Mystery bird.

I was walking through the Public Gardens in Boston yesterday and spotted this bird. It was a diving bird; it spent most of its time underwater, and never got close enough to me for a really good shot. It eventually took off, and seemed larger in wingspan than I would have guessed. In the water, it sat quite low -- you could barely see its back.

Any of you birders know what this is? When I first saw it, I thought loon, but it didn't seem to have quite the right coloring -- at least that I could see, which was tricky. (And it also seemed too big when it was flying away.) (ETA: I remembered that I have a bird book, and it does seem plausible that it was a loon -- maybe a yellow-billed instead of a common?)

( Photos back here. )

Memory meme.

I've done this before, but what the heck. From fair_witness, this time.

If you read this, if your eyes are passing over this right now, even if we don't speak often, please post a comment with a memory of you and me. It can be anything you want -- good or bad. When you're finished, post this little paragraph on your blog and be surprised (or mortified!) about what people remember about you.