A Bloy and his Blog

I can finally tell the sun is setting just a little later every day. For me, the darkness of winter is worse than the cold. I’m glad the light is moving in the right direction again.

If the milkweed plant were human, would it let the wind carry away all of its hopes and dreams so easily?

The warmest heatwave of the summer so far has just begun. Rather than get all sweaty by shooting some pictures outside, I decided to keep cool by staying in and looking though some winter photos. Wouldn’t a seat on this bench feel good right now?

While I was along the Mississippi River, I noticed a very large piece of driftwood passing by.

I wondered how far north it was when it fell into the river. Where is it now?

read the rest of: The driftwood’s journey

Some trees always seem to be reaching higher. Over the years they continue to strive for heights not yet attained. They wait patiently through cold winters, and resume their hard work again in spring — always keeping their focus on that goal of growing bigger.

The next time I think giving up would be easy but not the best choice, I’m going to remember this tree.

What is it about trains that we find so fascinating? Even when I see empty tracks I’m compelled to wonder (and take a photo). Where to they lead? What’s around the bend?

A few random thoughts inspired by the brutally cold weather we’ve been having…

1. I saw a few finches hanging out and chirping in a tree outside the building at work this morning. When I see small creatures like that surviving in sub-zero temperatures, I’m just amazed. How does such a little, warm blooded animal generate enough heat to keep from freezing to death?

2. Do you ever wonder about the Native peoples that populated this area hundreds and thousands of years ago? How on Earth did they get along in their wigwams during bitter cold spells? Makes it hard to complain when you imagine what they had to deal with, doesn’t it?

3. Often during bad winter storms, or below zero temps, some people invariably proclaim they’re ready to move south. When I hear that I think, “no thank you.” Moving in that direction means more heat and humidity in the summer. As bad as winter can get in Wisconsin, I’d rather deal with extreme cold and snow than extreme heat and humidity.