... maybe not officially approved by the FDA, but as far as i'm concerned this giant "pill" is as good for healing as any of the little ones served up by the pharmacy ...
... john asked me to join him for the evening shows he was going to do at the "maine wildlife park" in gray ... the weather forecast predicted rather severe weather in some parts of the state, but the park decided they'd like to run the risk of a rain-out and that they'd pay the travel expenses no matter the outcome of the evening ... john had the planetarium all set up, and i was thinking it might be nice to snap a picture of the big dome in this outdoor setting, when all of a sudden the wind picked up and a great deluge washed over the park ... needless to say, that was it for the evening ... as i understand it, he'll be spending a good part of tomorrow drying out the dome and the floor matts ...
... while he was setting up i took a little stroll around the grounds ... odd, forty-four years living in maine but i've never been to this fascinating park ... i was rather pleased that i was able to hold my camera in a vertical position, although it turned out that i couldn't do it for very long, and, hours later typing this, i'm wishing i'd stuck to landscape compositions ...
... i was very impressed with the facility ... it's neatly arranged and very attractive ...
... as a big sign at the entrance proclaims, only "wounded, confinement born, and orphaned" animals live at the park ... although i was only very casually enjoying the facility, i noticed that there are many signs and placards educating visitors about the animals ... this hawk was obviously comfortable around humans ... for many animals this is a reason they can never be released into the wild ...
... i was saddened to see this eagle in, if not "captivity," what is clearly caged confinement ... then i remembered that otherwise it would not be alive, and that here at least it can serve to educate the many people who visit the park ...
... a legion of volunteers and dedicated staff maintain the grounds beautifully ...
... i've always like turtles ... if it turns out that we can really come back as animals, this is one of the two i would like to be ...
... i enjoyed talking with rusty clark ... he's the president of the volunteer organization ... "when they asked everyone else took one step backwards" ... i learned a lot not just about the critters, but also some little-known and very interesting historical and political information concerning the park's existence ... rusty's a most interesting individual, and i'm hoping he'll take me up on my offer to volunteer my picture taking skills ...
... on the drive home we passed the lewiston-auburn airport ... "wait—turn around—i think i saw a lockheed constellation" ... john navigated us to the terminal area ... just as my eagle eyes had discerned from a distance, parked on the tarmac was a one of the greatest piston engine aircraft ever built, a lockheed constellation starliner ...
... when i was a little kid in 1950s this was of the most beautiful aircraft in the skies—now, over a half-century later, i've not changed my mind in the least ... the constellation in lewiston has a ways to go before it'll be fully restored to this condition, but i'm already anticipating the day when i'll be able to stand at the end of the runway and watch the constellation soar into the sky ... what great joy, yet another wanderabout to look forward to ...
... [addendum: the constellation we saw parked outside, "b8083h," is not the airframe that is being restored ... that one is inside the purpose-built hanger ... the one we saw is being used as a "parts queen," as well as for measurement purposes ... also, the rather cursory research i did leads me to wonder if this restoration project is still in progress, of, perhaps, if instead it has been abandoned due to the expense ... if any of you have information i'd love to hear from you] ...
... [addendum: the constellation we saw parked outside, "b8083h," is not the airframe that is being restored ... that one is inside the purpose-built hanger ... the one we saw is being used as a "parts queen," as well as for measurement purposes ... also, the rather cursory research i did leads me to wonder if this restoration project is still in progress, of, perhaps, if instead it has been abandoned due to the expense ... if any of you have information i'd love to hear from you] ...