I was filling up the compost pail and decided the items on my fridge deserved a photographic tribute for the good works they do.
Archives for July 2009
Triumph and Loss at the Albany Bulb
The Albany Bulb — long my favorite Bay Area example of decay and rebirth — is an artificial peninsula, created from years of dumping construction refuse into this part of the Bay. When the dumping stopped, nature took over.
Life Beneath a Water Lily
A water lily leaf in its imperfection . . . its asymmetry . . . its blemishes . . . the leaf detritus and pebbles collected at its core. In the family Nymphaeaceae, this — one of many species of water lilies — lives in the UC Berkeley Botanical Garden. Its underwater stems provide cover…
An American Bullfrog in Berkeley
I don’t usually ignore visual anomalies. They bring me to interesting things. On this Berkeley day, something seemed out of place — that nagging oddity in my periphery. I turned and looked closer in the mud. Sure enough, there was an unusual outline in the creek bed. As quickly as I noticed the frog, it…
Refracted Light, Arcs and Rainbows – Over SF
I’m not a big fan of Descartes. In spite of his genius and complexity, he held some mechanisticviews toward nature and non-human animals. But I’ll give him some love for this explanation of rainbowsI recently read at the UCAR website. He simplified the study of a rainbow to one rain droplet — and how light refracts…
Dawn Cleans Oiled Birds
This post relates to the oiled bird photos and info below. Dawn launched a new campaign that will contribute up to $500,000.00 to IBRRC (International Bird Rescue Research Center) and the Marine Mammal Center. For each bottle of Dawn Special Edition dishwashing liquid sold, $1 will be donated to the cause (up to the 500k…
The “Three U” Rule of Hazardous Materials
Hugh and I just got our initial Hazwopercertification — a Federal OSHA requirement if we want to assist with bird rescue in oil spill areas. That, combined with a wildlife rescue training course we took back in March, will at least put us on the call list during catastrophic wildlife events. During the Cosco Busan…
Attack of the Giant Fish People
I saw these gigantic creatures slithering through the shallows — whipping up mud with each slap of the tail. They looked like radioactive versions of pond koi, ranging from about two to four feet long. And where I was, it was just me and and wind and the sound of their slither, evoking the Creature…
The Art in Bull Kelp
I never appreciated kelp until, 1) I first saw this particular monster of a kelp, and 2) I saw close-ups of kelp shot by better nature photographers than I — capturing the golden palette of this gargantuan plant.