Willow Oak, Quercus Phellos

The Willow Oak is a long lived (to 300 years) member of the red oak family native to the southeastern U.S. It grows in or near bottom lands and upland streams, usually preferring a sandy knoll where its roots are slightly elevated above permanently saturated soils. It grows to 90 foot here in Southwest Louisiana.

Dark Green Late September Leaves and Acorns

A deciduous tree losing 100% of its leaves (shaped like willow tree leaves) during winter  here, but no trouble to keep tidy because its leaves are thin, narrow, and decay quickly much like grass. A very nice alternative to the Live Oak if you have the room, as it becomes massive with time. The fall Willow Oak acorn crop is a valuable fall food source for squirrels, cattle, white tailed deer, and jays.

 The tree pictured is approx. 25' tall @ 9 years old, and a real joy to witness in the spring, as each tree varies in leaf color due to changes in soil, some in different shades of green, others orange  red. The willow oak is a quality tree that is easily distinguishable from look alike trees of lesser desirability.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quercus_phellos

Tomb Of Michaelangelo

Oh humble apprentice of tireless question.

When you ask the purpose of life,
do you really expect to understand ?
Where you never intended to go, nor thought to look, you've found more than you could hope for.
Even the night is filled with sustenance of beautiful design_ all a gift to a child too young to comprehend_
a physically suffered eternal paradise, an awarded achievement of Heaven.

Basilica of Santa Croce   Florence, Italy

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_of_Santa_Croce,_Florence

Nun's Orchid

The Nun's Orchid is a tropical plant suitable for an 8 to 12 inch in diameter, deep pot. If kept indoors by a window in winter, it will grow to approx. 40 inches tall at blooming. The foliage alone isn't much to look at, but while the world outside is frozen, it will bloom its heart out for nearly a month, reminding its keeper of its true character and quality as a houseplant. It looks best elevated on a table near light where it does successfully_ I'm pretty sure_  pray for an end to winter.

Painted Rocks Petroglyph Site, Gila Bend Arizona

Young man,

I want to give you a freedom exceedingly difficult to achieve in the age in which you live, in the limited time of a life, by your own means. This freedom requires you understand the world in which you live, the written history of mankind. To imagine the odds you must look into space. Get a telescope and excel in your math class. Realize a universe as infinitely small as it is big, ponder it to great lengths, and who's judge of where big becomes little, that science and religion are one and the same.

I'd like to make an assertion that there is inscribed in all things a universal language recognized by few. This universal language is all around us, in place now in the glyphic language of images.

The quantity and quality of readily available evident information stored in images is taken for granted, overlooked, and not taken seriously. It is now necessary to make an addendum to the learning process and expand the way we think to institute methods of higher learning, since we are learning machines and definitely have the capacity. Every vista we will ever see contains immeasurable amounts of information.

The capability of the human intellect to understand is vastly superior to the means currently available to learn. Great insufficiency exist in today's written languages rendering them obsolete in this age of information. There are 26 letters in the English alphabet. This method of communication allows the masses to understand one another and the world to function, but is extremely basic. 26 letters are far too few. Complacency is a great danger.

Peace in the world demands that we better ourselves with a greater knowledge base. An intelligent species must abolish poverty, disease, and greedy little men, all of which profit from ignorance. We need be far better stewards of our wonderful planet, expand our compassion beyond our ambitions and close social groups, to encompass the whole of understanding, see the big beautiful picture.

 I want you to build a new alphabet. Yes you. You have been called.

That's what the rocks say.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Painted_Rock_Petroglyph_Site

Alocasia Black Stem

An inquisitive spirit and a new plant, in the same space_ in the same time_ is a world forever young.

Temple of The Heart

Lessons to the beholder await, in These Mountains. Spirits of High Council litigate the sins of tyrants, disclose the secrets of humble seeds. Sovereign winds search the hearts of Kings. In vast vistas of mortality, quiet whispering voices forevermore silence the boasts of wee little men. 

Science, Nature, and Religion are restricted to bounds, but not so the free will of the heart.

Image Of Harvard Glacier, College Fjord, Prince William Sound / Alaska

Imaculate Conception Church - Ajo, Arizona

The Temple of The One God is symbolical of everything that is good. But I tell you cousin as you were born into the world, you were born into The Holiest of Alters from which you cannot remove your feet.

What you will hold dear, how you will come by your wealth, how you perceive your own person, respect the laws of fairness, you will do six days a week. This is the church of your own making_ and in this world a hand can not touch it_ an eye can not see it.

Landscape Photography

A thousand words in a click, who could imagine the longing  in the spirit that holds the camera... before this splendorous moment is forever gone from this Mountain... Is there enough time_ sufficient light_  pray another exposure in this thing Oh Lord.

If you are the least bit serious about photography, I know you are no stranger to this automatic prayer from the inner most room of the man, that pleads directly to the Highest Court. And you will  know the next verse_ ... Great Spirit give me speed, adjust the shutter as you would have it, and paint me the most beautiful sky.

One doesn't need a degree in photography to take good pictures, although it would definitely help. I know for sure, falling on your face may not be the best way to learn, but it sticks with you. All good photographs require one special quality, a good subject. If your frame doesn't evoke interest, you will have nothing to give. Good subjects are not always so recognizable to the novice. The art of seeing is natural to some souls, others have to work at it. But if you would so love the world, it will come.

Then there is the light.. Ah yes, the icing on the cake. If we weren't in the digital age, we would burn up some film learning to read the all important measure of light. The light is from where the magic comes, photography's beating heart, a true form of Religion that even the Holy books must agree with,  lest they be untrue.  It is the medium through which raw inspiration is conveyed. This quality of the photograph is indisputably wonderful. Fluent in its abilities to change at will. It appeals to the wounds and uncertainty of every heart, as a warm healing  profoundness... in that, a High Degree of Beauty may just overrule all the troubles of mankind.  By its undeniable powers of persuasion, its vast importance, those men who see The Light, are indescribably fortunate, sail on a part of the ocean, where few sail.

 Shadows skip and dance across the mountain tops, swords of pink and golden light proclaim what ever they wish, the evening star appears in a deep blue sky, of which moments are captured forever. Who knows, maybe you've got one of those kick butt once in a life time images, and you definitely will get them, if by no other means,  because you were there, and you took so many decent attempts that you could not help but get plumb lucky on one. Go for it cousin.

The good photographer is a die hard spirit with lots of hustle. The longer he goes and the harder he works, the better pictures he gets. He never gives in to the many difficulties that arise along the trip to the subject. Bad weather, sometimes unfavorable light requires that he wait for days, or cancel everything. Accept defeat and learn from it.

The digital age  has long since overwhelmed photography in general. In a National Park scenic overlook, one might see 100 pocket digital cameras to every film camera, 100 35mm cameras to every medium format camera, and if you see a large format camera, your lucky.  Its aggravated owner will be dodging questions from too many tourists who don't speak English so well.

The film camera still has the better image quality over digital, though the margin is shrinking. Due to the high price of new digital cameras for landscapes, photographers who appreciate image quality can enjoy their hobby through camera exchange vendors such as keh.com where reconditioned film and digital camera equipment  is available for sale or trade by knowledgeable, reputable dealers inexpensively.

Keep in mind that the bigger the film size, the better the image quality. A 35mm  film can be enlarged to 8 x 10, medium format film to 11 x 14, large format much larger. A film camera is a simple box that gathers light, no matter how many fancy buttons are on it, they have little to do with its basic function. One doesn't need to spend a fortune on hype. However "The Quality of The Ground Glass Lens " is very important, so study them.

The finest image quality in coffee table picture books such as Arizona Highways are usually exposures of 4 x 5 or larger film size, large format cameras. The detail in the farthest reaches of the frame, the depth of field, has been unmatched by digital technology, but brilliant minds are working on it.

A step smaller in film size is the medium format camera. It uses roll film one quarter the size of large format 4 x 5 sheet film. I've jammed  10 - 24 exposure rolls In tight blue jean pockets and walked for miles carrying a Mamiya 6 range finder Camera ( my favorite ) , that's as light as some 35mm cameras I have. The image quality of its shortest lens is very good.

Lastly but not leastly, the 35mm camera has been the work horse of most successful magazines. Its speed of operation and comfortable film size allows the photographer to take 5 times as many exposures as the same weight medium format camera. It's a game of odds where the sheer number of frames by a experienced photographer guarantees those images that commands the reader's attention, sells magazines.

Images are the purest form of communications. So practice seeing with your phone. Learn to frame. Take ten pics of an object an figure out why one is best.

A thought to remember, should you become frustrated with photographing man made things, turn to nature, go to your National Parks. Introduce your spirit to film and slide photography. So , OK bring that digital camera, it will help you learn. The combination of film and the Big country will vastly interest you.

Phoenix Silvestris

Phoenix sylvestris 6 years old  15'

Phoenix sylvesrtis 4 years old, 10 '

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_sylvestris

Phoenix sylvestris seeds

Simple Greenhouse Construction

There are many designs by which to control the environment of those plants one might desire to grow. One of the most economical, commonly adopted by commercial growers and fabricated by  backyard hobbyist as myself "huh", is the cold frame or hoop house.

 The location of the structure should be convenient to importation of soil, supplies, the exportation of finished plants. At mid day, rays of the sun should permeate the entirety of the rows of containers, insuring  consistent growth of each plant. This usually requires a north south position.

 It would be ideal if the floor were concrete sloped to floor drains every 10 or 12 feet, but  this sub floor is 2 inches of gravel sloped to drains covered by a ground cover fabric. This floor is about 10 years old and still in good shape. Doors and sidewalks wide enough to accommodate a garden buggy work wonderfully to bring soil, supplies, and plants in and out.

  In a cold frame such as this without artificial heat, the most a gardener could hope to achieve on an average year in the southern U.S. would be one zone difference, and in a cold winter, probably half a zone. This house is in 9a but we have 8b temperatures in winter, therefore I hope to achieve 9b temperatures. The covered area of this house is 30' x 30' and on really cold nights I break out the crawfish burner and manage to keep things from freezing. Keeping the house above 50 degrees for the 3 months of winter here in Louisiana would cost entirely too much. I've a ceiling fan top center and run it when the house is closed to circulate air in and around each leaf of the plants.

Poly coverings can be purchased at local home centers as visqueen or online as overwintering or 3 year 6 mill covering. The end walls are more labor intensive and are sometimes finished with a more permanent polycarbonate material,  should one become a more serious gardener. In hot climates roll up sides are an advantage because of the sometimes intense heat reducing a greenhouse to an inhospitable place for man or plant. 

Shade cloth can be added allowing varying degrees of light penetration for shade loving plants. This shade cloth is a real comfort for the gardener that visits his plants in the heat of summer days, and also allows relief to the plant foliage from the harshness of the heat magnification of the greenhouse film. Tall plants in closer contact to the poly film may show heat stress quickly as the temperature quickly rises in the upper reaches. Good ventilation is mandatory in a greenhouse. 

Remember by closing the house to conserve heat, one is at the exact same time, creating an ideal environment for pests and disease,  which during the coldest weeks of winter are looking for such a warm cozy place, and often as big a problem as the cold. The worst nightmare of pests and disease is air movement, consistent air temperature, good drainage, low humidity near the floor of the greenhouse, and a gardener that looks at each plant thoroughly, including the undersides of leaves especially those that haven't been checked in two days. 

Spray bottles with an insecticidal soap and fungicide should be handy. Fans work well when it's cold and the house is closed up, but when the temperature allows, the house should be opened to allow the natural air currents to purge its air space. Remember that greenhouses are experimental representations, a very small vision, by the human intellect. While you ponder the day to day problems that arise in this tiny environment, keep in mind that it is unnatural, the world outside over rules and you must have a good understanding of it...

Imagine a world as you would have it in your greenhouse. Approach the idea with the humility of a young child, believe that love in its wholeness lives in what knowledge you might find. The far ranging beauty may be yours.

Holy of Holies

Early philosophers deduced that human suffering in the world was an inevitable product of ignorance, and that so long as men denied logic, did not respect the value of a continuing high education,  humanity was destined to suffer. They believed evil to be illogical and non scientific, therefore nonexistent.

It was concluded that authority was too often influenced by special interests, a government of the few by the few extracting the natural resources of the country without representing its people, and that in a future fair society, those governing should own nothing.

What man can know these things in a world changing so quickly? What will be true in my grandchildren's time?..  This will,

inside The Temple of your Heart... behind The Alter there is a veal_  behind which is the Inner Most Room/Most Holy Place_  guarded 24/7 by the Highest of Priests_ inside this room is a box_ within which is your ticket_ You'd e best know how it reads.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_of_Holies

Precious Stones

I've been holding these for you. They're getting heavy. I picked them up one at a time on a walk along a river, on a cold September day in the North Country. The first snows of the season dusted the Green and Red colored Mountains over night, and the morning broke with mysterious dark clouds, mist, and flurries. One of those days when a normally big and breathtaking environment,  becomes Grand.  I truly believed the whole of Beauty and Grandeur were mine, I felt like a kid in a candy store.

Inside the east entrance to Glacier National Park, just past the Apgar Visitor Center. on the south end of McDonald Lake there is a river. If the water isn't to high in the rocky gravel washes, one can stay to the right side of the river and walk for some distance with only cold feet. A group of 6 or 8 mule deer crossed the river very close to me, and as I worked my way through some brushy washes. Farther  up a rise, I saw a herd of elk,  including a big bull,  run across a meadow and into a grove of deciduous trees at the base of the Mountains.  I wondered if I had  walked into another world ...

I thought about you heavy, and figured I'd bring a piece of it back for you. It was in this place, I found these stones, each one  painstakingly chosen for you only, complete with Beauty and Color of the snow covered Mountains ingrained.

I've kept them in a grocery bag In a closet. Dehydrated for years, dull and lusterless, I soaked them in the kitchen sink, and everything came back just as it was, after a dusting of snow and the misting rain on the day I walked along the river in this beautiful place. In this simple time I knew they were special, but could not imagine so many would see them. My humble depiction of the both diverse and relative structure of physical beauty, the sublime, the mysterious design of calling _

and the way I feel about you.


http://www.nps.gov/glac/index.htm

Took it from Wolves

Cousin,

What pleases the eye sometimes deceives the heart. If only one knew the truth, of how men lust for material things, especially this one, he 'd want no part, but a demon. The likes of things to despise, be exactly many things appealing.

 I take things from wolves, but I am not a wolf.

November Pond

Within this vista, I am sure of it, there is a letter in the name of a sovereign imaginary mind, a good spirit that lives in dangerous places, a design inscribed into every particle of creation. It is sparkling clean, as free as free gets, and it's calling you.