray foxes this field season though. I've grown fairly comfortable driving both a diesel and a gasoline manual, and generally feel more confident in my field skills. The sage grouse crew has experienced some conflict personalities and tensions regarding different opinions on how things should be done, but overall the project is going well. We have over 35 birds on the air now. I think I'm going to volunteer some to keep improving my skills and stay familiar with how the project is going.
Also, I have a foster dog! He's a shetland sheepdog mix, although he looks purebred, just bigger (about 40 lbs.). It's going to be hard not to keep him. He crates well (8 hours at night), knows "sit" and "down", stays in the back of my jeep when riding in the car...plus he's just adorable. His tail is so gorgeous too; it's like a big bobbed plume with heavy feathering.
Those are the highlights; perhaps I'll make it a point to update more regularly now that I actually have time to be a person (after two weeks solid of 11 hour days).
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