Wonder #24

Since I have been back in So Cal, I've been doing all that I can to take in as much as possible.  I had truly forgotten just how much there is to do here.  So for one of the many recent quests, my friends Nicole and Asha and I took a trip to the Huntington Library and Gardens.

The main reason I wanted to go was the Bukowski exhibit, a collection of poems, letters, books and some memorabilia.  I always knew I liked Buk, but I didn't realize how much I would really like him when I got to know more about him.  I can remember reading some of his work when I was younger, but the depth of his poetry was probably lost on me at the time.  At a younger age, you can appreciate his antagonism and anti-establishment attitudes. When you're 18 and drinking a bottle of Boone's Farm, you can connect with his alcoholic tendencies, because for you they are just tendencies.  Now I have a greater appreciation for his anti-social behavior and for his alcoholism.  He was definitely one deep dude, and he wasn't afraid to share the pain he saw in his life, but he has a was of sharing his thoughts and feelings in a very matter-of-fact way.  And I appreciated this and the opportunity to know him a little better.

Wonder #23

We've had Florida rain here in Orange County, CA.  There have been a few breaks in the systems that are moving in, and one was very well-timed for me yesterday.  I was headed to dog beach in Huntington Beach with two of my dogs.  The rain had stopped a few minutes before I hit the coast, and I was lucky enough to be on PCH as the sun started streaming through the clouds.  With the smog her in So Cal, you can't often see to Catalina or Long Beach - at least not with the clarity we saw it yesterday.  I found myself shocked and awed at the degree to which my eye could see the Long Beach Harbor, the shipping lanes, and even the windows in the building in downtown Long Beach.

Wonder #22

The skies over Illinois are spectacular, so many hours I spent searching for good cloud shots.  There is something about how the wind comes over the Great Lakes, and sweeps the clouds through so quickly.  The absence of smog doesn't hurt either.

As I've begun reviewing my photos again, I realize how peaceful the house in Illinois was.  I was lucky enough to live on a golf course, with no one behind us.  In the warmer seasons, this meant lush green behind us, and skies as far as you can see - which is saying something the the plains states.  In winter, it meant living on the tundra, white everywhere.  The glare from the snow was blinding on the days the sun was able to peek through for a few hours.  But beautiful, none-the-less.

Wonder #21

I recently moved back to Southern California, from Orlando, Florida.  There are many things I already miss about it, even though it's only been three weeks.  One of these "many" is the Spanish Moss.  If you talk to the locals, they'll tell you how much they hate the moss. "It grows rampant.  It kills the trees."  For me, the moss gives the trees such depth.  It's like the pairing of tree and moss have a varied and more beautiful story than a tree that stands alone.

Shortly before I left Orlando, I made a point to explore a city I barely knew - as I only lived there a year before my painful goodbye.  This picture was taken on one of those lonely days, where only tenacity and will power could drag me from my comfort zone to go exploring.  For me, Orlando was never about the amusement parks or the tourists from Jersey and the Midwest or even about the gators and panthers.  When I moved to Orlando, I believed it was for a better life with my family.  When I left Orlando, I left behind my dream for the white picket fence.  It was in leaving that I began to embrace the light and dark inside myself, the pain of the lessons I was learning and the bliss in the possibilities that lie ahead.  One path ending, and many more appearing.

Spanish moss holds that power for me as well, in creating a life, another is destroyed.  Dark, but promising and beautiful at the same time.

Wonder #19

As I said before, I am overly excited about the arrival of spring this year.  The trees, the flowers, the joy of my compost pile, and the 80 or 90 degree temperature...  OK, so it's feeling like summer already, but regardless - I have to add one more thing to that list.  The robin's nest in my back yard!  Check out my new little buddy....

What a melon on this one, right?  There are three babies in all, and they are growing up so fast!  I found the nest just two days before this picture.  In such a short time their down has doubled, and all three have the "pigtails" (look to the back of the head on this one).  

I'll be keeping an eye on the nest daily.  My dogs already know they are there, so when it's time to leave the nest, I'm sure Max and Napoleon will be waiting.

Hope your day brings lots of wonders!  Ta! 

Wonder #18

I suppose I'll have to post double time, since I haven't had an update in two weeks. The good news?  Scratch that - great news?  I finally got my compost pile up and running! After several trips to local nurseries, one trip to a local farm, and about five hours researching composters online - the break down has finally begun!  Here's my new baby...

In my research, which of course I had a ton of fun with, I learned a lot more about marketing than I did science.  Here's what I found out...  You can find a slew of compost tumblers and black box tumblers online.  Everyone from HGTV to Planet Natural to Sam's Club sells them.  Even Oprah had an episode on worm composting recently.  Literally EVERYONE is willing to tell you how to compost, especially if you are planning on using the compost starter they are marketing, which of course makes it ridiculously easy to start and does the extra bonus of breaking down your compost in 14 or 21 days.  The problem I had?  Four basic walls of recycled plastic and a locking lid cost $200+.  It just didn't seem right, so I held off.  Then I found a super inexpensive one at Sam's Club last weekend - $40 bucks later and it was mine.  Which of course is my wonder...  How did I find one for 20% of the average cost?  

Like I said, I learned more about marketing than I did about science!  Ta!

Wonder #17

I decided to hunt down a new preserve in the area.  In the last week, everything is in bloom, and I don't have too many forest shots yet.  So I found Ryerson Conservation Area in Highwood.  The hike started out well (mostly because I didn't yet feel like it was a hike).  I got a few good forest interior shots - like the overdone birch tree forest posters, but good none-the-less.  

There were quite a few trails, leading off in different directions, so I was lucky to find a good one to start, but it was really rather short.  I now have a new definition of what a "good" trail is - dry and sandy or paved.  (Wait for it...)  

So after doubling back on my good but short trail, I decided to check out the log cabins I'd seen when driving in.  Cute, but other than the weird wiccan Council Ring, I got better macro shots of the cabin.

And what should I see but a barely there trail, leading to a boardwalk system not too far off.  Thinking this would be better than the witch ring, I took off toward the boardwalk system.  Couple of cool shots later, I pass the boardwalk... and suddenly realize that there's a reason they put a boardwalk in a conservation area.  Because it's muddy, no let's call it downright wet.  In fact, let's just call it swamp, because that's what it really is - a swamp on the edge of the Des Plaines River.

Being the optimist that I am, I decided that it can't be this bad the whole way through, so I decide to plug on.  Twenty minutes of leaping gracefully over mud puddles, from one side of the (quickly-disappearing) trail to the other...  I suddenly find myself unbelievably mired in swamp - no nice pile of leaves anywhere around for me to jump to.  As I stand there, slowly panicking about the new shoes I am sure to have ruined, and dropping the camera that literally keeps me sane, I realize that the swamp is quickly forcing it's way into the sides my cute Pumas.  Alas, I had lost the battle!

So what do you do when you realize that:

- You were nuts to wear cute shoes into a preserve you'd never been in,

- You should have turned back at the small puddles in the middle of the sun at the start of the trail,

- The witchy ring was probably just a childrens' nature classroom,

- The longer you wait, the more swamp makes it into your Pumas,

- and that you're really glad no one is hear to witness you squeal at the toad that just jumped in front of you?

Well, if you are me, you say, "What the hell?"  and start leaping straight through the swamp, mud-in-the-Pumas and all!  Because there is nothing so wonderous as being able to laugh at yourself...