Tiring Weekend

This weekend has left me feeling tired and a bit overwhelmed with everything I still have to do in the next few days. I am really looking forward to a long weekend on July 4th and getting the heck out of Dodge.

I won't summarize the whole weekend but as an idea of it here is how Saturday went in four parts:

Early Morning: Woke up listening to Donald Kroodsma on NPR. I'm still reading his book. They played several American robin songs, very cool. He also did a detailed explanation of one of his favorite birdsongs, the wood thrush, which I hear often at dusk around DC. The buzzy part of its song is made by a duet using its two voice boxes (yes songbirds have two voice boxes, one at the top of each bronchi where it bifurcates at the carina).

Morning: Baltimore aquarium. Sadly I have been very spoiled in the aquarium department and it does not even compare to the Monterey aquarium. I might as well never set foot in another aquarium, I've already seen the best there is. Darn I miss California, I remember spending my 30th birthday in Monterey with my friend and co-worker Slow Feet (thanks Slow Feet you were so wonderful that day!), watching a wild sea otter with its one day old baby. The sea otter was lounging in a sheltered area that was part of the aquarium's outdoor exhibit so I was only about five feet away. Ok, enough reminiscing.

Afternoon: Crab cakes at Faidley's Seafood in Lexington market in Baltimore. They lived up to their reputation as the best.

Evening: Concert with NY (thanks for the tix). Thievery Corporation. World music, two DJs, they are from DC. I enjoyed the energy of the crowd, I was on the floor right near the stage and everyone was dancing, enjoying themselves. I don't think I have been to anything that loud in a long, long time. I had to wear earplugs. I didn't have to listen for the beat. I could feel the beat. The whole building was vibrating.