I wrote a book!

A Newsletter by Chuq Von Rospach

V2#2 - March 23, 2020

Welcome to the latest issue of 6FPS!

So, how are you doing? Since the last issue, a few things have happened...

I hope all of you are doing okay and figuring out how to cope in our new reality. I'll admit it's been a bit of a bouncy ride so far, but Laurie and I are healthy and doing fine so far. Since my company was always remote worker centric, my actual job hasn't been impacted much and getting used to the enforced hermit life is honestly not a lot different than my day to day life was.

Think about what your new normal will be, or what you want it to be. Now, with everything in our daily life disrupted, is a good opportunity to look for ways to nudge things in that direction.

What is the new normal?

That said, this is changing our world, and I worry what life will be like once we get through this. I'm trying to remind those I work with -- and myself -- that this enforced downtime is an opportunity to think about how you want things to be moving forward and work towards implementing that. I do not think we will ever go back to the way normal was in the future, and so I am looking for ways to help influence what this new normal will be so that it will be a better place, both personally and, where I can, for others.

This week, we spent the evening with a good friend we often go out to dinner with. We did this by firing up Zoom on the laptop, airplaying the video onto the big TV, and spending the evening in a web conference talking about this freaking virus while he ate take-out from his favorite Mexican place while we had GrubHub deliver burritos from the local Mexican place we like -- because these local, non-chain places need out support even more right now.

It was both wonderfully normal to spend the evening together and kind of dis-orienting that we had to do it via the network. But we're all trying to be careful and stay isolated both to not catch this damned thing if we can avoid it, but also to not inadvertently spread it.

This is not our new normal, and I don't know how long it will take before we can start settling in to whatever that will be. At one point, our friend asked us for thoughts on whether a trip he has planned for next year will be impacted by this. My answer, to be honest, was "I don't know what will be happening in a month, and I have no way to guess about anything right now".

All I know -- I'm absolutely convinced of this -- right now is that we will never go back to the way things were a month ago, this is going to be society-changing on a global scale. I just hope we can make this future normal a better place.

Don't Stop

With the Audubon work I do with the local chapter, we're moving into spring, which means the Spring Birdathon, which is the chapters big fundraising event. Much of that event involves organizing groups to go out and bird, which allows us to teach others where to find birds and how to identify them and generally get together and socialize in groups with our fellow birders.

Yeah. That's all thrown out and gone. But we aren't stopping or giving up. I've redone my scheduled outings as distributed/virtual outings where everyone goes out individuallly and birds, and we collect everyone's sightings together into a group list. I'll be donating money based on how many species we as a group find, and I'm encouraging other members to do so as well. It's not as good as the group outing would be, but it's what's possible now.

So that's my suggestion for everyone. This isn't a reason to stop. Don't crawl into the living room and vegetate. There are options. Here in California, going outside for exercise is fine, and doing so with binoculars is perfectly okay, so going out and birding is still an option, and getting outside -- while maintaining safe distance from others -- is a great and necessary way to help protect your sanity and avoid cabin fever. So go outside for a walk, even if it's just around the block. But here in Silicon Valley, the parks and open spaces are generally open even if the offices (and often, the restrooms) are closed, and it is okay to drive to a place to take your walk.

You don't have to -- and shouldn't -- crawl in a hole and never go out side. Just be thoughtful about where you go to keep some distance from others, but please, go outside and get some fresh air. It'll help you keep a fresh attitude.

On with the Show!

And with that, on with the show! And thank you for being part of this.

What's New?

Here is what I've written since the last issue:

  • End of the Day

  • Clarke's Grebe

  • Life in the Shadow of the Virus

  • Bufflehead Big Stretch

  • Making Your Pictures Real

  • Sandhill Crane

  • Ruby Beach, Olympic National Park

  • When the geese explode: SCVAS group trip to Merced National Wildlife Refuge

  • Forster's Tern

  • Fern Leaf

  • Evaluating Black and White Conversion Tools

  • Black-Necked Stilt with Dowagers

  • How to find Oka Ponds (aka Oka Lane aka Los Gatos Creek County Park)

  • Sea Otter Mom and Pup

  • How to find Emily Renzel Pond

  • Acorn Woodpecker

  • Little Quinalt

  • Birding 101: What Makes a Good Bird Report?

Photos: Elephant Seal Pup with Western Gull

Western Gull checking out an Elephant Seal Pup, Piedras Blancas Elephant Seal Rookery

I wrote a book!



I'm thrilled to announce the results of a secret project I've been working on the last few weeks. I've written a book. The title is "... And the Geese Exploded" which if you read my blog was the title of a piece I wrote about this year's trip to Merced National Wildlife Refuge, and it was the thing that made me realize I needed to write this book.

This book is available for free -- no strings attached, not even an email address. The download is in PDF, which is easily readable on most computers and tablets (and it looks awesome on my iPad in the Books app, if I do say so myself), and also exists as a hardcover printed copy, but only one copy of it exists, I have it, and no, you can't buy it. But the ebook version is all yours to enjoy.

The book is a combination of a series of short essays about my birding life, how I feel so deeply for birdwatching, and some of the aspects of being a birdwatcher that mean so much to me. It also includes over 100 of my favorite photos that I've taken over the last decade here in the greater Bay Area, out in the central valley wildlife refuges, and here in the western coastal states in the U.S.

Interested? Head over to the download page where you can find out more about the book and how it came to be, and to grab a copy for your enjoyment. If you know of someone you think might enjoy this book, please share this with them, and pass this along through your social channels to help reach others that might want to have a copy. 

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For Your Consideration

About 6FPS and Chuq

6FPS (Six Frames Per Second) is a newsletter of interesting things and commentary from Chuq Von Rospach (chuqui@mac.com).

Coming out in theory every six weeks, I will place in your inbox a few things I hope will inform and delight you. There is too much mediocre, forgettable stuff attacking your eyeballs every day you're online; this is my little way to help you cut through the noise to some interesting things you might otherwise not find.

Know someone who might want to subscribe? Send them here. You'll also find the archives there if you want to look at previous issues.

See you soon!


And with that, I'll see you in a few weeks with the next issue. I'd love feedback on this, what you like, what you want more of, what you want less of. And if you have something interesting you think I might want to talk about, please pass it along.

Until then, take care, and have fun.

Chuq

Copyright © 2020 Chuq Von Rospach, All rights reserved.