crates | August 17, 2008
Blackberries We were just friends when you tripped on the blackberry vine. I got to my knees beside you and Helped pick out the thorns, Putting your fingers in my mouth to Bite them out with my teeth. Then to make you laugh I fed you Sun-warmed blackberries Lying there in the grass, and Then I [...]
crates | July 14, 2008
The idea of simplicity in our lives seems to be growing in our awareness. We find that in an increasingly complex existence, simplification has an immense appeal. We seem to have too many things, and our lives become filled with clutter, both physically and mentally. Sometimes we yearn for simpler times when the world [...]
crates | July 12, 2008
I thought that I might put some of my poems in some of my posts. This is one: Reflection When you ponder the Calendar of your days, Do you recall the times Of strife, of betrayal, Of heartbreak? Or…do you recall the Quiet calm times filled With beauty and tranquility? Basho (Matsuo Kinsaku–ca. 1644-1694) was [...]
crates | April 12, 2008
Three days ago as I walked down my favorite road to the nearby beach, I came across this teeny-tiny little grey creature lying on its back on the side of the road. This little mammal was a shrew, apparently the Wandering or Vagrant Shrew (Sorex vagrans) as far as I could make out. I often [...]
crates | March 29, 2008
I just finished a biography of Einstein, Einstein, His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson. I really liked the book which showed aspects of his life of which I was unfamiliar. I was very impressed with Einstein’s child-like qualities, his idealism, his kindness and his wry, self-deprecating humor. Of course I knew he was a [...]
crates | January 2, 2008
Once again I am reading a novel by Tim Powers. A new Border’s Book Store opened up nearby, and I found two of his novels that I haven’t read before: The Drawing of the Dark and Three Days to Never. A few months ago, I talked about reading another of his recent books, Declare, [...]
crates | October 4, 2007
Every May when the large rhododendron by the driveway begins to bloom, eventually producing this incredibly lovely display of pink blossoms that cover the entire plant, I begin to feel this tension. As I drive out every morning I stop and roll down my car window and look at the exquisite details in the pink [...]
crates | April 7, 2007
Yesterday morning when I walked out on the porch, it was so slippery that I thought for a moment that it had frosted during the night. I then realized that there was a film of yellow pollen over the porch and steps which acted as as a fine lubricant. Wiping the railing, I found that [...]
crates | March 26, 2007
Well, there are so many plants flowering forth that I thought I’d put on some more photos. I am in the process of learning what some of these plants are, so bear with me. The shrub with the red berries are shown to the right is yet to be identified. I thought for a moment [...]
crates | March 18, 2007
This wonderful Big-Leafed Maple (Acer macrophyllum) is one of my favorites on my walk to the beach. It is only about two hundred yards from my place, and I always have to stop and admire its moss-covered branches which are festooned with the lovely epiphytic Licorice Fern (Polypodium glycyrrhiza; aka P. vulgare). The Licorice [...]