Eye On Sligo Creek

07/18/2026

Sligo Creek adjacent: Shot this one before the smoke rolled in, so I thought I'd share it now. Happy Saturday, if smoky, Saturday morning -- and with a haunting reminder to say what need to say to the people we love.

Tiger lilies are famous for their brilliant orange blooms, but they...

06/22/2026

Sligo Creek Adjacent: Check out this little video about Delmarva Discovery Museum -- a place that's worth a visit and worth supporting. We found out about it when Chesapeake Bay Journal did a story on it getting a second life. We made a donation -- and will get there soon. Find out why here -- and the good you can do by supporting the museum, too. Our video is on a new channel we're building to cover the whole cosmos, not just Sligo Creek.

A Bay Journal story about the Delmarva Discovery Museum in Pocomoke...

03/14/2026

Most of you know that in my day job I run Orion’s Attic, an estate liquidation and home cleanout company based here in Silver Spring.

One thing we see all the time when opening garages and basements is shelves full of old paint cans, cleaners, and other household chemicals that have been sitting there for years.

It’s easy to forget that what happens to those materials can eventually affect the same waterways we all care about — including Sligo Creek.

I recently wrote a piece about that connection, and about a new partnership that helps make sure those materials are safely removed and responsibly processed instead of ending up in the waste stream.

The article includes a couple of short videos showing how the process works.

Learn how Orion’s Attic and Yuck Old Paint handle household hazardous waste removal in Montgomery County, safely disposing of paint, chemicals, and toxic materials.

02/24/2026

I express my gratitude to you again this morning, Red Maple. I thank you for your teachings that I am never too old or too dormant to grow from the inside ... that times of rest can be opportunities to reflect on how I can prepare to spring into action doing more for those I love, doing more to be of service to all beings. I thank you for sharing your sacred life with me, and leading by the example of standing tall and reaching for the sky even when I'm inclined to hibernate.

12/14/2025

Thank you, Clever Snow. You lured me out this morning cursing under my breath because I had to shovel you away from my van -- only for me to realize the work came with a gift.

The gift that comes when you lay down a white blanket seemingly to cover everything in sight ... except that you're not smothering and creating work; you're revealing things unseen without you ... tracks from rabbits, squirrels and so many more.

I apologize for my initial grumbling, and I thank you for your presents -- a chore turned not a physical but a meditative exercise, and the chance to see the hidden lives of those with whom I share this day and this earth.

12/06/2025

Good morning, American sycamore tree on Sligo Creek! Thank you for calling my attention today. Thank you for letting me hang out with you as you awoke, yawned, and stretched your arms up to the sky. I did the same thing only moments ago. You and I are kin, Sycamore.

Thank you for letting me admire you as you basked in the sun. Thank you for the work you do to control erosion running from the parking lot above. Thank you for your sacrifice in allowing us humans to make furniture from your mighty trunk, and for giving Indigenous Americans the resource they needed to make canoes.

Thank you, too, for the history lesson you taught me this morning: I did not know your ancestors helped shelter George Washington's troops during the Battle of Brandywine. You are a patriotic tree.

Thank you for letting me make your acquaintance this morning. I extend my most sincere gratitude to you, American sycamore, for all that you are.

11/22/2025

Happy rainy Saturday morning, Chipmunk! I greet you with love and affection on this day. I'm honored to have provided crushed corn on the ground for you, and seed for the birds above you. May this offering nourish your body and serve as a token of my appreciation for all that you do for me -- giving me joy and companionship to start my day. I thank you also for all the good you do for Mother Earth -- aerating soil, helping my tree friends grow stronger root systems, and dispersing seeds. You are tiny in size but mighty in contribution.

11/15/2025

Simple solutions: Birds kept crashing into my windows today while I was trying to read -- so a simple pack of anti-collision window clings/bird alert decals solved the problem ... and forced me to clean four windows! My apologies, Birds, for not doing this sooner.

11/07/2025

Good morning, Sun. I thank you for rising. I ask that you illumine my day -- giving me the ability to see better than I saw yesterday. I ask that you empower me to spot opportunities emerging from darkness to be of service to anyone or anything your gentle rays reveal.

11/04/2025

Sligo Creek Adjacent -- as this kind of powerful experience happens here, too: This one is from the heart. It's about me going on an insufficiently prepared bike ride Harpers Ferry National Historical Park along the C&O Canal Towpath. One act of kindness led to another on the Towpath.

I gave what I had to help a stranger — and when I suddenly needed help myself less than hour later, the Universe answered through two kind people who came to my rescue. Grateful, humbled, and reminded that we’re all connected.

I'd love for you to watch it when you can dedicate 13 minutes and 15 seconds of quiet time to taking it in. I hope this this connects to you in some way, that it gives you inspiration.

A simple bike ride on the C&O Canal Towpath became one of the most moving spiritual experiences of my life. On this autumn morning in Harpers Ferry, I set ou...