Cold down there. Snappy breeze chopping up the water. Tide fairly low -- one of the cool things about going to a tidal river more or less the same time every is, you can really see the rhythms of the sea, which are not the same as the diurnal rhythms of the earth.

Lots of seagull action this morning. On windy days the gulls must find it easier to take to the air and ride the currents than to try to hold a position on a piling. So a lot of sharp bird eyes saw it when a young one swooped down and pulled a morsel from the water. Those who hadn't seen were alerted by the screeching of one of the ones who did as he chased the possessor. Gulls would always rather steal than forage. Soon the whole stretch of water in front of my bench was filled with sweeping gulls, some of whom clearly had no idea what was going on. They didn't know who had the food or where he'd gotten it, but they were prepared to get in on the action if someone pointed them the way.