Lake Wingra – Fake Flamenco

Gardening, Indigenous Peoples, Nature, photography

4 Hour School Hike by Lake Wingra

I’ve had great luck with local hikes recently. This month began well with a walk Tuesday morning through the University of Wisconsin Arboretum with a group of Eagle’s middle school classmates and their teacher. The classmates met us at the Arboretum building. For privacy reasons I won’t feature the students. I’ll focus on the landscape […]

Art, Nature, photography

Madison Parks Coyote 1 – Geese 0

Eagle and I ate lunch near Lake Wingra today. We saw an animal next to the baseball fence on the grass. “I think it’s a dog,” I said. Eagle said, “No, Mom. I’m sure it’s a statue.” As we stood alongside it, I saw they were right. It was a coyote decoy! The sign next […]

Latinas, Nature, photography, Spanish Culture and Language

Duck or Duck Tape Prom?

The results are in! Duck Tape has named two new winners of the $10,000 Duck Tape Prom contest. One is my all time favorite, the folklorico dress by Larissa. The second is one of my top two from this year, Ryan, dramatic in a black tux complete with top hat and black wings. To see […]

Nature, photography

Duck the Crane Coming Your Way

On our Sunday afternoon paddle last weekend, we saw many feathered friends. Dragonflies were on the prowl, although winged not feathered. Ducks were swimming leisurely, confident in their aquatic universe. We’d spotted a side pond a bit south of the boat rental after our previous excursion. This time we three paddled determinedly for the spot, […]

Nature, The Americas

Lake Wingra on a Sunday Afternoon

The days are cooler. We decided to go to Olbrich Gardens on last Saturday and for a paddle on Lake Wingra on Sunday. The gardens were cleverly arranged with one way paths to avoid congestion and allow for social distancing. In only an hour at Olbrich, we felt we’d been away for the whole day. […]

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Spanish Culture and Language

Global Friendships in Madison

Our child and I are enjoying the last days of summer. Yesterday afternoon we went kayaking with my good friend Carolyn. I met this dear amiga at a Spanish conversation group 14 years ago. We three paddled in a rented tandem kayak to the wilder side of the lake. Amid the marshy reeds and cattails […]