RayK at Amethyst Brook

Have you ever noticed that some of your best thinking is done in the shower? My theory is that it is one of the few times in the day when you are truly alone, with no distractions. No tv, computer, phone, children, dog, cat, bird, fish…

So I was in the shower after my letterboxing excursion with Penrapture and RayK today, wondering what I was going to write about the Amethyst Brook Conservation Area again. It’s not that the woods and trees and water aren’t inspiring to me but today it just seemed like the same old story.

But then I remembered that the fun part of our adventure was talking to RayK about…anything and nothing. RayK is going into the fifth grade this year. I don’t know how old that makes her, but she is not yet old enough that she thinks she knows EVERYTHING. So I was babbling about this and that, bears and bridges and how to sneak up on birds. She seemed reasonably entertained.

So what does this have to do with thinking in the shower? Well, it occurred to me that I should sign up for the Big Sister program. I had considered it before but the thought of getting stuck with a girlie girl scares the hell out of me. I’m sure they make an effort to match you up with someone compatible, but still…what if?

As far as volunteering goes, the chance to make another persons life better has to be on the top of the list. It’s wonderful to maintain boundaries and sew blankets for shelter animals but in the grand scheme of life, helping someone to become a better person will serve us all in the future. Just imagine what the world would be like if we all took just a few hours a week to help someone. Perhaps it is easier to imagine how much better your town would be if everyone in it spent just a little bit of time doing something for someone else.

Anyway, following is my adventure with RayK and Penrapture.

We went to Amethyst Brook Conservation Area to get some letterboxes. When you first walk in from the parking area there is a community garden. When I was here in May they were still working the soil and planting the plants. As you can see things have grown considerably since then.

We found the first letterbox fairly easy but there were things like dirt and the possibility of spiders on it so I had to dig it out for RayK. Yes, she is a bit of a girlie girl.

I wandered off to take pictures of rocks in the brook while they proceeded to stamp in.

We found the Labyrinth next. Penrapture and RayK walked the spiral on the way in but Penrapture cheated on the way out. I don’t think she knew that a tree angel was watching over the Labyrinth and taking notes.

On our way out RayK noticed some rustling going on in the sunflowers. We stopped to look and discovered a couple of American Goldfinches enjoying the sunflower seeds. They are in the picture below (click on the picture to enlarge) but hard to spot amongst the yellow (hint) of the sunflowers.

If you can't find them in the above photo here is a closer shot of them.

It was a nice afternoon stroll with RayK and Penrapture. For a girlie girl she’s not really so scary.

Unit 7

Unit 7 is without a doubt my favorite local band. They are hip, cool and funky, funky, funky.

And the music is great too. Enjoy!

Unit 7 website

Unit 7 My space page

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Lynyrd Skynyrd Experience - Take 2

We headed to Westfield tonight to watch the Lynyrd Skynyrd Experience on the town green. I haven’t been to Westfield before and I have to say it looked a bit run down. The green was nice though. There was a circular fountain in the middle of the green which was nicely landscaped with flowers and shrubbery. There was also very large white dog that found it refreshing.

I walked around a bit and found this stone benched nestled against a wall of flowers. I didn't look at the flowers closely but I remember thinking that they reminded me of multi flora rose. Many places planted this invasive species as an ornamental flower so I wouldn't be surprised if it was. I didn't really want to know, so I will just call them pink flowers and leave it at that.

There was a cool looking clock tower sticking up from the trees. I couldn't find any information on the web about it though.

It seems that this event was not well advertised by Westfield. I couldn’t find any information about it online except through the bands website, The Lynyrd Skynyrd Experience. Despite the poor advertising they had a decent turn out.

The band was great and this time they didn’t have the “guest” drummer playing with them, making all kinds of demands and having hissy fits on stage. It was an improvement.

After a rousing rendition of Freebird we went to the Tavern Restaurant across from the green. The bartender there didn’t know there was a band playing on the green that night either. The restaurant was very nice and the food was good. We plan on going back to this place in the future.

Mt. Tom

I took a quick walk on the Mt. Tom Range today and I was reminded again of how incredibly awesome it is to be in the woods, surrounded by the trees and leaves and ferns and moss. There were no great views or vistas this time, just some of the amazing art that Mother Nature provides for those who are paying attention. Nothing can be more beautiful than what nature has provided.

I started off walking through this field of wildflowers. Granted, most of them are probably not native but there were still plenty of butterflies and dragonflies flitting around.

I don’t know if these wild grape vines are considered invasive or not but they sure grow like they are invasive. They have almost completely smothered these trees next to the field and the base of the vines are thick enough that they look like they have been growing here for awhile.

I found a real cool looking green mushroom. Google came up with almost 5 million image possibilities for “green mushroom”. After browsing through the first 10 pages I gave up. It is what it is...a green mushroom. Beyond that I have no idea.

This plant I do recognize though. Indian Pipe has no chlorophyll hence its white color. Because it can not make its own food it is a parasitic plant. It gets its nutrients from certain fungi and decaying plant matter.

We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.
~Native American Proverb

Dwight and Linden Street accident

There was yet another accident at the intersection of Dwight and Linden Street in Holyoke, right in front of Positronic Design. This time the blue car ran the blinking red light and a silver car hit him on the drivers side. The police arrived quickly, then the fire department and the ambulance, and the tow trucks.

Both drivers were conscious but they did have to use the jaws of life to extricate the driver from the blue car. Once they got the driver out they took him and the other driver away in the ambulances. I don't think either one of them was seriously hurt, but you never know.

I have to say that the fire department was impressive. They responded quickly, got the job done, cleaned up the mess and left. The whole thing took 45 minutes or so. I wish the police were that impressive when some guy lost control of his car and wrecked my beautiful Jeep at this same intersection, but that is another story for another time.