Day 5057: FIFA: Recognizing Ochoa! & Baby's First Flight.

"Rishi": tissue, junk papers collage.

                                                                       

  

Want music?

    Click: Stevie Wonder, You are the Sunshine

2GN2S

I have always thought soccer was a great sport, but rarely watched it on tv until the current FIFA World Cup matches. I watch USA of course, but also Mexico, Canada, Australia, Spain, Brazil, Japan and more. The speed, stamina and agility are truly amazing.

I have been watching so many matches. A lot of soccer. Maybe too much soccer? I usually mute commercials, but I was busy and didn't and looked up in time to see Ochoa from Mexico's soccer team in a commercial, I immediately said, Oh, Ochoa! Then I thought, Wow, you are watching too much soccer! I don't remember the commercial, but he was in a suit and tie, and I knew him? Before FIFA and the World Cup competition I wouldn't have. Wow!

Guillermo Ochoa

They say that a Korean woman flying from Seoul to California with her 4-month-old baby once decided to hedge against just such wrath by handing out 200 (!) bags before the flight.

Each bag contained earplugs, candy, and a note that read:

"Hello! I'm Joon Woo, and I'm 4 months old. Today I'm flying to the US with my mom and grandma to see my aunt.

I'm a little nervous and scared because this is my first flight, which means I might cry or make too much noise.

I'll try to be calm, but I can't make any promises... Please excuse me.

My mom has prepared a small bag for you! It contains candy and earplugs. Please use them if I make too much noise. Enjoy your trip. Thank you."

Mom needn't have worried; Jun Woo behaved like the most exemplary passenger. The baby slept for the entire 10 hours

  

  

 

A 4+ minute video, Homeless, here.

 

Just because ...

Indian Paradise Flycatcher.

Monday's Smiles ... 

 

Hoping you feel all the good things in your day.

  

 

 

 

Day 5056: Clasping Arms in Minneapolis & Rescued bird needs shoes.

  

"Alter Ego": graphite drawing, acrylics, collage & digital.

                                                                       

  

Want music?

    Click: Lionel Richie, Love Will Find a Way.

2GN2S

23,000-Sq.Ft. Clasping Arms in Minneapolis 

All images courtesy of Saype

Across an expansive lawn at Minneapolis’ Boom Island Park earlier this month, Franco-Swiss artist Saype painted a monumental public artwork directly onto the grass. Part of his Beyond Walls series, which has so far seen 22 iterations around the world, the piece marked the first time the project appeared in the U.S.

Minneapolis found itself in the global spotlight earlier this year when ICE descended on the city and spurred several weeks of turmoil, protests, and violence. Especially tragic were the killings of Renée Nicole Good and Alex Pretti during interactions with agents. The city is no stranger to the ripple effects of police brutality, especially in the wake of George Floyd’s murder in 2020 and the subsequent surge in Black Lives Matter protests around the world.

What Minneapolis also has in spades is a deeply felt sense of community. It’s the sort of place where neighbors help to shovel each other’s sidewalks and find innovative ways to support one another. A recent study by State of the Nation ranked Minnesota number one in the U.S. for quality of life.

“I found an incredible humanity in Minneapolis—in the welcome of its people, their stories, their kindness. I’m deeply grateful for that,” Saype says. “And this is the power of art: to bring people together. I hope this work will make people dream—here and far beyond.”

Saype’s 310-by-75-foot ground mural stretches across the entire width of the park. It sits adjacent to the Mississippi River, which the Indigenous Anishinaabe (Ojibwe) people treat as sacred and call Misi-ziibi, or “Giant River.” The painting, created with a biodegradable medium the artist has developed over time, is designed to gradually fade as the elements and occasional mowing run their course.

During the first weekend in June, hundreds of residents turned out to see the work in progress and link together in a human chain to demonstrate solidarity, resilience, and togetherness. An official print edition of the completed work is available for purchase on Saype’s site, and proceeds support additional murals. See more on the artist’s Instagram.

Sometimes the smallest patients inspire the biggest admiration.

A young mockingbird rescued by wildlife rehabilitators arrived with severely deformed feet, making it difficult to stand, walk, or move normally. Without treatment, its chances of thriving in the wild would have been greatly reduced.

Determined to help, veterinarians and wildlife specialists created a tiny set of custom-made corrective shoes, designed to gently guide the bird's feet back into proper alignment. The miniature devices looked almost like snowshoes, carefully fitted to support the bird's recovery.

Over the following days, the treatment began to work. As the feet gradually returned to a healthier position, the little bird gained strength and mobility.

Before long, it was able to stand and walk on its own, a remarkable transformation for such a tiny patient.

Stories like this highlight the dedication of wildlife rehabilitators who use creativity, skill, and compassion to give injured animals a second chance.

For one small mockingbird, a pair of tiny shoes helped put it back on the path toward a normal life

 

 

  

 

A 2 minute video,  "Klepta-cat", here.

 

 

Just because ...

Rufous-necked Hornbill

Sunday's Smiles ... 

 

Hoping you feel all the good things in your day.

  

 

 

Day 5055: Brea Art Gallery & California Saves Water.

"me see": junk papers collage.

  

Want music?

    Click: Quincy Jones, Secret Garden.

2GN2S

Friday, good friend and artist, Valerie and I met for lunch at ...

 

We have eaten there for years, even the same outdoor table while catching up, before we trek over to the Brea Art Gallery, a beautiful gallery and facility.

We came for the annual Made in California Show

where all the artists are from within California. I believe the show will close Sunday, June 28th. You may be able to see more on line.

This was a dynamic life-size piece near the opening.

I told Val that I could relate to this one, it was below right of the above shown art.

This was hanging from the ceiling and reminded me of Balinese art? I liked it a lot! Buttons, beads, feathers and more.

I mentioned to Val that I always take too many pictures and it 

makes it a hard job for the blog. I tried to take less.

The photo does not do this justice, chicken wire, photos and notes were intrinsic to the piece.

close-up of detail

close-up of detail

This is just a snippet of what we saw today, but we had fun.

Thank you, Valerie!

 

 California just figured out how to generate clean electricity and save billions of gallons of water from the exact same strip of land. In California, solar panels are being installed directly over irrigation canals as part of a pilot effort called Project Nexus, which began in 2023 and is being carried out in the Turlock Irrigation District in Central California. The idea is elegantly simple — solar panels are mounted above the canals so they can produce renewable power while simultaneously shading the water flowing underneath them.

That shade delivers a benefit most people never consider when they think about solar energy: dramatically reduced water evaporation, which matters enormously in a state that regularly faces drought and increasingly scarce water resources. Research has estimated that covering canals with solar panels could reduce evaporation by up to 82 percent and help save approximately 63 billion gallons of water annually across arid agricultural regions. The panels also keep canal water measurably cooler, and cooler shaded water reduces algae growth, which improves overall water quality and makes the entire canal system easier and cheaper to manage and maintain.

Project Nexus was directly inspired by similar solar canal projects already operating in India, which proved that canals can generate substantial clean energy without consuming a single additional acre of farmland or open land. This dual-purpose approach is now attracting serious interest beyond California — Arizona and Colorado are both actively exploring their own solar canal projects, positioning the technology as a practical, scalable tool for climate resilience, water conservation, and clean energy generation across the entire arid American West.

Source: Turlock Irrigation District / Project Nexus, 2024

#SolarEnergy #California #WaterConservation #CleanEnergy #ProjectNexus\

  

 

A 3 minute video, Skating on ice, here.

 

Just because ...

Horned Guan

This rare mountain bird recognized by its unique crimson horn and ancient lineage. The Horned Guan inhabits cloud forests of Central America. Endemic to highland forests, this remarkable species is known for its distinctive red horn and is considered one of the most unusual and endangered birds in the region.

Scientific Name: Oreophasis derbianus

#hornedguan #guan #birdphotography #wildlifephotography

Saturday's Smiles ... 

Hoping you see all the good things in your day.