It’s Not Nice to Fool (with) Mother Nature!

Well, it’s late April, nearly Earth Day, and I think that Mother Nature is just showing off. It’s been pretty mild this spring and we’ve really enjoyed the massive blooms on the crabapple and the small, scatteredblossoms on our very old, very tall pear tree. Many of the shrubs are just coming in bloom. But, […]

Too Good To Be True?

These nice days are really scaring me. It’s spring in Colorado, but we still have plenty of chances for big snow or freezing temperatures. Sure, the bulbs are up, and buds are showing on the shrubs, and we’ve been able to leave the back door open in the afternoons. The dog and cats appreciate the […]

The Circle of Life

“In the circle of lifeIt’s the wheel of fortuneIt’s the leap of faithIt’s the band of hope‘Til we find our placeOn the path unwindingIn the circle, the circle of life”                                                ~ Elton John, Circle of Life I caught our dog chewing on something in the back yard, and discovered the carcass of a dead rabbit. […]

Winter’s Coming

It’s getting very cold here — twenties at night and only low 40’s in the day — and we just got about ten inches of snow. I must admit that, mentally, I’m not prepared for winter this year. Maybe it’s my age or too much sitting or just left over inertia from the COVID days, […]

There’s Fungus Among Us

Often, we hunted or fished on underused farm or ranch land owned by one of my Dad’s clients — usually with a field lying fallow or a lightly grazed prairie. There would be old buildings we could peer into, watching for snakes and other nasty critters. Hand-dug wells, dangerously covered by rotting boards, offered an […]

When I’m Seventy-four!

Will you still need me, will you still feed meWhen I’m sixty-four?                                                 ~ The Beatles I remember when I thought that the idea of being sixty-four was outrageous. It was soooo old … Well, this week, I turned seventy-four and I’m beginning to see what old really means and feels like. I can visualize […]

Time and Nature

Edinburgh Castle rises above craggy heights in the middle of the city, part castle and part palace, the home of Scottish royalty. An ancient hill fort dating to before the seventh century, Edinburgh’s steep cliffs and rocky slopes preclude entry or attack from all but one side. Today the Royal Mile is filled with buildings […]

Taliban Farming

“’Taliban farming’ — pointlessly hostile to the natural world … It’s got no food. It’s been flailed within an inch of its life.”                                 ~ Jake Fiennes “I think the tide has gone out on the agricultural system we have. I think that’s over. If you look at where the science is going, we have […]

Hand of God, Hand of Man

11. And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 12. And the earth brought forth grass, and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was […]