Internet Rumors and Innuendo

This post is not specific to Baja but to humanity in general. Let me apologize in advance to my 'lecturing' tone. I've tried to soften it.

Before the internet, we had the telephone (instant communication), before the phone,(and telegraph), the only form of live news was voice. Today, with the internet connecting literally BILLIONS of people, a single comment can become the unverified truth in minutes.

My wife received the "Costa Rica Turtle Egg Harvest" email this morning. I've seen it before. This is a good example of someone using real pictures and falsifying a story. At first glance, you see what looks like a whole village of people gathering zillions of turtle eggs. The horrifying photos are accompanied by a story that claims the evil villagers are quickly sending the turtles towards extinction. Looks bad but remember that the same internet can be used to verify a story in seconds.  Google 'Costa Rica Turtle Egg Harvest'.

I've received and heard of many such hoax emails.  The turtle egg story might evoke strong emotions;   how about the 'Nigerian Bank' scam. Google that one.  Wow!!!

I still think the best way to spread rumors is face to face. At least that way you have a chance of backtracking to the originator of the rumor!! By the way, you know what I herd? Sheep. (works better verbally...) Ok, no more preaching but there will certainly be more bad jokes.

Blood donors needed!!

Hi folks. Just got back from the states to find that our friend Susan Tucker is still in the hospital and needs blood. I also saw that Amparo's sister is in need of blood. Please check this link for more information. Thanks. Bob

Our Weather Station

For those who use it, our weather station is working fine.  However, there is a software glitch with the folks on the other end.  I've written both Weatherlink who are the gatherers of weather data from individual stations and Wunderground who are the folks that assimilate all that data and make forecasts and keep historical data.  I'm hoping they solve the problem soon.

Bob

Baja Bird Watch

Do you like birds?  Me too!!  In fact I had a delicious chicken salad at the Roadrunner yesterday. However today's post is about birds that haven't been invited to dinner. I'm not actually a bird watcher but I can  identify most of the birds I see around los Barriles and Buena Vista.  When I'm stumped, I call Steve Chism or Robert Emery for help. Steve gave bird watching tours in a past life and Robert is curious about anything he sees and has studied birds a bit also.

Why am I telling you all this?  Hey, this is a small town.  You have to find entertainment where you can!!

My friend Brigitte sent me these photos of a mama Horned Owl and her 2 owlets. She has a nest in a little arroyo and returns every year. Not Brigitte, the owl. Brigitte walks early in the morning and is treated to sights like these frequently.

The next photo was taken just below our house. This is a Harris Hawk. They are particularly interesting because they hunt in packs.  You won't see them as frequently as other large birds in the area such as Ospreys, Cara Cara or Buzzards but they are around.

Click here for a good Baja Bird site.

I finally got the results from the Dorado Shoot Out thanks to bumping into Robin Wade who is the East Cape editor for the Western Outdoor News.  Just click on the link above and you can see who won a brand new 2010 Ford F-150 and about 70,000 bucks worth of other prizes.  

I guess nobody posted photos of the tournament anywhere that I could find them. So instead, here's a picture of my daughter Amy and her friend Josh releasing a small Chinook salmon on the Gulkana River in Alaska in about 1985. Cute kids, no?

Hurricane Dora

In case you haven't been paying attention, hurricane Dora is within striking distance.  The consensus of the prognosticators has her missing Baja Sur to the West.  Let's hope they are right!!  Check the Weather Underground site for updates. Here's a look at a 5 day forecast as of 5 PM EDT JUL 20 2011.

If you are here in Baja Sur and are new to hurricanes, here's the place to read about hurricane preparations. There are a few things to consider when facing a hurricane but at least nowadays we have grocery stores and can buy gas. I'll never forget waiting in a line that must have been a half mile long waiting for my turn to buy gas. You had to assume that the arroyos would be full of water and that the gas trucks wouldn't get here for days or more. Now we have gas stations on every corner and bridges across the arroyos!! Woo Woo!!! Donna and I even broke down and bought a generator a couple of years ago. Of course there weren't any mega grocery stores either. Shelves were almost empty before the storm ever arrived. When I lived in the cold country, I worried about freezing to death in the dark. Not anymore.......

Bored??? How about some Racing, Fishing, Swimming and Books!!

Hi friends. Do me a favor.  If you ever hear me complain about not having enough to do, would you please slap me?  Here it is, almost the dog days of summer.  It should be slow and boring right? NOT SO!

This weekend you could have restocked your book supply at the ALMA book sale.  Or you could have volunteered to help with the Association for the arts 'sports and crafts' fair as did our grand-daughter Melody from Oregon. OR you could have entered the annual 'Dorado Shoot Out' presented by the Van Wormer family. OR you could have watched and/or participated in the 'Los Cabos Dessert Challenge' off road race that was held in the El Tule arroyo. I managed 2 out of the 4.  Whaddya mean, "not bad?"  If you could hit a baseball in the major leagues 2 out of 4 times, you could name your salary!!

I missed the weigh in at the Shoot Out and will attempt to gather the facts for a post later. Of course we're dealing with fishermen so the facts will be scattered amongst rumors and exaggerations...... I did hear that the winning fish was 52 pounds.  I don't think they've ever had a winner under 50 pounds.
Kudos and congratulations Capt. Kit and Co.

The Association for the Arts folks are repeating their classes next Friday. If you're interested, you probably could still get involved. If you click on the link, you can send an email.  I will post photos and details after this Friday's activities.

I did however manage to see some of the 'Dessert Challange." My presence was heavily influenced by my wife. Her son Pat has a class one car and raced in the finale on Sunday. There were only 3 trophy trucks but the start is impressive.

Pictured here are:
Pat behind the wheel,
Wife Mayte giving last minute instructions like "drive careful dear" and
Co-pilot/son-in-law Jorge getting in the car.





An old friend, Jay Manning from San Jose won the class one race. Pat blew a tire and came in 4th I think.
This video is of the class one start: