Daily Archives: March 16, 2018

The Evening Star

Ever been tasked with something you weren’t sure about?  Maybe you committed to an event that might be (way) outside your comfort zone to the point it starts to produce stress several months out from the designated day?  How about being cast in a situation where the audience probably knows more about the topic you are presenting than you do?  Okay, now imagine a situation where ALL those conditions come to the same confluence and you are standing in the middle wondering if the current is going to drag you under.  That is my best analogy of what Wednesday evening felt like to me.

Vesper Sparrow discovered at William Goodrich Jones State Forest in December 2016

I eluded to a commitment I had made last December but really didn’t go into it – choosing to wait and see what kind of disaster would occur.  History has taught me humbleness over embarrassment, obscurity over grandstand and work before celebration.  Those tenets have served me well.  It is also the reason for the stress over the last several months.  Last year, I had mentioned my interest in birding and wildlife to a member of my wife’s dog club (Carol).  Not sure how, but somewhere in that conversation it came up I had a blog.  Carol is also the catalyst for extracting my wildlife content into a separate site for broader consumption.  Turns out Carol is currently the president of the Peoria Audubon Society and asked if I would give a presentation on my blogging and photography.   Whoa, that’s definitely putting the big boy pants on.  At the insistence of my wife and brother, I confirmed and we eventually set the date.

Vesper Sparrow discovered at William Goodrich Jones State Forest in December 2016

Hit the jump to find out what this bird is … well, maybe ha!

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