Marty’s photo of the day #3161: The following short excerpt is from my second book, Endangered Edens: Exploring the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Costa Rica, the Everglades, and Puerto Rico: As a writer, I know it’s my duty to add excitement here by spelling out the sound of the call—with lots of dashes and exclamation […]
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Category: Stories
The logical Democratic presidential nominee is . . .
I took the New York Times Democratic candidate quiz, and for me it showed Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren tied at the top, followed by Pete Buttigieg and Amy Klobuchar. In a normal election I would agree with those results, but this is not a normal election. What the quiz did not ask was, “How […]
A leopard seal on a foggy day
Marty’s photo of the day #3149: A leopard seal on a foggy day. This excerpt from my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents, summarizes the many leopard seal encounters Deb and I had when visiting Antarctica: As inviting as the water looked, its temperature wasn’t the only reason to stay dry—a […]
Batty photography
Marty’s photo of the day #3131: The following excerpt from my second book, Endangered Edens: Exploring the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Costa Rica, the Everglades, and Puerto Rico, describes the shot: When we planned our hike to the farmhouse, I immediately thought of the two-story farmhouse my grandparents had owned in northern Minnesota. I knew […]
A ball-sucking glacier!
Marty’s photo of the day #3127: In this photo, Deb is at the top (elevation 4,300 feet) of the Salmon Glacier in Alaska. It’s the fifth largest glacier in North America. The following excerpt from my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents, describes our adventure: Unlike other mountain roads I’ve driven, […]
The best live band in the world today
Marty’s photo of the day #3103: Throughout our marriage, Deb and I have done some crazy things on the spur of the moment—from suddenly deciding to move to Montana to suddenly deciding to travel all seven continents for my first book—but one of the craziest happened the night I introduced Deb to the Dutch band […]
Russians and the cottonmouth snake
Marty’s photo of the day #3069: The following story, “Russians and the Cottonmouth,” comes from my second book, Endangered Edens: Exploring the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Costa Rica, the Everglades, and Puerto Rico: After a great day of alligators, snakes, and birds, I reluctantly turned my car around and headed west on the Loop Road. […]
Misadventures from my New York speaking tour
So it’s going to be one of those tours! Yesterday I had a full day’s worth of flights from Missoula, MT to Syracuse, NY. I had the early morning United Airlines flight out of Missoula (the tackiest, most incompetent airport in America). First my Missoula flight was delayed because of a cold air plane, then […]
Zebras as art
Marty’s photo of the day #3059: Yesterday’s photo of the day was about photos people had stolen from me. Today’s post is about the opposite. Back in 2016, Arturo Chávez, a well-known, award-winning painter from Taos, New Mexico, asked permission to use one of my zebra photos for a painting. I was honored to say […]
Stolen and Burned
Marty’s photo of the day #3058: Every once in a while people steal my photos. I’m not talking about a Facebook or Twitter share (which is perfectly fine). I’m talking about actual stealing. For instance, a guide company in Puerto Rico stole one of my photos for use on their website, and in the instance […]
My writing room
Marty’s photo of the day #3055: I recently read a blog about how important it is for writers to have a special writing room. I think I have that covered. During the day, I have a stunning view of the snow-covered mountains, and at night I work by candlelight. Regarding my writing: Time Is Irreverent […]
Hiding from the missionaries
Marty’s photo of the day #3049: You’re probably wondering: what the hell is this picture about? When my wife and I were in Belize, we went horseback riding with one of the locals, and he took us to a cave, where we could see vampire bats up-close. This was one of the other sights inside […]
Ketchup gets no respect
Marty’s photo of the day #3036: I took this photo in a tiny town in western Spain. The below excerpt from my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents, explains the significance of the shot—and how a simple request can offend an entire country and get you fired: We ambled back to […]
My favorite baseball story
Marty’s photo of the day #3032: In honor of the Minnesota Twins being back in the playoffs tonight (vs. the dreaded Yankees), I thought I’d share one of my favorite Twins stories. Deb and I were living in Minneapolis in 1991, and we scored last-minute tickets to the most exciting World Series game ever played: […]
For my wife
Marty’s photo of the day #3013: I can’t believe it! Deb and I have been married 35 years as of today. This is one of my favorite photos of her, and here’s why: I could never be married to a woman who wasn’t intelligent, outspoken, brave, and adventurous. I wish you could have seen how […]
Appreciating the Amazon Rainforest, Pt 5
Marty’s photo of the day #2995: The Amazon Rainforest is burning, and while the Amazon has experienced major fires before, there is no doubt greedy right-wing politicians and nearly 40 years of climate change denial are major contributors to the devastation. With that in mind, this week I’m featuring photos I’ve taken of animals in […]
Concerts, concerts, concerts!
Marty’s photo of the day #2974: This is Deb and me at the KettleHouse Amphitheater, before last night’s Berlin, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD), and B-52s concert. Although I prefer solo headline shows—because the bands go deeper into their music, play longer, and tend to interact more personally with their audience—Deb and I have […]
The wind in your ears
Marty’s photo of the day #2973: This is Annie—the best dog I’ve ever had—in a photo I took more than fifteen years ago. Deb and I had climbed to the top of a mountain in southern Montana, while Annie climbed it multiple times, saying, “Come on! Come on!” The view at the top was stunning […]
Melissa Etheridge brings smiles to Missoula
Marty’s photo of the day #2962: Melissa Etheridge was incredible last night. Deb and I had seen her two years ago at the KettleHouse Amphitheater with Pat Benatar. That was a fine show. However, outdoor multi-headliner shows tend to focus on the greatest hits. Last night, at the Wilma, it was just her and her […]
Post hippo-attack
Marty’s photo of the day #2949: When Deb and I were canoeing down the Zambezi River in Zimbabwe, a hippo bit through our canoe, lifted us high into the air and threw us onto a muddy riverbank. Not many people survive a hippo attack, but we did—and it was a hell of a ride. You […]