Wednesday, September 20, 2017

Reflections on the Mississippi, Close to Home

One of my river walks in June along the Mississippi River in Winona.  






This whole group of vultures were sunning in the morning light.  Sorry to disturb you.  
It was so amazing to see so many on the bank. 




 

Tuesday, September 19, 2017

Now the Green Is Here: Reflections on the Mississippi River
























The bluffs are green.  These photos are early June.  I've finished a year of teaching art and to celebrate such a grand accomplishment, Bob and I are paddling the backwaters of the Mississippi River in our kayaks.




























After paddling we stopped for a picnic.  



 Sand and sticks and sky







A breath of fresh air.



Sunday, September 17, 2017

Reflections on the Mississippi River























My life has had the dial turned up for speed lately.  I'm going to do a three part series on Breeze on my Skin about the river to calm my racing heart and remind me that the seasons turn. These last days before  Autumn, I'm savoring  lovely times along the Mississippi  River. 



Can you sense that something is just beginning or just ending?  I had to look at these images closely to see what was really going on here.  And I checked the date.  Check out the spareness on the bluff in the background.  Check out the soft green blush on the trees.  It is April 18, 2017.  A cool spring we had this year, and the trees are just getting their leaves.


The bluffs look like an animal's back bone at this time of the year.  The sky and the river are nearly the same color.



Keep on walking.  April 18th, five months ago and the earth was just waking up for growth.  Lots of changes.  Time sure is fleeting.  If I think about five months into the future, it will be February.  Past the autumn, past the holidays, with days getting longer again.  This reminder helps we not feel so low about the darker days.  They will pass too.  We live in the land of beautiful seasons along the Mississippi River.  And there is great hope in that beauty.




 

Tuesday, August 22, 2017

Solar Eclipse 2017
















Image of the Moon transiting across the Sun, taken by SDO in 304 angstrom extreme ultraviolet light on Aug. 21, 2017.
Credit: NASA/SDO
Last Updated: Aug. 21, 2017
Editor: Rob Garner

This composite image of eleven pictures shows the progression of a total solar eclipse at Madras High School in Madras, Oregon on Monday, August 21, 2017. A total solar eclipse swept across a narrow portion of the contiguous United States from Lincoln Beach, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. A partial solar eclipse was visible across the entire North American continent along with parts of South America, Africa, and Europe.

Photo Credit: (NASA/Aubrey Gemignani)
Last Updated: Aug. 22, 2017
Editor: Sarah Loff




The Bailey's Beads effect is seen as the moon makes its final move over the sun during the total solar eclipse on Monday, August 21, 2017 above Madras, Oregon. A total solar eclipse swept across a narrow portion of the contiguous United States from Lincoln Beach, Oregon to Charleston, South Carolina. A partial solar eclipse was visible across the entire North American continent along with parts of South America, Africa, and Europe.

Photo Credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani
Last Updated: Aug. 21, 2017
Editor: Marc Levy


 
The first image above is from the Solar Dynamics Observatory, SDO and all three are from NASA. I was quite thrilled to be part of this amazing phenomena though only in its penumbra.  The sun showing for us in Minnesota looked like a glowing crescent when I used my solar glasses.


I went to Winona State University to do the viewing with about one hundred other people, students, teachers, and community people.  It was a great viewing all together though a few clouds were a little threatening.







I ran into my friends, Jill, Ethan, Addy.  




































And then my little friend, Kinsley was there too with her Mom and Grandfather.



































A gathering of friends and neighbors all viewing the natural world and science!



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