Author Archives: makielb

The idea that my friend Megan is doing for her podcast series is part of Sciartober 2021, an endeavor for scientific illustrators. Since i am not a medical illustrator in any sense of the word, I thought that I’d do the ideas for the day with older sketches, drawing and illustrations that I had doneContinue reading “A friend’s artistic challenge”

Yesterday, Susan and I, along with our friend Mike visited Goose Creek a Michigan Nature Association Preserve in Lenawee County, Michigan. And it was a delightful day. We went in search of interesting fall booming plants, and maybe even an insect or two. Our “targets” were Prairie Ladies-tresses (a small orchid), Grass-of Parnassus and FringedContinue reading “Goose Creek”

Walking through the neighborhood the past few days has proven how many people are looking forward to Halloween. The above photo of a woody skeleton pulling a skeleton out of a black kettle was impressive during the day, but more so in the evening. The same yard also had what might be described as aContinue reading “Our neighborhood is ready for Halloween”

Recently, we were visiting Mike and Deb in Petosky. They have several apple and pear trees. One evening, after a walk with a beautiful sunset Susan picked some apples and pears that we brought home. The next morning, one of the apples became part of breakfast. I peeled the apple, removed the core and slicedContinue reading “Food, the garden and more”

How do you find books to read in the age of the Internet? At one time we found books that were recommended by others or from reviews. But now is a bit more difficult. The other day I mentioned The Island of Dr. Moreau, which I had discovered some 40 years ago. Last winter IContinue reading “Current reading”

We had to go out shopping at Kohl’s for some necessities. As I typically do, I kept track of people who were properly wearing a mask versus those not using a mask, including inappropriately using one. At Kohl’s the masking rate was 61%, with 90% of the staff masked. The 61% is somewhat low forContinue reading “Shopping during the pandemic”

We spent the first days of fall in Petosky with Mike and Deb. Lots of fun little walks looking for mushrooms. The above three fungi are (left to right) Yellow fairy cups, Bears head tooth fungus, Coral tooth fungus. The above are Wolfs milk (a slime mold) and Common eyelash. Above left is White coralContinue reading “First day of Fall”

The day started as all do for us at the cabin. I head down to make coffee and then take some up to Susan. Then after breakfast we headed to the point to see what’s happening with birds. We walked to where the waterfowl are counted in both the spring and fall. Then we headedContinue reading “Great Lakes Shipwreck Museum at Whitefish Point”

Our day, whether at Whitefish Point, in Ann Arbor or elsewhere starts with coffee. It’s just at the cabin our mugs reflect the site. Usually after coffee and breakfast we usually take a walk to the bird observatory to see who might be there, or what birds shave shown up – like the Snow GooseContinue reading “Whitefish Point weekend”

The CDC just published data (17 September 2021) on the effectiveness of each of the covid-vaccines versus unvaccinated people. With 3,689 people in the study, 45% caught the virus. The effectiveness of each vaccine in decreasing order was: Moderna (88.7%), Pfizer (82.7%) and Johnson & Johnson (67.3%). When eliminating people in long-term facilities these numbersContinue reading “Recent data on the Pandemic”