Remember yesterday, when I said we were having a "drizzly day"? Well, it got a little bit more that drizzly here. Most of Philadelphia had 7-10 inches of rain last night, winds gusting to 40+ mph, 2 tornadoes in the Delaware Valley, and major flooding. One of the main highways leading out of the city, the Schuylkill Expressway, was closed due to a foot of water on the surface and mudslides:

Folks, this is a MAJOR HIGHWAY! The bus and about a half dozen cars had to be abandoned on the road. And here's another shot of Lincoln Drive, the road that borders the Schuylkill River in Fairmount Park:

Well, "borders" is a relative term some days. Luckily the Delaware River is expected to behave itself, so we shouldn't have any problems with flooding on our street. I kept thinking as the rain clashed against the windows, the wind howled and the plants on the balcony were being stripped of leaves, "And this is only a Tropical Depression?"

[A whole new respect for those in Florida.]

We saw a great show the other night on Nova. It was about a male Red-Tail Hawk that came to New York City's Central Park in the early nineties and has founded a little dynasty there. He was the first hawk to take up residence in the Big Apple, and he has been dubbed "Pale Male" for his light coloring. He has had four partners over the years (the first three died - Lola is the current femme fatale) and all told they have raised twenty-three babies. Their nest is above a window at one of Fifth Avenue's toniest addresses; one of their neighbors is Mary Tyler Moore, and Woody Allen lives next door.

There is a whole group of hawk fanatics that take up watch during the spring to see them nest and watch for the first flight, or fledge, of the young birds. They have a Web site set up, with pictures of the birds. Fascinating story, and beautiful animals.

In the past, we've had pairs of Peregrine Falcons that live here in Center City Philly. The Bell Atlantic Building had a pair at the top of their skyscraper and they had a live camera feed to a monitor in the lobby of their building so everyone could watch the chicks. Haven't seen them for a couple of years, though - maybe they've moved on.

[I'm sure they're picking off pigeons somewhere.]

Quote du jour:

"If there were any justice in this world, people would occasionally be permitted to fly over pigeons."
-- Gene Brown

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