Tuesday, July 31, 2018

Dia de los Muertos


El Dia de los Muertos or el Dia de Muertos is a Mexican holiday that is widely known in the United States. Most recently, it has been identified with a popular movie called Coco from Pixar. The Pixar movie had some controversy because of an earlier film with a similar plot and theme. However, Coco became the biggest box-office hit in Mexican history. Personally, I loved the movie. This skull is from the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian.

Monday, July 30, 2018

1948 Indian Chief Motorcycle


When I was attending graduate school at the University of Utah, my main professor rode an Indian motorcycle to work each day. He also wore a long overcoat that billowed out while he sped along Foothill Drive. I remember seeing him from time to time as I went to school to work as a Research Assistant in the Linguistics Department. His bike was black not yellow, but this 1948 Indian Chief motorcycle brought back memories at the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian. Here is a link to a news article about the motorcycle.
https://newsdesk.si.edu/releases/vintage-indian-chief-motorcycle-national-museum-american-indian
Sorry about the reflections in the glass.

Sunday, July 29, 2018

Discovering History: The Battle of the Little Bighorn


I spent years transcribing and translating Indian languages. Because of that and because I lived most of my life in Arizona and for a lot of other reasons, I have read and studied a lot about Indians. I also have an extensive background in military history. For this reason, this one artifact has significant meaning to me. This is the Northern Tsitsistas (Cheyenne) Painting of the 1876 Battle of the Little Bighorn, This was probably painted in the 1890s and has become the most famous representation of the battle. It is on display in the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. It is amazing to see the actual artifacts when you have read about and seen photos of the objects for most of your life.

Saturday, July 28, 2018

Taking Off


This Brown Pelican or Pelecanus occidentalis is likely an immature adult. I am fascinated with the ratio of the size of the bird's wings to its body size. This photo was taken along the coast of Costa Rica where the birds are fairly common. Here is a description of the birds from the Wikipedia article entitled, "Brown pelican."
The brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) is a North American bird of the pelican family, Pelecanidae. It is one of three pelican species found in the Americas and one of only two that feed by diving in water. It is found on the Atlantic Coast from Nova Scotia to the mouth of the Amazon River, and along the Pacific Coast from British Columbia to northern Chile, including the Galapagos Islands. The nominate subspecies in its breeding plumage has a white head with a yellowish wash on the crown. The nape and neck are dark maroon–brown. The upper sides of the neck have white lines along the base of the gular pouch, and the lower fore neck has a pale yellowish patch. The male and female are similar, but the female is slightly smaller. The nonbreeding adult has a white head and neck. The pink skin around the eyes becomes dull and gray in the nonbreeding season. It lacks any red hue, and the pouch is strongly olivaceous ochre-tinged and the legs are olivaceous gray to blackish-gray.

Naranjilla Lulo Solanum Quitoense


You never know what you are going to find in downtown Washington, D.C. We found this growing in a collection of American plants next to the National Museum of the American Indian.  It is a Naranjillia or Solanum Quitoense. Here is a more complete explanation from Wikipedia: Solanum quitoense of this South and Central American plant.
Solanum quitoense, known as naranjilla (Spanish pronunciation: [naɾaŋˈxiʎa], "little orange") in Ecuador and Panama and as lulo ([ˈlulo], from Quechua) in Colombia, is a subtropical perennial plant from northwestern South America. The specific name for this species of nightshade means "from Quito." 
The naranjilla plant is attractive, with large elongated heart- or oval-shaped leaves up to 45 cm in length. The leaves and stems of the plant are covered in short purple hairs. Naranjilla are delicate plants and must be protected from strong winds and direct sunlight. They grow best in partial shade. 
The fruit has a citrus flavour, sometimes described as a combination of rhubarb and lime. The juice of the naranjilla is green and is often used as a juice or for a drink called lulada.

Friday, July 27, 2018

Sea Cliff in Costa Rica


When you travel, you expect to see new things but you are sometimes surprised to find that out-of-the-way places are surprisingly like home. When we visited Costa Rica, we expected rainforest and jungle. But where we stayed it was hot, dry, and had cactus just like our former home in Arizona. We did get an ocean. We don't have an ocean in Arizona. Yet.

Wednesday, July 25, 2018

Waterloo Boy Kerosene Tractor


The Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company was the first company to manufacture and sell gasoline powered farm tractors. I have been taking photos of old farm equipment for years and this example is from the Smithsonian National Museum of American History. Here is a rather long explanation of this tractor from a Wikipedia article entitled, "Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company."
Based in Waterloo, Iowa, the company was created by John Froelich and a group of Iowa businessmen in 1893, and was originally named the Waterloo Gasoline Traction Engine Company. In 1892, Froelich had invented the first practical gasoline-powered tractor, and the new company was given the opportunity to manufacture and sell the tractor Froelich designed. Unfortunately, the tractor was not successful commercially, and of the four tractors built by the company only two were purchased, and these were later returned to the company by unsatisfied customers. In 1895, the company was sold to John W. Miller and renamed the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company. Miller decided to stop producing tractors and instead focus on building plain gasoline engines. 
Following several years of research and development, the company once again began to manufacture tractors in 1911, but none would sell well until 1913, when twenty “Waterloo Boy” tractors were produced. In 1914 the company introduced the Model R Waterloo Boy. This tractor proved immensely popular, and over eight thousand were sold before the line was discontinued in 1923. The company also had great success with the Model N, which was introduced in late 1916. Despite the company's name, both the Model R and Model N burned kerosene for fuel. 
By this time, several other companies had begun to build and sell tractors, but the Waterloo Boy was easily one of the most popular. In 1918, Deere & Company, a farm equipment company based in Moline, Illinois purchased the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Company for $2,100,000. Deere & Company had been anxious to enter the growing tractor market, but its own initial designs had proved unsuccessful. Executives at Deere & Company decided to purchase the Waterloo Gasoline Engine Co. because field tests indicated that the Waterloo Boy tractor had the best performance. After the sale was completed, the company became known as the John Deere Tractor Company, but tractors produced by the company continued to be sold under the Waterloo Boy name until 1923, when the John Deere Model D was introduced.
Maybe I should have been in the tractor business instead of computers?

Puddle Patterns



Color and texture make up an interesting design pattern. When I notice the things around me, I am always fascinated with the color changes with the available light. I almost never take a photo with a flash for this reason. Notice the one green leaf at the bottom of the photo.

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Great Green Aracari


The Green Aracari is a tropical bird. This one lives in the National Zoo in Washington, D.C. Here is a description from the Smithsonian's National Zoo website:
Green aracaris have dark green feathers on their backs, throughout their wings and into their tails. They are sexually dimorphic birds, meaning males and females exhibit some differences in appearance. The male aracari's neck and head feathers are very dark, whereas the female aracari has dark red to brown coloration. These birds have a brightly colored red, yellow and blue bill with a unique serrated edge. Their bill is more deliberately hooked at the end than the bill of other aracaris.

Green aracaris are one of the smallest aracaris, measuring just 12 to 16 inches (30 to 40 centimeters) and weighing 3.8 to 5.6 ounces (99 to 159 grams).

Green aracaris inhabit tropical forests in northeast South America, specifically Brazil, French Guiana, Guyana, Suriname and Venezuela.

Monday, July 23, 2018

Crepe Myrtle


Crepe myrtle or Lagerstroemia is blooming all over Annapolis, Maryland right now. This is one of the most dramatic colors of the blossoms. There are some trade-offs for being in the East rather than the West. Here is a short description of these plants from Wikipedia: Lagerstroemia:
Lagerstroemia /ˌleɪɡərˈstriːmiə/, commonly known as crape myrtle or crepe myrtle, is a genus of around 50 species of deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs native to the Indian subcontinent, southeast Asia, northern Australia, and parts of Oceania, cultivated in warmer climates around the world. It is a member of the family Lythraceae, which are also known as the loosestrife family. The genus is named after the Swedish merchant Magnus von Lagerström, a director of the Swedish East India Company who supplied Carl Linnaeus with plants he collected. These flowering trees are beautifully colored and are often planted both privately and commercially as ornamentals.

Sunday, July 22, 2018

Beetles


I am an inveterate collector. I have collected rocks, minerals, stamps, coins, seashells, books, tools, genealogy, and many other things along the way. I have started a few insect collections, but I feel so sorry for the bugs that I can't really get going. At this stage of my life, I am more interested in getting rid of my piles of collections than collecting any more. But I am still fascinated with beetles and bugs.

Saturday, July 21, 2018

Wood Duck


This is one of the most remarkably colorful birds in the world. It is a Wood Duck or Aix sponsa. Here is a brief description from Wikipedia: Wood duck.
The wood duck is a medium-sized perching duck. A typical adult is from 47 to 54 cm (19 to 21 in) in length with a wingspan of between 66 to 73 cm (26 to 29 in). This is about three-quarters of the length of an adult mallard. It shares its genus with the Asian Mandarin duck (Aix galericulata). 
The adult male has distinctive multicolored iridescent plumage and red eyes,with a distinctive white flare down the neck. The female, less colorful, has a white eye-ring and a whitish throat. Both adults have crested heads. 
The male's call is a rising whistle, jeeeeee; the females utter a drawn-out, rising squeal, do weep do weep, when flushed, and a sharp cr-r-ek, cr-e-ek for an alarm call.

Thursday, July 19, 2018

Mountain Stream, Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania


I guess from my perspective calling this a mountain stream involves poetic license. The "mountains" in this part of Pennsylvania are really just high hills. But it is a beautiful stream and in the West, it would not likely be so wooded. The surprising thing about the forest in the Eastern United States is that they are everywhere so thick and dark. You would never know that you were next to a fairly large city.

Wednesday, July 18, 2018

Tornado Damage, Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania



It is one thing to read about tornados and quite another thing to actually experience one. We got to see the damage after the fact. We decided to go to a restaurant while here on our visit to Wilkes Barre, Pennsylvania and found the building partially destroyed by the recent tornado. This was across the street from the restaurant.

Tuesday, July 17, 2018

Almost Perfect Color


There are few places on the earth where you can see almost perfect color. This is a photo of a small part of a huge field of lotus flowers. It was a sunny day and the color of the flowers was almost perfect. This is a photo and as such, the color is an approximation of the reality. But being there, I can say that the color was almost perfect.

Monday, July 16, 2018

Heart of the Lotus


The center cone of this lotus flower, when dried, is used as a decorative item in dry plant displays such as door wreaths and arrangements. These are strikingly beautiful flowers.

Sunday, July 15, 2018

Cliffs in Rock Canyon


There is always a temptation to fall back on my vast collection of photos. This is Rock Canyon. Our house in Provo, Utah is at the mouth of this canyon and can walk to the trails up the canyon in about five minutes. The most notable thing about Rock Canyon is the twisted and sweeping rock formations. These are mostly limestone and were originally laid down horizontally. The mountain building and plate tectonics have had a field day in making the strata as convoluted as possible. On nice days, the canyon is full of rock climbers.

Saturday, July 14, 2018

Dancing with a Dinosaur


I am not quite sure why dinosaur skeletons look like they are smiling. Most skulls do not have a pleasant look but dinosaurs are different. I guess the teeth ought to inspire fear and foreboding, but then I look at the smiling mouth and think that the teeth belong there. One reason for this perception might be that I do not usually show my teeth when I smile. But smiles with teeth are all the rage on social media. Maybe dinosaurs had their own social media.

Koi Fish



Koi are colored carp. Here is a short explanation about how they came to be from Wikipedia: Koi.
Koi carp were first bred for color in Japan in the 1820s, initially in the town of Ojiya in the Niigata Prefecture on the northeastern coast of Honshu island. The outside world was unaware of the development of color variations in Japanese koi until 1914, when the Niigata koi were exhibited at an annual exposition in Tokyo. From that time, interest in koi spread throughout Japan. From this original handful of koi, all other Nishikigoi varieties were bred, with the exception of the Ogon variety (single-colored, metallic koi) which was developed relatively recently. The hobby of keeping koi eventually spread worldwide. Koi are now sold in many pet aquarium shops, with higher-quality fish available from specialist dealers. The collection of koi throughout the years has become quite the social hobby for many who have ponds. It is also common for hobbyists who are passionate about their koi to join a club specifically for their koi and ponds. Members tend to share their knowledge of the fish with others and even help each other out when they are in need of help with their koi.

Friday, July 13, 2018

Looking back at Summer


Living here on the Eastern Coast of the United States during the summer bears comparison with summers in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah. If you took the mountains in the distance out of this photo, you would have a line of trees. The trees are the most prominent feature of any landscape here in Maryland and elsewhere in the east. You can find mountain scenes but not anywhere near Annapolis. The only distant view I regularly see is the city from the top of a bridge over the Severn River.

Thursday, July 12, 2018

Welcome to Southern Utah


There are few places in the world that are promoted as tourist destinations more than Utah and most of this promotion is aimed at locations in Southern Utah, specifically the five National Parks. This photo was not taken in a National Park. For example, Zion National Park is estimated to have had 4.5 million visitors in 2017 and that is only one small concentrated area of the state. Being in Zion National Park on a busy day is very similar to the number of people on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on an average day. Those of us who live in Utah know where to go and when to go there. Why should I tell you where this photo was taken? That would only promote more visitors to an area that is wonderful, beautiful and not crowded with people.

Wednesday, July 11, 2018

A Jungle Swamp in Washington, DC


Who would believe that there is an extensive jungle swamp right here in Washington, D.C? The swamp is part of the flood zone of the Anacostia River or estuary. The water rises and falls with the tides. The area is administered by the National Park Service and is called the Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens. It is really a formerly private water garden. Here is a very short history from the website.
Remnants of this original wetland edge two sides of the ponds near the boardwalk. The value of local wetlands was lost to the English, accustomed to English bogs. They cleared the high land of protective forests to build farms in the1600s. Later, the Industrial Revolution increased deforestation for fuel, fences, and homes. Unprotected by forest, soil washed into the Anacostia River and deep channels that once harbored sturgeon, filled with silt. 
Coming here in the 1800s,Walter Shaw found the wetlands were a good place to build his water garden. By building the paths that separate ponds from the tidal marsh, Shaw built a garden that would provide beauty and profit. His daughter, Helen, would become an ambassador for water gardening and the Shaw Gardens. It was Helen who would successfully lobby Congress to save the gardens from dredge operations in the Anacostia River, and accidentally save a section of the original marsh. 
It would be many decades before we rediscovered the social value of wetlands. Today the historic ponds and the natural wetland areas that support them are managed by the National Park Service, in a balance that demonstrates sustainable management known to those first residents. Explore, see what stories the land can tell and, perhaps, see value in the park that is unique to you.

Tuesday, July 10, 2018

Buttonbrush



Buttonbrush or Cephalanthus occidentalis is described as follows by the Wikipedia article, "Cephalanthus occidentalis."
Cephalanthus occidentalis is a species of flowering plant in the coffee family, Rubiaceae, that is native to eastern and southern North America. Common names include buttonbush, common buttonbush, button-willow and honey-bells.
Here is a further quote from the Missouri Botanical Garden.
Buttonbush is a somewhat coarse, deciduous shrub with an open-rounded habit that typically grows 6-12’ (infrequently to 20’) tall. It is common throughout Missouri, most frequently occurring in wet open areas, low woods, thickets, swamps, upland sink-hole ponds, river bottomland and stream/pond margins (Steyermark). Tiny, tubular, 5-lobed, fragrant white flowers appear in dense, spherical, long-stalked flower heads (to 1.5” diameter) in early to mid-summer. Long, projecting styles give the flower heads a distinctively pincushion-like appearance. Flower heads are very attractive to bees and butterflies. Flower heads mature into hard spherical ball-like fruits consisting of multiple tiny two-seeded nutlets. Fruiting heads usually persist throughout the winter. Ovate to elliptic glossy bright green leaves (to 6” long) are in pairs or whorls. Leaves emerge late in spring (May). Genus name comes from the Greek words cephalo (head) and anthos (flower).
We found these growing in Washington, D.C. at the Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens

Monday, July 9, 2018

A Dragonfly



This is a male Blue Dasher dragonfly or Pachydiplax longipennis. Here is a short description from Wikipedia: Blue dasher.
The blue dasher (Pachydiplax longipennis) is a dragonfly of the skimmer family. It is very common and widely distributed through North America and into the Bahamas.

Although the species name longipennis means "long wings", their wings are not substantially longer than those of related species. Females do, however, have a short abdomen that makes the wings appear longer in comparison. The blue dasher grows up to 25–43 mm long (1-1.5 in).

The males are easy to recognize with their vibrant blue color, yellow-striped thorax, and metallic green eyes. Females are somewhat less colorful than the male, an example of sexual dimorphism. While they have a matching yellow-striped thorax, their abdomen has a distinct brown and yellow striping that sets them apart from the male, along with contrasting red eyes. Both sexes develop a frosted color with age.
This photo evidently shows an older male. We like dragonflies because they eat mosquitos. 

Sunday, July 8, 2018

Lotus Flower


I believe this photo comes as close to painting with light as any I have ever taken. Many of my photos are on this website, but of course, I have tens of thousands that are not. I also put my photos up on Pinterest.com. It is interesting that some of those photos have tens of thousands of views and saves. But the photos I particularly like are seldom popular. When I took this photo, I was surrounded by hundreds of photographers taking photos of the lotus flowers. I am assuming many of those will end up online. This virtual flood of images makes each of the images have less impact than they would in a studio or viewed in a museum. But I do not take photos with the expectation that they will become popular, I take them for my own desire to express what I think and feel about the world around us.

Saturday, July 7, 2018

Water Lily with leaves



These beautiful flowers are water lilies or Nymphaeaceae. Here is a general description of the family.
Nymphaeaceae /ˌnɪmfiːˈeɪsiː/ is a family of flowering plants, commonly called water lilies. They live as rhizomatous aquatic herbs in temperate and tropical climates around the world. The family contains five genera with about 70 known species. Water lilies are rooted in soil in bodies of water, with leaves and flowers floating on or emergent from the surface. The leaves are round, with a radial notch in Nymphaea and Nuphar, but fully circular in Victoria and Euryale.

Nelumbo nucifera or Lotus


This is a lotus flower or Nelumbo nucifera. Lotus plants have beautiful flowers and are even more amazing as plants. Here is a short description from Wikipedia: Nelumbo nucifera.
Nelumbo nucifera, also known as Indian lotus, sacred lotus, bean of India, Egyptian bean or simply lotus, is one of two extant species of aquatic plant in the family Nelumbonaceae. The Linnaean binomial Nelumbo nucifera is the currently recognized name for this species, which has been classified under the former names, Nelumbium speciosum Willd. and Nymphaea nelumbo, among others. (These names are obsolete synonyms and are avoided in current works.) This plant is an aquatic perennial. Under favorable circumstances its seeds may remain viable for many years, with the oldest recorded lotus germination being from that of seeds 1,300 years old recovered from a dry lakebed in northeastern China. 
It has a very wide native distribution, ranging from central and northern India (at altitudes up to 1,400 m or 4,600 ft in the southern Himalayas), through northern Indochina and East Asia (north to the Amur region; the Russian populations have sometimes been referred to as "Nelumbo komarovii"), with isolated locations at the Caspian Sea. Today the species also occurs in southern India, Sri Lanka, virtually all of Southeast Asia, New Guinea and northern and eastern Australia, but this is probably the result of human translocations. It has a very long history (c. 3,000 years) of being cultivated for its edible seeds, and it is commonly cultivated in water gardens. It is the national flower of India and Vietnam.
The seeds, rhizomes, and stolons are edible. 

Friday, July 6, 2018

The Wall


There was a period the focus of my life was on the war in Vietnam. I spent many years in the U.S. Army, that included two years stationed in Panama. But a series of events kept me from serving in Vietnam. Even though I did not serve there, many of my friends from that time period of my life and earlier did go to Vietnam. I still feel a profound sadness when I see the Wall. This is still and will always be for me, the heart of Washington, D.C.

Right Before the Show



One of my friends was at the Fireworks show on the Mall in Washington, DC at the same time we were and made the comment that they got there early and as the crowd came in, someone sat on his foot and then someone else was up against his back. I guess us westerners are used to having our space.

Waiting for the Fireworks


Take a hot, very humid day in July, add tens of thousands of people, add no place to sit except hot cement or grass, mix in a loud and impressive fireworks display and you have a perfect time for the 4th of July. Then top it off with a long walk to and from the Metro station and an hour and a half ride back to our apartment in Annapolis and you also have two very tired senior citizens.

Thursday, July 5, 2018

Happy 4th of July, 2018 Washington, DC


With thousands of our closest friends, we suffered heat and humidity to watch the most spectacular fireworks display of all time. We have now been to the 4th in both Boston and Washington, DC.

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

Stone Carving Tools


I can't even imagine the patience and strength it takes to work with stone. Even if the stone is relatively soft, it takes a huge amount of concentration and effort to carve into the surface, much less, make intricate designs. We watched this at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C.

Tuesday, July 3, 2018

Not Your Usual Image of Washington


This is not your usual image of General or President George Washington. This statue was commissioned by Congress in 1832 to mark the centennial of Washington's birth. It is probably fortunate that he never saw the statue. This unusual and unconventional statue of Washington was first displayed in the U.S. Capitol Building rotunda and then moved to the capitol grounds. Since 1908, it has been in the Smithsonian in one building or another. It is presently prominently displayed in the National Museum of American History.

A Fish Trap


One of the major industries of Catalonia is fishing. This is a traditional Mediterranean Nansa Fish Trap. The technique of making these woven baskets is used by various artisans to make a huge variety of baskets and traps. Quoting from the website, TimJohnsonArtist.com,
In Catalonia ‘Nansa’ fishtraps were made in a variety of shapes and sizes depending on the kind of fish they wanted to catch, the traps were usually made in the winter with a very tough kind of rush (Juncus acutus) as well as split cane (Arundo donax) and olive stems. 
This is quite a large trap that I photographed at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival 2018 in Washington, D.C. at the Mall. It was part of the emphasis on Catalonia crafts and artists.

Monday, July 2, 2018

Mosaic in Progress



Mosaics can be made of a lot of different materials, but if the mosaic is going to be permanent and outside it has to be made of building materials such as this one made of cement/ceramic tile. This mosaic was being demonstrated at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival on the Mall in Washington, D.C.

Pottery in the Leather Hard Stage


Creating a piece of pottery is just the first step. Once the pottery is about half dry, like this vase further work such as adding a base or a handle can still be done. When it is completely dry, it is called the green stage. Then the piece is ready for glazing and firing.

Sunday, July 1, 2018

The Potter's Wheel


It is amazing how the form of the clay comes out of such a messy process. Here is a very short summary of the origin of this fascinating tool from Wikipedia: Potter's wheel.
In pottery, a potter's wheel is a machine used in the shaping (known as throwing) of round ceramic ware. The wheel may also be used during the process of trimming the excess body from dried ware, and for applying incised decoration or rings of colour. Use of the potter's wheel became widespread throughout the Old World but was unknown in the Pre-Columbian New World, where pottery was handmade by methods that included coiling and beating.

A Pottery Mosaic


We watched Pep Madrenas and his son work on this pottery mosaic at the Smithsonian Folklife Festival in Washington, D.C. The designs on the pottery were made with a special tool they developed. We sadly learned that because they had no way to fire these pieces they would be all broken up and the clay reused in the future. Our grandchildren who were with us got to make their own beautiful bowls. It was an amazing experience.