Learning the drought

 Well, I haven't only been sitting around waiting for rain. Today there was a long meeting of the steering committee for our Frack-Free Butte County Moratorium. We are trying to manifest the people we need to keep our Tuscan Aquifer safe. But, without rain, well levels are starting to go down, especially with water transfers from other counties. Tonight I'll be hosting the Ecotopia radio show (streaming 6pm Pacific time til 7pm on www.kzfr.org) and I'll be talking with the President of the Great Basin Water Network about the water grabs of the populated southern desert cities against the needs of the environment and rural people of northern Nevada and western Utah. My other guest is the Director of AquAlliance, the organization that is trying to save us from having north state water shipped south here in California. It is beginning to really look like we won't even have enough water for our own irrigation and valley trees this summer and it is very unnerving.

 After the Frack-Free meeting I walked by Big Chico Creek in Upper Bidwell Park where I snapped these photos. The sycamore have not lost their leaves and they rattle their reminders that this isn't fall... this is deep winter and still no rain.

 Michael and his friend Art took a window of opportunity to go to Utah and cash in on high mountain powder. I miss Michael but I am completely happy he is doing what he loves best... skiing in the high country.

 My wildlife adventures center around who is at the feeder. In this case the ravenous little lesser goldfinches. Sparrows are way down this year but our local nuthatches seem to enjoy an easy feed now and then. We would all like things to be easier in 2014. I hope they will be.