Sunday, August 1, 2010

...into the woods...

for about the past week, i thought i might talk about bumper stickers. you've heard the expression  'we are what we eat'.  well, i think,  'we are what we slap on our cars'...or trucks...holds true too!  =]


BUT i decided to hold off on that topic. yeah, i know...what a tease!  i'm just trying to keep you coming back. =]   i  need to finish gathering my thoughts, ok? no big deal.           so...moving on...


since you (already may) know, i live outside the city limits. in fairbanks!  nope, not alaska.  it's a small area of gainesville, florida...north of the city.  from 1909 to 1923, fairbanks a was the nation's leader in turpentine production!  so, how did they collect the pine sap?  clay collecting  pots were nailed to the pine trees...with metal strips inserted along downward  V shaped cuts in the tree, above the pots...the thick pine sap would 'bleed'  into the clay pots. this 'V' formation cut into the tree was called a 'cat face'. 
we have a (small) forest of pine trees in the woods behind us, but we've never seen one with the 'cat face'. to see one in person, chances are you'd have to go to a state park...that's where we've seen them...in the OLD forests where some of the huge, ancient pine trees still survive! BUT we have found the clay collecting pots...on our property!! just knowing that what you've spotted sticking up out of the peat and dirt...could be close to 100 years old...is...exciting...to me!!  (i have to admit, i'm easily excited when it comes to finding old bottles, artifacts...rocks, feathers...bones...) 






i LOVE to go exploring! trudging into the woods out back...fighting my way through the vines, downed trees, swampy areas, spiderwebs and underbrush. sometimes i'll drag Sam out there with me. with a roll of his eyes...he'll get ready...long sleeve shirt, jeans, high rubber boots. we usually go on our deep wood explorations during the cooler weather...when the mosquitoes and ticks aren't STARVING for our BLOOD!




we found these pots this past winter!










sam...in the wet and swamp-yish area...









tree riddled with woodpecker holes...















  evidence of DEER...(yep! POOP! SCAT!)











raccoon prints













red shouldered hawk...all puffed-up...scratching his chest...



















deer in backyard













pileated woodpecker














fence lizard














           dragonflies...














spiderweb...small banana spider












if you want to see more of my pictures...local animals...birds, snakes, lizards, bugs...check out my past posts by searching through the list of labels/subject.  and in case you haven't been here before, i also like to collect animal bones...skulls...and have lots of pictures of my collections!


Let nature take you on its journey. ~Jamake Highwater 


so, that's it for now. another day. another adventure.  =]       laura

51 comments:

  1. just wanted to say that i love the style and feel of your blog.

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  2. Lovely stuff, I salute you!!
    Bamboric.

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  3. THANKS William, AmandaRose and Bamboric!!!! thanks for stopping by and for your comments & compliments! i'm KINDA new to this blogging...and i just figured since i like to write...i might as well start 'sharing' !! thanks again!! =)

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  4. CONGRATS on being a BON!!

    I really like your blog... link exchange???

    Steve
    Common Cents
    http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com

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  5. steve! thanks for stopping by & i'm glad you like what you saw!!! =) SURE! i'll go check out your blog as soon as i settle down...just home from wk! (and what's a BON? anybody?!) =] laura

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  6. Wow, these photos are really good! :)

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  7. Thanks Toot!!! wow! all of a sudden...overnight...all these new faces! i'm glad you liked my pic's and hope to see you again!! =) laura

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  8. Looking good girl ,glad you found one you like ,keep it up!
    peace!

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  9. Thanks terica!! i appreciate that!! ((you were my first!!)) =) laura

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  10. wow amazing photos (: wish I lived somewhere with amazing life like that instead of the concrete 'jungle' of London :(

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  11. Greetings Laura!
    Indeed, lovely name! If I had a daughter would be called so!

    Excuse my English because it is automatically translated (online translator), I'm bad at this language! hihi

    I loved your blog, it's beautiful! The pictures are lovely! Very well used animal waste!

    Thankfully for his esteem in my humble little space!
    Be greatly welcomed!

    Kiss of light in your soul!

    \o/

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  12. I'm here from BON. Congratulations on that honor and on the beauty of your blog. The photos are so wonderful, and you put words together in a way that really makes them work.

    Thanks..........cj

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  13. Good blog. I like visiting your blog. I will wait for your other article. Alwast update it....

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  14. Congrats! You've made it to BON (Blogs of Note)! http://blogsofnote.blogspot.com/ That's how I found your blog :-)

    I love the pictures...

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  15. Hi Laura,

    Truly, your blog is a Blog of Note! I am happy and thankful to discover your wonderful blog. I love the photos here, it's a privilege to see beautiful things like these from the forest. I love Nature too.

    ~Melisa

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  16. Thanks for sharing your forest walk with us, Laura!

    And congrats on becoming a Blogs of Note too!

    -Dean

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  17. The photos in this post are great. I used to go for walks in the woods with my family growing up. We always stopped to look at the treasures God has planted in nature. Thanks for bringing back happy memories! Keep up the great blog.

    Faith, Love and Dynamite<3
    Riantgorkette

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  18. hi Laura,
    hope you are having great times.i am fascinated by your blog post.i trust you are a talented photographer.no need to be in USA,i can just flip through your NATURE pages.
    thanks for sharing.

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  19. Hello fellow Nature Lover! Thanks for sharing the lovely photos and art! All the best, Susan Faye

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  20. Very cool! Have you ever tried geocaching? If you like wondering around the woods I bet You'd love it ;-)

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  21. These, are fantastic! :)

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  22. What an awesome blog! Definitely a blog of note. Thanks for sharing the beauties of your state with us. I visited Dickinson State Park when I was in Florida last fall. It was absolutely beautiful. I'm looking forward to visiting Florida again just to go back to that park and visit some others as well!

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  23. wow!! what can i say???!!! THANKS to ALL of YOU who have stopped by and had a few minutes of PEACE and WONDER...through my pictures!! it makes me HAPPY to know that there are so many others who can appreciate all these little things of nature!! thanks for all your comments and compliments...i really do appreciate your stopping by!! ;) laura

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  24. There are nice pictures of your site. But I don't like the bones. :P

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  25. Aren't Piliated woodpeckers AMAZING?! They are so large, they look like prehistoric animals to me!

    Congrats on being Blog of Note!

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  26. Thanks to Kimmi & Holyoke Home!! for stopping by & leaving a note!! Kimmi- the bones i find are just another part of nature...i guess my 'love' for the bones i find does seem a little strange to alot of people...but if you think about where they came from...and feel them in your hands (after they're cleaned! ;) ) it's really kind of amazing! BUT i understand your being a little 'creeped out' by them! and to Holyoke- YES!! the these woodpeckers are amazing!! did you see the pic's of the red=headed ones?? this is the first year we've seen them here...in our yard!! thanks for stopping by!! =) laura

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  27. A lovely blog of natural wonders.

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  28. At one time, I thought about becoming a Forest Ranger. Unfortunately life took me in another direction. Still, your pictures remind me of what might have been. And for that, Thanks!

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  29. im loving the simple wonders in life that you have captured. U have a beautiful spirit! Keep it up! :)

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  30. LOVE YOUR BLOG! Keep up the great work!!

    Steve
    common cents
    http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com

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  31. Dear Laura, as a new citizen in this blogworld, I stumbled over your blog by accident - and I love your ability to truly see the grandness in small, everyday things in nature. I will follow you! Thanks for sharing! Love, Luna.

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  32. WOW!! AGAIN!! i can't say this enough...i have never felt more appreciated in my life! seriously!! it's such a great feeling to know that there are so many appreciaters (is that a word?!!) of NATURE...all around!! thankyouthankyou!! =) laura

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  33. Your blog is beautiful. I love the picture where you look through a spider's web. Your blog posts are inspiring.

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  34. i like your blog a lot, the nature photography is itself an art and you have excelled at it, very good pictures

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  35. So nice pictures. I enjoyed looking them.

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  36. ~THANK YOU~ALL~for stopping by my blog and for leaving your comments, compliments, congrats!! i'm happy to have been able to share my pictures, art & thoughts...with you!! reflections of my small piece of the world! =) thanks! laura

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  37. And in the wilderness you find geeat things..lol..i mean there is a lot that a forest can offer...The nature itself is the one that makes so special..
    bouquet balloon

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  38. cool, wonderful and beautiful! What I want to say!

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  39. I'm still new just started 2day come 2 my website please http://wolffypoems.blogspot.com/
    i just finish writing 1 poem thats all nothing abnormal just hope some1 can drop by and leave some comments btw nice blog any1 in2 wolfs?

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  40. ive been looking around aat tons of blogs and just wanted to let you know yours with be the first for me to follow. i love it. come by and see mine if you get a chance:)

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  41. ive been looking around aat tons of blogs and just wanted to let you know yours with be the first for me to follow. i love it. come by and see mine if you get a chance:)

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  42. What beautiful blog. Love the pictures. Hope I can some day create such beauty. Today is my first day.

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  43. I love the picture of pine sap collecting and the fact that you`ve found some of the old clay pots. I use this exact method to collect pine sap to make into resin to use as a firelighter when I go bushcrafting. I am one of the very few people in Britain who does this and I feel good to know that I am doing something to uphold ancient traditions.

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thanks for stopping by! it's always nice to hear from fellow wanderers!