Spring has sprung!

Spring has sprung!

I told AI I was putting together a post for my blog and
giving it the title Spring has sprung.  I asked for an
image to use with the post. Here is the result ... I like it.
How about you? Now, I know some of you don't care
for AI, but the genie is out of the bottle and we better
learn how to get along with the genie!

Out on a walk in the neighborhood, I spotted these Crocus
blooms.  Nature is an amazing creator.

In earlier posts this year I captured the Daffodils in this
traffic circle from the time they broke ground until they
bloomed. Here is one more look with almost all of them
in bloom.

Skies

It's all about the clouds.

Looking across the Sound this fog/cloud phenomenon caught 
my attention. It looks strange, doesn't it?

A good while after sunset but still plenty of light 
in the western sky beyond the Olympics.

Ships

I like to catch a sailboat alongside a large
container ship ... it's nice for scale.
This view is looking west from Seattle
across Puget Sound to Bainbridge Island
and the Olympic Mountains in the distance.
The ship is the Honiara Chief

A MSC - Mediterranean Shipping Company - vessel
arriving in port in the early evening. Note the way the
containers are stacked ... plenty of empty space on this ship. 
This view is looking across Elliott Bay toward West Seattle,
and Vashon Island in the distance.

Superior Spring Publications

LivingBird
Cornell Lab of Ornithology

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a member-supported unit of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, which studies birds and other wildlife. What they say about themselves:  “We believe birds are a gateway to caring for the natural world.” They publish LivingBird which I’ve found to be the premiere birding magazine. The image above is the cover of their Spring 2025 issue. Check out their website for lots of free birding information.

Linking up with Saturday's Critters

The Methow Naturalist
A Quarterly Journal of Natural History

Within the last year I discovered The Methow Naturalist (TMN). For one who is interested in the evolution of nature and humans, it is an amazing find. TMN is published quarterly and the image above is the Spring 2025 cover. If you are open to studying nature and human history, check out their website. Warning: Your assumptions (beliefs) about why things are the way they are may be challenged. 

Closing thought ...

A screenshot of a positive morning routine
found online that is worth repeating. 😊

Thanks for stopping by John's Island.

It's About Time

Reminder:
Daylight "Saving" Time begins
tomorrow morning at 2:00 AM
(March 9, 2025)
in USA 

100 years ago there were no smartphones to check for accurate time. At that time, the most accurate time was provided by Western Union Time Service. This little folder (cover image above) was issued to advertise their service to banks, stores, and offices. How did they know the exact time? They got it from the United States Naval Observatory, where a telescope was used to track time by looking at the stars. How did they get time from the stars? By measuring the time it takes for the Earth to rotate exactly once a period of 24 hours could be determined precisely. (I know, if you're a Flat-Earther this is problematic, but just go with the Earth is round this time. 😉) What does all this have to do with Western Union? Once accurate time was determined at the Naval Observatory a signal was sent daily over the Western Union Telegraph System to update clocks all across the nation.

Click on image for larger image ...
possibly readable.

Learning Table Manners, postcard from 1939 ...

An old postcard from my collection.
This one is titled "Learning Table Manners"

Postmarked July 17, 1939
To Mrs Lucy Graves, PO Box 94, LeMoille Illinois
no ZIP code 😉

Ok, I flipped the card so you can read the message.
I love the way J. E. Stelzer signed the card
with his nickname "BROMO" as in Bromo-Seltzer ...
a headache remedy invented in 1888.

I love the title and description.
Enjoy more critters at Saturday's Critters!

Daffodils

Spring time is Daffodil time in the Pacific Northwest. In my last post (Feb 7th) I included an image of daffodils breaking the ground. Out on walks, I continued to watch those Dafs and snapped a few more pictures of the progress. I combined those pictures into the collage below.

Same Daffodils, different days.
A little over a month from breaking ground to bloom.
[Click on image for larger view.]

Nature makes an ordinary traffic circle
look pretty good.

Stamps

More poster stamps to share. The stamps below were issued by the Northern Pacific Railroad in the early 1900s. This group is titled Wonderland Series 7. 

10 Stamps Wonderland Series 7

Clockwise from top left:
In the Heart of the Cascade Range
At Canon Beach Near Astoria, Oregon
On the Summit of Mt Hood, Oregon 11,225 Feet High
A Glimpse of the Columbia River

Clockwise from top left:
Mt Rainier Wash 14,408 Feet High
From the Summit of Mt Spokane
The Gallatin River Montana
Sport on a Mountain Trout Stream
The Celilo Falls Columbia River
Green River, Cascade Range Wash

Skies

March 5 - Clouds and Sun near sunset
looking across Puget Sound to
the Olympic Mountains

Another March 5 capture after sunset.
The thing that interested me ... the shadows of
the rain falling from clouds in the distance.
The Chopper was a happy coincidence. 😊

This week's question ...

Do you get ads ... ALL OVER ... when moving around the Internet? I sure do and some of them are amusing. I have an example for you below. It's a screenshot of an ad from an investment company. I do like the art ... the couple ... who don't look old ... enjoying something to eat with their dog along side. I made one modification to the ad. Can you find it?  😂

Closing thought ... 

By Richard Paul Evans

Thanks for stopping by John's Island!

Snow Stamps Skies Ships

Welcome to John's Island. In this post ...

1. Snow in Seattle.

2. Vintage stamps from my stamp collection.

3. Colorful Seattle skies.

4. Ships spotted recently.

5. Nature snaps.

Enjoy all or scroll to a segment of interest.

Snow in Seattle

Since groundhog day, February 2nd, we've had a week of truly wintery weather. Snow has been with us, off and on ... small accumulations at night resulting in slushy, slippery morning commutes.

[click on images for better view]
The snow seems to annoy one of my hummers.
The good news for the birds ...
so far, the temps haven't been too cold.
Upper 20s to lower 30s F
(about -2C to +1.6C)

A sunny morning allows a look at the snow
accumulation on the Olympic Mountains.
The shadows help reveal the foothills.

The snowcover on homes across Puget Sound
reveals a community in the Bremerton, WA, area.
Near bottom, State Ferry running between
Bainbridge Island and downtown Seattle.

How is this snow related?
Well, when out snapping the two images prior, I happened 
to notice Robins in a nearby tree. This isn't a great capture
but it tells the good news ... spring is on the way.

Stamps

Over the years I've shared items from my stamp collection. It's time for another look. I'll tell you in a moment what sparked featuring stamps in this post.

The stamps above are called "Poster Stamps."
In the early part of the last century, people
enjoyed collecting Poster Stamps. The stamps
were usually issued by companies
 as a form of advertising.

The Northern Pacific Steamship Company
issued these stamps as a way to encourage
travel on their ships. The NPSC ships
sailed between US Pacific Northwest
and Asia ... usually Japan.

It's a bit of a challenge to get a nice large image of a stamp ... I start by scanning them at 600 dpi and then editing in photo software.

Just one stamp, greatly enlarged.
The title on this one ...
Deck Scene - S S Northern Pacific

Postage Stamps ...

Lewis and Clark Expedition 1804
honored in 1954 with this 3 cent stamp.

Critters are frequently on stamps ...

The American Bald Eagle 6¢ stamp was issued
by the USPS in 1970 as part of a block of 4 stamps.
See next image.

In this block:
American Bald Eagle
African Elephant Herd
Haida Ceremonial Canoe
The Age of Reptiles

Looking back into my stamp collection was sparked by a postcard I received from my niece. She knows I love old postcards, but I don't think she was aware of my stamp collection. Her postcard is a perfect blending of the two collections. The image on the card features vintage stamps!

Postcard from my niece! 😊
Thank you Emma!

More from the stamp collection in future posts.

Love critters?
Check out Saturday's Critters
AND, another great spot
for sharing It's a Small Town Life

Skies

Looking out from Seattle, across Puget Sound, to the Olympic Mountains in the distance ...

Sunset Panorama January 23, 2025
The scene along the western horizon can't be
captured with just one shot, so I had to put
together a panorama.

January 26, 2025

Clear sky after sunset January 28, 2025

Go and check out more Skywatch images at the Skywatch Site! 

Ships

CMA CGM Container ship arriving Seattle
January 18, 2025

The military ship is roughly 4 miles from my window.
The sailboat provides a nice scale.
Olympic Mountain Range in the distance.

Low morning clouds lifted just in time to snap
this shot of an Evergreen Container ship
headed southbound to Tacoma, WA

Yes, there's a ship in the stamp collection. 😊

Nature

While out on a recent walk, I noticed this plant with
silvery white pods that reminded me of silver dollars.
Snapped the picture above, got home and used
Google Lens to discover it's called a
MONEY PLANT! 😊
The scientific name is Lunaria biennis.
Have you ever seen it?

While out on a walk on January 31, I happened to 
notice these Daffodils breaking through and
buds looking strong. The scientific name is
Narcissus. Daffs are very well adapted to our
Pacific Northwest climate and are always some
of the earliest to bloom! I will try to give updates
on these beauties.

I often like to wrap up a post with a closing thought. Today's is one I recently found on Social Media. It may take a moment but the thought comes through perfectly describing the state of the Union in the good ol' USA ...

Thanks for stopping by John's Island.