Scientific Ink

Dunrie Greiling Ph.D., Ann Arbor, MI 48105

Flight

A lot of moxie for his size – kildeer papa

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Happy Father’s Day.

In May, my husband and I went to the Rock Shoppe in Plymouth, Michigan to find some stones for the edging of the pond in the back yard. It was a sunny spring day and we were wandering the extensive grounds looking for just the right thing – kind of greenish slate tiles. We went into a more remote fenced area with less foot traffic, and an insistent bird got our attention. He was on the ground near one of the bins of rocks, maybe 10 feet away from us. He chirped at us, seeming to stamp his foot to tell us to move along. He stood his ground, staring at us.

CVNP - Killdeer Protecting Nest, originally uploaded to Flickr by Andrew 94.

Both the male and the female kildeer incubate the pair’s eggs. According to this description from Audubon, only the female tries her classic wounded wing act to distract us from her nest. The male exhibits more of a stay-and-fight defense. As he stood there, glaring, I was able to spot the nest of spotted eggs in the gravel road of the rock yard, a few inches from his toes (this is not my photo, but it is a nice one!).

I thought about how ridiculous it was. A 6-inch tall bird was having a face-off with two 6-foot humans! We meant no harm, but it is possible in our obliviousness we might have blundered into the nest. His chirp was a clear warning, and he seemed fearless and confident. How apt is his Latin name Charadrius vociferus.

We turned away, and as we left, he settled back on his nest.

Papa kildeer – may your babies be as fierce as you and live long.

Comedy of errors on the ground and boy are we lucky (gratitude #25)

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So, Dave and I took the Cessna-182 from UM Flyers to Tobermory for Memorial Day weekend. Due to the weather, we might have a short long weekend, we might have to come back on Sunday instead of Monday, but I was excited to fly instead of drive. Holiday weekends involve long, long, long waits at the Blue Water Bridge border crossing. And flying takes 1/3 of the time as driving. And the views are spectacular, absolutely spectacular. We flew from Ann Arbor, crossing into Canada at Port Huron/Sarnia. It’s always choppy until we cross the border: somewhat nausea-inducing. Dave thinks maybe it’s all the parking lots and building roofs, absorbing and releasing heat, causing thermals.

back-up-the-bruce

Then, when we crossed the border into Canada and the skies opened up, and Lake Huron was calm and beautiful, and the turbulence ended. Sigh lovely.

I was feeling like a queen, having left work a bit early to get on a plane to go to my favorite place in the world.

Then, we arrived in Tobermory. The local mechanic had fixed the car (alternator froze, taking the serpentine belt with it), and left it at the airport for us. Dave drove it onto the pavement where we parked the plane, and when I walked around the Jeep, I saw the back passenger-side tire was completely flat. Hmmmmmm. Weird. Well, we had a spare. I worked on getting the old tire off while Dave unpacked and tied down the plane. I got exactly one lug nut to move. Fail.

Dave’s greater confidence in kicking the tire iron got the others off, we got the spare on, and then drove off. I admired the head of the screw that had pierced the old tire, and I had an urge to pull it out, but didn’t have any tool that would do it, so I just tossed it into the back. The spare was looking a little less than full, so we pulled into the first (only) gas station and tried to fill it. No dice, they had some kind of air compressor thing, but it didn’t seem to work.

We got almost to the cabin (we were in the Meadow) and Dave pulled over. Our spare tire was by now completely flat and we were riding on the rim. The tire was pulling itself off the rim. Ummmm. What do to? We had no additional spares. There are no local auto parts stores, CAA is at least an hour away, and we were blocking the (little traveled) road.

We remembered my aunt and uncle’s minivan has an air compressor in the back. If they were already at the cabin, maybe I could walk there and drive it back. I started walking, while Dave took the second flat tire off the car. As I walked down the road, I got nervous thinking of Dave under the car, lying in the one-lane road. So, I circled back to see if there was some kind of warning I could put in the road ahead of the immobile Jeep so that he wouldn’t get crushed by an oncoming car.

When I got near, I asked “so, are you OK if someone comes?” and he said “someone is coming”. And then my aunt and uncle, with the air compressor, pulled up.

Rescue!

Our dead spareThey were able to get the tire with the screw in it up to pressure, so we switched it back onto the Jeep. We drove it to the cabin and the tire still is full enough a day later. We still have 2 tires that are busticated, one moreso than the other. Oddly enough, the one with the screw in it appears better than the spare.

So, we made it to the cabin, we have access to another car, and we sure are feeling lucky. I have no idea what we would have done if Pat and Bob hadn’t showed up right at the right moment. Happy coincidence!

My next step will be to research air compressors that might run off of the car battery/cigarette lighter.

Birds in flight (gratitude #17)

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I’ve been noticing the birds. Maybe they’re returning from the woods (robins) or returning from the south (hawks). Or maybe I’m just more tuned into the sky.

Sandhill Crane Sense of Motion, originally uploaded by Fort Photo.

We drove to Indianapolis Friday evening, and then back on Sunday. On Friday evening there were thunderstorms forecast, and the sky was dramatic with towering cloud formations and ominous contrasts.

We went to visit Dave’s grandparents. A quick visit, and I wasn’t sure what we’d find. Things are changing there. Things are changing closer to home as well – loved family are slipping away into forgetfulness. A bittersweet reminder to cherish each moment, because who knows what’s next.

All the way back we were mostly quiet in the car, and I studied the sky again. I noticed hawks, perched on telephone wires and soaring overhead. I glimpsed a blackbird mobbing a hawk, a lone great blue heron passing overhead, a lone sandhill crane, a killdeer in cropped grass.

Work is busy, family is calling, I’ve got chores at home piled up from a weekend away. Today at work a sparrow clung to the ledge of my fifth-floor window, chirping cheerily. It reminds me of another world outside my own head, and of a big, big sky.

Cool planes at KARB

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There were wonderful planes today at the Ann Arbor Airport (KARB).

The Stearman was out, but Chris is often there with it. He was offering flights in it as a fundraiser for Great Commission Air. Perhaps the jets were there for the same reason?

We went for a joyride to Marshall and back, and on our return we were surprised to hear of “traffic” landing before us that was currently at our 5 o’clock (that is, behind us). After the Alpha Jet completely dusted our Cessna-182, we landed, hearing a MiG talking to Ann Arbor Tower, arranging for a touch-and-go after our landing. Well, as we taxied back to the NW T hangars, the MiG buzzed the runway 2x, never even touching. It came in really fast and quite low (just feet off the ground), the second time it had its afterburners on. Wow!

Almost stranded

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Getting towed

We flew up north this weekend and stopped to clear Canadian customs in Sarnia. After a brief stop, the engine of our Cessna-182 had uncharacteristic trouble starting. We got it started, and continued up the coast of Lake Huron to Tobermory.

On our return, the cold start at Tobermory airport was easy, but we had worse trouble hot starting the engine after clearing US customs. The engine simply wouldn’t turn over, and Dave tried a few times before he became concerned about running down the battery. It was mid-Sunday afternoon, sunny and beautiful, and the phone number we had for the local FBO (fixed base operator, the folks who service planes at airports) didn’t work, the airport manager wasn’t in his/her office, and the airport was quiet. Dave and Guy wandered around, looking for open hangars and helpful people. [Read more…] about Almost stranded