Christmas and my 2007 Year List

I had a really wonderful Christmas this year. Spent a few days with Sarah's family, got to do some birding, visited my family, lots of fun. One of the presents I get almost every year is some money to buy music with. Here's a few of the albums I picked out:

         

Sufjan Stevens, Ivy, My Morning Jacket - alt/rock bands I like a lot

Andrew's Sisters Greatest Hits - 1940s pop music with amazing harmonies

Vasen (with Mike Marshall and Darol Anger!?), Aly Bain & Ale Moller, Jonas Knutsson & Horn Please, Ranarim - great Swedish/Scandi bands

Radio Tarifa - Spanish/North African/Mediterranean music

Rosa Passos - Brazillan singer

Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon and Queen's Greatest Hits - what can I say?

     

Anyway, things are good here. It's been a quiet month for the most part. January is fairly busy and we've got a very heavy touring schedule for the rest of the spring. I don't really expect to get any new birds before the end of the year so I think my total is going to stay at 342. My goal was 350 but I missed about 10 birds in Colorado that I thought I would get so it's not that bad. I went birding in roughly 15 states this year and added 60 life birds, bringing my North Amerian total to 405. Highlights included my trips to Florida (Snail & Swallow-tailed Kite, Florida Scrub-Jay), North Carolina (Piping Plover, Red-cockaded Woodpecker), southern New Jersey (Marbled Godwit and other shorebirds), Washington (Band-tailed Pigeon, Rhinoceros Auklet, Western Grebe), Alaska (Red-faced Cormorant, Tufted Puffin, breeding plumage Harlequin Ducks, Aleutian Tern, Yellow-billed Loon, American Dipper) and Colorado (Stellar's Jay, Black-billed Magpie, Lesser Goldfinch, Green-tailed Towhee, Swainson's Hawk, Burrowing Owl) plus some notable birds here in central New York like Cape May Warbler, Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Clay-colored Sparrow, American Avocet and Eurasian Wigeon.  The past month or so has been great for finches.  I've had multiple and very nice looks at Red Crossbills, Pine and Evening Grosbeaks.   Big misses for the year were Northern Goshawk, Baird's Sandpiper, Snowy and Short-eared Owls, Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Philadelphia Vireo, Gray-cheeked Thrush, Bohemian Waxwing, Golden-winged, Bay-breasted, Blackpoll and Canada Warblers, Orchard Oriole and White-winged Crossbill.  My goal for next year is again to reach 350.  Have a great New Year's everyone. 

I am sick...

Pretty much says it all. Been feeling lousy all evening. Might have been the Reuben I had for lunch. But it's not all bad. Now I can truthfully say I've had sauerkraut come out my nose! That's something. And Sarah's being so nice to me. She gets me water, gets me blankets, gets me DVDs. I love Sarah. Sarah's great. She's way super awesome. You know what's not way super awesome? TV. TV is lousy. There was nothing even sort of worth watching on tonight. I know... I tried. Nothing. Anyway, thought I'd give you folks an update on how I'm doing. And in case you forgot, I'm actually quite decidedly sick. And slightly cranky. In other news, I'm just about done with my Christmas shopping. Only maybe one or two more things and I think I know what they are. There's supposedly a big storm coming tonight. Should get a couple feet at least. We'll see. It's been a really snowy winter compared to last year. Haven't really gotten out birding much lately. Still waiting for a stupid Snowy Owl to show up somewhere. I can't really afford to go looking for them with gas this expensive. I got some exciting news today. Apparently Bluegrass Now is going to run a review of our CD in their February issue. That should be cool, as long as they don't say "This album is lame. I hate Andrew and Noah. They stink. They're even more irritating that that song 'Last Christmas, I gave you my heart. But the very next day, you gave it away... etc... etc...' Boycott all their shows. Send them dog poop and empty shell casings in the mail. Secretly pay somebody to put poison in all their Reubens." I really hope the review doesn't say that. Actually I might be feeling a little better now. I wonder if Sarah will still go get me a drink???

Reflections on the Dietary Habits of Noah VanNorstrand (2007)

That's right folks, it's time for my Annual Summary of the Dietary Habits of Noah VanNorstrand. Throughout the year, I've painstakingly monitored my brother's culinary inclinations and I am pleased to be able to submit my findings in this report. Warning: the following images contain graphic depictions of mastication by a teen. Viewer discrestion is advised.

We'll start out with this pic of Noah displaying a skewer of Shrimp, which he then proceeded to devour, at the Pisgah Inn on the Blue Ridge Pkwy in North Carolina.

In this image we see my brother indicating a (presumed) chicken quesidia, which he also then proceeded to devour, from a Mexican restaurant in Atlanta, Georgia.

With impeccable etiquette, Noah is here seen partaking of a roast bovine sub (with French Onion sause!) in Indianapolis, Indiana.

A delightful depiction of Noah enjoying(?) some Thai food in Seattle, Washington.

What better place to try a seafood pizza than Estes Park, Colorado?

Noah's all smiles with his pot pie and apple juice in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Nothing like chomping down on some fried catfish in Greenbrier, Arkansas. Don't be fooled by his demeanor, that was some mighty fine reindeer sausage he had in Homer, Alaska.

And finally, a candid shot of my dearest brother eating, um, well... I guess that would be a heaping spoonful of super sweet cream cheese from our all-time favorite restaurant The Tin Pan Galley right here in Sacket's Harbor, New York. This is a rare glimpse into Noah's most intimate, private and personal life... that is to say, he is, for once, actually NOT wearing his signature brown Adidas hat! Amazing, I know.

You can see the first Reflections on the Dietary Habits of Noah VanNorstrand by clicking here.