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February 11, 1982 - A Break in the WeatherPage 16 Tilt *Uft01h rimt5 A Break in the Weather Sometimes we need a little push to get going. Today the sun was out and I should have taken the initiative but my wife, Barbara, was the one who said, "Come on. Let's go for a walk." Our plans were set. Heavy shoes, lined pants, wool sweaters, hats and down jackets soon had us bundled up. Now to find my gloves that are always somewhere under the mound of scarves, hats and other paraphernalia on the closet shelf and we'd be off. Of course, the dog knew from the flurry of activity that something was going on. He was up and ready. The mere mention of "Would you like to go ?" put him in a jumping frenzy followed by his own special bark of "OK OK, let's get going." At home it seemed quite nice with only a whisper of wind in the air but when we got up to the Sound it was an entirely different story. Our nice whisper had turned into a cold cutting wind, one we had no intention of battling with, particularly when we envisioned a nice sunny walk. Back in the car we decided our walk would be along the bay shore, where it would be protected. So we headed south. This was more like it. The breeze had mellowed after passing over the land and much of its sting had been removed. The bay sparkled before us and with the blue sky above our walk was assured of being pleasant. Small ice floes drifted slowly about while a good flock of oldsquaw ducks played hide -and -seek just off shore. Al- ready these handsome ducks were becom- ing more playful than usual. From here on to their nesting ground in the far north, the mating game will be played. Had it been a perfectly calm day we could have heard their yodeling call that accompanies them as they splash and dive in their frolicking pursuit. Huge Ice Floes Seen Across the bay on the south side we could see huge piles of ice on Jessups Neck. These were the last remnants of the great ice jams that built up in our bays during the past week. Wherever the water was shallow and there was moving ice, these icy block walls would be built. Add a little wind and a thawing temperature so the ice might break up and their piles would go 10 to 15 feet high. We walked past an old osprey nest that February 11, 1982 BAY ICE DISAPPEARING -- During our severe low temperatures, the bays and creeks were frozen over. When the thaw of last week came great chunks of ice were pushed up on our beaches. Soon all this will be gone. Photo by Paul Stoutenburgh looked winter worn. In little more than a month these handsome fish hawks will be back. Look for them around the 21st of March. Each year mated pairs will return to the same nesting site. Year after year they will add their debris of sticks and �' • til VV v enuna/suu SALE STARTS NOW +u MPRES /DENTS DA Y SALEA131a ODDS&ENDS Cabinets (Wall ft Basel 70%SAVINGS From Original Price Many to choose from �c ALL VANITIES, MEDICINE CABINETS fr FAUCETS IN STOCK 20 %SAVINGS Caloric 24" Wide Imm "under the counter" Automatic Dishwasher Energy Saver - 4 cycles to choose from $ RANGE HOODS Big selection - both vented and non vented Some slightly damaged) All sizes and colors From $10.00 Extend -A -Phone Enables you to answer your phone with a portable unit up to 500 ft. from master unit $89.95 1179 Route 58 - --- — Riverhead 727 -1230 Store Hours: Mon. —Thurs. 9:00-6:00 _ Fri. 9:00 - 9:00 Sat. 9:00 - 5:30 seaweed to the nest of the year before. This, by the way, is one of the osprey's undoing for if the nest has a poor foundation like a rotten limb, the added weight and one more year's decay might well be enough to snap the limb with the nest, and eggs or young are lost. This is one of the reason's why we like to put up osprey platforms using sturdy preserved wood. At the mouth of one of the small creeks, great chunks of ice had run aground. Some had ridden up on top of each other. One in particular had started to melt and had formed a lace work of icicles around it. How it sparkled! Others were spongelike and already disappearing on the beach. Could we hope that this was the end of our cold spell? As we turned around and headed back the cold had mustered its ally, the wind, and was trying its best to get at us. Watery eyes and cold ears told us it was doing a fair job at our exposed parts but was no equal for our down jackets and lined pants. In the car our glasses misted up and the windshield became fogged -- a little heat from the engine and all would disappear. Hawks Hunt Open Fields Along the road we passed an abandoned field with a hawk hovering over it. Its life is spent hunting. Below some rat, mouse or shrew will risk a short cut above the debris rather than taking the underground tunnel home. That mistake is all the hawk needs. Down it would drop. There'd be a rush of wings, talons out - stretched, a quick bite behind the head and it all would be over. The weak link in the gene of that rodent would not be permitted to be passed on. The hawk would feed well and the hunt will continue again and again. We saw two more hawks before we got home. Both over fields that were abandon- ed or left uncultivated. The cultivated fields afford no hiding places for these small animals and offer little in the way of food. It's the natural areas that attract the birds and the animals. We returned home late in the afternoon and were glad to see how light it still was. Our days are getting longer. The addition- al sun each day acts like a giant pump of energy putting new vitality into the dormant winter world about us. We'll all realize this as the days of February and March slip by. Each day we will become more aware of the tempo of life being picked up. Spring can't be that far away. PAULSTOUTENBURGH Westward Flo HAUPPAUGE - -The offices of the Suffolk County Insurance and Risk Management Unit last week were relocated from the county center in Riverhead to the H. Lee Dennison building in Hauppauge. Mike Natale, assistant manager for the unit, said that the 10- member staff was moved to provide easier access to the deputy county executive for financial affairs, William Brotherton, to whom the unit reports. The unit, which is part of the County Executive's office, manages the county's self- insurance program, whereby any claims against the county, such as workmen's compensation, are handled without dealing with an outside insurance agency.