Raptor in the Wetland

Big M sent me this picture of a Pennsylvania Bald Eagle, which he took in the created wetland near his house, where I used to live. When I went to crop out the bird, I found that I couldn't stand to cut out all the background because of its nostalgic beauty.

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I seem to be settling into a schedule of working Monday and Tuesdays now. The hospital where I've done nearly all my agency work so far is busy and short-staffed. They also like to have generous staffing ratios, which makes it a nice place to work. They've been asking for me nearly every day this week.

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rc

Fire- dream journal

I began sitting in an auditorium discussing religious sects. Then I was going around cleaning apartments. Finally, I wound up at my childhood home, sitting outside with Father. I don't know what we were watching to start out with, but a fire swept across the hill behind the house. As the sun sunk behind the hill, the fire raged larger until the bright orange flames rose high over the silhouettes of the tall trees. Then a fireball exploded and a tall cedar fell down very near to us. I flinched to the left and pulled Father with me, but we were not close enough for the tree to hit us.
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Sronnoc Esor

Dahlia Matriarchal Cheesecake

Dahlia Man entrusted me with the recipe for the traditional German cheesecake of his grandmother, his mother, and his wife. He tells me he wasn't disappointed by my attempt at its recreation today. Instead of cream cheese, this cheesecake is made with cottage cheese and other secret ingredients. It is deliciously unlike anything else I have ever tasted. Dahlia Man took one look at the cheesecake and pronounced that the dinner table tonight would be surrounded by the spirits of his maternal ancestors.
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Rose

Hunting Color

When I set out this morning, I was worried that our day would be a disappointment because of the high winds and threatening clouds. A few miles inland the wind subsided and the sun even peeked through for a lovely day. As pleased as I was with our drive in search of color; I was that disappointed with the failure of my photographs to capture it. We had a lovely drive, punctuated by a stop at the Covered Bridge Winery, where I wasn't even allowed taste because I look younger than thirty and wasn't packing ID, and Ki'il came home with cranberry wine. After that we stopped at Sugartree Farms for some pears. As we drove home in the rain in the dark, dodging debris on the highway, my heart nearly stopped when blue lights appeared behind us out of nowhere. I was going well below the speed limit. I was relieved to see that the protector of the peace was headed the other direction.

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Rose

Golden Falls

After the hike through fairyland forest to the foot of Golden Falls, we climbed the switchbacks to the top. The songbirds were active and we saw the usual kinglets, chickadees, and nuthatches. I think we only saw two other people on the trail, although there were more at the parking area by the time we got back.

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rc

Silver Falls

Golden and Silver Falls is about 25 miles inland from town. There is a good stretch of pock-marked dirt road at the end. The walk to Silver Falls, shown above, is a short easy one. It peeks out at you through the trees as you approach in a truly awe-inspiring display. There was just starting to be a little fall color when we went last week. Reports are promising, so we're going to try again this week.

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Rose

Environmental Action Day

I wanted to post pictures of leisure activities of varying impact on the environment today. I had a little change of plans, first involving rain, and second involving going to work. Our beautiful Oregon coast attracts a large number of people who engage in pasttimes that burn fossil fuel. Perhaps the biggest is ATVing on the dunes followed by boating and RVing. I am joined by others like SPM in envisioning a world where people go hiking, canoeing, bicycling, and tent camping instead.

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In matters not directly related to the environment: I cut my own hair today for the first time. Well, I'm not counting that time in junior high that I cut my own bangs with hideous results. I'm pleased to report that I did such a good job that jc refused to believe that I did it myself. Cutting my own hair is not really about saving the thirteen dollars that I pay at the budget salon. It is a direct result of the fact that I hate making an appointment then waiting in the salon for a haircut that wasn't what I really wanted anyway.

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r connors

Playacting- dream journal

I was in a play. I had to wait backstage a long time before I went on. When it was finally time, I couldn't find my costume, which was supposed to be some type of sari, and had to go on in a peasant blouse and skirt. When the curtain was pulled, I saw that there were only a few people in the audience. Most of the chairs in the auditorium had been folded up and stacked on the side. The director then told me that this wasn't the actual showing of the play, but a rehearsal. I said that was good since I didn't know my lines. I then summarized my lines and went backstage again. After that it became clear that a complicated conspiracy was underfoot to cover up for some crime.

Sronnoc Esor

A Delusion of Satan- book review

Frances Hill's well-thought book is a compelling read. She proposes that we take that which we fear and despise most in ourselves, attribute it to others, and destroy them for it. She goes into great detail describing the ways in which the Puritanism of Salem Village predisposed its young girls to clinical hysteria. The stifling, paranoid, Puritanical lifestyle also made the adults more than ready to accept accusations of witchcraft and prosecute those accused of it as fully as possible.

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It is a case where blind faith and fear, for a time, triumphed tragically over reason. The best and worst in humankind is seen, and it is prudent to take warning from it.

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r connors

Comfort Food

Tonight for dinner Dahlia Man and I had bratwurst from the Black Forest Kitchen with sauerkraut and dumplings and fresh beets. We washed it down with Alaska amber ale. It took us both back to the German-inspired foods of our childhoods.
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Rose

Tied Up

As Ki'il and I drove back the dirt road from Golden and Silver Falls yesterday, we both noticed the same black and white, curly-horned cow standing by the same tree at the roadside where it had been hours earlier. I stopped the truck and we got out to investigate, thinking the cow must be stuck on somethig. It was standing at the top of a fairly steep bank and a muddy rope was tied around its neck. The rope led down the bank to where it was tied to a fallen log. I then noticed the open gate, which would necessitate the tether.
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I'm sorry I couldn't help you, Cow. It doesn't seem like you could possibly have wanted to stand in the same spot for so long. You were a handsome cow.
~
Rose

Rainy Day

Rainy days call for a reading list. Here's what I'm attempting.

rc

Green

As the fall rains begin, it starts to get greener around here. Caught this little guy in the lawn this morning.

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It was Spa Day for Shadow today. She got a manicure, pedicure, shampoo, and shower followed by hand dry with warm towels. She started squalling when she got wet, but when jc took her paw she stopped squalling and laid her head on his hand. The mommy is the mean one. Ailleanach's turn is up when I can catch her.

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rc

_

postscript: Ailleanach got bathed and about eight front toenails cut. She cooperates quite well with the bath, but gets downright brutal when threatened with toenail clippers. She enjoys a cuddle in the warm towel after the bath, and this is the only way any nails get cut at all.

Over the Hump

My bad day is over the month. We visited Ki'il and the Scholar's new home last night for a nice dinner. I was pretty much stoned from sleep deprivation by the time we got there, having worked the night before; but I enjoyed their company. Ki'il shared the therapeutic heated tile she brought from Korea with me.

~

Today we stayed in bed with our laptops for the most part.

Knot

I received my bequest from Granny's estate today. It was a much larger amount of money than I expected. The executor made a reasonable request: think about how Granny would have wanted you to spend it. I've never received a gift of this size before, and I'm a little overwhelmed by. I sort of wish Granny would have spent it on something extravagant instead of being so frugal. Thinking about how frugal she was makes me ponder a wise use for it even harder. Here's where I come to the recurring theme. Granny's bequest would comprise a tidy fraction of the amount necessary for an adoption. Thinking about adoption so concretely scares me to death. Maybe the reason I'm not a mother already is that I'm not suited for it or nature didn't intend it for me. I suppose I'd be thinking more rationally if this hadn't happened on the first day of my period, when I'm already bound to be more than a little of kilter. I'm going to wait a while.

Rose

Visitors

I looked out the window this afternoon to see these half-grown twins happily munching my lush, un-mown grass. Mama was in the lot nextdoor watching carefully.

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Dahlia Man paid me one of the nicest compliments I've ever had today:

"In many ways, you remind me of my first wife Dot."

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Dot was the love of Dahlia Man's life, and she died young of cancer, so that means a lot.

~

Rose

Textures

moss on a fir

Sitting Under a Tree

I worked three nights over the weekend, which was just what I needed to get my butt out of the lazy mode I was in. After a good sleep in my own bed with the kitties today, I biked to the bay and sat under a mossy tree to read John Locke's rationalist theory on knowledge. The sun shone. A stiff breeze blew off the bay. Geese migrated overhead. Locke was a very welcome voice of reason after taking months to muddle through Descartes' god-centered theory of existence.

Tonight I'll be enjoying another voice of reason. My new hero is Temperance Brennan, the uber-rational star of Bones, along with all the uber-smart squints who work with her.

Rose

a Cleansing Rain

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It rained all night last night with a gentle patter that kept me contentedly asleep under the comforter all night long. Today I put my finger on something that has been bothering me, and this is the first of a three night stint at work. We checked into the hotel early and relaxed in the jacuzzi and the dry sauna, and I swam some lazy laps in the hotel pool.
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I almost forgot; I bought a new handbag, not something I do very often.
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Rose

Sometimes it Feels Like Three AM

Pacific aster aster chilensis (native)

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I've neglected mowing the grassy lot next door during the dry months of summer. My reward is this lovely large clump of asters that have grown up and bloomed as a result. Asters are my favorite, and I'll take it over a grassy expanse any day.

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I find myself getting antsy when I don't work as much as I'm used to. Poor jc gets tortured by my snippiness over everything from dirty dishes in the sink to completely inane things not worth mentioning. I smoke the odd cigarette and enjoy the momentary calm that chemicals bring. I play the piano, sometimes giving up in the middle of a song to look for something else to divert my attention. When it gets bad enough, I do the dishes or some other household chore. I make one thousand trips out the back door, down the three steps, across the little yard, and up three steps into jc's shed office, where I sit down briefly before getting up and pacing over to look out the door.

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Lest my inbox fill with compassionate notes, varying from heartfelt sympathy to well-meant advice, I must disclaim. These lapses of discontented boredom invariably dissipate into nothingness when some event, known or unknown, (in this case writing it down) brings an end to the wandering.

~

Rose

Autumn Flowers

I shot these flowers at the Shore Acres gardens a few weeks ago. I'm posting them today because they look so much like autumn and I can't wait for the rain to start.

Rose

Celebrity- dream journal

I was a guest on the live late-night show at my university. Before I went up my friend gave me all the cards from her wallet to hold, someone handed me a huge bouquet of flowers for the host, and someone else approached me very mysteriously with a manila envelope to give to the host on the sly. I had pre-written a whole page of funny things to say, but I forgot them all when I got onstage and sat uncomfortably for a moment as if I had nothing to say.

I then made a comment about elderly male patients with romantic notions about their nurses. That got a little chuckle from the crowd and I relaxed a little. The host asked me about my religious beliefs and I told him I describe myself as an agnostic, which means I don't know. Some guy from the crowd yelled out, "But we do know." I asked him what we know, and he replied that God's existence had been proven. I said somewhat cynically, "You mean by the Bible? Right, because the Bible has been proven with radiocarbon dating. You're right then." After that I turned to the host and asked why I had to sit on a piano bench while he had a nice comfortable chair. More laughs from the crowd.

The host thanked me for being on the show, and I went down the stairs to take a seat in the audience. People from the crowd were yelling, "We love you" and "Come back soon."

Sronnoc Esor

Social Awkwardness

I shot this on IRFD, several weeks ago. It doesn't really capture the scope of these plants perched on the edge of a beachside cliff, which is why I haven't used it earlier I suppose.

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I'm experiencing a bit of the old weekend fatigue after working last night and seeing Dahlia Man both days. I feel priveleged to be included in workplace gossip at the agency job. I do love to get the skinny on things, whether they really matter or not.

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In a rather interesting twist, one of our local doctors was leaving Dahlia Man's as I was arriving. This has happened before, usually quite uncomfortably, but not since I quit my job at the local hospital. We exchanged niceties in a much less strained manner than previously. Things like this are probably all completely in my head. It's no secret that I'm a social nincompoop. I'm sure I've jeopardized, if not sacrificed, friendships in my life because of this. I just hope that it gets better and not worse before I die.

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rc

Yom Kippur

I'm not Jewish, but the Hebrew observances have always been interesting to me. Perhaps it is due to the importance of the Hebrew history in the Old Testament to the belief system I grew up in. Of course no one can forget Joel's memorable Yom Kippur in Northern Exposure (6-03).

Yom Kippur is the Day of Atonement, when believers observe a 25 hour fast and repent of their sins against God and man from the previous year. Granted, it might be good to worry about how you treat other people more than once a year, but on the other hand, better once a year than never at all.

I won't begin to fast and pray at sunset, but there's no harm in giving an extra moment's thought to how I stand with my fellow sojourners.

Rose

'Shroom Season

Random Post

I stopped at the roadside to photograph this flower because I was looking for chocolate tips or fernleaf lomatium, but this isn't it. I don't know what it is, however. It looks a little like purple sanicle too, but I don't think it is.

rc

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I made clover rolls for Dahlia Man tonight. What a pleasure to spend time with someone who thinks you're beautiful and smart and also likes your cooking. How much better to be a girl like me who's got more than one guy like that.

Spider

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Two different spiders, anterior and posterior views. Any spider experts know the species?

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Ki'il and the Scholar are home! Three cheers. We had a nice vegetarian dinner last night with a delicious chili garlic soy sauce that Ki'il made. I hope to attempt to duplicate it in the future.

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Currently watching Pi: Faith in Chaos. A fascinating film about a tortured but brilliant mathematician.

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Rose

Thwarted- dream journal

My subconscious was thwarted twice last night as it attempted to have an erotic dream. I parked in the street to pick up a friend that I was carpooling with. I climbed twisting concrete stairs to the door on the back porch and knocked, but noone answered. Finally I went in. The building was one large open living space on the first level with a small ladder leading to an open sleeping loft in the middle of the room. My friend was still asleep so I climbed up to the loft and woke him up. A little action ensued, but each time things started to heat up, people started climbing up the ladder. In the end an orator from Texas was standing in the front of the room adressing a large crowd of people who had assembled.

Sronnoc Esor

the Heiress

I receive a small sum for spending time with Dahlia Man. It is a small percentage of my earning capability, and I have told him many times that it is not what keeps me coming. Dahlia Man has become a true friend whose company I enjoy very much. It is therefore, with great difficulty that I let Dahlia Man's neice, who manages secretarial matters for him and stands to inherit his estate, tell me what to do. She has taken to leaving me notes as if I have the intelligence of a halfwit and am completely incapable of using judgment. Furthermore, she behaves as if Dahlia Man possesses no greater intelligence.

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Pardon my diatribe, but I am apt to say worse to her if I don't say it somewhere.

rc

Horned Moth

This cleverly adapted moth looks precisely like tree bark, which would be excellent camoflauge for it if it stayed in the woods. Instead, it was foolishly drawn to my back porch light and sits, plainly visible to all predators, on the siding.

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I'm certain you can derive a life lesson for this if you wish.

~

R. Connors

a Parasite

Dahlia Man employs a local boy-man for yardwork. I'll call him the Flea. The Flea shows up to do yardwork when he's short of cash and can't find work crabbing, fishing, or picking mushrooms. The grass had gotten quite tall by the time the Flea called this time to say that he wanted to come by and talk. Dahlia Man told me to expect his visit when I came Sunday afternoon. He advised me to sit quietly and listen while he confronted the Flea with some facts.
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The Flea is a shortish boy-man in his late twenties. He chose a seat next to Dahlia Man, making eye contact difficult to impossible. He speaks with poor grammar, stuttering and mumbling, necessitating frequent repetition, and saying little of import. Dahlia Man introduced me as his friend Mrs. Connors, making his high regard for me clear. I sat quietly sipping porter.
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After a bit of small talk, the Flea revealed that there was no specific purpose for his visit. Dahlia Man said, "Fine, because I have something to talk to you about. You know I don't pull any punches, so I'll be straight with you. You stole from me."
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The Flea assumed a shocked and bewildered look and said, "When did I steal from you?"
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"I gave you thirty dollars to pay Frank for the mower, but he never got it."
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"I stopped to give it to him that day, but he wasn't there." the Flea stuttered. "I wound up spending it and just gave it to him a few days ago."
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Charlie withheld comment and raised another issue. "I gave you fifty dollars for wood two years ago and I haven't seen it yet. When can I expect to get that?"
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"I didn't have any way to bring it by and then my buddy used up most of it."
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"Then we agree that you owe me eighty dollars?"
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The Flea didn't disagree. Dahlia Man made arrangements with the Flea to come the next day for yardwork and summarily dismissed him. The Flea didn't get the hint and required two more invitations before he left.
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Dahlia Man updated me on the affair today. The Flea showed up as agreed on Monday and worked five hours. He then came in for payment and Dahlia Man told him, "We're even now. You don't owe me anything and I don't owe you anything." The Flea protested, then fumed, then threatened, and finally left. After making wireless calls in the driveway for twenty minutes, he came back in to ask for the loan of ten dollars for gas money which Dahlia Man refused abruptly. The Flea then departed in a huff.
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The Flea called again today while I was there to say that he would be there tomorrow to trim the hedges.
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R. Connors

Ick

After working last night, I wake up in the hotel room feeling decidedly icky and unable to go back to sleep. The waitress warned me against medium spicy Thai food yesterday, saying it was too hot for anyone too eat. Maybe she was right. I'm steadily losing my flair for uninterrupted, peaceful daytime sleep. Maybe I should take Benadryl. Maybe I should just give up.

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I give up.

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rc

~

I made an emergency trip to the supermarket for green juice, which made me feel much better. Got some more sleep this afternoon too. I won't whine anymore, promise.

Solitary Picnic

common snowberry symphoricarpos albus native, inedible

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It was a lovely sunny Sunday, so I went for a picnic by the river. The chickadees came down from the tops of the alders to twitter around me and snatch bugs of the low branches. When I ventured into the sun, I suddenly noticed how hot it was. It reached ninety degrees here today, very atypical for our mild coast.

rc

Miss Mary

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My inbox this morning held the news that the woman who was my childhood hero has died after a long illness. She had liver failure, which was probably a result of the malaria she contracted during her many years in Africa. She went to Africa to evangelize, but I was in awe of the snakeskin she brought that stretched across the front of our little church and all the other wonderful curios she had on display when she visited. I loved to listen to her stories of going on safari to shoot game for meat or of killing wild animals for protection. She inspired the adventurer in me. Miss Mary seemed bold and afraid of nothing. Her heart was full of love and wide open for anyone who needed it. I celebrate the memory of her life.
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Rose

Life is a Cabaret

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I've been catching up on my old movies, courtesy of Netflix' new "Watch Now" feature. Tonight I caught Cabaret, a delightful musical starring Liza Minelli. I used to judge movies by the merit of the actions depicted by the characters. If the characters were kind and good, I approved of the movie; if they lied, cheated, and stole, I blackballed it. For a while, I decided merit based on the ending: good for a happy ending, bad for a sad one. Oddly (or aptly) enough, OILBF was the one to point out to me that sad endings are more realistic. Some would argue that we watch movies to escape reality.

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I'm forging a new philosophy of movie watching. I don't know what it is yet, but a production on the scale of Cabaret scores five stars on it. This musical is a sin to miss. I can't agree with all (or most) of the things the characters do; but it has real, raw, human emotion. It has triumph and defeat, beauty and ugliness, truth and dishonesty. Somewhere in all of it is real life and somewhere there may be fantasy, but I enjoyed it completely.

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R. Connors

Slow Like a Snail

My progress on my sunset bike ride to Ork Rock tonight was so impeded by the gale assaulting me from the water that I felt as if I moved as slowly as a snail. My ride back on the contrary, with the wind at my back, was effortless.

rc

Communication

jc got his new phones yesterday and I couldn't be more delighted. You may ask yourself why, since jc's compulsion about buying technology isn't my favorite trait. Well, jc spends a lot of time out in the shed on his computer and I have to trek out there to tell him anything. With the rainy season nearing, that promises to be an even greater inconvience. Here's where the good part comes in. The new phones have intercom and speakerphone. Ergo, I can call my hubby and chat when I wake up in the morning or while doing household chores.

Ain't I just the lucky one?

Rose

Rock

I wonder how long it took the waves to chisel this rock formation. This is part of the area exposed by low tide at Simpson Beach.

A jaunt to the south jetty of the Siuslaw today produced Marbled Murrelets and a Heermann's Gull.

I hope you'll excuse me if I'm not very talkative today.

rc

Bloom Between Rock and Sand

American searocket cakile endentula native

Rock Flipping Carnival

Click here for all the participants.

rc

What Lay Beneath

I started my rock-flipping day at Shore Acres, at the rocky outcropping near the site of the old tennis court.

The first several rocks I flipped, disappointingly, had nothing but smaller rocks underneath. A few sand fleas hopped away too quickly to be photographed.

Finally this shrimp-like creature was revealed.

Then a bug iin the shape of a peace sign.

There were few rocks along the path; this one had roots under it.

I arrived at Simpson Beach in time for low tide.

This one reminds me of a wet sowbug.

Sea snails.

Rocks like this one that were much too large to flip still sheltered creatures like...

Starfish...

Sea anemone waiting for high tide to bloom again...

and Mussels.

A brilliant little purple crab scuttled for the camoflauge provided by some nearby seaweed.

Various shelled creatures blend cleverly with the landscape.

I've seen what's under the rocks now, if only I knew what they are.

Rose

International Rock Flipping Day

Tomorrow is International Rock Flipping Day. Click the link to read about it, then get outside and see what treasures you can find.

rc