These little spiders in the bathtub were only the tip of the iceberg. Bruce was at the bookstore on Monday, and a housework day was definitely overdue. But I have a dog, and dogs need outdoor exercise, and the sun was shining, so Sarah and I really had to head to the woods before anything else got in the way.
How green it still is, the forest canopy,
and on the forest floor, how many enticing miniature landscapes there are to explore, while back out in the open edge between woods and field--
a ladybug investigates the autumn-dry Queen Anne's-lace,
a deer has dropped a partially nibbled ear of field corn, after bringing it quite some distance,
and a rough Petoskey stone, far from the smoothing action of the waves, is a reminder that this entire peninsula was once lake bottom. It's also an answer to the question, "Where's the best place to find Petoskey stones?"
But no more today. Publicity and reports to write, book reviews to polish, i.e., beware of wordier postings later in the week!
7 comments:
The ladybug looks like jewelry and the Petoskey stone looks like the oldest rock in the basement of time. Definitely worth ducking out of the house on a sunny day. I, um, could handle spider removal over there if you were of a mind to deal with the vacuuming over here. Sigh.
My best friend and I, back in 6th grade, used to clean each other's rooms. Somehow it was much less painful than for each of us to clean our own. Now, though? I'd be embarrassed to have someone else counting the spiders that share our old house. As for vacuuming, it needs to be done once in a while, but don't you just hate it? Any chore that involves a noisy motor is not one I anticipate with glee.
I, too, hate vacuuming and am lucky to have a partner who doesn't mind. I'd clean 100 toilets before I'd vacuum one small rug. Meanwhile, I'll be off-line for 2 weeks in case you long to create any really long posts and worry about offending me. (big smile)
The Peteosky stone looks like a piece of fossil coral. Can you tell me anything about these stones and how they have got the name?
Ha! You will indeed be missing some long posts, Susan, provided I get them up as I'm hoping. They will include book reviews, though, so you may want to read them sooner or later. Lots of good Michigan reading you wouldn't want to miss, I'm hoping.
Jessica. the Petoskey stones are indeed Devonian fossil coral. Hexagonaria is the Latin name. The common name comes originally from a Native American family, variously spelled. A somewhat similar coral, favosites, is sometimes called Charlevoix stone, and Petoskey and Charlevoix are two towns on the other side of Grand Traverse Bay from Northport. See more at http://www.nilesstar.com/2009/09/23/larry-lyons-petoskey-stone-unique-to-michigan/
Wonderful close-up of that ladybug, and I especially love the looking-up view through the branches of the tree. and the nibbled corn. Is it raining down your way now? Rain, rain, rain here. But still beautiful yellow leaves many places.
Yes, it is a rainy day, but softly, and the colors are lovely set off against the soft mist. Also, I noticed the last row of one orchard just changing color and look forward to a lot more orchard color in the next week or two.
Post a Comment