It's not always what you are looking for. Here are some more treasures from my two days staring intently at a small patch of woods.
I found a lot more than my glasses.
Nature's patterns repeat themselves. These fungus remind me of coral, scallop shells, and the striped patterns in the foothills in the badlands. The shifting colors in changing humidity and temperature and the slow process of decay fascinate me: fuzzy green velvets, furry browns and beiges, slimy, gelatinous browns. Texture and color and patterns - oh my! I'll continue to keep my eye on the decomposing cherry and pine logs to see what happens next, and won't wait until I lose something to look this closely again.
Some of these are truly beautiful and sublime, Mel! How wonderful and thank you for sharing them.
ReplyDeleteOh, what splendor! Wonderful images! And many thanks for the link to the old Southern houses ... what a treasure!
ReplyDeleteSo simply gorgeous. You're so right, I thought of shells as well.
ReplyDeleteSo happy you found your glasses!! I still can't find them in the photo :)
Hi there, thanks for your comments on my blog! I never know if people actually go back and check for my replies, a la Ms Moon, so I figured I'd answer you here :)
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you watched that movie! I actually teared up at the end --it really was a "what the fuck are we DOing" kind of teary. I have a feeling you understand :)
I have to admit, my knowledge of education policy comes from a spectator's perspective. As you probably have figured out, I wear the health policy hat in my job(s). But, I will caution you that the news is not good as far as education spending cuts for the next couple of years. I dont know where you're located, but only 3 states (ND, SD and MT I believe) are, at this point, avoiding education cuts. I repeat...education funding WILL BE cut. So, supplemental things like the Kahn academy that you do for your own kids are really, just about the best we can all do as we sit down and weather the storm.
Book projects are a phenomenal idea, as yes, I totally agree all this starts with literacy. Volunteering in the elementary school after-school programs is also a good start.
Looking at lobbying efforts, start with your statehouse first. Federal education overhaul is large, complex, and probably ain't gonna happen anytime soon. Start with your Governor and your Governors staff (staff are more important). But brace yourself to likely hit more walls than you are to climb over them in this terrible, terrible budget year (and will continue to be terrible until 2014) for states. It's just frustrating. And frustrating to do what I do for a living too, and see this every single day.
Anyway -now who's hijacked who's comments? :) :)
Who knew fungus could be so fascinating. Love the photos and all the unusual fungus perspectives. We had 6 inches of snow again yesterday, and today it's 50. Craaazzzyy weather.
ReplyDeleteWow! You have such a good variety! We don't have nearly as many variations where I live. It is wondrous what you can find when you look closely at tiny things. The 8th one down is my favorite. Amazing. Beautiful!
ReplyDeleteHow beautiful. Lovely photos and great reminder. I'm with you, we see what we're looking for--and the more we look, the more we see.
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