A New Year...

William Wise Photo Nature Notes is a wildlife, birding and nature photography blog documenting the wonders of God’s creation.

​2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

No photos today. Just an iPhone drawing of a cold January tree still holding onto a few fall leaves.

Monday - The new year begins with another chilly, 29°, cloudy day. Although it’s really only just another day, New Year’s Day is still a great time to start again; the arbitrary flipping of the calendar and the changing into the year. It’s a convenient date for resolutions, new commitments, and a fresh outlook on life.

Of course, I think of the typical resoluations: lose weight, continue exercise, improve my prayer life, etc. But a birding resoluation? The idea never entered my mind. But the first Out There with the Birds podcast of the New Year spoke about birding resolutions. I decided to work on my bird identification skills in the new year and build a flashcard deck on an iPhone app. I also would like to add more birds to my list. 
 
Coming out of the house 7:42 AM to head to the church for prayer, three crows stand at the bottom of my driveway. One picking at a small dirt pile, perhaps a meal of frozen fire ants? A somewhat scruffy, young, brown doe stands along the side of the road near a neighbor's house and watches me with a bit of nervous anticipation as I drive by. I put the truck in reverse to get a photo, but she bounds into the woods.
 
It is staying in the low 30s today. A few flurries float in the air around 10 AM. The thick cloud cover has given way to covering of thinner, wispier white clouds allowing a blue sky backdrop to show through. On an afternoon run I saw what I think was an Indigo Bunting and its mate near the dog park. Groups of vultures soar in the wind. The chilly wind keeps most of the human inhabitants in their dwellings.