Thoughts in the calm before the storm.

RVA is in the category 4 storm warning zone for tomorrow. 70+ MPH winds, 1-2” hail, and tornadoes are expected. All the schools are closed. The church preschools are closed. The commercial preschools are open. It’s not safe for a 16-year-old to be in school, but it’s fine for the 16-month-olds. KinderCare is publicly traded with a PE firm majority stockholder, but I’m sure that has nothing to do with the decision to open tomorrow. They’ll probably close at 3 PM and kick the teachers out of the building as the tornado is bearing down on the building.

Purdue won the B1G 10 tournament. I did not see that result coming. I know I’m supposed to not care about college sports, but tourney time sucks me back in every year.

Also, I’m very much looking forward to the Dominican Republic vs. USA game tonight. I’ll be rooting for DR. That lineup is crazy loaded.

Master Naturalist training is ongoing. I think I’ve completed my field trip hours, although I’m going on at least two more because they are so interesting. I’ve been thinking about how to fill my volunteer hours. I think I’m going to get trained to certify homeowner yards as bird-friendly with the Audubon Society. That’ll be fun. I owe at least 40 hours a year, and I’m thinking I want to spread it across two main interest areas. My problem is I’m interested in everything. I’ll definitely do something bird-related with at least half my time. The other half I’m still working on.

I’ll be in Chicago for DrupalCon North America next week. On the weird chance that someone reading this will also be there, shoot me a message, and we can try to meet up.

This weekend was a pretty great weekend. I started Saturday (Pi Day!) morning by birding with some of my fellow naturalist trainees before our field trip started, where we learned about the invasive species removal efforts in the James River Parks system. Saturday afternoon we watched Purdue beat UCLA to advance to the Big 10 Championship game. Saturday evening I had a date night with my wife at the local pub. Also, I ate pie. Twice. This morning my wife and I went out birding, and this afternoon was book club day. I made soda bread to share for book club. And this evening is DR vs. USA baseball on TV.

It’s going to be a crazy next two weeks with me trying to get two weeks of work done this week so I can not be working from my hotel room at midnight during the conference.

White-throated sparrow on a branch. He should be headed north soon.

Eastern Towhee in a pine tree

Barred owl in a tree

Beaver chewing on a stick

Remember, in a world where you can choose to be anything, you can choose to be kind.

Posted on March 15, 2026   #Weekend_Update