wordsfromanneli

Thoughts, ideas, photos, and stories.


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Shapes

The crescent moon hovered over the hills across the bay last night.

 

The moon was only partially visible last night because of the angle of the sun shining on it, as seen from our perspective. I originally had the information wrong, about why we only see part of the moon, and Thomas kindly corrected it. Please see his comment below and the link to a well-illustrated diagram.

Anyway, I began to think of geometric shapes and their occurrences and practical applications.

First the circle, the general shape of our planets and their moons. Round, like apple pie, chocolate cookies, and coins….

Then the partial circle, such as the crescent. I’ll come back to that.

The lumpy rest of the moon when it’s not quite full is not such an interesting shape, but maybe it has a special name. I’m not sure.

Then we have ovals, squares, rectangles (and their many variations), and triangles.

Ovals, so named because of the shape of eggs, I suppose.

Squares? Very useful for so many things; the town market place for one. Almond squares for a treat with coffee.

Rectangles. Squares that are adjusted to fit if the sides are not equal all the way around, only those across from each other. Placemats.

Triangles. For Napoleon’s hat, and in the old days, the class dunce hat  (really cruel custom)!

But somehow, I am most impressed by the crescent shape of the moon.

Crescent, or croissant, is one of my favourite shapes, especially when it comes in the form of a shrimp croissant with a cup of Wicked Thai Soup at my local lunch place.

Do you have a favourite crescent shape?

 

 


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Tumbling Down

When the Canada geese (not Canadian geese, please – they don’t have passports) start moving between fields and estuaries, in morning and evening flights, you know they are into autumn behaviour. They graze in the fields, picking at kernels of corn and anything else left behind in the harvest. Part of the day is spent near the water, preferably a river estuary, where they are relatively safe from approach by land, and where they can find bits of food, as they keep their feet cool while they soak up any sunshine that might still peek through gathering clouds.

Flights are constantly moving between field and stream, usually early in the morning and late at night. In the first video clip, the flocks are moving from the fields to the estuaries. In the second one you can see them tumbling out of the sky as they get ready to approach their destination. They seem to fold up their wings and tumble, open them to steady themselves, and then fold them again as needed. It’s their way of putting the brakes on and coming in for landing.

Please turn on the sound.


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The Useful Fig Tree

This fig tree came to my garden as a rooted cutting, a gift from a friend. It was about ten inches high in a small black pot. I found a place for it in the corner of my veggie garden. Little did I know that the compost bin next to it would seep out nutrition for it and turn it into a seven foot tree in just a few years.

This year it had 52 figs on it, and after I picked them, the branches loaded up again with a second crop. I think it’s one of the few plants in my garden that really likes me.

I live on Vancouver Island – not in the Mediterranean or western Asia where they originated – but my fig tree grew happily anyway.

Thank heaven, the Mediterranean fig trees had leaves that were supposedly perfect for covering the private parts of those famous ancient naked sculptures. Fig leaves must have seen a lot of use, as there are so many sculptures made in the old civilizations.

So now I know the answer to something I’ve questioned all these years. Why did the old masters make so many of their sculptures naked? The answer is of course, they had a lot of fig leaves available.

 


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Musical Houses

Apologies for the cell phone quality of the photo, but this post is more about content than photography.

My neighbour who took the cougar video in a previous post, also took a picture of this house he built with birds in mind.

The birds didn’t even have time to get interested when the squirrels decided to move in and occupy the premises with their expanding family of at least three babies.  I doubt if they stayed long, but it was a funhouse for the kids. Too bad the cell phone doesn’t take clearer photos. Mine is the same. It’s not a high end phone and pictures taken quickly and at any distance just don’t come out that clear. But if we overlook the blurriness, the idea of these little guys exploring the three-storey house makes me smile. I felt it was worth posting regardless of the quality.

I wonder if they played musical chairs with the houses. Remember that game? There was always one fewer chair than there were children. We marched around to the music not straying too far from the chairs and when the music stopped, we had to sit down on a chair. One child was always left without a chair, so he was “out.” Another chair was removed and the game began again. Each time one child was out of luck and another chair was removed. At last there was only one chair and two children.  I shudder to think of the scramble for that last chair. I would be tempted to declare two winners.

I’m sure the squirrels scrambled around these birdhouses. Maybe they played “King of the Castle” instead.


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Sunday Sailors

What an opportunity to learn to sail! The protected bay is perfect for it. A very light breeze keeps the would-be sailors on their toes, lest they get caught making a turn in the wrong direction.

Yes, there is strength in numbers, taking courage from each other, as long as they don’t all need help at the same time.

The guide boats keep a close watch on their assigned groups and are motorized for quick access to anyone needing extra help.

As long as you don’t end up in the water unexpectedly, this could be a lot of fun.

One other day when the sea was less calm it must have been training day, and luckily almost everyone was prepared for this “rescue mission.”

Or perhaps it was done on purpose to show the would-be sailors what to do if they took a wrong turn and flipped over.

They were obviously prepared for getting wet that day.

I think I’ll just stay on dry land whenever I can.

 


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Decisions, Decisions!

Do you see the tiny morsel of food that is crawling along the stucco wire towards the hummingbird?

Decisions, decisions,

A lunch snack for me,

A coming incision

Will soon have to be.

 

An ant suicidal

Is now within reach,

It’s protein not vital,

Won’t taste like a peach.

 

It’s truly quite bitter,

In more ways than one,

I say with a twitter,

Your good luck is done.

 

The red scarlet bean bloom

With nectar awaits,

It helps with the gloom,

While the ant taste abates.