20 September 2007
This is what you shall do: Love the earth an the sun and the animals, desipise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy , devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air of every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you been told at schooll or chrurch or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem and have the richest fluency not only in the silent lines of its and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body ... Walt Whitman
11 August 2007
A poem from a long time ago
The dawn glistens in spirals of lights
starting the day anew
The morning dew, mirroring a kaleidoscope of colors
awaiting the sun’s rays for unity once again
With the heavens
Birds singing songs unknown,
Plants whispering truths untold as the earth
Opens up to creation
And then there is you
…..
Peeking through the branches as if aspy
of the many wonders within
The sun catches nature’s children at play
Above in the trees hide the hidden
Nest of nature’s magical forces
Locked indefinitely in their biological realms
Below on the ground amidst entangled webs on light
Flutter a rainbow of thoughts
All a part of you
…..
The night is upon us and the heavens
unveil a field of blooming white lights.
Across the universe two special stars sparkle
and fall into the horizon
The moon smiles at the happening
And as nature ebbs its way into my life
So as well do you
…..
starting the day anew
The morning dew, mirroring a kaleidoscope of colors
awaiting the sun’s rays for unity once again
With the heavens
Birds singing songs unknown,
Plants whispering truths untold as the earth
Opens up to creation
And then there is you
…..
Peeking through the branches as if aspy
of the many wonders within
The sun catches nature’s children at play
Above in the trees hide the hidden
Nest of nature’s magical forces
Locked indefinitely in their biological realms
Below on the ground amidst entangled webs on light
Flutter a rainbow of thoughts
All a part of you
…..
The night is upon us and the heavens
unveil a field of blooming white lights.
Across the universe two special stars sparkle
and fall into the horizon
The moon smiles at the happening
And as nature ebbs its way into my life
So as well do you
…..
13 July 2007
| Michael Gellerman |
| 18972 NW Northshore Ct Portland, OR 97229 USA | Tel: +1 503 929 6555 msgellerman@gmail.com |
Experience
| Raccoon Dog Associates - Principal/Consultant - Contracted Management | Portland, Oregon Tokyo, Japan Namibia/South Africa Berkeley, California | 1999 - present 1993 -1997 |
I have used this company name for a number of consulting and contracted management projects over the years. I have worked on a number of different projects in Japan, Southern Africa and North America including:
|
| Pinnacle Rock Associates Partner | Berkeley, California | 1997 - 1999 |
Along with two colleagues, all of us former CIOs or Vice Presidents of IT, we formed this consulting group that continues to be successful. We saw a need for specialized information systems and management consulting for small to medium sized speciality retailers that were growing rapidly and had difficulty keeping pace with technology but were not quite large enough or capital-rich enough for traditional solutions. We specialized in systems integration, customization, and conversions for a number of prominent clients. We also did a number of legacy "Y2K" conversions to updated systems. I specialized in database design, user interface design, data conversion, training and management reporting development. Most of the work we did was on the IBM AS/400 or Windows NT Server, but we had plenty of experience with PICK, COBOL, S/38, UNIX operating systems, and most databases (open source and commercial) in common use. Example list of clients:
|
| Real Goods Trading Director of Operations/COO | Ukiah, California | 1990 - 1993 |
Primarily a catalog company of alternative energy (wind/solar/hydro) solutions for independent living and environmentally conscious consumer products - I was recruited to manage the operations, upgrade their systems, and provide experienced management in anticipation of rapid growth. The company expanded dramatically and successfully during my term in senior management and was eventually purchased by Gaiam, a holding company for a number of "lifestyle companies". My responsibilities and projects included:
|
| The Nature Company Progressively Responsible Positions | Berkeley, California | 1985 -1990 |
An innovative and pioneering retailer of products dedicated to enhancing the appreciation and enjoyment of the natural world. Products included books, optics, framed and poster art, sculpture, minerals and fossils, educational toys, and nature inspired gifts and tools for the naturalist. I started with the company when it had 3 stores in the Bay Area and served in progressively responsible positions. It eventually grew to 165 stores in five countries before being purchased by The Discovery Channel.
|
| Research Biologist | Various Locations | 1982 - present |
I have always taken some time out from other jobs and projects to be a biologist. That is my first love and while I am accomplished in the systems and operations area, it has been complimentary to pursuing a greater understanding of ecology and natural history. This is a sampling my work over the years, sometimes with holidays, sometimes between jobs and moves and occasionally with a leave of absence with an employer or client who understands that this work gives me insight into how the world works:
|
| University of California, Berkeley |
| 1980 - 1985 |
Activities
- Active member of Portland Audubon Society
- Past President, Secretary, Vice President of the International Adventure Club (Tokyo)
- Birding Guide for Oxalis Adventures (London - trips to Japan and Armenia)
- Private trekking and birding guide for Japan, Australia, Southern and Central Africa
Skills
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
References
Available on Request
17 April 2007
Mark Shields for President?
February 14, 1993 - before the invasion/occupation
I think the president can go to war. I think that the question, Margaret, is what becomes success politically as well as militarily. I don't think anybody doubts that the United States could vanquish the depleted armies of Saddam Hussein. But the reality is, Margaret, here we are 58 years after World War II. The United States still has troops in Japan and Germany. Fifty years after the end of Korea, the United States still has troops there.
... I don't think there's any preparation. Margaret, just take Afghanistan. The last time we were involved in Afghanistan was when the Soviets were there. Ok, the Soviets leave, we leave. What happens? The Taliban. Now we're in Afghanistan. Girls can go to school with boys. Isn't that terrific? Karzai -- one of the great leaders of probably the area in the region is now the mayor of Kabul effectively because that land is essentially... we have lost interest in it. Do you hear Americans talking about the mission we have in Afghanistan?
... [Democratic Party] leaders, plural; basically what they've done is they've taken a position, the ones in Congress, supporting the president on this. The party itself is against war -- strenuously against war. And probably if we go in and the troubles do develop as are predicted and the long painful peace follows and difficult peace, then there they'll be even more against it. So you have the followership party of the party going in one direction and the leadership going in the other. The leadership is absolutely in my judgment paralyzed with what to do.
And then on another topic on the same program (pre Hurricane Katrina) -
... if we find out that emergency workers in the next crisis, in the next attack are deprived of the tools, the federal government is supposed to provide for them because instead we're diverting those funds to cut whatever tax it was that was burdening Bill Gates that day, then I think that there will be an erosion of the president's leadership qualities and a sense of his judgment in that way.
Once again February 14, 2003 and he got it all completely right!
Mark Shields for President!
I think the president can go to war. I think that the question, Margaret, is what becomes success politically as well as militarily. I don't think anybody doubts that the United States could vanquish the depleted armies of Saddam Hussein. But the reality is, Margaret, here we are 58 years after World War II. The United States still has troops in Japan and Germany. Fifty years after the end of Korea, the United States still has troops there.
Anybody who thinks this is a year or two years, to build the kind of Iraq that is envisioned, that is, a democratic Iraq, multi-representational government with secure borders, having disavowed any use of weapons of mass destruction, living in harmony and some peace and prosperity, if it took 50 years in Germany and Japan, with homogenous populations with traditions it's an investment that the president has not prepared this country to make. It's just really... it's an enormous, enormous task. And I think given the American people's attention span on this war, they'd root and we'd win and that would be it. I'm telling you, I could see it turning to absolute ashes and dust before us.
... I don't think there's any preparation. Margaret, just take Afghanistan. The last time we were involved in Afghanistan was when the Soviets were there. Ok, the Soviets leave, we leave. What happens? The Taliban. Now we're in Afghanistan. Girls can go to school with boys. Isn't that terrific? Karzai -- one of the great leaders of probably the area in the region is now the mayor of Kabul effectively because that land is essentially... we have lost interest in it. Do you hear Americans talking about the mission we have in Afghanistan?
... [Democratic Party] leaders, plural; basically what they've done is they've taken a position, the ones in Congress, supporting the president on this. The party itself is against war -- strenuously against war. And probably if we go in and the troubles do develop as are predicted and the long painful peace follows and difficult peace, then there they'll be even more against it. So you have the followership party of the party going in one direction and the leadership going in the other. The leadership is absolutely in my judgment paralyzed with what to do.
And then on another topic on the same program (pre Hurricane Katrina) -
... if we find out that emergency workers in the next crisis, in the next attack are deprived of the tools, the federal government is supposed to provide for them because instead we're diverting those funds to cut whatever tax it was that was burdening Bill Gates that day, then I think that there will be an erosion of the president's leadership qualities and a sense of his judgment in that way.
Once again February 14, 2003 and he got it all completely right!
Mark Shields for President!
06 February 2007
Pine Siskins, counting, Turkey Vultures and other thoughts ...
I had two Pine Siskins on the thistle feeder here at Bethany Lake in Washington Co., which may seem like old news to those who see hordes of them but they have been absent here for years according my girl Leslie. She has lived here for 13 years and they were once the most common of the thistle eating birds, but she took down the feeders when she found dead birds during the the Salmonellosis die-off in the NW a few years ago. I have had them up for 2 winters now and these are the first siskins to show up. American and Lesser Goldfinch come in waves, interestingly alternating days the past week or so
I also think the whole concept of counting birds belies why birds are interesting. I suppose I am not a very good birder by many standards as I am not an expert on the finest points of identification of the rarest birds and I often misidentify birds by continent as my "expertise" if you will, is more with birds of Southern Africa and East Asia than the Pacific NW so I might think Goldcrest for Golden-crowned Kinglet until I have my bearings right, but I am good at Osprey and Northern Goshawks and Golden Eagles and Sanderlings and Common Terns, etc. for the very reason that they occur about everywhere. There are "pied" and "black" Oystercatchers on almost every continent although we give them specific status. I suppose I might count every species (I don't really count), but isn't that an interesting question? As you might guess I am an ecologist so what makes birds interesting to me is there relative rarity or abundance and the fluctuations in their populations. As an ecologist I tend to think why a bird is or isn't there in number and breeding or using habitat for migration rather than how a unique individual arrived. I doubt anyone thinks that Falcated Ducks will overrun the Willamette Valley, but Eurasian Collared Doves, or Wrentits, or Anna's Hummingbirds? Those are interesting questions.
I have also worked quite a bit on what makes bird rare. Rare in their apparently most desired habitat. I can tell you that if you are on a tour of southern Africa along the roads, you would tell me that the Pale Chanting Goshawk is the most common raptor in the world. Why? They love to hunt from telephone poles and Sociable Weavers love to build nests on telephone poles. Ok, let's take a walk in the bush and you will rarely find the goshawk because the prey nests are widely distributed in rare trees and hunting perches are scarce. You will find Lanner Falcons, Red-footed Falcons, and a handful of Kestrel species though. Why are American Kestrels common and Loggerhead/Northern Shrikes relatively rare? Their diet overlaps substantially, it can be almost identical in some areas. (here I speak from great experience). The difference is not climate or food or habitat per se, but nest locations. Kestrels nest in inaccessible scrapes on cliffs or manmade structures like most falcons, Shrikes nest in trees and most of the trees have been cut down for agriculture and the few that are left are subject to cats, rats, ravens, crows, etc. When the converstation turns to blackberries, I roll my eyes a bit because food and cover is not the whole equation. I doubt Wrentits would expand their range for blackberries - there is plenty of cover - but why are there Black Phoebes on Sauvie Island in the middle of winter, or Townsend's Warblers? Food and only food. All of them eat bugs or modify their behavior to stay where they are. Why are there more bugs in winter? That is a whole different discussion for the political forum.
I will recount one story about Turkey Vultures and behavior modification that goes to my point about not oversimplifying. As a young biologist nearly 30 years ago now, I worked down in the Falkland Islands. I grew up in the SF Bay Area, went to school in Berkeley so I knew Turkey Vultures. I knew they soared on thermals on golden summer days, ate dead cows and road kill and roosted communally in oak trees in relatively remote locations. I knew they were resident, I couldn't imagine them migrating (there is always road kill and dead cows), I never gave much thought to them otherwise. And then I was in Patagonia and the Falklands (Las Malvinas for the politically correct). After tagging penguins, banding shorebirds and jaegers, petrels, and terns and handfull of cool endemic passerines I looked around at the vultures. There were Black Vultures in abundance, I'd seen Andean Condors, but that bigger and greyer vulture than the Black Vulture? Turkey Vulture. Walking on the beach, eating dead fish and penguins and anything else. You could not pay them to fly, it was too cold and no land to create thermals and no predators so why invest when all you could possibly want was right here and concentrated on this bit of shingle?
And now I live in Oregon, two winters now and people are amazed at Turkey Vultures in February. Me too now, but it makes me wonder why the common is rare and a non-migratory bird soaring over the savannah where I am from or walking on the beach 10,000km away where I worked creates a stir in my home town now and I will spend my time thinking about that rather than whether the left or right toe of Falcated Duck is clipped.
My best,
Mike Gellerman
Bethany Lake, Portland
I had two Pine Siskins on the thistle feeder here at Bethany Lake in Washington Co., which may seem like old news to those who see hordes of them but they have been absent here for years according my girl Leslie. She has lived here for 13 years and they were once the most common of the thistle eating birds, but she took down the feeders when she found dead birds during the the Salmonellosis die-off in the NW a few years ago. I have had them up for 2 winters now and these are the first siskins to show up. American and Lesser Goldfinch come in waves, interestingly alternating days the past week or so
I also think the whole concept of counting birds belies why birds are interesting. I suppose I am not a very good birder by many standards as I am not an expert on the finest points of identification of the rarest birds and I often misidentify birds by continent as my "expertise" if you will, is more with birds of Southern Africa and East Asia than the Pacific NW so I might think Goldcrest for Golden-crowned Kinglet until I have my bearings right, but I am good at Osprey and Northern Goshawks and Golden Eagles and Sanderlings and Common Terns, etc. for the very reason that they occur about everywhere. There are "pied" and "black" Oystercatchers on almost every continent although we give them specific status. I suppose I might count every species (I don't really count), but isn't that an interesting question? As you might guess I am an ecologist so what makes birds interesting to me is there relative rarity or abundance and the fluctuations in their populations. As an ecologist I tend to think why a bird is or isn't there in number and breeding or using habitat for migration rather than how a unique individual arrived. I doubt anyone thinks that Falcated Ducks will overrun the Willamette Valley, but Eurasian Collared Doves, or Wrentits, or Anna's Hummingbirds? Those are interesting questions.
I have also worked quite a bit on what makes bird rare. Rare in their apparently most desired habitat. I can tell you that if you are on a tour of southern Africa along the roads, you would tell me that the Pale Chanting Goshawk is the most common raptor in the world. Why? They love to hunt from telephone poles and Sociable Weavers love to build nests on telephone poles. Ok, let's take a walk in the bush and you will rarely find the goshawk because the prey nests are widely distributed in rare trees and hunting perches are scarce. You will find Lanner Falcons, Red-footed Falcons, and a handful of Kestrel species though. Why are American Kestrels common and Loggerhead/Northern Shrikes relatively rare? Their diet overlaps substantially, it can be almost identical in some areas. (here I speak from great experience). The difference is not climate or food or habitat per se, but nest locations. Kestrels nest in inaccessible scrapes on cliffs or manmade structures like most falcons, Shrikes nest in trees and most of the trees have been cut down for agriculture and the few that are left are subject to cats, rats, ravens, crows, etc. When the converstation turns to blackberries, I roll my eyes a bit because food and cover is not the whole equation. I doubt Wrentits would expand their range for blackberries - there is plenty of cover - but why are there Black Phoebes on Sauvie Island in the middle of winter, or Townsend's Warblers? Food and only food. All of them eat bugs or modify their behavior to stay where they are. Why are there more bugs in winter? That is a whole different discussion for the political forum.
I will recount one story about Turkey Vultures and behavior modification that goes to my point about not oversimplifying. As a young biologist nearly 30 years ago now, I worked down in the Falkland Islands. I grew up in the SF Bay Area, went to school in Berkeley so I knew Turkey Vultures. I knew they soared on thermals on golden summer days, ate dead cows and road kill and roosted communally in oak trees in relatively remote locations. I knew they were resident, I couldn't imagine them migrating (there is always road kill and dead cows), I never gave much thought to them otherwise. And then I was in Patagonia and the Falklands (Las Malvinas for the politically correct). After tagging penguins, banding shorebirds and jaegers, petrels, and terns and handfull of cool endemic passerines I looked around at the vultures. There were Black Vultures in abundance, I'd seen Andean Condors, but that bigger and greyer vulture than the Black Vulture? Turkey Vulture. Walking on the beach, eating dead fish and penguins and anything else. You could not pay them to fly, it was too cold and no land to create thermals and no predators so why invest when all you could possibly want was right here and concentrated on this bit of shingle?
And now I live in Oregon, two winters now and people are amazed at Turkey Vultures in February. Me too now, but it makes me wonder why the common is rare and a non-migratory bird soaring over the savannah where I am from or walking on the beach 10,000km away where I worked creates a stir in my home town now and I will spend my time thinking about that rather than whether the left or right toe of Falcated Duck is clipped.
My best,
Mike Gellerman
Bethany Lake, Portland
31 January 2007
A Weekend Around Portland
What a nice weekend. It was unusually beautiful weather here in Portland, still very cold but stunningly clear. Les and I went on Saturday morning to the Sellwood/Reed College area of Portland. We found what seems like a new restaurant in an old location - it is called Lili's and it was excellent. The service was fractured, but I think they are all brand new and it was not crowded so the locals haven't quite discovered it, but it was a fine place to be on Saturday morning. We took a walk through the Rhododendron Gardens at Crystal Springs afterwards and had a great time. Lots of winter ducks and other birds there including:
American Wigeon
Eurasian Wigeon
American x Eurasian Wigeon
Ring-necked Duck
Wood Duck
Ruddy Duck
Mallard
Lesser Scaup
Gadwall
Bufflehead
American Coot
Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Canada Goose
Cackling Goose
Varied Thrush
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Brown Creeper
American Robin
American Crow
Northern Flicker
Song Sparrow
Winter Wren
Marsh Wren
Great Blue Heron
On Sunday we drove over to the coast. We went to Canon Beach via Tillamook Bay to see what was happening there. We stopped at the Tillamook State Forest Interpretative Center for a short walk. On the return hike I saw my first ever NORTHERN GOSHAWK in Oregon putting on a rather fantastic aerial display. Not much actually at Tillamook Bay, the tide was very low and we did not see a single wader but it was still a very fine day. Not a complete list, but things that impressed me:
Yellow-rumped Warbler (loads of them)
Townsend's Warbler
Varied Thrush (loads of them)
American Robin (fewer than Varied Thrush in the forest)
Bald Eagle (a very immature bird, still sort working out the flying business)
Great Egret (at least 10)
Brandt's Cormorant
Western Grebe (1)
Eared Grebe (2)
Herring Gull
Western Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
Ring-billed Gull (just one, I thought it was unusual)
We also paused along the highway at several points just to admire the day and I looked around for any pelagic birds and did not see a single one.
I promised Leslie a milkshake at Tillamook Cheese Factory but there was a 45 minute wait for ice cream at 2pm so we passed. I would never think of stopping there in summer but, January?! Wow.
Mike Gellerman
North Portland
What a nice weekend. It was unusually beautiful weather here in Portland, still very cold but stunningly clear. Les and I went on Saturday morning to the Sellwood/Reed College area of Portland. We found what seems like a new restaurant in an old location - it is called Lili's and it was excellent. The service was fractured, but I think they are all brand new and it was not crowded so the locals haven't quite discovered it, but it was a fine place to be on Saturday morning. We took a walk through the Rhododendron Gardens at Crystal Springs afterwards and had a great time. Lots of winter ducks and other birds there including:
American Wigeon
Eurasian Wigeon
American x Eurasian Wigeon
Ring-necked Duck
Wood Duck
Ruddy Duck
Mallard
Lesser Scaup
Gadwall
Bufflehead
American Coot
Pied-billed Grebe
Double-crested Cormorant
Canada Goose
Cackling Goose
Varied Thrush
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Brown Creeper
American Robin
American Crow
Northern Flicker
Song Sparrow
Winter Wren
Marsh Wren
Great Blue Heron
On Sunday we drove over to the coast. We went to Canon Beach via Tillamook Bay to see what was happening there. We stopped at the Tillamook State Forest Interpretative Center for a short walk. On the return hike I saw my first ever NORTHERN GOSHAWK in Oregon putting on a rather fantastic aerial display. Not much actually at Tillamook Bay, the tide was very low and we did not see a single wader but it was still a very fine day. Not a complete list, but things that impressed me:
Yellow-rumped Warbler (loads of them)
Townsend's Warbler
Varied Thrush (loads of them)
American Robin (fewer than Varied Thrush in the forest)
Bald Eagle (a very immature bird, still sort working out the flying business)
Great Egret (at least 10)
Brandt's Cormorant
Western Grebe (1)
Eared Grebe (2)
Herring Gull
Western Gull
Glaucous-winged Gull
Ring-billed Gull (just one, I thought it was unusual)
We also paused along the highway at several points just to admire the day and I looked around for any pelagic birds and did not see a single one.
I promised Leslie a milkshake at Tillamook Cheese Factory but there was a 45 minute wait for ice cream at 2pm so we passed. I would never think of stopping there in summer but, January?! Wow.
Mike Gellerman
North Portland
30 January 2007
26 January 2007
Making Dry Salami
The first salami I made I did not know any better, I just guessed and made it and it was good. Well, it was rustic and smoky and pretty good, but no one died eating it and it encouraged me to think about doing a better job. This is a case of too much knowledge though, I have every book ever published on smoking and curing meat now. The first time around I cured pork in a brine made from "pink salt", ground it all up with some good Italian seasoning, cold smoked it for a few hours and hung it to cure. I was a bit more sophisticated on subsequent efforts, but still just experimenting. This last batch though, should be the test if it is actually better to be smarter than just going with your instincts. Now I am using Bactoferm and DS-2 curing salts and experimenting with cold smoking vs just ageing, but it is all good fun. We are going to build a "curing box" this weekend out of western cedar to keep these babies warm and properly humidified. I am also in the process of the 5 week process to make some braceola - Les calls it $35/lb beef jerky, but I like it and nearly 50 million Italians can't be all that wrong.
Some pictures:
Stuffing the Salami - a little bit of art to this
The result - 2kg of pork becomes salami
Our garage, soon to be replaced with a "curing box"
The first salami I made I did not know any better, I just guessed and made it and it was good. Well, it was rustic and smoky and pretty good, but no one died eating it and it encouraged me to think about doing a better job. This is a case of too much knowledge though, I have every book ever published on smoking and curing meat now. The first time around I cured pork in a brine made from "pink salt", ground it all up with some good Italian seasoning, cold smoked it for a few hours and hung it to cure. I was a bit more sophisticated on subsequent efforts, but still just experimenting. This last batch though, should be the test if it is actually better to be smarter than just going with your instincts. Now I am using Bactoferm and DS-2 curing salts and experimenting with cold smoking vs just ageing, but it is all good fun. We are going to build a "curing box" this weekend out of western cedar to keep these babies warm and properly humidified. I am also in the process of the 5 week process to make some braceola - Les calls it $35/lb beef jerky, but I like it and nearly 50 million Italians can't be all that wrong.
Some pictures:
Stuffing the Salami - a little bit of art to this
The result - 2kg of pork becomes salami
Our garage, soon to be replaced with a "curing box"
25 January 2007
So it has been winter and Leslie took these pictures while I was away. The pond was frozen and the birds seem frozen in time. |
We had a flock of Common Mergansers back again this week. And, an anomaly, 3 swans on the pond. One was collared but I did not get a chance to ID it properly. By most evidence they were Tundra Swans collared in Alaska last summer. Two of the birds were juveniles and the adult was collared. |
18 January 2007
Kleptoparasitism
A long time ago, well 30 years ago does seem like a long time,
when I was a small mammal ecologist studying cryptic, nocturnal
rodents I built four 1/2 acre enclosures with dug-in flashing and
fences to study the interactions and breeding ecology in
Microtus californicus, Reithrodontomys megalotis, and
Peromyscus maniculatus. After a month of long, cold nights
trapping and marking and mapping the animals I was ready for
breeding season in early spring. A pair of Great-blue Herons
discovered my enclosures and within a couple of days it was
their favorite hang out. Then a pair of Red-tailed Hawks arrived
to nest in some eucalyptus trees bordering "my" field and
complete carnage ensued. When the Red-tails weren't stealing
mice from the Great-blues they were using my fence to perch
on and just knocking the furry little guys off themselves. A pair
of Loggerhead Shrikes arrived at the same time and found
that Reithrodontomys were a perfect sized meal. Within two
weeks, trap success had dropped 90%. With the abundance
of food the Herons barely noticed the Hawks, they just
jumped and dropped what they had and caught another one.
Fairly soon thereafter I dropped my interest in small mammals
and changed my dissertation to population and evolutionary
ecology of Central African birds - they are diurnal and colorful
and it was a warm place to work. And save the occasional
owl or falcon in my nets, there was little carnage to behold.
Mike Gellerman
Chicken, Black Bean, Rice and Pumpkin Enchiladas
This not a recipe for a quick meal, well it is quick if you have your black beans and enchilada sauce in the freezer. I make a big batch of black beans every couple of months and a big batch of enchilada sauce in the late summer and freeze it all in portions for two. This makes a big batch of enchiladas, but they freeze well in small portions for lunch, or alternatively wrap the same filling in flour tortillas and freeze 12 burritos for lunches.
3 cups Basic Black Beans
3 cups diced, cooked Pumpkin or other orange/yellow winter squash (acorn, Delicata, etc)
2 cups Seasoned Rice
2 boneless, skinless Chicken Breast, roasted, coarsely chopped or
1/2 cup Cilantro, coarsely chopped
3 cups Enchilada Sauce
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
24 large size Corn Tortillas
I make this pot every couple of months and freeze the results in the 3 cup "disposable" plastic containers. This recipe yields roughly 18-20 cups of cooked beans. All the ingredients are approximate, adjust to your personal taste. It is not a good idea to add other larger chunks of vegetables. These are clearly not vegetarian, but they are creamy, savory beans that are a great compliment to any meal.
2 lbs dried Black Beans
2-3 large Yellow Onions, chopped
10-15 cloves of Garlic, chopped
1-4 Jalapeno Peppers, seeded and chopped
8 oz Salt Pork or 1 Ham Hock
6+ cups Chicken Stock
Salt
Enchilada Sauce
Made at the end of summer, most everything comes from the garden. Everything is approximate, just taste as it all cooks together and adjust the heat and seasoning to your taste. I usually freeze the sauce in 1 or 2 cup "disposable" plastic containers to last as long as long as the supplies last. I make this sauce hot because it is always mixed with something else, but adjust the spice to your taste.
15-20 cups coarsely chopped fresh Tomatoes
3-4 coarsely chopped Yellow Onions
15-20 coarsely chopped cloves of Garlic
8-12 husked and coarsely chopped tomatillos
4+ fresh Jalapeno Peppers
8+ cups Chicken Stock
1/4 to 1/2 cup Chili Powder
2-4 dried whole Ancho Chilies
Salt
Seasoned Rice
A quick and savory rice for any meal. This recipe will yield about 2 cups of cooked rice. The recipe scales easily and this recipe freezes well. A little cumin, turmeric, oregano in any combination (maybe 1 tsp in total) is a nice addition depending on your taste.
1 cup long grain Rice
1 1/2 cups Chicken Stock
1/2 Yellow Onion, chopped
1-2 tbs Garlic, finely chopped
1 small Jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped or
Salt
Vegetable or Olive Oil
This not a recipe for a quick meal, well it is quick if you have your black beans and enchilada sauce in the freezer. I make a big batch of black beans every couple of months and a big batch of enchilada sauce in the late summer and freeze it all in portions for two. This makes a big batch of enchiladas, but they freeze well in small portions for lunch, or alternatively wrap the same filling in flour tortillas and freeze 12 burritos for lunches.
3 cups Basic Black Beans
3 cups diced, cooked Pumpkin or other orange/yellow winter squash (acorn, Delicata, etc)
2 cups Seasoned Rice
2 boneless, skinless Chicken Breast, roasted, coarsely chopped or
2 cups of cooked coarsely chopped other meat (optional)
1+ cup shredded Cheese (i.e. Monterey Jack, Cheddar, Queso Fresco)1/2 cup Cilantro, coarsely chopped
3 cups Enchilada Sauce
Olive Oil
Salt & Pepper
24 large size Corn Tortillas
- If you choose to add some chicken to your enchiladas (I think it enhances these tremendously) then take 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (actually, 1 breast split). Coat lightly with olive oil, some salt and pepper on each side. In a baking dish put them in the oven at 375º until the internal temperature is about 150º, slightly undercooked (170º is considered cooked). Allow to cool and coarsely chop.
- Clean a small pumpkin or winter squash, peel and chop enough for about 3 cups of 1/4 to 1/2" pieces. Simmer in salted water until cooked (fork tender, but not falling apart). Drain and cool.
- Combine the room temperature beans, pumpkin, rice, chicken, most of the cheese, cilantro and about 1/2 cup of Enchilada Sauce in a large bowl. Mix until just combined. Don't mash it too hard, you want some texture in the enchiladas.
- Heat the remaining Enchilada Sauce to a simmer, transfer to a flat container larger than your tortillas. Heat the tortillas one at a time in a dry skillet or griddle to make them flexible. Quickly dip them on both sides in the warm enchilada sauce. Add about 1/2 cup of the filling and roll them into an enchilada. Place seam side down in a baking dish. Continue until you run out of filling. Drizzle the enchilada dipping sauce over the top of the enchiladas. Don't drown them in sauce, just a nice topping. Sprinkle some of the reserved cheese over the top.
- Bake at 350º for about 20 minutes. The topping cheese should be melted, the sauce bubbly and the enchiladas heated through.
- Serve hot with a nice fresh salad. Extras are easily frozen in individual portions for lunches or late dinners. No need for a big plate of rice and beans slathered in more cheese with these, keep it simple.
I make this pot every couple of months and freeze the results in the 3 cup "disposable" plastic containers. This recipe yields roughly 18-20 cups of cooked beans. All the ingredients are approximate, adjust to your personal taste. It is not a good idea to add other larger chunks of vegetables. These are clearly not vegetarian, but they are creamy, savory beans that are a great compliment to any meal.
2 lbs dried Black Beans
2-3 large Yellow Onions, chopped
10-15 cloves of Garlic, chopped
1-4 Jalapeno Peppers, seeded and chopped
8 oz Salt Pork or 1 Ham Hock
6+ cups Chicken Stock
Salt
- Pick through the beans for rocks or other foreign material, in a large pot cover with at least twice the volume of water, cover and soak overnight. (Refrigerate if it is hot outside or if there is chance you will be delayed cooking the beans or you might have black bean beer).
- Drain the beans and rinse. Cover the beans with plus an inch or so more with fresh water, add the salt pork or ham hock and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to barely simmering. Skim any scum and froth.
- Add onions, peppers (to taste, start with some and add more during cooking), garlic
- Continue to simmer, uncovered and monitor now and then adding chicken stock to keep the beans covered with liquid as they expand volume. Stir occasionally, adjust salt and Jalapeno peppers as the beans become tender. Cook (2-3 hours) until some of the beans are falling apart and the pot is a mix of sauce and whole beans. Remove the salt pork or ham hock.
- Enjoy a bowl, allow the rest to cool and then freeze in portions you will use for a meal. Make a new pot when you use the last container in the freezer.
Enchilada Sauce
Made at the end of summer, most everything comes from the garden. Everything is approximate, just taste as it all cooks together and adjust the heat and seasoning to your taste. I usually freeze the sauce in 1 or 2 cup "disposable" plastic containers to last as long as long as the supplies last. I make this sauce hot because it is always mixed with something else, but adjust the spice to your taste.
15-20 cups coarsely chopped fresh Tomatoes
3-4 coarsely chopped Yellow Onions
15-20 coarsely chopped cloves of Garlic
8-12 husked and coarsely chopped tomatillos
4+ fresh Jalapeno Peppers
8+ cups Chicken Stock
1/4 to 1/2 cup Chili Powder
2-4 dried whole Ancho Chilies
Salt
- Add all the ingredients except chicken stock, chili powder and salt to a large pot. Just cover with water and begin cooking over medium heat uncovered.
- As the mixture begins to cook down slowly add chicken stock and stir each time to keep the vegetables just covered and simmering. When everything is near a sauce, add chili powder a bit at time to taste. It takes time to incorporate so continue to taste and adjust salt and chili powder. Add chicken stock as required to maintain a constant consistency.
- When the desired consistency and flavor (probably several hours), remove the dried chili pods. Process the sauce through a food mill or gently through a blender. The sauce should be smooth and thick but with a bit of texture.
- Cool and freeze in 1-2 cup portions.
Seasoned Rice
A quick and savory rice for any meal. This recipe will yield about 2 cups of cooked rice. The recipe scales easily and this recipe freezes well. A little cumin, turmeric, oregano in any combination (maybe 1 tsp in total) is a nice addition depending on your taste.
1 cup long grain Rice
1 1/2 cups Chicken Stock
1/2 Yellow Onion, chopped
1-2 tbs Garlic, finely chopped
1 small Jalapeno, seeded and finely chopped or
small can of diced green chilies or
1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
1/2 cup diced canned diced tomatoes with juiceSalt
Vegetable or Olive Oil
- In a heavy medium non-stick saucepan, add 1 tablespoon oil. Heat until almost smoking. Add onions and cook until just browning, add garlic, peppers and rice and cook for another 2-3 minutes stirring continuously. Add tomatoes, and continue cooking and stirring until almost all of the liquid is gone.
- Add chicken stock. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer until all the liquid is absorbed (about 20 minutes).
- Fluff with a fork, adjust salt if necessary, the flavor should be savory and bright. A little browned crust is a delicacy, but don't burn it.
02 January 2007
New Year's Weekend - Sisters, Santiam Pass Christmas Bird Count
We left home on the 31st at 11am and drove to Sisters via Mt Hood/Madras and Redmond. On the way we stopped a few places to sightsee on this beautiful day. Near Deschutes Crossing we pulled off to the Recapture Resevoir and we were treated to the view of a pair of adult BALD EAGLES flying by west to east and a pair of GREAT BLUE HERONS flying west to east. 100's of MALLARDS and BUFFLEHEADS along with a smattering of RING-NECKED DUCKS.
On the way to Madras we saw several RED-TAILED HAWKS, a single ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK, and at least 25 AMERICAN KESTRELS.
It was bitterly cold in Sisters but we stayed at the Sisters' Inn and RV Park, remarkably comfortable room with king-sized bed, breakfast and quiet for just $75. As it was New Year's Eve and the dining fare in Sisters is limited we drove to the Tumalo Feed Company outside of Bend for dinner. It was a lot of fun, but pretty disgusting. The first course is an enormous basket of onion rings with salsa that Les and I managed to eat about 20% of. Then enormous steaks, fried potatoes, beans, garlic bread - I think we finished about 1/3 if that portion and finally ice cream. Whoa! The restaurant was packed with loads of overweight families and children, everyone seemed to have a clean plate. What a cultural experience.
We met at Santiam Pass snow park at 8:30 to receive our Christmas Bird Count assignment. We were paired with a nice couple from Bend (Brian and Antonia) and had a good day. The snow was old and crusted so we never needed snowshoes, but we ended up walking six or seven miles for a limited number of birds but a good day.
Gray Jay (parking lot)
Stellers Jay
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Pied-billed Grebe
Common Merganser
Brown Creeper
Winter Wren
Common Raven
Dark-eyed Junco
American Dipper* (2)
Ring-necked Duck
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Trumpeter Swan
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
*American Dippers - there were two near the resort at Clearlake. They were in the lake one just 40 feet from us and the other across the cove. Both were actively diving and calling with a remarkable active series mimic calls along with the standard dipper repetoire. We kept looking for grosbeaks, cell phones, and other unknown whistles and trills and these two little guys were, on close observation, responsible for all the noise.
Les and I drove back to Portland at the end of the count, a little tired after eight hours of walking in snow and a 4 hour drive, but happy we made time for the event.
Other highlights: the firm snow was great for tracks. We saw lots of rabbit tracks with different gaits and speeds, river otter, squirrel, raccon, river otter, and mink or some other mustelid of similar size.
On the way to Madras we saw several RED-TAILED HAWKS, a single ROUGH-LEGGED HAWK, and at least 25 AMERICAN KESTRELS.
It was bitterly cold in Sisters but we stayed at the Sisters' Inn and RV Park, remarkably comfortable room with king-sized bed, breakfast and quiet for just $75. As it was New Year's Eve and the dining fare in Sisters is limited we drove to the Tumalo Feed Company outside of Bend for dinner. It was a lot of fun, but pretty disgusting. The first course is an enormous basket of onion rings with salsa that Les and I managed to eat about 20% of. Then enormous steaks, fried potatoes, beans, garlic bread - I think we finished about 1/3 if that portion and finally ice cream. Whoa! The restaurant was packed with loads of overweight families and children, everyone seemed to have a clean plate. What a cultural experience.
We met at Santiam Pass snow park at 8:30 to receive our Christmas Bird Count assignment. We were paired with a nice couple from Bend (Brian and Antonia) and had a good day. The snow was old and crusted so we never needed snowshoes, but we ended up walking six or seven miles for a limited number of birds but a good day.
Gray Jay (parking lot)
Stellers Jay
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Pied-billed Grebe
Common Merganser
Brown Creeper
Winter Wren
Common Raven
Dark-eyed Junco
American Dipper* (2)
Ring-necked Duck
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Bufflehead
Common Goldeneye
Trumpeter Swan
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
*American Dippers - there were two near the resort at Clearlake. They were in the lake one just 40 feet from us and the other across the cove. Both were actively diving and calling with a remarkable active series mimic calls along with the standard dipper repetoire. We kept looking for grosbeaks, cell phones, and other unknown whistles and trills and these two little guys were, on close observation, responsible for all the noise.
Les and I drove back to Portland at the end of the count, a little tired after eight hours of walking in snow and a 4 hour drive, but happy we made time for the event.
Other highlights: the firm snow was great for tracks. We saw lots of rabbit tracks with different gaits and speeds, river otter, squirrel, raccon, river otter, and mink or some other mustelid of similar size.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
