...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

nesting wren & hatchlings...

another day with my massage appointments not til later in the afternoon...so while i'm listening to a john sandford audiobook (broken prey) and making a pot of spaghetti sauce...i thought i'd post a few pictures of the little wren...(OUR wren is camera shy! i copied this wren pic from online)

mom & dad wren made a nest in the spider plant on the front porch, on 6.26.2010.

Day 1...one egg

Day 2...two eggs

Day 3...three eggs

Day 4...four little spotted eggs

and finally...we noticed the little featherless hatchlings on 7.12.2010

wow!!  what a shot, huh??!!  i've been trying to get a pic of the mom bird sitting on her eggs...but everytime i get close enough...she takes off!!  it also seems as though both mom and dad bird take care of the babies as they've been taking turns sitting on the eggs. and the whole time...they're both constantly gathering more nesting material. now we're just hoping that a snake doesn't find them, which is what happened 2 yrs ago. same spider plant...same wren (well, maybe not the SAME wren...but a wren all the same...)...made a nest... and when the babies hatched...we actually got a pic of the yellow rat just after eating them! ugh!

don't look at the following picture if you're easily grossed out!

anyway...mother nature at work...will keep you posted on hatchlings progress!

now i have to get ready for work...seeya!

the following picture was added LATER....the baby birds are starting to get feathers 

and their eyes are open!!

three of the four are obviously ready for mom!! FEED ME!!

my little part to help our planet

trying to do my little part...in my little world...for the good of all. 

i've always hated it when i see people using the 'earth' as their own personal garbage can. i can't count the number of  times i've seen cigarette butts being flicked out car windows! or worse...a pile of dumped ash & butts in a parking lot! or someone unwrapping a candy and tossing the wrapper on the ground...all the empty soda cans...bottles...fast food bags...styrofoam cups & plates...that litter the roadways! even in the field across the street...some people obviously see this field full of wild and native growing plants as a quicker and more convenient place to throw their trash  than driving the 3 extra miles to the dump! and in the state parks...sam and i have been to dozens of state parks in florida, georgia, north & south carolina...have walked all their trails...and you'd be amazed at all the trash we see there too! butts, empty water bottles, wrappers! why would someone, who obviously likes to BE a part of nature (they're on the trail, right?)...why would they throw their butt or wrapper on the ground rather than put it in their pocket? sam and i have these cool little clips which i picked up at the store...for a buck...attaches to your belt loop on one end and the other end has a clasp that fits around the neck of the water bottle. before that we used bandanas! usually we have a small backpack anyway, especially if we're planning a long hike...so we can add snacks, tissue, water...and an empty bag to collect the garbage we find along the way! growing up (in NY) if my dad saw someone throwing trash on the ground, he'd go out of his way to either ask...no, TELL them to pick it up...or he'd pick it up himself. i guess that's where it started for me! i'm continuing with the clean-up! 

anyway...as usual...i'm rambling...i wanted to post a list of how long it takes for certain things to decompose...so next time you see something on the ground...you'll know if you leave it there...it just might be there 'til the end of days...2012, right?? no, no...just kidding...some things will still be there way longer than that!!

DECOMPOSITION OF LITTER!

(keep this in mind next time you see trash on the ground)

                

         Cigarette butts                     1-5 years

         Glass bottles                        1,000,000 years

         Leather                                50 years

         Milk cartons                        5 years

         Nylon fabric                        30-40 years

         Orange/banana peels           6 months

         Paper                                  2-5 months

         Plastic film containers           20-30 years

         Plastic bags                          10-20 years

         Rubber boot sole                 50-80 years

         Styrofoam                            NEVER

         Wool socks                          1-5 years 

                Aluminum                           80-100 years 

ok, so with all that said...i'm proud to say i'm starting to try to be a little more energy aware at home. i've always been good about not turning on the lights during the day. in fact i've spent most of my life following others around and turning the lights off when they leave a room. i like it on the darker side anyway. >bright lights! bright lights!< i must have some gremlin in me! we have a skylight in the kitchen. and if you stand under it in the heat of the day...MAN!! you'd think you were standing outside. i was thinking of getting some kind of tint for it...but decided on something a little less permanent for now. i picked up a flannel backed kitchen table cloth...CHEAP!!...cut it to fit...2 pieces...flannel side up...and tacked it up over the window! what a difference!! i can almost feel my electric bill dropping...  and it looks pretty cool with the light behind the rooster print!!  

i have a collection of glass jars! i just can't throw 'em out...or recycle them...i clean them out and save 'em 'cause i know i'll need them for something. 

a couple of weeks ago i got rid of all my plastic/tupperware containers...and now i have room to spread out my glass...into a nice big bare cupboard! i think i'll do that later today!

i'm not buying any more bottled water. we have a house filter...i was buying the water because it was convenient. no more. today i'm looking for a few stainless water bottles...and sam's gonna change the house filter on a more regular schedule! little by little...day by day...if we can all do our own little something...it'll help in a big way! OH yeah...and check out the link to Fake Plastic Fish for living life with less plastic!  :)