Wonders of Minerals

Last winter I took time to visit the Smithsonian Naturalist Center in Leesburg, Virginia. I had been there before but on this occasion I looked into the Mineral cabinets where I found Micro Mounts of minerals. I had read about them but this was my first real life look and they were enchanting and wonderful. Really big things and really small things are fascinating and can give one a sense of awe so I think that is why sometimes the early creators of Wonder Cabinets included miniatures or things found in nature or man-made.

When I first looked through a microscope to view a mineral micromount my first thought was WOW. Then I looked at the box that was less than an inch square and back again through the scope. I couldn’t believe my eyes, these miniature structures were so beautiful and yet so hidden without the aid of a lens.

Each box is a little less than a one inch square.

Being the collector that I am I had to make some of these mounts for myself. It just so happen there was an Annual Mineral Micromount show near Baltimore Maryland, so off I went to ask the experts how it is done. Like most people who have a hobby they love, they were generous with their expertise and even gave me some chunks of minerals to begin with. Below are some of the ones I isolated and mounted.

You need a hand lens or microscope to really appreciate them. The way crystals form into different shapes is fascinating and to see these tiny perfect examples is a delight to the eyes and worthy of a place in the Wonder Cabinet.

My Cabinet of Wonder: Wonder of Plants

Since it is winter and I am recovering from a sprained knee I thought I would hobble around the house and photograph some things that are in my own Cabinet of Wonder.

Several years ago, while traveling through the southwest, I purchased a curiosity called a Resurrection Plant. Seleginella lepidophylla is the scientific name for this interesting primitive plant in the Lycopod group (ground pines and club mosses). Unlike the lycopodiums I find in moist regions of WV this one comes from the desert, Mexico to be exact, and has adapted to the dry conditions. When the soil dries the Resurrection plant contracts into a tight ball and enters a state of dormancy that can last for years.

Then when the rains return it rehydrates and opens up to a flat rosette that is soft and pliable. Even when it is dead the plant will unfold if given water. The photo above and below show when I first placed it in a bowl of water and then a few minutes later.

This one first inspired a sense of magic and I wasn't even curious how it worked.  I now know what makes it open but the magic is what I love the most. Cool, uh?

Cabinets of Wonder "Wunderkammer"

Earlier this month I visited the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland where I had the joy of being in a replica of an old museum that contained Cabinets of Wonder. It was the first time I had actually seen one in real life. I have been intrigued by these cabinets for a long time and in fact my house almost looks like a cross between a Wonder Cabinet and Nature Center.

Originally Cabinets of Curiosities as they are sometimes called were really rooms of collected objects, manmade or from the natural world that inspired or were fascinating. Some things that could be found in a Cabinet of Curiosity were objects brought back from foreign lands, art work, religious relics, tusks, feathers, skeletons, shells, minerals, and sometimes just weird things like animal deformities. My favorite name for these collections is the German “Wunderkammer” (wonder-room) because most of these objects inspire wonder and awe in me. It is those moments of awe that I seek while hiking and looking at nature, art, music, stories, and people. Fortunately we now have photos, books, cds and DVDs to capture some of those moments yet these old collections really touch my heart and become a wonder themselves.

Later some of the rooms were pared down and became cabinets as you can see in this photo. I think this eventually evolved to be the “curio cabinet” such as the one my grandmother used to display her collection of tiny jugs or maybe the ceramic dog collection of your aunt.

Ultimately the fad died out and some collections became the basis of early museums where the objects were catalogued and separated into scientific groups. The fake and suspect objects were sent to the basement or not saved at all. There is a Museum in Los Angeles call the Museum of Jurrassic Technology that I would love to visit which has some of those strange and weird things that were rejected by the respectable museums.

This is the Wonders of Nature.

Some of the collections were actually studies of one type of objects such as those collected by Thomas Mütter such as medical oddities, tumors, anatomical and pathological specimens. His collection began as a teaching tool for physicians and eventually became to the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Now you can find web pages that are virtual Wonder Cabinets that link to sites that others find interesting and inspiring.

Talking Trees

Photo taken at Sleepy Creek Lake, WV on 4 October 2009.

Do trees talk? Sure they do. Don’t believe me? Try sitting under one on a lazy afternoon or plop down on an old wise tree resting on its side. Relax your mind and listen. You are sure to hear it whisper the hidden thoughts of your mind, the desires of your heart. These old trees, if you let them, will interpret your dreams and let you know what you both need. Love, clean water and air . . . a view to the future.

See other great outdoor scenes on Outdoor Wednesday

Morning Mist

Like well-worn soft cotton sheets, the morning mist keeps us covered while we recover from the night’s storm. We can linger in this cool moist place and stay a little longer in our dreams. The mist says not now, holding back the daybreak and demands of the sons of mankind.

Technically mist is the suspension of fine droplets of water in the air near or touching the ground. It is common in cold air, just above warmer water. Yet, somehow it has the power to change our view and to hide our fears until we can face the day. The mist follows the water course, creating corridors for our minds to wander, wonder. Dreamily floating. Too soon the mist is burned off and the wild creatures of our dreams retreat once again to hide, softly in the underbrush of the day’s activities, until the evening when they are safe to return and sip from the streams of the mountains and our dreams yet to be fulfilled.

This is a photo of the Shenandoah River near Charles Town, WV.

Discover more Monochrome Weekly photos here.

Here is the color version I have included in response to Carolyn's comment.

Click on photo for a larger view.

Single Strand

Sitting on my deck with my morning tea I have noticed a single silk strand stretching from the suet feeder to the marigold, a single reinforced spider hire wire. The Areaneus orb weaver let out a thin thread of silk that was caught up in the breeze. It was chance that it landed onto the flower. She then tested its strength and walked across, reinforcing it along the way. Next she made an orb web using her spinnerets to select the right silk for the job. Once finished she is ready for the catch of the day. In the morning she gobbles up the web, recycling the silk and leaves the support strand in place. Seeing it makes me wonder what my silk strand is. Family? Friends? Place? My dog McCoy? Community? I continually walk along the strand reinforcing the connection with them. It is strong and resilient.

The spider in the photos is a Micrathena gracilis, Spined Micrathena that I found that afternoon in my yard. It is also an orb weaver. I tried to take a photo of the single strand on the deck made by the Araneus orb weaver but was unable to do so because I couldn't get it in focus.

View more Camera Critter photos here.

Deer population control

We control the deer population growth so they do not overgraze, use up the resources, destroy the ecosystem and place their own population at risk. Shouldn’t we do the same for ourselves?

For more Green Thursday ideas look here.

Wildness

Have I been tamed like the House Sparrows in the park that eat the droppings and leftovers of lunches, popcorn and cheetos? Has it been cheated out of the blackberries free on the vine? Would it even recognize its own local supply of fruits or the seeds growing at the edge of the city park?

Would I know if I had lost my wildness?

See more ABC Wednesday posts here.

Frog Rain Song

As the sky darkened to the color of the shale, the foundation of this mountain, I could hear the distant thunder approach. The tree frogs also heard and called out, “Party! Party tonight!” Another roar of thunder -- this one closer. “Hop on over, we’ll meet at the pool.” Clash, rumble, rumble, then the soft sound of the first few drops increasing slowly, like when my Girl Scout troop made rain by rubbing our fingers and hands together. Now, snapping fingers. “Hurry, pool party about to begin,” they called. More thunder, the stomping of feet and the perfect summer rain is upon us. My tomatoes, cucumber and squash thank you. The Black Eyed Susans thank you. The tree frogs thank you and O goddess, bringer of rain, I thank you for the childhood memory and the joyful sounds of the little gray tree frogs.


Check out this link to the choir, Perpetuum Jazzile, using their hands to simulate a storm like I did as a young girl scout. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05ip-N0H1Ig

Check out other ABC-Wednesday blogs

Eyes Wide Shut

Baby birds with their wide mouths open
insisting, me…me…me, I want more.
Eyes wide shut, blindly consuming.
Is this my generation? Is it yours?


ABC Wednesday

The Wood Thrush and the cat

“Ee-oh-leee . . . ee-oh-lay-oh-weee”, I love that liquid lyrical song. The flute like notes greet me at breakfast with a message of cheerful anticipation of the day ahead and as I finish dinner his restful recital rings with a thankful heart as the sun sets. I have never seen the cinnamon-brown Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) that lives in the wood lot behind my home, not even a glimpse. Sure, I own the property but by all right it is his. Each spring he makes his claim with a melodious call, an invitation to a mate, “come to me”. But I worry, for you see there is a cat, a wild feral cat that lives in the woods with the Wood Thrush. Some cats hunt mice but this particular one hunts and eats birds. According to the American Bird Conservancy cats are responsible for the deaths of millions of birds each year. (Please check out the links at the end of this article.)

I have seen this cunning cat concealed under the bush a few feet from my feeder. I have watched her creep up in the primitive stalking way they do and then lunge at birds. I have seen a scattering of feathers nearby. Did the bird escape or was it the next meal, taken home to feed the kittens who are hiding in the leaves next to the log? But what about the bird’s family? Surely there is a mother bird patiently waiting for her mate to return with a juicy mealworm for their offspring.

I don’t blame the cat; she is just following her path in life, her instinct. But I do blame the one who let the cat out, who abandoned it to fend on its own. Neglect and irresponsibility has created this situation and placed my Wood Thrush songster in danger.

Last weekend I stopped by the Shenandoah River to have lunch when a beautiful white cat walked up to the car and laid down in the sun. Nearby I noticed three empty bowls. Soon two more cats joined in the watch. As I departed I saw another hiding in the weeds. My hope is that some one was trying to lure them with food so they could be caught, taken to a shelter and given to a good home but I have my doubts. Daily I see dead cats on the road, causalities of the morning rush over the mountain. This winter there will be more victims, frozen, starving deep in the woods but we won’t see that tragedy. Cats need to be kept inside and protected, not abandoned.

Oh, you might say I don’t like cats but I have been confronted by wild dogs as well and know how awful that can be. That story I’ll leave for another time. Now, it is for the Wood Thrush that I have concern. My days would be so empty without the slow, pure and simple melody “ee-oh-leee, ee-oh-lay-oh-weee” that floats on the air and inspires.



Click here to hear the call and learn more about Wood Thrushes with their unique complicated syrinx (song box) that allows them to sing two notes at the same time and harmonize with their own voice.


You can read more at: American Bird Conservancy

or

Rob Fergus blog

Dinner Stop Over

Little stink bug on my binoculars, you must think it odd that I am trying to see the world large and close up, as you naturally do everyday. How I envy your eyes. Do you see more? Do you see the things I don’t? Can you see the way we are destroying the earth, killing everything with pesticides and fertilizers? Are you here to make a fuss and raise a stink about it? Is this why you have come to me, to open my eyes, to show me? Or are you just passing through on your way to dinner?



ABC- Wednesday

That one leaf

You’ve seen it.
I’m sure you have –
that one leaf.
On a hot day in July,
when a cool breeze barely blows and
that one leaf flutters all about.
It’s neighbors standing back, just a little, looking on.
Is it shaking in fear, afraid of the unexpected wind?
Or is it trying to break loose – to run wild?
I don’t think that is it.
I believe it is like a child, playing in the sprinkler,
jumping all about,
celebrating the day,
the wind and the moment.

For the Birds

I saw a struggling worm on the hot sidewalk. Stopping to look, I wondered, “Should I move it to the grass or leave it for the birds?”

As I walked away I thought, “I hope no one leaves me to the birds.”

Who.. Why.. When...?

On a recent trip beyond the eastern panhandle to southern West Virginia I came upon three common animals. In their own way they forced me to question.

A young buck, what does he know of malice and fear, these have to be taught.

He would be safer if he feared cars and humans.

I could teach him this fear by honking the horn and chasing him off but I am too selfish this day, enjoying the pleasure of his innocence.

He will learn soon enough.

There is no Boy Scout to help this old turtle cross the street.

Who’s going to help?

You?

Me?

The eggs are perfectly arranged and all looks well, doesn’t it?

Then why am I still here?
I’ve been asked by the mother to leave.