life in the garden of eden.

You know you’ve been playing too much Lord of the Rings Online when you see an unusual oak tree while on a walk and instantly think of Gloomleaf in the Red Swamp.

THIS is the forest primeval. The murmuring pines and the hemlocks,
Bearded with moss, and in garments green, indistinct in the twilight,
Stand like Druids of eld, with voices sad and prophetic,
Stand like harpers hoar, with beards that rest on their bosoms.
–Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, A Tale of Acadie

The bud is on the bough again,
The leaf is on the tree.
–Charles Jefferys, The Meeting of Spring and Summer.
Thes photo was taken in March of either 2005 or 2006 (can’t remember which!) at the park near our house. Winter’s bleakness had been replaced by everything lush and green. The vernal pools were drying [...]

Nature’s first green is gold,
Her hardest hue to hold.
Her early leaf’s a flower;
But only so an hour.
Then leaf subsides to leaf.
So Eden sank to grief,
So dawn goes down to day.
Nothing gold can stay.
“Nothing Gold Can Stay” - Robert Frost

The little one was restless and bored yesterday morning, even after I dragged her to the grocery store with me. So, we went to the park for a walk. It was the first sunny day in weeks, but still cold, particularly when the sun was hidden by clouds.
We hit several unpaved trails that meander along [...]

I finally went to see the doctor today, after being sick for a month. I got some gentle chiding for putting it off so long and a prescription for Biaxin to deal with bronchitis and sinusitis. My blood pressure, heart rate, temperature, and weight were all good.
It was stormy today, but no where near as [...]