“Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” Arthur C. Clarke As I stepped off the team bus before the game, I noticed a shiny penny balanced on the curb. Next to me, Mike noticed my hesitation. “Pick it up,” he said, “You saw it first. Maybe it’s good luck.” I shook him off and […]
The first snowdrop appeared just after the snow melted. A few days later, the yellow crocus showed up down the bed. Small green buds appeared on the currant and bridal wreath bushes, and a block away, the first blossoms appeared on a crabapple tree. Though it was early, spring was coming on. A bunny showed […]
Every spring, several Stinkhorn mushrooms appear in the tree lawn on our block. They are repulsive-looking and smell bad, hence the name. A tall white shaft rises several inches through the soil, and becomes capped with a black, gelatinous tip, containing the spores. The rotten carrion stench attracts insects, and the the spores stick to […]
My family lore holds that some of my forefathers (foreparents?) were Scots-Irish and the rest were English. There always seemed to be a divide in the extended family between the “rough side” and the “polished side” attributed to these genealogical differences. As I understood it, the Scots-Irish were originally poor Scots who had no land […]
“It is past time to broaden the discussion of the human future and connect it to the rest of life.” E.O. Wilson, Half-Earth: Our Planet’s Fight for Life Extinctions. Habitat loss. Climate change. We are wreaking havoc on the natural world. In spite of his dire warnings, E.O. Wilson is relatively upbeat about our chances […]
Writes of Nature 