Residents in Aotearoa: Sunset at Muriwai Beach, December 31, 2019

Wednesday, 1 January 2020

Sunset at Muriwai Beach, December 31, 2019

It's our tradition to spend the last evening of the year on a beach, hopefully watching the sun go down. The weather doesn't always cooperate, but it did this time.

The gannets are nesting now.

I held my sunglasses up in front of the lens for this one.

Here is a video of the sun's last few moments and a look around the beach.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mr78QDiLwdQ

We saw the last moon of the year too. Good-bye 2019.

When we got home, Jeanne and I toasted the year's end with a glass of wine and called it a night. Allie and the boys stayed up to see the new year in and snacked on chicken wings and carbonated white grape juice.

My plan was to rise early and get shots of the first sun of 2020 coming up. Unfortunately, clouds had moved in and it was impossible. The best laid plans.... I didn't really mind too much when I checked at 5:30 am. It felt good to sleep in. -djf

6 comments:

Anonymous1 January 2020 at 14:21
These pictures are just stunning. What a way to end the year! Maybe Fred and I will see some sunsets in the desert with the sun going down over the mountains. Fred thinks the new house faces west towards California but he is not sure. We will find out these details when we get there. McKenzie
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Doug Foster1 January 2020 at 15:58
And it's coming up so soon. All the best to you when you move.
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Kathie Luther1 January 2020 at 16:12
Spectacular and professional photos!!! Wow!! What a stunning place! So glad you all could share it! Happy New Year!
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Dianne1 January 2020 at 16:13
What a beautiful tradition you have for your NZ New Years Eve! This is an especially stunning end to a year and a decade!

Cheers to you and Happy New Year!
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My deer blind, a place outside of time and space.

This is a picture of my deer hunting blind. I built in in 1975 and used it until about 2010. I'm publishing this picture and text on November 15 of 2022, the opening day of Michigan's rifle deer hunting season, to remember all the years I spent sitting there and occasionally harvesting a deer. I think that the meat I provided for my family was only a small portion of the benefit I received from hunting in this manner. Of greater value to me was the time I spent alone, watching the forest and its many components interact. I had time to unwind from the stresses of my work, to appreciate our world, and even sometimes to pray. That blind was a refuge to me. It was cozy, and comfortable and I spent much more time filming the activities of not only deer, but bears, racoons, turkeys, squirrels, hawks, and once, even a snowy owl, than I did harvesting deer. May I suggest to all of you that you try to find some time and a place, where you can be alone, and where you can ponder and appreciate your life and your place in the world. It does a body good. -djf