A bevy of bridges

A bridge over an inlet on the coast in Hawaii

This week’s Sunday Stills challenge theme is ‘Bridges.’ See more responses here.

The top image is an elegant bridge on the coast, in the Hilton Resort at Waikoloa. It spans an inlet from the ocean into a lagoon. This bridge is part of the coast path, which is open for anyone to walk.

A bridge over a gulch in North Kohala, Hawaii
A bridge over a gulch in North Kohala, Hawaii
A bridge over a gulch in North Kohala, Hawaii

The Big Island’s main use of bridges is to span the numerous gullies that run from the mountains down to the ocean. On the east side, some of these bridges are quite long and high, with vertigo-inducing views over the edge. These three bridges cross gullies in North Kohala on the winding road from Kapaau to Pololu. The third has several houses nearby, so a walkway has been added. This is surely safer than walking on the road, though not by much judging from its appearance!

Two anoles meet on a wire in Hawaii
A green anole hangs onto a line.

Finally, bridges of a different kind. Anoles and geckos use lines, attached to the house, to get around. Sometimes these one-lane bridges lead to encounters with fellow travelers. In this case the smaller anole leapt off into the cane grass, but that was its intended destination anyway. In the second photo, this anole was using the washing line to bridge the space from the house to a hedge.

Abstracts: Aglow

The power light on a printer

I’d like to say this is an image that featured prominently in NASA’s recent foray into UFO investigations. (Apparently, they’re not called UFOs anymore. They’re UAPs (unidentified anomalous phenomena) which I find far less engaging.) However, this image is not of a UFO or even a UAP.

Recently, I got a new printer and it has this circular light that tells me it’s on. This light pulses continuously. It’s also very bright. When I got up in the middle of the night, it was like the house interior was illuminated by one of those rotating searchlights used in prison camps.

It’s a frightening thought that some designer thought this was a good idea. This consumer thought it a very bad idea. However, there was no way to turn the light off unless the machine was turned off. Plan B was to cover the light so it wasn’t so bright. Sounds simple, but it took several tries before finding a dense enough tape combination to dim the light to acceptable levels.

They came from outer space

Wild turkeys and a rooster in Hawaii

A few days ago, a group of five wild turkeys wandered through the yard. It’s the first time I’ve seen them here. They came up from the abandoned house and were headed towards the highway.

Wild turkeys and a rooster in Hawaii

This path took them through the neighbor’s yard, which is the territory of a local rooster. When he saw these strange creatures moving into his domain, he strolled across to investigate. The turkeys seemed mystified by the rooster, though it’s hard to believe they hadn’t seen one before.

Wild turkeys and a rooster in Hawaii

They peered down on it, stooped to its level, flapped their wings at it, displayed their feathers. The rooster was unmoved. For his part, he seemed even more baffled than the turkeys, though he also appeared to have decided they were no threat to his territory. He just stared as the turkeys went through their repertoire.

Wild turkeys and a rooster in Hawaii

Eventually, they went about their business of pecking for food. From time to time, the turkeys would go through their routine, but the rooster remained unimpressed. Eventually, the six of them wandered off toward the small macadamia nut orchard nearby, the turkeys still displaying, the rooster still off in his own world. The turkeys came back the next day, but haven’t been seen since.

Wild turkeys and a rooster in Hawaii

And the headline? Those turkeys just look like aliens, peering down on the strange life form below them, just the way real aliens would probably look at us!

Wild turkeys and a rooster in Hawaii