Upde Designs

Today is my 400th post on this blog.  Readership ranges from 47 to 100 on any given day and I am thankful to you for that.  Spread the word. 🙂

Yesterday I spent the day in Cedar Rapids conducting employee training.   I did “Lunch and Learn” training during the day and then an all hands training that ended about 7:00 pm.  so it was a long day by the time I finally got home.

I’ve gone by this barn many times since I started going to CR but last evening coming home with the setting sun shinning on the building I liked the way it looked so stopped and captured this image.

My hope was to get back, pick up my car and get out to the “Duck Pond” before it got to dark to photograph.  I didn’t really make it in time to do anything other than capture a really pretty sky.

What I wanted to show you was the receding water levels.  I was told that a farmer (on ground above the Hurstville Marsh) constructed a large pond on his property (which of course he has every right to do.)

That pond however catches a large amount of the water from rains that would have found its way into the “Duck Pond.”

There are a series of small islands around the pond and it is on these islands the geese lay their eggs and raise their young.  Normally they are relatively safe from predators because of the water surrounding the islands.  Now, however,  most of the islands are exposed and can be accessed because the water level has gone down so much.

I understand this is the way of Nature but I don’t have to like it.  I enjoy coming to this place a lot and watching the geese, ducks, and swans swimming and feeding.  The pond is really ugly right now because there is so much muddy ground showing and all the plant life that was normally under water is now on the surface.

That’s it for today.  Enjoy your Friday and as always I am grateful for your visit to my little blog.  Be careful.