Each day for the last week, an army of ants have been working their way down our walkway towards the driveway. For some reason, they stay grouped very closely, never occupying more than a square foot at a time.

Killdeer get their name from the shrill, wailing kill-deer call they give so often. Eighteenth-century naturalists also noticed how noisy Killdeer are, giving them names such as the Chattering Plover and the Noisy Plover. This one was quite quiet as he waded in the Concord River in search of dinner.

Jeanine and I were invited on an eagle amble this evening by neighbors who share our interest in nature and photography. They guided us to a local nest which is less than a mile from our house. I made many attempts to get a clear line of sight but was unable to find a less obscured view than the one above.

It has been almost half a year (173 days, but who is counting) since we were scheduled to close on the purchase of our new home. Today, at long last, the excruciating wait has come to an end. Jeanine and I signed documents in the office of our real estate attorney this morning to finalize the transfer. Most of the delay was related to settling the seller’s estate in probate court and having a 45-year-old lien on the title removed. We are now at liberty to file for the necessary permitting to begin our reconstruction project.

We celebrated Easter outdoors with the kids today. Jeanine prepared a lovely strawberry-pecan salad, French lasagna, and strata with mushrooms and chard. For dessert, we enjoyed a collection of fine chocolates. Later, we planted four Spartan blueberry bushes on the river bank. We hope that in the years to come we will enjoy the fruit of these plantings with the next generation of Calabria’s. Earlier in the day, I travelled to Peabody for my soccer season-opening match. Our pre-season preparation served us well and we secured a 4-0 win. I am still struggling to gain back the level of fitness I had last season but managed to survive the match with no injuries and no mistakes.

Easter is one of Jeanine’s favorite holidays. When the kids were young they looked forward to the Easter baskets that she would create for each of them. As they have grown older, she has modified her Easter gifts appropriately. Pictured here are a number of air plants “potted” in small animal-themed sculptures which she will surprise them with tomorrow.

In the coming days, we are expecting a bumper crop of rhododendron blooms. There are dozens of mature trees on our property and we are waiting with great anticipation to see what the color pallete will include.

You know that spring is just around the corner when the first crocuses bloom. It was extremely windy today so I decided to pick this flower from our yard and photograph it inside. I choose a textured background to play off the patterns in the petals. I rather like the finished image which almost looks like it might have been painted.

When I returned from work last night, I noticed that the state of charge on my electric Audi was extremely low. When I plugged it in on my home charger, nothing seemed to happen. I eventually traced the problem to a damaged connector used in the service disconnect panel. You can see where the plastic housing has started to melt which led to misalignment of the connector and eventually to an open circuit. I was able to bypass the device and expect my car will be fully charged when I leave for work this morning.

My sister-in-law, Marie, shared this picture of my mother taken over the weekend. The two-hour in-person visit to her Minneapolis assisted living center was the first since the beginning of the pandemic. During that time they discussed health, wealth, politics, and dancing. Apparently, my mother also demonstrated her exercise routine which included doing push-ups against a wall while on her tippy toes in preparation for a return to the dance floor and her beloved tango.

The purchase of my new Apple computer and monitor included a 1-year subscription to Apple TV+. Based on the recommendations of several friends we checked out a series called Ted Lasso. We watched the entire first season in one sitting last night and can’t wait until the second season is released, reportedly this summer. Needless to say, we can heartily recommend it to others.

Last week my iMac computer died. I took it into Apple and was told it would need a new motherboard. Given the age of the system, I decided to replace it with a new Apple-silicon-based Mac Mini computer and their 6K XDR display. All of the hardware arrived today and it only took a few hours to set up and restore my working environment. Pictured above is the back of the passively cooled monitor which looks like high-tech swiss cheese.

Scavengers made quick work of this unfortunate deer which did not fare as well as the car which took its life. With no wolves, mountain lions, and only a small number of coyotes in the town of Concord, the automobile may actually constitute an apex predator in the food chain. I am sad for this deer, but take comfort in knowing that its body has nourished so many other members of our local wildlife.

Occasionally, I come across YouTube content that is so amazing, I feel compelled to share it. Enjoy.